Menu
Policy and Terms What is InvestinGoal

InvestinGoal » Best Online Brokers » Compare Brokers » City Index vs Plus500

City Index vs Plus500: Comparison and Analysis

Written by Filippo Ucchino Fact-Checked by Luca Puddu Publication Date Last Updated
Our verdict · CFD/FX trading

City Index is better than Plus500 for CFD trading by a small margin, because it has MetaTrader 4 and trading conditions that allow hedging, expert advisors and API access. City Index executes orders in 2 ms. Plus500, on the other hand, has ETFs among its CFD markets and guaranteed stop-loss orders, and its account funding and withdrawals are faster (1 day against 3 days). City Index is regulated by CySEC and the FCA, while Plus500 is regulated by CySEC, the FCA, ASIC and the DFSA, with an offshore company regulated by the FSA (Seychelles). City Index and Plus500 both charge 8.00 USD per lot to trade EUR/USD and both offer a demo account. Both offer crypto CFDs except at their UK companies. City Index asks for 50.00 USD, while Plus500 asks for 100.00 USD at most of its companies and 70.00 USD at its Australian company.

Our verdict · Real stock investing

City Index and Plus500 cannot be compared for real stock investing, because City Index is a CFD broker and does not offer real stocks to buy. If you want to invest in real stocks and you are choosing between City Index and Plus500, Plus500 is the better option of the two, because it lets you own stocks outright.

Scores, winners and data below compare these brokers as CFD/FX brokers (leveraged trading on forex, indices, commodities and crypto), using the data of City Index's Cyprus entity and Plus500's Cyprus entity. Scores, winners and data below compare these brokers as stock brokers (real shares and ETFs you own outright), using the data of City Index's Cyprus entity and Plus500's Cyprus entity.

Best overall

City Index

CFDCFD City Index offers CFD trading: leveraged contracts that follow the price of an asset without owning it. Switch the comparison to CFD/FX to rate it on that. FXFX City Index offers forex trading: currency pairs such as EUR/USD, traded with leverage. Forex is rated together with CFDs, on the CFD/FX side.
City Index review ›
85CFD/FXOverall score City Index scores 85/100 for CFD/FX trading. The overall score is calculated from the data in this comparison across 12 areas. not offeredStocksOverall score InvestinGoal score from 0 to 100, calculated from the data in this comparison across 12 areas (regulation, safety, costs, platforms and more). CFD and stock trading are scored separately: the number follows the side selected above.
Open Account

77% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider.

Best overall

Plus500

CFDCFD Plus500 offers CFD trading: leveraged contracts that follow the price of an asset without owning it. Switch the comparison to CFD/FX to rate it on that. FXFX Plus500 offers forex trading: currency pairs such as EUR/USD, traded with leverage. Forex is rated together with CFDs, on the CFD/FX side. StocksStocks Plus500 lets you buy real assets that you own outright. Switch the comparison to Stocks to rate it on that.
Plus500 review ›
77CFD/FXOverall score Plus500 scores 77/100 for CFD/FX trading. The overall score is calculated from the data in this comparison across 12 areas. 74StocksOverall score Plus500 scores 74/100 for stock investing. The overall score is calculated from the data in this comparison across 12 areas.
Open Account

CFD service. 82% of retail investor accounts lose money

Best for

What we compare A comparison of the kinds of traders City Index and Plus500 are best suited to, based on what each one actually offers in .
1 / 12

City Index is better than Plus500 for professional traders, high-volume traders and algo traders, while Plus500 is better for long-term investors. Both are a good fit for swing traders, news traders and CFD stock traders.

Best for
Overall score City Index 85 Best not offered Plus500 77 -8 74
Day trading i
Long-term investing i
Professional traders i
High-volume traders i
Scalpers i
Swing traders i
News traders i
Algo traders i
Stock traders i
Crypto traders i
Futures traders i
Options traders i

Regulation

What we compare A comparison between the financial authorities that supervise City Index and the ones that supervise Plus500.
2 / 12

City Index and Plus500 are both regulated by top-tier authorities, City Index by CSSF, CySEC and the FCA (United Kingdom) and Plus500 by CySEC, ASIC (Australia) and the FCA (United Kingdom).

Regulation
Section score City Index 100 not offered Plus500 100 100
Tier-1 regulators
ESMA (European Union) i CySEC (Cyprus) CySEC (Cyprus)
FCA (United Kingdom) i
ASIC (Australia) i
CFTC (United States) i
NFA (United States) i
SEC (United States) i
CIRO (Canada) i
MAS (Singapore) i
SFC (Hong Kong) i
JFSA (Japan) i
FINMA (Switzerland) i
Tier-2 regulators
FMA (New Zealand) i
CBR (Russia) i
FSCA (South Africa) i
DFSA (Dubai) i
CSRC (China) i
ISA (Israel) i
LFSA (Malaysia) i
JSC (Jordan) i
CMA (Kenya) i
Tier-3 regulators
FSA (Seychelles) i
MMA (Maldives) i
SCB (Bahamas) i
FSC (Mauritius) i
VFSC (Vanuatu) i
FSC (Belize) i
CIMA (Cayman Islands) i
SV FSA (Saint Vincent and the Grenadines) i
FSRC (St. Kitts & Nevis) i
BMA (Bermuda) i
BVI FSC (British Virgin Islands) i
EDR (External Dispute Resolution) i

Safety

What we compare A comparison of the tools and services that City Index and Plus500 have in place to protect your money in .
3 / 12

Both City Index and Plus500 offer segregated client funds and an investor compensation scheme. City Index also offers additional money insurance.

Safety
Section score City Index 95 Best not offered Plus500 85 -10 85
Company info
Is it publicly traded i
Is it a bank i
Year founded i 1983 2008
Parent company i StoneX Group Inc Plus500 Ltd.
CEO i Clive Cooke David Zruia
Money safety
Segregated client funds i
Two-factor authentication i
Investor compensation scheme i
Additional money insurance i
Partner bank i Barclays, Eurobank N/A
Brand power
Number of customers worldwide i 235,000 30,000,000
Annual revenue i USD 124,800,000 USD 768,300,000
Monthly website search traffic i 12.1K monthly visits

Costs

What we compare A comparison of what it costs to trade with City Index and with Plus500 in , both on each trade and on holding the account.
4 / 12

City Index is better than Plus500 for CFD/FX costs, because City Index has tighter S&P 500 CFD spreads, at 0.4 points (against Plus500's 0.7 points), has tighter gold CFD spreads, at 0.5 points (against Plus500's 0.75 points), and charges lower Bitcoin CFD fees, at 40 USD (against Plus500's 118.34 USD). Neither City Index nor Plus500 charges account maintenance fees or deposit fees.

City Index does not offer real stocks, being a CFD broker, so Plus500 and City Index cannot be compared for real stock costs.

Costs
Section score City Index 69 Best not offered Plus500 64 -5 80
Broker fees
Deposit fees i
Withdrawal fees i
Overnight fees i
Inactivity fees i
Currency conversion fees i
Discounts on volume i
Real time market data fee i
Dividend withholding i
Account opening fees i
Account maintenance fee i
Portfolio management fee i
Fees on CFDs
Forex commission per lot i USD 10About this value. This is the forex commission per lot at StoneX Europe Ltd (CySEC). At City Index's other companies: Free (the UK). Free
EUR/USD average standard spread i
0.8 pips
0.8 pips
EUR/USD average raw spread i
EUR/USD average fixed spread i
EUR/USD total cost per lot i USD 8 USD 8
S&P 500 fees (CFD) i 0.4 points 0.7 points
Gold fees (CFD) i 0.5 points 0.75 points
Bitcoin fees (CFD) i USD 40 USD 118.34
US stocks fees (CFD) i USD 0.018 Free
Fees on stocks
Stock fee type i Commission, Percentage Commission, Percentage, Spread
US stocks fees (real) i USD 0.12
ETF fees (real) i
Management costs i
Connection costs i
Fees on futures
Futures fees per contract i
Platform fees i
Fees on options
Options fees per contract i
Event fees i
Fees on savings plans
IRA opening fee i
IRA maintenance fee i
401k opening fee i
401k maintenance fee i

Available markets

What we compare A comparison of the markets and products you can trade with City Index and with Plus500 in , and of how many instruments each one gives access to.
5 / 12

City Index and Plus500 are equally good for CFD/FX markets, as City Index gives access to 13,500 tradable symbols (against Plus500's 2,800). On the other hand, Plus500 offers CFDs on ETFs, and lets you own stocks outright. Both City Index and Plus500 offer CFDs on commodities, crypto, forex, indices and stocks.

City Index does not offer real stocks, being a CFD broker, so Plus500 and City Index cannot be compared for real stock markets.

Available markets
Section score City Index 75 not offered Plus500 75 15
Total tradable symbols i 13,500 2,800
Currency pairs i
Indices i
Commodities i
Stocks i
ETF i
Cryptocurrencies i
Bonds i
Interest rates i
Portfolios i
CFDs i Commodities, Crypto, Forex, Indices, Stocks Commodities, Crypto, ETF, Forex, Indices, Stocks
Futures i
Options i
Assets you can own i Stocks

Platform

What we compare A comparison of the trading platforms that City Index and Plus500 make available to their clients in .
6 / 12

City Index is better than Plus500 for platforms, as City Index offers MetaTrader 4 and AutoChartist, which Plus500 does not. City Index and Plus500 both offer a proprietary platform and one-click trading.

There is no like-for-like comparison for platforms, as City Index is a CFD broker and does not offer real stocks.

Platform
Section score City Index 88 Best not offered Plus500 75 -13 75
Proprietary platform i
MetaTrader 4 i
MetaTrader 5 i
cTrader i
Social trading platform i
Copy trading platform i
ZuluTrade i
TradingView i
Duplitrade i
Mirror Trader i
NinjaTrader i
AutoChartist i
Real time pricing i
5 digit pricing i
One-click trading i

Mobile

What we compare A comparison of the mobile apps of City Index and Plus500 in , and of what each one lets you do from your phone.
7 / 12

City Index and Plus500 are equally good for mobile trading, since City Index offers the MetaTrader 4 app and mobile trading signals. On the other hand, Plus500 offers mobile charting tools and mobile drawing tools. Both City Index and Plus500 offer a proprietary mobile app and mobile price alerts.

There is no like-for-like comparison for mobile trading, as City Index is a CFD broker and does not offer real stocks.

Mobile
Section score City Index 80 not offered Plus500 80 80
Proprietary app i
Social trading app i
Copy trading app i
MetaTrader 4 app i
MetaTrader 5 app i
cTrader app i
Mobile trading signals i
Mobile alerts i
Mobile charting tools i
Mobile drawing tools i
Mobile watchlist i
Smartwatch app i

Trading features

What we compare A comparison of the trading tools and strategies that City Index and Plus500 allow on their platforms in .
8 / 12

City Index is better than Plus500 for CFD/FX trading features, since City Index offers API access, which Plus500 does not, and allows for automated trading and expert advisors. Both City Index and Plus500 offer negative balance protection and trailing stops.

There is no like-for-like comparison for real stock trading features, as City Index is a CFD broker and does not offer real stocks.

Trading features
Section score City Index 79 Best not offered Plus500 67 -12 76
Trade execution
Broker type i Agency Agency
Average execution time i 2 ms
Slippage occurrence i
Requotes occurrence i
Tier-1 liquidity providers i
PFOF i
Leverage
Major FX pairs leverage i 30:1 30:1About this value. This is the major fx pairs leverage at Plus500CY Ltd (CySEC). At Plus500's other companies: 30:1 (the UAE, Australia, the UK), 300:1 (other accepted countries).
Minor/Exotic FX pairs leverage i 20:1 20:1About this value. This is the minor/exotic fx pairs leverage at Plus500CY Ltd (CySEC). At Plus500's other companies: 20:1 (the UAE, Australia, the UK), 300:1 (other accepted countries).
Major indices leverage i 20:1 20:1About this value. This is the major indices leverage at Plus500CY Ltd (CySEC). At Plus500's other companies: 20:1 (the UAE, Australia, the UK), 150:1 (other accepted countries).
Minor indices leverage i 10:1 10:1About this value. This is the minor indices leverage at Plus500CY Ltd (CySEC). At Plus500's other companies: 10:1 (the UAE, Australia, the UK), 150:1 (other accepted countries).
Gold leverage i 20:1 20:1About this value. This is the gold leverage at Plus500CY Ltd (CySEC). At Plus500's other companies: 20:1 (the UAE, Australia, the UK), 150:1 (other accepted countries).
Commodities leverage i 10:1 10:1About this value. This is the commodities leverage at Plus500CY Ltd (CySEC). At Plus500's other companies: 10:1 (the UAE, Australia, the UK), 150:1 (other accepted countries).
Equities leverage i 5:1 5:1About this value. This is the equities leverage at Plus500CY Ltd (CySEC). At Plus500's other companies: 5:1 (the UAE, Australia, the UK), 20:1 (other accepted countries).
Cryptocurrency leverage i 2:1 2:1About this value. This is the cryptocurrency leverage at Plus500CY Ltd (CySEC). At Plus500's other companies: 2:1 (the UAE, Australia), 5:1 (other accepted countries).
Risk management
Stop losses i
Take profits i
Limit orders i
Trailing stop i
Margin call i
OCO orders i
Guaranteed stop loss i
Negative balance protection i
Minimum trade size (FX) i 0.01 lots 0.01 lots
Minimum trade size (stocks) i USD 0 USD 0
Fractional stocks i
Trading compliance
Scalping strategies allowed i
Hedging strategies allowed i
Automated trading strategy allowed i
EAs use allowed i
HFT strategy allowed i
VPS use allowed i
API use allowed i
Price scraping allowed i
FIFO rule applies i

Account types

What we compare A comparison of the kinds of account you can open at City Index and at Plus500 in , and of who each one is meant for.
9 / 12

City Index and Plus500 are equally good for CFD/FX account types, since City Index offers a micro account and a fixed spread account while Plus500 offers an unlimited demo account. Both City Index and Plus500 offer a demo account and a professional traders account.

There is no like-for-like comparison for real stock account types, as City Index is a CFD broker and does not offer real stocks.

Account types
Section score City Index 40 not offered Plus500 38 -2 25
Demo account i
Unlimited demo account i
Standard account i
Micro account i
Cent account i
Nano account i
Raw spread account i
ECN account i
Swap-free account i
Islamic account i
Professional traders account i
Fixed spread account i
Spread betting account i
Copy trading account i
Corporate account i
Managed account i
Stock investing account i
Margin investing account i
Savings account i
Retirement account i

Account opening

What we compare A comparison of what it takes to open and fund an account with City Index and with Plus500 in .
10 / 12

City Index is better than Plus500 for account opening, since City Index requires a lower minimum deposit, at 50 USD (against Plus500's 100 USD), supports 3 e-wallets (against Plus500's 2), and has no minimum withdrawal (against Plus500's 100 USD). Both City Index and Plus500 offer credit cards and debit cards.

City Index does not offer real stocks, being a CFD broker, so Plus500 and City Index cannot be compared for account opening.

Account opening
Section score City Index 72 Best not offered Plus500 69 -3 69
Minimum deposit i USD 50 USD 100About this value. This is the minimum deposit at Plus500CY Ltd (CySEC). At Plus500's other companies: USD 100 (the UAE, other accepted countries, the UK), USD 70 (Australia).
Minimum withdrawal i USD 0 USD 100
Wire transfers i
Credit cards i
Debit cards i
eWallets i PayPal, Neteller, Skrill PayPal, SkrillAbout this value. This is the ewallets at Plus500CY Ltd (CySEC). It is different at Plus500's companies in the UAE and the UK.
Local payment methods i
Account base currencies i AUD, EUR, USD AUD, EUR, USDAbout this value. This is the account base currencies at Plus500CY Ltd (CySEC). It is different at Plus500's companies in Australia.
Deposit waiting time i up to 3 business days up to 1 business days
Withdrawal waiting time i up to 3 business days up to 1 business days
Bonus program i

Customer care

What we compare A comparison of the customer support of City Index and Plus500 in , in how it can be reached and how fast it answers.
11 / 12

City Index is better than Plus500 for customer care, since City Index offers a dedicated account manager, phone support and priority support, which Plus500 does not. Both City Index and Plus500 offer live chat and email support.

Only Plus500 can be assessed for customer care, since City Index is a CFD broker and does not offer real stocks.

Customer care
Section score City Index 73 Best not offered Plus500 58 -15 58
Number of languages supported i 6 29
Website languages i Arabic, German, English, Polish, Spanish, Chinese Arabic, Bulgarian, Czech, Danish, German, English, Estonian, Finnish, French, Hebrew, Croatian, Hungarian, Icelandic, Latvian, Lithuanian, Maltese, Malay, Dutch, Norwegian, Polish, Portuguese, Romanian, Russian, Slovak, Slovenian, Spanish, Swedish, Turkish, Chinese
Website available in English i
Customer support languages i Arabic, German, English, Polish, Spanish, Chinese Arabic, Bulgarian, Czech, Danish, German, English, Estonian, Finnish, French, Hebrew, Croatian, Hungarian, Icelandic, Latvian, Lithuanian, Maltese, Malay, Dutch, Norwegian, Polish, Portuguese, Romanian, Russian, Slovak, Slovenian, Spanish, Swedish, Turkish, Chinese
Customer support in English i
Call back request i
Email support i
Phone support i
Live chat i
Priority customer support i
Dedicated account manager i
Cash sweep i
Stock lending i
Distributes proceeds i
Tax withholding agent i
Tax assistance i

Learning

What we compare A comparison of the educational material that City Index and Plus500 provide to their clients in .
12 / 12

City Index is better than Plus500 for learning, as City Index offers professional reports and daily market commentary, which Plus500 does not. Both City Index and Plus500 offer education for advanced traders and webinars.

Plus500 and City Index cannot be compared for learning, because Plus500 is a broker offering both CFDs and stocks while City Index is a CFD broker.

Learning
Section score City Index 100 Best not offered Plus500 80 -20 80
Education
Education center i
Education for beginners i
Education for advanced traders i
Webinars i
Tutorials i
Glossary i
Research
Economic calendar i
Traders' sentiment i
Daily market commentary i
Daily trading ideas i
News via social media i
Professional reports i
Watchlist i
City Index
Open Account 77% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider.
Plus500
Open Account CFD service. 82% of retail investor accounts lose money
Our verdict

City Index vs Plus500: which one should you choose?

City Index

CFD/FX Choose City Index if you want a CFD and forex broker for automated trading with MetaTrader 4 and fast order execution.

Open Account 77% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider.
Plus500

CFD/FX Choose Plus500 if you want an online CFD broker with ETFs and guaranteed stop-loss orders.

Stocks Choose Plus500 if you want a broker for securities investing with outright ownership of stocks.

Open Account CFD service. 82% of retail investor accounts lose money

Other popular comparisons

Below are other head-to-head comparisons that include City Index or Plus500, each scored with the same data and method as this page.

City Index vs IG Markets Plus500 vs Robinhood CMC Markets vs Plus500 Markets.com vs Plus500 Forex.com vs Plus500 IC Markets vs Plus500

Select your language

Offers shown for visitors in: