United States
United Kingdom
Germany
Netherlands
Australia
United Arab Emirates
Canada
Italy
Spain
Austria
Croatia
Serbia
Portugal
CyprusQuestrade vs Interactive Brokers
What each one charges, who licenses it, and how they rank against each other country by country.
CFDs are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. You should consider whether you understand how CFDs work and whether you can afford to take the high risk of losing your money.
The short version
Canada is the one country where we rank both for forex, and Interactive Brokers comes out ahead there.
We score each country separately, based on the company that would actually hold your account there, so check your own country in the table below.
On fees it's a draw: each is cheaper on 1 of the 3 we could check for both.
Both hold top-tier (tier-1) licences: Questrade from CIRO, Interactive Brokers from SEC / FINRA, FCA, CBI, ASIC, CIRO, SFC, MAS and JFSA.
- Interactive Brokers is cheaper for EUR/USD: 0.6 pips all-in, compared with 1.9 pips all-in at Questrade.Edge: Interactive Brokers
- Questrade is cheaper for US stock orders: $0 per order, compared with $1 per order at Interactive Brokers.Edge: Questrade
- Neither charges an inactivity fee.
- We list Questrade in 1 of the 14 countries we cover and Interactive Brokers in 12. They overlap in 1.Edge: Interactive Brokers
- Only Interactive Brokers offers crypto.
- Interactive Brokers gets more search attention than Questrade (Market Signal 61 vs 49). That tells you how well known it is, not how good it is.
Where you can use each one
Where each one ranks on our list in every country we cover, its Coinish Score there, and the company that would hold your account. If a broker isn't allowed to take clients from a country, it isn't on that country's list.
Forex brokers
| Country | Questrade | Interactive Brokers |
|---|---|---|
| Canada | #6 of 658/100Locally licensed Questrade, Inc. · CIRO | #4 of 667/100Locally licensed Interactive Brokers Canada Inc. · CIRO |
| Australia | Not listed | #7 of 1667/100Locally licensed Interactive Brokers Australia Pty. Ltd. · ASIC |
| Austria | Not listed | #6 of 2867/100EU passport Interactive Brokers Ireland Limited · CBI |
| Croatia | Not listed | #4 of 2667/100EU passport Interactive Brokers Ireland Limited · CBI |
| Cyprus | Not listed | #5 of 2867/100EU passport Interactive Brokers Ireland Limited · CBI |
| Germany | Not listed | #7 of 2967/100EU passport Interactive Brokers Ireland Limited · CBI |
| Italy | Not listed | #7 of 3167/100EU passport Interactive Brokers Ireland Limited · CBI |
| Netherlands | Not listed | #6 of 2867/100EU passport Interactive Brokers Ireland Limited · CBI |
| Portugal | Not listed | #6 of 2967/100EU passport Interactive Brokers Ireland Limited · CBI |
| Spain | Not listed | #7 of 2967/100EU passport Interactive Brokers Ireland Limited · CBI |
| United Kingdom | Not listed | #9 of 1767/100Locally licensed Interactive Brokers (U.K.) Limited · FCA |
| United States | Not listed | #3 of 467/100Locally licensed Interactive Brokers LLC · SEC / FINRA |
CFD brokers
| Country | Questrade | Interactive Brokers |
|---|---|---|
| Australia | Not listed | #8 of 1867/100Locally licensed Interactive Brokers Australia Pty. Ltd. · ASIC |
| Austria | Not listed | #7 of 3067/100EU passport Interactive Brokers Ireland Limited · CBI |
| Canada | #5 of 558/100Locally licensed Questrade, Inc. · CIRO | Not listed |
| Croatia | Not listed | #5 of 2867/100EU passport Interactive Brokers Ireland Limited · CBI |
| Cyprus | Not listed | #6 of 3067/100EU passport Interactive Brokers Ireland Limited · CBI |
| Germany | Not listed | #8 of 3167/100EU passport Interactive Brokers Ireland Limited · CBI |
| Italy | Not listed | #8 of 3367/100EU passport Interactive Brokers Ireland Limited · CBI |
| Netherlands | Not listed | #7 of 3067/100EU passport Interactive Brokers Ireland Limited · CBI |
| Portugal | Not listed | #7 of 3167/100EU passport Interactive Brokers Ireland Limited · CBI |
| Spain | Not listed | #8 of 3167/100EU passport Interactive Brokers Ireland Limited · CBI |
| United Kingdom | Not listed | #10 of 1867/100Locally licensed Interactive Brokers (U.K.) Limited · FCA |
Stock brokers & investing apps
| Country | Questrade | Interactive Brokers |
|---|---|---|
| Canada | #5 of 566/100Locally licensed Questrade, Inc. · CIRO | #3 of 571/100Locally licensed Interactive Brokers Canada Inc. · CIRO |
| Australia | Not listed | #5 of 871/100Locally licensed Interactive Brokers Australia Pty. Ltd. · ASIC |
| Austria | Not listed | #2 of 871/100EU passport Interactive Brokers Ireland Limited · CBI |
| Croatia | Not listed | #2 of 871/100EU passport Interactive Brokers Ireland Limited · CBI |
| Cyprus | Not listed | #2 of 971/100EU passport Interactive Brokers Ireland Limited · CBI |
| Germany | Not listed | #2 of 1271/100EU passport Interactive Brokers Ireland Limited · CBI |
| Italy | Not listed | #2 of 1171/100EU passport Interactive Brokers Ireland Limited · CBI |
| Netherlands | Not listed | #3 of 1071/100EU passport Interactive Brokers Ireland Limited · CBI |
| Portugal | Not listed | #2 of 971/100EU passport Interactive Brokers Ireland Limited · CBI |
| Spain | Not listed | #2 of 971/100EU passport Interactive Brokers Ireland Limited · CBI |
| United Kingdom | Not listed | #4 of 771/100Locally licensed Interactive Brokers (U.K.) Limited · FCA |
| United States | Not listed | #6 of 971/100Locally licensed Interactive Brokers LLC · SEC / FINRA |
Fees and features side by side
| Questrade | Interactive Brokers | |
|---|---|---|
| Products | Stocks & ETFs, Options, Forex, CFDs | Stocks & ETFs, Forex, CFDs, Options, Futures, Crypto |
| Owner | Questrade Financial Group Inc. | IBG LLC |
| EUR/USD all-in cost | 1.9 pips, FX & CFD account (target spread) | 0.6 pips, IBKR Pro (0.20 bps commission + spread from 0.1 pip) |
| US stock commission | $0 per order | $1 per order |
| Crypto trading fee | Not verified yet | Not verified yet |
| Currency conversion fee | Not verified yet | Not verified yet |
| Inactivity fee | None | None |
| Withdrawal fee | None | Up to $10 |
| Minimum deposit | $0 (Questrade, Inc.) | $0 (Interactive Brokers LLC) |
| Instruments | Not verified yet | Not verified yet |
| Fractional shares | Yes | Yes |
| Platforms | Questrade Edge, Questrade Pro | Client Portal, IBKR Desktop, Trader Workstation (TWS) |
| Deposit methods | Online banking bill payment, Instant deposit (Interac, Visa Debit), Pre-authorized deposit, Wire transfer, Cheque | Wire transfer, Electronic funds transfer (SEPA, ACH, BACS), Check (US only) |
| Withdrawal time (stated) | Not verified yet | same day or next day (SEPA and bank wire) |
| Demo account | Not verified yet | Yes |
| Support | live chat, phone | live chat, email, phone |
Every figure comes from the broker's own pages or its regulator. You'll find the sources in each review (Questrade, Interactive Brokers).
Licences
Interactive Brokers
- Interactive Brokers LLC: SEC / FINRA (Tier 1)
- Interactive Brokers (U.K.) Limited: FCA (Tier 1)
- Interactive Brokers Ireland Limited: CBI (Tier 1)
- Interactive Brokers Australia Pty. Ltd.: ASIC (Tier 1)
- Interactive Brokers Canada Inc.: CIRO (Tier 1)
- Interactive Brokers Hong Kong Limited: SFC (Tier 1)
- Interactive Brokers Singapore Pte. Ltd.: MAS (Tier 1)
- Interactive Brokers Securities Japan Inc.: JFSA (Tier 1)
- Interactive Brokers India Pvt. Ltd.: SEBI (Tier 2)
Questrade vs Interactive Brokers: common questions
Which is better, Questrade or Interactive Brokers?
Canada is the one country where we rank both for forex, and Interactive Brokers comes out ahead there. For reference, Questrade's best ranking is #5 of 5 CFD brokers in Canada, and Interactive Brokers' best ranking is #2 of 12 stock brokers & investing apps in Germany.
Is Questrade cheaper than Interactive Brokers?
Interactive Brokers is cheaper for EUR/USD: 0.6 pips all-in, compared with 1.9 pips all-in at Questrade. Questrade is cheaper for US stock orders: $0 per order, compared with $1 per order at Interactive Brokers. Neither charges an inactivity fee.
Is Questrade or Interactive Brokers better regulated?
Both hold top-tier (tier-1) licences: Questrade from CIRO, Interactive Brokers from SEC / FINRA, FCA, CBI, ASIC, CIRO, SFC, MAS and JFSA. Which company you actually sign up with depends on where you live; the country table on this page names it for each one.
Can I use both Questrade and Interactive Brokers where I live?
We list Questrade in 1 of the 14 countries we cover and Interactive Brokers in 12. They overlap in 1. For forex, you'll find both on our lists in Canada.