Plus500 Broker Review

Is Plus500 Safe?

Plus500 was founded in 2008 in Israel and has grown into one of the largest online brokers in the world – not only is the company publicly traded on the London Stock Exchange, meaning an additional level of scrutiny, it’s subsidiaries are regulated by seven national authorities:

• Plus500UK Ltd is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FRN 509909).
• Plus500CY Ltd is authorised and regulated by the Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (CySEC Licence No. 250/14).
• Plus500AU Pty Ltd holds AFSL #417727 issued by ASIC, FSP No. 486026 issued by the FMA in New Zealand and Authorised Financial Services Provider #47546 issued by the FSCA in South Africa.
• Plus500SG Pte Ltd (UEN 201422211Z) holds a capital markets services license from the Monetary Authority of Singapore for dealing in capital markets products (License No. CMS100648-1).
• Plus500IL Ltd is registered in Israel and licenced to operate a trading platform

As per regulations, all client funds are kept segregated from the brokers own and Plus500 also offers negative balance protection, ensuring that clients cannot lose more than they have in their account.

Plus500 does not highlight any industry recognition it has received, but the company did win the Best Trading App Award from Daytrader.com in 2019.

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Trading Conditions

Plus500 is a market maker which mean that Plus500 makes the market and trades are not passed on to the international currency markets. Because the market is a closed system, Plus500 is the counterparty to every trade – there are few requotes and fast trade execution.

Plus500 makes a profit from the difference in the buy and sell spreads, and additional commission is not charged on trades.

Spreads at Plus500 are variable and always changing. The Plus500 prices used in this review are are taken on 29.09.2020 12:00h. For more accurate information, check their website.

Account Types

There are two account types – a demo account with play money, and a live account where clients can deposit real funds once the account is verified but Plus500 staff. There are no functionality limitations on the demo account.

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Plus500 is a CFD Service. Your capital is at risk

Demo Account

The demo account gives the trader a practice area before you put up any money. The Plus500 platform is different from other brokers, so I would strongly advise you to have a good look around before you commit with a deposit. Some traders will enjoy the Plus500 platform, but others will prefer a more traditional layout.

Live Account

Besides the demo account, Plus500 only offers one other type of account with a minimum 250.000 Shilling deposit amount. Nothing really with this account – very cut and dry with standard technical charts and fundamentals available.

Spreads and Commissions

Trades at Plus500 are commission-free. Plus500 generates all revenue on the bid/ask variable spreads. The currency pricing used at Plus500 is taken from a 3rd party and reflects actual market value, and then a spread is added on top of the price to create a Plus500 price that the clients can trade. Spreads are published alongside the instrument on the platform.

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Broker

Trading Conditions

Base Currencies

EURUSD (Standard)

Trading Cost (Standard)

EURUSD (Best)

GBPUSD (Best)

USDJPY (Best)

Commission

Plus500

3/ 5

USD, GBP, EUR, CHF, AUD, JPY, PLN, HUF, CZK, CAD, TRY, SEK, NOK, ZAR, SGD

0.80 pips

USD 8

0.80 pips

0 pips

0 pips

USD 0

CM Trading

4/ 5

EUR, USD

1.50 pips

USD 15

1.70 pips

2.60 pips

1.70 pips

USD 0

IQ Option

3/ 5

EUR, GBP, USD

0.80 pips

USD 8

0.80 pips

1.30 pips

0.90 pips

USD 0

**This is only illustrative of what you can expect of the Plus500 platform. No actual.**

Deposit & Withdrawal Fees

Plus500 charges no fees for deposits or withdrawals unless the maximum number of five withdrawals per month has been exceeded. In this extreme case, the client will be charged USD 10 or equivalent per withdrawal.

Note that your bank or credit card company may charge your fees for moving money between Plus500 and your bank, but no fees are charged for this service by Plus500.

Inactivity Fee

Should a client not log into the trading account for three months, a fee of USD 10 will be charged. Should you not log into your account for six months, a total charge for those six months will be USD 20.

**This is only illustrative of what you can expect of the Plus500 platform. No actual.**

Customer Support

Plus500 offers 24/7 customer support via email, online chat and WhatsApp message in 31 different languages. This is a much higher level of service than is commonly available.

The only way the customer support could be improved is by offering phone support for more complex queries and troubleshooting.

Trading Platform

The Plus500 platform can be downloaded an installed on a computer, or a trader can use the Webtrader interface on a browser. Both retail and professional traders use the same desktop and mobile applications.

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Broker

Platform Choice

Copy Trading

Platforms

Plus500

4/ 5

No

Plus500

CM Trading

4/ 5

Yes

MT4

WebTrader

IQ Option

4/ 5

No

IQ option

Mobile Apps

Plus500 mobile apps are free for Windows, Android and IOS. They offer all of the features of the web and downloaded version of the trading suite, and make a convenient on-the-go trading solution.

**This is only illustrative of what you can expect of the Plus500 platform. No actual.**

Evaluation Method

We value transparency and openness in the way we review the partners. To bring transparency to the forefront, we have published our review process that includes a detailed breakdown of the Plus500 offer. Central to that process is the evaluation of the reliability of the broker, the platform offering of the broker and the trading conditions offered to clients, which are summarised in this review. Each one of these is graded, and an overall score is calculated and assigned to the broker.

Plus500 Risk Statement

Trading Forex is risky, and each broker is required to detail how risky the trading of Forex CFDs is to clients. Plus500 would like you to know that: CFDs are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. 76.4% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider. You should consider whether you understand how CFDs work and whether you can afford to take the high risk of losing your money.

Overview

Plus500 is a leading brand in the CFD trading industry and has a loyal following of traders, with a lot of focus on making the trading platform easy to understand and a focus on trying to get the best trading conditions possible. While the education and research area could be developed further, note that the platform is not suitable for beginners/inexperienced traders.

Editorial Team

 

Chris Cammack
Head of Content

Chris joined the company in 2019 after ten years experience in research, editorial and design for political and financial publications. His background has given him a deep knowledge of international financial markets and the geopolitics that affects them. Chris has a keen eye for editing and a voracious appetite for financial and political current affairs. He ensures that our content across all sites meets the standards of quality and transparency that our readers expect.

 

Alison Heyerdahl
Senior Financial Writer

Alison joined the team as a writer in 2021. She is the Senior Editor for FXScouts.  She has a medical degree with a focus on physiotherapy and a bachelor’s in psychology. However, her interest in forex trading and her love for writing led her to switch careers. She has a passion for Forex trading and over a decade of editorial experience researching Forex and the financial services industry, producing high-quality content. She hosts a weekly podcast, “Let’s Talk Forex,” alongside her colleague, Chris, and has produced over 100 Forex educational videos for the FXScouts YouTube channel. She also writes weekly technical analyses and has tested and reviewed over 100 Forex brokers.

 

Ida Hermansen
Financial Writer

Ida joined our team as a financial writer in 2023. She has a degree in Digital Marketing and a background in content writing and SEO. In addition to her marketing and writing skills, Ida also has an interest in cryptocurrencies and blockchain networks. Her interest in crypto trading led to a wider fascination with Forex technical analysis and price movement. She continues to develop her skills and knowledge in Forex trading and keeps a close eye on which Forex brokers offer the best trading environments for new traders.