CMC Markets vs Freetrade

vs
CMC Markets vs Freetrade Comparison Table 2024
CMC Markets Freetrade
4.7
3.5
United States Flag Traders from US not accepted
United States Flag Traders from US not accepted

Established in 1989, CMC Markets is a respected broker listed on the London Stock Exchange and authorized by several tier-one regulators, including the FCA, ASIC and CIRO. More than 1 million traders from around the world have signed up with the multi-award winning brokerage.

Freetrade is a London-headquartered investing platform that offers zero-commission trading on thousands of UK, European and US stocks and ETFs through a beginner-friendly platform. Open a standard investment account, a self-invested pension or a stocks and shares ISA and start building a portfolio from as little as £2.

Spread bets and CFDs are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. 69% of retail investor accounts lose money when spread betting and/or trading CFDs with this provider. You should consider whether you understand how spread bets and CFDs work and whether you can afford to take the high risk of losing your money.
Customer Reviews
4.5
Comment by Reviewer
"With advanced charting tools and an extensive range of tradable CFDs, including an almost unrivalled selection of currencies and custom indices, CMC Markets provides a fantastic online platform for traders of all levels. " "Freetrade provides a simple and affordable way for casual investors to build a diverse portfolio of 6000+ US, UK and European stocks with zero commissions."
Pros
  • The web platform delivers a fantastic user experience with advanced charting tools for day trading and customizable features, catering to both beginners and experienced traders. MT4 (but not MT5) is also supported.
  • CMC offers excellent pricing, including tight spreads and low trading fees for all but stock CFDs. The Alpha and Price+ schemes also offer perks for active traders with up to 40% discounts on spreads.
  • CMC Markets is heavily regulated by reputable financial authorities and maintains its stellar reputation, helping to ensure a secure and trustworthy trading environment.
  • The brokerage continues to stand out with its wide range of value-add resources, including pattern recognition scanners, webinars, tutorials, news feeds, and research from respected sources like Morningstar.
  • CMC Markets offers a rich investment offering with over 12,000 CFDs and more recently options trading, providing opportunities to trade market volatility and hedge existing positions.
  • FCA-regulated brand with FSCS cover for investors
  • Thousands of US and UK stocks and hundreds of ETFs to choose from
  • Very competitive pricing vs competitors with low fees and zero commissions
  • Earn interest on uninvested cash with competitive rates
  • Transfer/move ISAs from other accounts
  • News and blog feed updated regularly
  • Built-in customer support via live chat
  • Fast revenue withdrawals
  • Dividends on stocks
Cons
  • Despite improvements, the web platform still requires enhancements to make it as intuitive to trade on as software from rivals like IG.
  • While CMC offers an above-average suite of assets, there is no support for trading real stocks and UK clients can’t trade cryptocurrencies.
  • Trading stock CFDs incurs a relatively high commission, especially compared to the cheapest brokers like IC Markets.
  • An inactivity fee of $10 per month is applied after 12 months of inactivity, which may deter casual investors.
  • The CMC Markets app offers the complete trading package but the design and user experience trails category leaders like eToro.
  • Competitors have larger selection of assets
  • Trading platform lacks deep analytical tools
  • Less suitable for active, high-volume traders
  • Many countries not accepted
  • No leveraged trading
  • No demo account
Awards
  • Best Trading App 2023 - DayTrading.com
  • No.1 Platform Technology 2022
  • No.1 New Tool 2022
  • No.1 Most Currency Pairs 2022
  • Best Trade Execution 2021
  • Best Forex Broker For Beginners 2021
  • Most Transparent Forex Broker Europe 2020
  • Best Trading Platform 2020
  • Best Trading App 2019
  • Best Customer Service 2018
  • Best Online Trading Platform 2020 - British Bank Awards
  • Best Share Trading Platform 2019 - British Bank Awards
  • People’s Choice 2019 - Good Money Guide
  • Best New Investment Service 2019 - Consumer Investment Awards
Instruments
CFDs, Forex, Stocks, Indices, Commodities, ETFs, Treasuries, Custom Indices, Spread Betting Stocks, ETFs
Demo Account
Yes No
Minimum Deposit
$0 $0
Trading Platforms
  • Web
  • MT4
  • Own
Payment Methods
Minimum Trade
0.01 Lots £2
Regulator
FCA, ASIC, MAS, CIRO, BaFin, FMA, DFSA FCA
Margin Trading
Yes No
Margin Rate
1%
STP Account
No No
ECN Account
No No
DMA Account
No No
MAM Account
No No
PAMM Account
No No
LAMM Account
No No
Demat Account
No No
AI / Machine Learning
No No
Robo Advisor
No No
Negative Balance Protection
Yes No
Market Maker
Yes No
P2P Trading
No No
Spot Trading
Yes No
Mobile Apps
iOS & Android Yes
App Review

The award-winning app from CMC Markets has transformed mobile trading. The app’s modern and customizable interface offers a unique user experience, distinct from competitors. Moreover, with its comprehensive charting capabilities featuring 25 technical indicators and 15 drawing tools, as well as its fast and stable trading environment, it’s an exceptional choice for day traders.

Android App Rating
3.7
4.3
iOS App Rating
4.1
4.3
Auto Trading
Expert Advisors (EAs) on MetaTrader
Copy Trading
No No
Social Trading
Yes No
Trade Signals
Yes
VPS Hosting
Yes No
Tournaments
No No
Demo Competitions
Yes No
Ethical Investing
No No
Custodial Account
No No
Guaranteed Stop Loss
Yes No
Inactivity Fee
$10
Islamic Account
Yes No
Account Currencies
  • USD
  • EUR
  • GBP
  • CAD
  • AUD
  • NZD
  • SEK
  • NOK
  • SGD
  • PLN
Stock Exchanges
Commodities
CFD Trading
CMC lets you trade CFDs on 12,000+ assets across currencies, indices, commodities, shares, ETFs and treasuries. Spreads are relatively tight, there are no hidden fees and the industry-leading MetaTrader 4 platform is also supported for leveraged trading. Year after year, CMC shines as one of the best CFD brokers in the market. CFD trading not offered
Leverage
1:30 (Retail), 1:500 (Pro)
FTSE Spread
1 pt
GBPUSD Spread
0.9
Oil Spread
3.5
Stocks Spread
0.02
Forex Trading
CMC presents an extensive array of 300+ forex pairs characterized by tight spreads and rapid executions, surpassing the offerings of many competitors in terms of currency diversity. Forex indices also present a fairly unique and holistic way to speculate on the value of key currencies like the USD, EUR and GBP. Forex trading not offered
GBPUSD Spread
0.9
EURUSD Spread
0.7
EURGBP Spread
1.1
Assets
300+
Currency Indices
  • USD
  • EUR
  • GBP
  • JPY
  • CAD
  • AUD
  • NZD
  • CHF
Cryptocurrency
CMC Markets offers trading on popular digital tokens like Bitcoin but really stands out for its crypto indices that provide broader exposure to the cryptocurrency market. There is also minimal slippage and an excellent 99.9% fill rate, making CMC a great option for active crypto day traders. Crypto trading not offered
Spread
From 1.3
Coins
  • BTC
  • BCH
  • ETH
  • LTC
  • EOS
  • TRON
  • NEO
  • ADA
  • XLM
Crypto Lending
No No
Crypto Mining
No No
Crypto Staking
No No
Auto Market Maker
No No
Spread bets and CFDs are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. 69% of retail investor accounts lose money when spread betting and/or trading CFDs with this provider. You should consider whether you understand how spread bets and CFDs work and whether you can afford to take the high risk of losing your money.