Plus500 vs IG - which one is the better trading platform?

We looked at Plus500 and IG in detail to see how the two brokers stack up against each other in terms of fees, trading platforms, products and more.

Our experience shows that IG ranks better when it comes to the number of available financial assets clients can invest in as well as in terms of research and education tools. At the same time, Plus500 excels in customer service quality when compared to IG. 

While Plus500 and IG share some similarities, the latter is not included in our top 5 Plus500 alternatives list, as it lags behind on some aspects in the BrokerChooser methodology. This doesn’t mean that IG is not a good alternative to Plus500, it rather illustrates that the broker is not a 100% replacement to Plus500.

Plus500 summary

The fact that Plus500 is listed on a stock exchange, is regulated by several top-tier financial authorities and discloses its financials publicly are all good signs for the broker's legitimacy.

Plus500 is a CFD broker - with extras

Although its product portfolio consists mainly of CFDs, Plus500 has recently introduced an Invest platform where clients can trade real stocks from some EEA countries and the USA.

   Visit Plus500
86% of retail CFD accounts lose money

IG summary

Being regulated by the top-tier FCA and BaFin is a good sign for IG’s legitimacy.

IG runs a first-class trading platform

IG has one of the best web trading platforms BrokerChooser has tested. The deposit and withdrawal conditions are great. You can also expand your knowledge with great educational materials.

Visit IG
75% of retail CFD accounts lose money

How IG compares to Plus500

On the positive side:

• Both brokers provide high-quality trading platforms. 

• Neither of the two service providers charges account maintenance, deposit, or withdrawal fees

• Clients have access to a demo account at both brokers

On the negative side: 

• Stock CFD and forex fees are not the most competitive on the market at either service provider

• Some popular assets such as funds and bonds are not available at either broker

• Real stock trading is only available to certain clients at IG

Plus500 vs IG: Markets and products

Below is a list of the various assets classes offered by the two brokers. 

Conclusion

Which is better, IG or Plus500?

The Plus500 platform is easy to use and provides a great user experience. Both the account opening process and customer support are great. On the other hand, the broker only offers CFDs and some real stocks, research tools are limited, and CFD fees are average. 

Scalping is taken seriously at Plus500; if you plan to execute many trades within 2 minutes, Plus500 is not your broker.

Compared to Plus500,  IG has a much bigger selection of CFDs and stocks, while clients can also invest in options, ETFs, IPOs and so-called Turbo24s, which are exchange-traded products.  

In terms of fees, our comparison shows that CFD trading fees for certain assets (typically index CFDs) are lower at Plus500 while for others (i.e. individual share CFDs) are more favorable at IG.  

->Back to Plus500 alternatives

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Further reading:

• Plus500 vs Avatrade
• Plus500 vs Trading 212
• Plus500 vs eToro
• Plus500 vs XTB
• Plus500 vs DEGIRO
• Plus500 vs Capital.com