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Charles Schwab vs CMC Markets

Charles Schwab or CMC Markets – which is better for UK traders 2024? Compare Charles Schwab and CMC Markets in this detailed breakdown of their platforms, features and fees.

Charles Schwab vs CMC Markets Comparison Table 2024
Charles Schwab	CMC Markets

2.8	4.7
Charles Schwab is ranked #110 among UK brokers.	CMC Markets is ranked #3 among CFD brokers.
Review	Review
Charles Schwab is a large US investment broker offering a massive range of stocks, ETFs and equity derivatives in a variety of savings and investment accounts. The trustworthy brand has been offering financial services for 45+ years with over 35 million brokerage accounts and $870+ billion in assets under management. Charles Schwab is also regulated by top-tier watchdogs including the SEC and FCA.	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.
	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.
Pros
Strong investment offerings covering stocks, mutual funds, options, bonds and cryptocurrency Powerful trading software with real-time quotes, fundamental research and investment screeners Responsive customer support team available 24/7 via live chat or telephone Competitive trading fees with no commissions on stocks and ETFs Fractional shares on the S&P 500 with a $5 minimum investment Thematic investing categories and ESG compliant portfolios Strong regulatory oversight from the US SEC and UK FCA No account minimums for individual brokerage accounts High-quality educational resources for new investors	The web platform delivers a fantastic user experience with advanced charting tools for 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.
Cons
Only US markets available (except 12 foreign markets on the Global Account) High minimum investment of $5000 to use robo-advisors Limited funding methods with no e-wallets No email support	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.
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
FCA Regulated
No List of FCA Regulated Brokers	Yes
Instruments
Stocks, ETFs, Cryptos, Futures, Options, Commodities, Bonds	CFDs, Forex, Stocks, Indices, Commodities, ETFs, Treasuries, Custom Indices, Spread Betting
Demo Account
Yes	Yes
Minimum Deposit
$0	$0
Payment Methods
ACH Transfer Wire Transfer	Credit Cards Debit Card Mastercard PayPal Visa Wire Transfer
Minimum Trade
$1	0.01 Lots
Regulator
SEC, FINRA, FCA1	FCA, ASIC, MAS, CIRO, BaFin, FMA, DFSA
Mobile Apps
iOS & Android	iOS & Android
Trading App
	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 traders.
iOS App Rating
	4.1
Android App Rating
	3.7
Margin Trading
No	Yes
Margin Rate
	1%
MetaTrader 4
No	Yes
MetaTrader 5
No	No
cTrader
No	No
AlgoTrader
No	No
OmniTrader
No	No
TradingView
No	No
Autochartist
No	No
eSignal
No	No
Trading Central
No	No
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
Yes	No
Robo Advisor
Yes	No
Negative Balance Protection
No	Yes
Market Maker
No	Yes
P2P Trading
No	No
Spot Trading
No	Yes
Auto Trading
Yes	Expert Advisors (EAs) on MetaTrader
Copy Trading
No	No
Social Trading
No	Yes
Trade Signals
	Yes
VPS Hosting
No	Yes
Tournaments
No	No
Demo Competitions
No	Yes
Ethical Investing
Yes	No
Custodial Account
Yes	No
Guaranteed Stop Loss
No	Yes
Inactivity Fee
	$10
Islamic Account
No	Yes
Account Currencies
USD	USD EUR GBP CAD AUD NZD SEK NOK SGD PLN
Commodities
Soybeans Lean Hogs	Gold Oil Silver Copper Coffee Wheat Precious Metals Natural Gas Soybeans Orange Juice Nickel Palladium Steel Cannabis Platinum Livestock Sugar Gasoline Cattle Lean Hogs
CFD
	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.
Leverage
	1:30 (Retail), 1:500 (Pro)
FTSE Spread
	1 pt
GBPUSD Spread<
	0.9
Oil Spread
	3.5
Stocks Spread
	0.02
Forex
	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.
Assets
	300+
GBPUSD Spread
	0.9
EURUSD Spread
	0.7
EURGBP Spread
	1.1
Currency Indices
	USD EUR GBP JPY CAD AUD NZD CHF
Cryptocurrency
Charles Schwab supports indirect crypto trading through digital coin trusts and crypto-related stocks. You can get exposure to popular digital currencies such as Bitcoin, Ripple and Ethereum.	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 traders.
Spread
Floating	From 1.3
Coins
GBTC BITW	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

Charles Schwab	CMC Markets
Review	Review
	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.
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