Best Brokers in Australia

Australia’s major securities market, formed when the six state stock exchanges (Adelaide, Brisbane, Hobart, Melbourne, Perth, and Sydney stock exchanges) were merged in 1987.
The Australian Securities Exchange (ASX) sits comfortably in the top ten equity markets in the world measured by market capitalisation and has a reputation for integrity and for attracting international investors. Australia has become an attractive investment destination for global investors as well as home to many major multinational financial services providers.

Australian traders have lots of choice when it comes to choosing a trading broker. Australia is a popular destination for brokers, with some of the very best headquartered there. If you are overwhelmed with the options available to you or just don’t know where to start, then you have come to the right place.

Here you will find the best Australian brokers according to the many hours of research, testing, analysis and comparison that we have conducted across hundreds of brokers. By having all of the best brokers listed in one place, we aim to make it quick and easy for you to identify the best broker in Australia according to your own individual needs.

Top 10 Brokers Australia

In order to be included within our best brokers in Australia list, the broker should be regulated and offer top trading conditions, including tight spreads, low fees, lots of liquidity and rapid execution speeds. They should have a choice of easy to use yet powerful trading platforms and trading apps along with a wide selection of quality trading tools for comprehensive market analysis and to assist you with your daily trading activities.

Other factors that we consider to be important when choosing the best Australian broker include the variety of account types, funding options provided, reputation within the industry, customer support and range of financial instruments available to trade online. We also like to see enough educational resources provided to help beginners learn more about trading and investing online.

That being said, we have chosen these as the best brokers for Australians as they meet our criteria and are regulated by the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC). They have passed our strict broker reviews with flying colours and been awarded a top broker rating for the excellent range of trading and investing services that they provide.

Broker
Rating
Regulated
Min. Deposit
Founded
Max. Leverage
1.
AvaTrade Review

ADGM FRSA, ASIC, BVIFSC, CBI, FFAJ, FSCA, IIROC, JFSA

$100

2006

1:400

Between 74-89% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider.
2.
IC Markets Review

ASIC, CySEC, FSA, SCB

$200

2007

1:500

Between 74-89% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider.
3.
City Index Review

ASIC, FCA, MAS

$100

1983

Variable

Between 74-89% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider.
4.
FP Markets Review

ASIC, CySEC, FSCA, SVGFSA

$100

2005

1:500

Between 74-89% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider.
5.
GO Markets Review

ASIC, CySEC, FSC, FSA

$200

2006

1:30

Between 74-89% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider.
6.
Eightcap Review

ASIC, VFSC

$100

2009

1:500

Between 74-89% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider.
7.
Blueberry Markets Review

ASIC, VFSC

$100

2016

1:500

Between 74-89% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider.
8.
TradeDirect365 Review

ASIC, SCB

$1

2014

1:200

Between 74-89% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider.
9.
Fusion Markets Review

ASIC, VFSC

$1

2017

1:500

Between 74-89% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider.
10.
ACY Securities Review

ASIC, VFSC

$50

2013

1:500

Between 74-89% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider.

AvaTrade

AvaTrade has been an innovative pioneer in online trading since 2006. The company was created as a combined effort of financial professionals and experts in web-commerce with the goal of perfecting the online experience for retail traders. Since then, they have grown to become one of the best brokers for trading and investing online. They have a good range of financial instruments for you to trade across different asset classes including forex, commodities, stocks and cryptos. There are zero commission fees and forex spreads are relatively low overall.

The broker supports manual and automated trading on modern and intuitive platforms. For those of you who do not have the time or skills to trade by yourself, there is also a good selection of copy trading platforms. AvaTrade are also one of the most well-regulated brokers you will find serving Australian traders.

Pros
  • Wide range of tradable instruments offered
  • Good choice of user-friendly platforms
  • Very competitive trading conditions are provided
  • Innovative risk management tools
  • No deposit fees or withdrawal fees
  • Free demo trading accounts
  • Strong regulatory framework
  • Social and copy trading
  • Free demo trading accounts
Cons
  • Inactivity fees
  • CFD trading only
  • Spreads are marked-up
  • There is one retail or professional account
  • Cannot accept traders in the USA

IC Markets

Based in Sydney, IC Markets is the largest true ECN forex broker in Australia offering spreads from 0.0 pips, no requotes, best possible prices and no restrictions. They are a market-leading global online retail trading platform offering superior execution, low spreads and unrivalled liquidity from a deep pool of liquidity providers. You can trade currencies, stocks, commodities, futures, bonds, and digital assets with a globally regulated broker.

IC Markets’ carefully selected range of products, platforms, and account types give you access to the most popular and liquid markets across the world, for ample trading opportunities 24/5. IC Markets Global offers a wide range of Stock CFDs on MetaTrader 5 platform. Traders can access an impressive range of over 1600 stocks across Australia and United States.

IC Markets is one of the top choices for automated traders, high-volume traders and scalpers. Their order matching engine located in the New York Equinix NY4 data centre processes over 500,000 trades per day with over two thirds of all trades coming from automated trading systems.

They are one of the best forex brokers you can find who are regulated by the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) and offer quick account funding with excellent 24/7 customer support.

Pros
  • Powerful platforms and lots of robust trading tools
  • Great selection of trading instruments
  • Tight spreads from 0.0 pips
  • Deep liquidity for rapid execution speeds
  • Quick and easy account funding
  • Free demo trading accounts
  • Prompt and polite 24/7 support
  • Top choice for automated trading
Cons
  • Minimum $200 deposit is not the lowest
  • Could add some more standalone tools

City Index

City Index Australia is a leading provider of trading services to individuals. They offer instant access to thousands of markets worldwide through Contracts for Difference (CFDs) and margined foreign exchange. To stay at the forefront of this fast growing market they combine innovative trading technology with the best in customer service. When you trade with City Index you can get access to free educational tools, including regular seminars, webinars and the latest market analysis direct from the experts. From real-time market commentary to an integrated Reuters newsfeed, they deliver actionable insight to help you identify potential opportunities.

City Index is part of the StoneX Group, a Nasdaq-listed Fortune 100 company with a proven track record in providing retail and institutional clients with trading services. They are fully licensed and regulated in Australia since 2006 and hold the highest industry standards of accountability and transparency. City Index has been helping clients navigate financial markets since 1983 and is a world-leading provider of financial services. Forex.com is another trading broker under the same umbrella which further emphasises the size of the company.

Pros
  • $0 commission on all US shares
  • A suite of award-winning trading platforms and apps
  • Competitive pricing on over 6,300 global markets
  • CFD and forex trading education
  • Real-time market commentary
Cons
  • Possible inactivity fees
  • Could add support for some more e-wallets
  • No Islamic accounts available
  • No 24/7 customer support

FP Markets

FP Markets have developed a proud reputation as a broker in Australia. They have relationships with leading tier one financial institutions which mean they can provide deep liquidity and tighter spreads for forex traders. Combined with an ECN Pricing model, traders can consistently trade from 0.0 pips on major currency pairs such as the EUR/USD, USD/JPY and GBP/USD.

Although trading Forex is a key component of their business, FP Markets also offer CFD trading in Shares, Metals, Commodities, Indices, Bonds & Digital Currencies. Traders can access more than 10,000+ tradable instruments across global financial markets using Iress, an advanced online trading software specifically designed for CFD trading.

CFD trading with an online broker allows you to access the biggest global exchanges and indices, including the Standard & Poor’s, NASDAQ and the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in the United States, and the Australian Stock Exchange (ASX).

Overall, they are a top broker for Australian traders who want to trade some of the world’s largest companies and other financial instruments with plenty of tools at your disposal. They can cater for both retail and institutional clients alike, whilst they also integrate with some innovative copy trading platforms.

Pros
  • Trade forex on consistently low spreads from 0.0 pips
  • Fast execution from an NY4 server facility
  • Top-tier liquidity and market leading pricing, 24/5
  • No dealing desk and no requotes
  • Access FP Markets forex trading education
  • Copy trading where you can follow top-performing traders
  • 24/7 multilingual customer support and personal account managers
  • Free demo trading accounts
Cons
  • High minimum deposit of $1,000 for CFD accounts
  • Fees for international bank withdrawals
  • Could add some more tools to their proprietary platform

GO Markets

Founded in 2006, GO Markets is an Australian trading broker offering over 600 financial instruments for you to trade online. They provide powerful trading platforms with a range of trading tools and dedicated educational centre to assist traders.

Pros
  • Advanced trading platforms for web, desktop and mobile apps
  • Hundreds of trading instruments to choose from
  • Commission free trading accounts
  • Tight spreads, low fees and rapid trade execution speeds
  • Free VPS for qualifying clients
  • Excellent Trading Central & Autochartist analysis tools
  • Copy trading signals via Myfxbook AutoTrade
  • Handy MT4/5 Genesis to enhance platforms capabilities
  • State of the art a-Quant trading tools
  • GO Trade Academy to educate beginners
  • 24-hour multilingual customer support
Cons
  • $200 minimum deposit to open account
  • No swap-free Islamic accounts
  • Do not currently offer crypto trading or funding

Eightcap

Eightcap is a regulated Australian broker offering over 200 CFD trading instruments on the user-friendly MetaTrader platforms including Forex, Stocks, Indices, Cryptos and Commodities. The broker has low commission fees, tight spreads, flexible leverage, rapid execution speeds, fast and free funding options, trading tools, educational materials, managed accounts and industry leading customer support.

Pros
  • Popular, powerful and versatile MetaTrader platforms
  • Over 200+ trading instruments across various asset classes
  • TradingView integration for professional charting
  • Low commission fees and commission free accounts
  • Tight spreads from 0.0 pips
  • Top-tier liquidity providers for rapid trade execution speeds
  • Various convenient account deposit and withdrawal options
  • Managed accounts for investors and money managers
  • Helpful up to date market news and expert analysis
  • Educational resources to help beginners
  • Islamic swap-free accounts
  • Multilingual and top-class customer support team
  • Free demo accounts
  • No inactivity fees
Cons
  • No fixed spread accounts
  • Demo account expires after 30 days
  • Could improve educational materials
  • No Autochartist or Trading Central for market analysis

Blueberry Markets

Blueberry Markets is an online broker based in Australia providing online trading via the easy to use MetaTrader platforms with tight spreads, low fees and fast execution speeds. They offer commission free accounts, along with a Free VPS.

Pros
  • 350+ instruments (including 50 top US shares)
  • Easy to use trading platforms
  • Commission free trading accounts available
  • Tight spreads and fast execution speeds
  • Flexible account funding options
  • Free VPS if you trade enough volume
  • Free demo accounts to practice trading
  • Excellent customer service
Cons
  • $100 minimum deposit is not the lowest
  • Could add some more standalone trading tools
  • Not a great selection of educational materials

TradeDirect365

TradeDirect365 (TD365) is a regulated broker that offers Forex, Crypto, Indices, Commodities and Stock trading online with very competitive trading conditions, including no commission fees, tight fixed spreads and fast trade execution speeds. You can trade on user-friendly platforms with plenty of tools for in-depth market analysis.

Pros
  • Large range of trading instruments
  • User-friendly MetaTrader 4 platform
  • Proprietary CloudTrade platform
  • Commission free trading
  • Tight fixed spreads
  • Fast trade execution speeds
  • Single currency accounts
  • Free demo trading accounts
  • Low $1 deposit minimum
  • Good customer support
Cons
  • Limited market news and analysis provided
  • No MetaTrader 5 platforms
  • No Islamic accounts

Fusion Markets

Fusion Markets are a CFD broker offering user-friendly trading platforms, low fees, tight spreads and reliable execution speeds. They offer a range of deposit and withdrawal options along with a selection of useful trading tools to assist with your market analysis.

Pros
  • Sophisticated trading platforms for multiple devices
  • Decent range of trading instruments
  • Tight spreads and reliable execution speeds
  • Low commission fees
  • Minimum deposit of just $1
  • Multiple convenient account funding options to choose from
  • No deposit/withdrawal fees from the brokers side
  • Powerful trading tools to enhance your market analysis
  • Discounted VPS for qualifying traders
  • Managed account solutions for investors and managers (PAMM/MAM)
  • Excellent customer support
  • Free demo accounts
Cons
  • Could add some individual stock instruments
  • Beginners may need some more educational content
  • No cryptocurrency funding at this time
  • No Islamic swap-free accounts

Conclusion

Whilst this article covers what we consider to be amongst the most important things to consider when choosing a broker in Australia, it can differ depending on your individual preferences. Thus, it is important that you choose a broker that meets your needs and use this information only for educational purposes and not as advice. Take your time to research brokers and conduct your own due diligence. You can even test a broker with a free demo account to see if they are suitable before making a commitment. Please feel free to use our broker comparison tool if you are looking for some further inspiration to help you choose a suitable Australian broker.


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