eToro vs Plus500

Both are listed companies: eToro trades on Nasdaq (ETOR) since May 2025, while Plus500 has been on the London Stock Exchange main market (LSE: PLUS) since 2018 and sits in the FTSE 250. Each operates through country-specific regulated entities — eToro under the FCA, CySEC, ASIC, MAS, and a FINRA-registered US entity; Plus500 under the FCA, CySEC, ASIC, MAS, Japan's JFSA, and several more, including US futures and Canadian entities. eToro has drawn more regulatory friction: a 2023 Italian fine over 'commission-free' marketing, an ongoing ASIC action over CFD distribution to roughly 20,000 Australian clients, and a 2024 SEC settlement that forced eToro USA to cut its crypto offering to Bitcoin, Bitcoin Cash and Ether. Plus500's record shows fewer such actions in recent years.

eToro's key differentiator is real asset ownership: you can buy actual stocks, ETFs, and cryptocurrencies commission-free, alongside leveraged CFDs on forex, indices, and commodities — around 7,000 instruments in total. Plus500 offers CFDs only, across forex, indices, commodities, stocks, and crypto, with no option to hold the underlying asset. Long-term investors who want to actually own shares or crypto, rather than a derivative position, should lean toward eToro; traders who only want leveraged CFD exposure won't miss the ownership option at Plus500.

eToro charges zero commission on real stocks and ETFs, a 0.3%-1% spread on crypto, and roughly 1.0 pip spread on CFDs; Plus500 is spread-only across the board, with EUR/USD measured at roughly 0.6-1.3 pips depending on conditions — often tighter than eToro's CFD pricing. On non-trading fees, eToro's $5 withdrawal fee ($30 minimum, USD accounts) and ~$10/month inactivity fee after 12 months roughly mirror Plus500's own $10/month inactivity fee after just 3 months, though Plus500 doesn't charge a separate withdrawal fee. Both apply a currency conversion charge when your account currency doesn't match the instrument (up to 0.7% at Plus500).

This is eToro's clearest advantage: CopyTrader lets you automatically mirror a Popular Investor's trades in proportion to your own funds at no extra fee, and Smart Portfolios bundle multiple assets around a theme, some co-managed with Franklin Templeton. Plus500 offers no copy trading, no social feed, and no sentiment data — it's built purely as a solo CFD execution platform. Traders who want to learn by following others, or who prefer a hands-off allocation approach, will only find that at eToro.

Neither broker supports MT4, MT5, or cTrader — both run entirely on proprietary web and mobile apps, which rules both out for traders wanting third-party EA or algorithmic trading (Plus500 does offer a separate API for its Futures accounts). Plus500's WebTrader is generally seen as the simpler, more minimal of the two, with over 100 indicators and Trading Central research built in. eToro layers on a social feed, sentiment indicators, and a broader charting toolkit, though its more advanced charting features are gated behind higher eToro Club tiers.

Both rely on chat/ticket support with no published phone line, and both attract complaints about slow response times, particularly around withdrawals and verification. eToro's support runs 24/5 in 22 languages; Plus500 offers 24/7 chat and, in some markets, WhatsApp, and independent monitoring found it responds to most negative Trustpilot reviews within about 48 hours. Neither stands out as fast, but Plus500's 24/7 availability is a small edge over eToro's weekday-only coverage.