Plus500 review

Our rating

Plus500 scores 8.9 out of 10 on our table. That figure is an average of six things we assess, and it hides the shape of the broker: its strongest area is regulation at 9.8, its weakest is education at 8.3. Whether that gap matters depends entirely on which of the six you were going to use.

In its favour: user-friendly platform, wide range of instruments. Against it: limited research tools.

Regulation and safety9.8/10

Plus500 lists its authorisations as FCA (509909); ASIC (AFSL 417727); CySEC (250/14); FMA (486026); FSCA (47546); MAS (CMS100648); Seychelles FSA (SD039); DFSA (F005651); EFSA (4.1-1/18); SCB Bahamas (SIA-F250); CIRO; ISA; JFSA; SCA; CFTC/NFA. That is a mixed structure, and the mix is the point: it holds at least one tier-one licence alongside offshore entities, and which one takes your account depends on where you live rather than on which you would prefer.

The licence that matters to you is the one held by the entity that opens your account, and at a multi-entity broker that is decided by your country of residence. Its registration can be checked directly on the FCA Financial Services Register, FRN 509909. It is a two-minute check and it is the only way to confirm that the firm taking your deposit is the firm named on the website.

Client money is held separately from the firm's own funds, with segregated client bank accounts with regulated banking institutions - so that if the business fails, client balances are not part of what its creditors can reach. Negative balance protection applies, so a gap through your stop cannot leave you owing the broker money.

On compensation: FSCS up to £85,000 for eligible UK clients; ICF up to €20,000 for eligible Cyprus clients. That covers the broker failing, not your trades losing money - the two are frequently confused and only one of them is insured.

Plus500 does not accept clients from United States for CFDs, Belgium, and other jurisdictions where CFD services are prohibited or Plus500 is not authorised. Restriction lists move, so confirm your own country before you spend time on an application.

What it costs to trade8.8/10

Plus500 advertises spreads from 0.6 pips. There is no separate commission on its standard pricing, so the whole of the broker's charge sits inside that spread - one number to think about, and no arithmetic at the end of the month. Put the two together and a EUR/USD round turn works out at approx. 0.6 pips, which is the figure worth comparing against other brokers.

An advertised minimum is the best price a broker has ever quoted, not the price you will get. On our record its measured average on EUR/USD is approx. 0.6 pips, and approx. 1.2 pips on GBP/USD. Spreads are variable, so they move with liquidity and widen around releases and the daily rollover.

Positions held overnight accrue a swap, and swap-free accounts are available for clients who need them. Currency conversion costs up to 0.7% where your account and the instrument use different currencies - worth avoiding by funding in the currency you intend to trade.

Leave the account dormant and it costs you: up to $10/month after 3 months without logging in. That is the charge most often missed when comparing brokers, and it matters disproportionately if you trade seasonally or infrequently.

Platforms and tools8.6/10

Plus500 runs Plus500 WebTrader, Plus500 mobile and desktop platforms. Everything happens inside the broker's own software. That is simpler to start on - there is one interface and it was designed for this broker's products - and it is a dead end if you later want expert advisors, because none of the third-party ecosystem is available here.

Automated strategies are not supported, which rules the broker out for anyone running a system rather than trading by hand. There is no public retail API, so automation has to go through the platform rather than around it. Copy trading is not offered.

Charting runs to 100+ technical indicators. Additional tools include tradingView-powered charting features and external market data integrations. On mobile: proprietary.

Markets, leverage and execution9.3/10

Plus500 covers Forex, Shares, Indices, Commodities, ETFs, Options, Cryptocurrencies. That comes to 2,800+ instruments in total. On the currency side specifically it lists 60+ pairs. Breadth is worth less than depth in the markets you actually trade - a hundred instruments priced well beats a thousand you will never open.

Leverage is capped at 1:30, which is the retail limit under tier-one regulation - a protection rather than a restriction. Our record for this broker reads "1:30 retail", and the difference between those figures is the entity you are onboarded to rather than anything you can choose. Whatever the headline, the number that governs your position is the margin requirement on the specific instrument - it is always lower on shares and crypto than on major currency pairs.

Execution is market maker, meaning the broker is the counterparty to your trade rather than routing it to an external venue. It is a legitimate and very common model, and it is worth knowing which one you are dealing with. Measured speed is under 1 second. Its servers sit in global cloud/data-centre infrastructure, which is what determines latency more than any software choice.

Order types available: market, limit, stop, stop-loss, stop-limit, trailing stop, guaranteed stop. Stops and limits are table stakes; what separates platforms is whether the ones you rely on are there and how quickly they can be modified once a position is open.

Accounts

Account types run to retail, Professional, Demo, Swap-Free. The minimum deposit is $100. The smallest position it will take is instrument-dependent; generally from micro-position sizes, which is what actually governs how precisely you can size risk on a small account.

A demo account is available, which is the cheapest way to find out whether the platform suits you. Swap-free Islamic accounts are offered. Professional classification is available for clients who qualify, which lifts leverage caps and lowers the protections that come with retail status - a trade rather than an upgrade. Opening takes typically a few minutes.

Accounts can be denominated in AUD, USD, EUR, GBP and other region-dependent currencies. Funding in the currency you trade removes a conversion charge from every position, which is a small saving repeated indefinitely.

Deposits and withdrawals

Deposits can be made by Visa, Mastercard, bank transfer, PayPal, Skrill, Apple Pay, Google Pay, Trustly and regional methods. They clear in instant for cards and most e-wallets.

Withdrawals go out by credit/debit card, bank transfer, PayPal, Skrill and supported regional methods. Expect 1-3 business days processing plus payment-provider processing time. The minimum withdrawal is $50 PayPal/Skrill; $100 bank transfer/cards. Check the withdrawal routes rather than the deposit ones. They are frequently not the same list, anti-money-laundering rules usually require funds to return the way they came, and the difference only becomes apparent at the point you want your money back.

Local payment methods include Trustly; Apple Pay; Google Pay and jurisdiction-specific local methods - which matters more than it looks if you are outside the broker's home market, since an international wire is slow and expensive compared with a domestic transfer.

Support and education8.6/10

Support runs 24/7. That is worth more than it sounds on a leveraged account: markets gap at inconvenient hours, and a position you cannot get help with is a position you carry until somebody answers. You can reach them by live chat, email, WhatsApp. Live chat typically answers in under 2 minutes. Support is offered in 30 languages.

Its education is substantial - Trading Academy, beginner guides, webinars, videos, articles and glossary - which is the difference between a broker that will teach you and one that will simply take the deposit. Research output covers economic news, market insights, +Insights, sentiment and analytical tools.

The company behind the brand

The company behind the brand is Plus500 Ltd, registered as 514142577. It operates from Haifa, Israel. It has been trading since 2008, so there is about 18 years of record to look at.

It is independently owned rather than part of a larger group. The group is publicly listed, which means audited accounts and disclosure obligations a private broker does not carry - a genuine, if indirect, piece of reassurance. Headcount is in the 674 range.

You may also see it under Plus500; Plus500 Invest; Plus500 Futures. Brands and legal entities rarely map one to one in this industry, and the name on the website is not always the name on the client agreement.