Interactive brokers vs. Saxo Bank

Comparison: Interactive brokers vs. Saxo Bank – Which broker is better? A quick comparison based on the trading platform, fees, deposit or withdrawal options, and regulation in 2026.

Winner of this comparison: Interactive brokers with an overall rating of 50%

Interactive brokers vs. Saxo Bank
Interactive brokers
Saxo Bank

Basic information

Deposit
10 EUR/USD
2000 EUR/USD
Spreads
1 EUR/USD
2 EUR/USD
Established
1978
1992
Currency Pairs (Total Forex pairs)
22
182
Country
UK
Denmark, UK
Regulation
Authorised in the European Union (EU)
FCA (UK), ASIC (Australia), Cysec
Trading app
Desktop Platform (Windows), Web Platform
Web Platform
Number of CFD asset classes
5
5
Broker type
ECN, STP
ECN, STP
Support
Phone, Mail, Chat
Phone, Mail, Chat
Funding methods
* Some of the payment methods may not be available in your country. Visa/Mastercard, Bank Wire
* Some of the payment methods may not be available in your country. Visa/Mastercard, Bank Wire
Real Stocks and ETFs
Yes
Yes

*The value is indicative from the broker's website. The spread amount is variable.

Comparison Result

In terms of overall rating, both brokers are equal – both have 50%. Interactive brokers requires a minimum deposit of 10 EUR/USD, while Saxo Bank sets it at 2000 EUR/USD. Thanks to the lower deposit, Interactive brokers is more welcoming to traders with smaller budgets. For Interactive brokers, the spread is 1 EUR/USD, while for Saxo Bank it is 2 EUR/USD. Tighter spreads make Interactive brokers a more advantageous choice. Interactive brokers offers 22 forex pairs, while Saxo Bank provides 182. More options come with Saxo Bank. Interactive brokers was founded in 1978, while Saxo Bank has been operating since 1992. The longer tradition of Interactive brokers means greater experience. Both brokers allow trading with real stocks. Interactive brokers is overseen by 1 regulatory bodies, while Saxo Bank has 3. Stricter oversight at Saxo Bank gives it an advantage. Interactive brokers supports 2 platforms, while Saxo Bank offers 1. A greater choice of platforms gives Interactive brokers the lead.
50%
Interactive brokers
45%
Saxo Bank

Key Strengths

Interactive brokers
  • Extremely low fees
  • Wide range of products
  • Many great research tools
  • Low margin rates
  • No inactivity fee and no withdrawal fee
Saxo Bank
  • Fully licensed European company with strong backing
  • More suitable for professional traders
  • Proprietary trading platforms
  • Competitive trading spreads
  • Really large number of trading instruments

Comparison by Categories

  1. Investments 62 62
  2. Cost 80 80
  3. Trading app 29 14
  4. Trading Tools 100 100
  5. Research 83 83
  6. Education 100 67
  7. Forex 100 100
  8. Commodities 100 36
  9. Indicies 100 100
  10. Cryptocurrencies 0 0
  11. Regulations 17 50
  12. Support 100 100
  13. Overall 50 45

Comprehensive Comparison: Interactive brokers vs Saxo Bank

Interactive brokers
Saxo Bank

Investments

62 % 62 %
Currency Pairs (Total Forex pairs)
22
182
CFDs – Total Offered
100+
201+
Options CFD
Yes
No
Share CFDs
No
Yes
Forex CFD
Yes
Yes
Commodities CFD
Yes
Yes
ETF CFD
Yes
Yes
Indicies CFD
Yes
Yes
Cryptocurrency traded as actual
No
No
Cryptocurrency traded as CFD
No
No
Winner
No
No

Cost

80 % 80 %
Average Spread EUR/USD *The value is indicative from the broker's website. The spread amount is variable.
1
2
Deposit from
10
2000
Account fee
No
No
Inactivity fee
Yes
Yes
Active Trader or VIP Discounts
No
No
Withdrawal fees
No
No
Deposit fees
No
No
Winner
No
No

Trading app

29 % 14 %
Desktop Platform (Windows)
Yes
No
Web Platform
Yes
Yes
Social Trading / Copy-Trading
No
No
MetaTrader 4 (MT4)
No
No
MetaTrader 5 (MT5)
No
No
Currenex
No
No
cTrader
No
No
Winner
No
No

Trading Tools

100 % 100 %
Financial leverage
Yes
Yes
Virtual Trading (Demo)
Yes
Yes
Alerts – Basic Fields
Yes
Yes
Charting – Indicators / Studies (Total)
Yes
Yes
Charting – Drawing Tools (Total)
Yes
Yes
Charting – Trade From Chart
Yes
Yes
Stop-Loss
Yes
Yes
Finacial Calendar
Yes
Yes
Daily financial news
Yes
Yes
Order Type – Trailing Stop
Yes
Yes
Winner
No
No

Research

83 % 83 %
Daily Market Commentary
Yes
Yes
Forex News (Top-Tier Sources)
Yes
Yes
Weekly Webinars
Yes
Yes
Social Sentiment – Currency Pairs
No
No
Economic Calendar
Yes
Yes
Research
Yes
Yes
Winner
No
No

Education

100 % 67 %
Has Education – Forex
Yes
Yes
Has Education – CFDs
Yes
Yes
Client Webinars
Yes
Yes
Videos – Advanced Trading Videos
Yes
Yes
Investor Dictionary (Glossary)
Yes
No
Education
Yes
No
Winner
No
No

Forex

100 % 100 %
GBP/USD
Yes
Yes
USD/JPY
Yes
Yes
EUR/USD
Yes
Yes
USD/CHF
Yes
Yes
USD/CAD
Yes
Yes
NZD/USD
Yes
Yes
AUD/USD
Yes
Yes
Winner
No
No

Commodities

100 % 36 %
Gold
Yes
Yes
Silver
Yes
Yes
WIT Oil
Yes
Yes
Brent Oil
Yes
Yes
Coffee
Yes
No
Cocoa
Yes
No
Soybeans
Yes
No
Rice
Yes
No
Corn
Yes
No
Platinum
Yes
No
Palladium
Yes
No
Winner
No
No

Indicies

100 % 100 %
DAX 40
Yes
Yes
S&P 500
Yes
Yes
Nasdaq
Yes
Yes
Dow Jones
Yes
Yes
Nikkei
Yes
Yes
Winner
No
No

Cryptocurrencies

0 % 0 %
Bitcoin
No
No
Litecoin
No
No
Ethereum
No
No
Ripple
No
No
Neo
No
No
Stellar
No
No
Cardano
No
No
Tron
No
No
Monero
No
No
EOS
No
No
Winner
No
No

Regulations

17 % 50 %
Cysec
No
Yes
ASIC (Australia)
No
Yes
FCA (UK)
No
Yes
Authorised in the European Union (EU)
Yes
No
CFTC Registered (USA)
No
No
FINMA (Switzerland)
No
No
Winner
No
No

Support

100 % 100 %
Chat
Yes
Yes
Phone
Yes
Yes
Mail
Yes
Yes
Winner
No
No

Overall

50 % 45 %
Winner
No
No

Our Recommendations

Best for Interactive brokers

Thanks to comprehensive educational materials and a user-friendly platform, Interactive brokers is an ideal choice for new traders.

Best Platform Interactive brokers

The trading platform of broker Interactive brokers offers an intuitive interface and advanced features for efficient trading.

Lowest Costs

Both brokers have comparable fee structures and spreads.

Interactive brokers Saxo Bank