Is eToro better than CMC Markets? Who offers lower spread, better trading conditions and is safer broker to trade?
We provide answers to all questions in this eToro vs CMC Markets Comparison Review. For this Review we opened real accounts and deposit over $6,000 in total to compare both offerings, account opening process at eToro vs CMC Markets also the fees, trading conditions, platform selection and withdrawal process.
What is eToro and CMC Markets
eToro is one of the largest, Best Social trading Brokers and platforms with a good range of portfolios and a Top number of investors.
CMC Markets is a UK forex broker, offering financial trading services with CFDs and spread betting.
Some of the highlights of eToro vs CMC Markets are:
| eToro | CMC Markets | |
| 💻 Website | www.etoro.com | www.cmcmarkets.com |
| 🛡️Founded year | 2006 | 1989 |
| 🏦 Headquarter | Israel | London |
| 🗺️ Authorized & Regulated in | USA, UK, Australia, Cyprus | the United Kingdom, Germany, Australia, Singapore, New Zealand, Canada, and the United Arab Emirates |
| 🔒 Is Broker safe | Yes | Yes |
| 💰 EUR/USD Spread | 0.97 | 0.7 |
| 💳 Minimum deposit | US$50 or US$500 | US$0 |
| 💰 Withdrawal fee | US$5 | US$0 |
| 🖥️ Trading Platform | eToro’s own trading platform | MT4, Next Generation Platform |
| 📈 Markets offered | Indices, Forex, Commodities, Stocks, Cryptocurrencies, ETFs | Forex, Indices, Stocks, ETFs, Commodities, Treasuries, Cryptocurrencies |
| 📉 Number of Products | 986 | 10063 (Depends on the jurisdiction) |
| 🔎 Our Detailed Review | eToro Review | CMC Markets Review |
Licenses and Regulation
eToro vs CMC Markets are both safe to trade and are highly reliable, low-risk trading Brokers due to regulations and are not a scam.
eToro is licensed by some of the top global regulators, including the UK’s FCA, CySEC, ASIC, and FinCEN.
CMC Markets holds 8 regulatory licenses from mostly the top financial market regulators, including the United Kingdom, Germany, Australia, Singapore, New Zealand, Canada, and the United Arab Emirates.
For this review, we opened an account with eToro (Europe) Limited regulated by CySEC and with CMC Markets UK Plc, which is regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) in the UK.
We recommend you register your account with the eToro UK or CySEC entity and with any of the CMC Markets entities if they are available in your jurisdiction.
| eToro | CMC Markets | |
| 🔒 Licenses | ASIC, CySEC, IE Singapore, FCA, NFA | FCA, BaFin, AFSL, MAS, FMA, IIROC, DFSA |
| Top Tier License | ✔️ | ✔️ |
| Publically Traded | ❌ | ✔️ |
| Compensation Scheme | ✔️ (depending on entity) | ✔️ (depending on entity) |
eToro vs CMC Markets Fees
eToro vs CMC Markets fees are built into a spread basis.
There are additional fees charged by eToro. The broker charges a few non-trading fees, while CMC Markets has bare minimum non-trading fees. The broker offers free deposits and withdrawals (with some exceptions), and there are no account maintenance fees.
| eToro Fees | CMC Markets Fees | |
| Fees Based on Spread | ✔️ | ✔️ |
| Floating Spread | ✔️ | ✔️ |
| Fixed Spread | ❌ | ❌ |
| Commission Based Fees | ❌ | ✔️ |
| Inactivity Fee | $10 | $15 |
| Deposit Fee | $0 | $0 |
| Withdrawal Fee | $5 | $0 |
| Active Trader/ VIP Programs | ✔️ | ✔️ |
Spreads Charged in Our Trades
For our test trades on eToro vs CMC Markets accounts, we chose popular instruments in each market. We placed 3 trades for each instrument to get the average spread, we found both negative and positive sides for each Broker spreads.
eToro spreads for Indices and Forex are below the industry average. For stock CFDs spreads, Commodities and Cryptocurrencies are above the industry average.
Our testing finds CMC Markets spreads for Forex much lower than the industry average. Spreads on commodities are also lower than the average benchmark, while for indices, it is higher.
| Markets | Instruments | eToro commission | CMC Markets commission | Industry avg. spread |
| Indices | FTSE 100 | 1.4 | 2 | 1.65 |
| Forex | EUR/USD | 0.97 | 0.7 | 1.16 |
| Commodities | Gold | 4.5 | 3 | 3.53 |
| Stocks | AAPL | 2.23 | 1 | 1.75 |
| Cryptocurrencies | Bitcoin | 102.71 | – | 72.81 |
Account Types Compared
eToro offers a single account with access to all tools and services from one account, while CMC Markets offers three straightforward accounts: Spread betting account, CFD account, and Professional account.
Opening a new account on eToro was very simple and easy, the registration process took merely 11 minutes.
Account Opening with CMC Markets for our test was quick and simple. The registration process took around 10 minutes.
| eToro Accounts | CMC Markets Accounts | |
| Standard Account | ✔️ | ✔️ |
| ECN / Commission Based Account | ❌ | ❌ |
| Islamic Account | ✔️ | ❌ |
| PAMM Account | ❌ | ❌ |
Markets and Products
eToro offers trading services with several markets, including forex, stocks, cryptocurrencies, commodities, and indices. Though eToro is primarily a forex and CFD broker, it also offers trading services with real stocks, ETFs, and cryptocurrencies.
CMC Markets is known for its forex and share CFDs offering and has a vast offering in both markets. It offers trading with company stocks in various global markets. Indices, commodities, and cryptocurrency offerings of CMC Trading are also impressive.
| Markets | eToro Instruments | CMC Markets Instruments |
| Indices | 13 | 95 |
| Forex | 49 | 339 |
| Commodities | 31 | 111 |
| Stocks | 726 | 5000 |
| Cryptocurrency | 16 | 14 |
| ETFs | 151 | 4451 |
| Treasuries | – | 53 |
Trading Conditions
Trading conditions on eToro are fair and suitable for beginning traders, however, do not allow scalping.
CMC Markets offers good trading conditions. It allows both hedging and scalping strategies. But only professional clients can change leverage levels.
| Trading Method | eToro | CMC Markets |
| Hedging | ✔️ (eToro will retain the profits) | ✔️ |
| Scalping | ❌ | ✔️ (Traders cannot open more than 1 position in a minute) |
| Change Leverage | ✔️ | ❌ |
| Copy trading/ Social trading | ✔️ | ✔️ |
| Beginners Trading | ✔️ | ✔️ |
| Professional Trading | ✔️ | ✔️ |
Deposit and Withdrawal
Both deposit and withdrawal processes on eToro vs CMC Markets are simple enough, supporting various funding methods. However, eToro charges a flat fee of $5 for every withdrawal.
We tested the deposit process on eToro using multiple payment modes and the deposits were received instantly.
We used card payment and PayPal while testing the deposit process on CMC Markets. There was no deposit fee and the findings were instant.
| eToro | CMC Markets | |
| 💰 Deposit Fee | ❌ | ❌ |
| 💰 Withdrawal fee | $5 | ❌ |
| 💳 Minimum deposit | US$50 or US$500 | $0.00 |
| Bank Transfer | ✔️ | ✔️ |
| Debit/ Credit Cards | ✔️ | ✔️ |
| PayPal | ✔️ | ✔️ |
| Skrill | ✔️ | ❌ |
Trading Platform
eToro uses its own trading platform. It looks modern and is easy to use.
CMC Markets offers two trading platforms to the traders: MetaTrader4 and Next Generation platform (Proprietary platform).
eToro is known for its social trading feature. In fact, it gained popularity because of this feature. It basically has two features: CopyTrader and CopyPortfolio. eToro vs CMC Markets both offer Copy Trading.
| eToro Platform | CMC Markets Platform | |
| Proprietary Platform | ✔️ | ✔️ |
| Web Platform | ✔️ | ✔️ |
| Desktop Platform | ❌ | ✔️ |
| Mobile App | ✔️ | ✔️ |
| Alternative Platforms | ❌ | ✔️ |
| MetaTrader4 | ❌ | ✔️ |
| Simple to Use Platform | ✔️ | ✔️ |
| Demo Account Trading | ✔️ | ✔️ |
| Execution Agency Model | ❌ | ✔️ |
| Research | ✔️ | ✔️ |
Education and Support
eToro does not offer high-quality educational resources. While CMC Markets offers easy-to-understand and good quality educational resources.
eToro vs CMC Markets both offer decent customer support with Live Chat and support inquiries.
We found eToro developing its learning materials and established eToro Trading School.
CMC Markets’ tutorials are categorized into several sections for ease of learning.
| eToro Support | CMC Markets Support | |
| Trading School for Beginners | ✔️ | ✔️ |
| Tutorials | ✔️ | ✔️ |
| Trading Videos | ❌ | ✔️ |
| Webinars | ✔️ | ✔️ |
| Daily News and Analysis | ✔️ | ✔️ |
| Economic Calendar | ✔️ | ✔️ |
| Live Chat | ✔️ | ✔️ |
| Email Support | ✔️ | ✔️ |
| 24/7 availability | ❌ | ❌ |
Conclusion on eToro vs CMC Markets
Comparing eToro to CMC Markets side by side we found both brokers reliable and with good standing.
Our trading experience on eToro platform was smooth. eToro is good for beginners and experienced/popular traders, also allowing hedging. It has some attractive features like social trading and is Best for the number of Top Traders.
Our overall experience with CMC Markets was smooth, too. The broker offered excellent forex spreads, which were low and stable. The expectation speed was also fast. Our experience with customer support remained mixed as we did not receive any answer to a query. But the remaining replies were fast and accurate.
| eToro | CMC Markets | |
| Recommended for | ✔️ Best for social trading ✔️ Beginning traders ✔️ Trading currency pairs ✔️ Cryptocurrency trading ✔️ Stocks trading | ✔️ Beginning traders ✔️ Experienced traders ✔️ Trading currency pairs ✔️ Using automated trading ✔️ EA trader ✔️ Trading Stocks ✔️ Hedging ✔️ Scalping ✔️ Spread Betting ✔️ Social Trading |
| Might not be fit for | ❌ Scalping trader ❌ Hedging trader ❌ EA trader ❌ Trading through MT4/MT5 platform only ❌ Commission based trading | ❌ Day trader ❌ Trading of real stocks |