Written by ForexBrokers.com
In this head to head comparison of Interactive Brokers vs VT Markets, we will compare the trading platforms, mobile apps, range of investments, costs, market research, and more. Let's dive in.
CFDs are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. Between 51% and 89% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs. You should consider whether you understand how CFDs work and whether you can afford to take the high risk of losing your money.
Interactive Brokers, established in 1977, is a well-regarded online brokerage firm that boasts a Trust Score of 99 out of 99, indicating a very high level of trust. As a publicly traded company, it provides transparency and accountability to its clients. Although it is not a bank, Interactive Brokers holds nine Tier-1 licenses and two Tier-2 licenses, signifying its strong regulatory standing and high level of trustworthiness as per ForexBrokers.com.
In contrast, VT Markets was founded in 2016 and is not publicly traded. With a ForexBrokers.com Trust Score of 70 out of 99, it is categorized as an average risk broker. VT Markets is also not a bank, but it holds one Tier-1 license and one Tier-2 license. This shows it is regulated, though it has a more limited regulatory framework compared to Interactive Brokers, aligning with its average trust level.
| Feature |
Interactive Brokers
|
VT Markets
|
|---|---|---|
| Year Founded | 1977 | 2016 |
| Publicly Traded (Listed) | Yes | No |
| Bank | No | No |
| Tier-1 Licenses | 9 | 1 |
| Tier-2 Licenses | 2 | 1 |
| Tier-3 Licenses | 0 | 0 |
| Tier-4 Licenses | 0 | 0 |
When comparing Interactive Brokers and VT Markets in terms of commissions and fees, Interactive Brokers presents a tailored pricing model for forex trading that centers around a low commission structure. Although they do not publicly list average spreads, data from Q3 2024 reveals an average spread of 0.19 pips for EUR/USD and an effective total spread of 0.59 pips when accounting for commissions. The commission per side begins at 0.2 basis points with a minimum order fee of $2, although active traders may benefit from reduced rates depending on trading volume. These traits earn Interactive Brokers a 5-star rating for commissions and fees, ranking it #2 out of 62 brokers according to ForexBrokers.com.
In contrast, VT Markets offers two account types: the commission-free Standard STP and the commission-incurred Raw ECN. The Standard STP account features spreads averaging 1.2 pips for the EUR/USD pair, while the Raw ECN account shows a more competitive effective spread of 0.83 pips, which includes a combination of a 0.6-round turn commission and a 0.23-pip average spread. Though the Standard STP account might seem less appealing when comparing spreads, the Raw ECN accounts offer price points aligned with industry standards. VT Markets scores a solid 4.5 stars for commissions and fees, placing it at #20 among 62 brokers based on ForexBrokers.com rankings.
In summary, Interactive Brokers and VT Markets both offer unique advantages for forex traders based on their trading needs and volume. Interactive Brokers stands out for its competitive commission pricing and benefits for active traders, while VT Markets provides flexibility between a commission-free option and a lower spread option. Each broker caters to different trading strategies, backed by their respective high ratings and industry rankings.
| Feature |
Interactive Brokers
|
VT Markets
|
|---|---|---|
| Minimum Deposit | $0 | $100 |
| Average Spread EUR/USD - Standard | 0.59 | 1.2 |
| All-in Cost EUR/USD - Active | 0.59 | 0.8 |
| Active Trader or VIP Discounts | Yes | No |
| ACH or SEPA Transfers | Yes | No |
| PayPal (Deposit/Withdraw) | No | No |
| Skrill (Deposit/Withdraw) | No | Yes |
| Visa/Mastercard (Credit/Debit) | No | Yes |
| Bank Wire (Deposit/Withdraw) | Yes | Yes |
Dive deeper: Best Low Spread Forex Brokers.
Interactive Brokers and VT Markets both offer diverse investment options, but with significant differences. Interactive Brokers provides a vast array of 8,500 tradeable symbols, which includes a comprehensive selection of 90 forex pairs. It allows clients to access exchange-traded securities on U.S. exchanges, thus enabling them to invest in renowned companies like Apple. Furthermore, it provides access to international exchanges, offering opportunities to buy shares like Vodafone. While Interactive Brokers doesn't support copy trading, it does allow for the purchase of both actual cryptocurrencies and cryptocurrency derivatives, providing clients a complete range of investment types.
VT Markets, however, offers 1,000 tradeable symbols, including 39 forex pairs. Unlike Interactive Brokers, VT Markets does not provide access to U.S. exchange-traded securities, limiting options in this category. Nonetheless, it does offer international securities and supports copy trading, which some investors find beneficial. VT Markets supports cryptocurrency derivatives but does not offer actual cryptocurrency purchases. Based on these offerings, Interactive Brokers leads with a five-star rating for investment range and holds the top ranking in the category by ForexBrokers.com. Comparatively, VT Markets holds a 3.5-star rating, ranking 39th in the category among 62 brokers.
| Feature |
Interactive Brokers
|
VT Markets
|
|---|---|---|
| Forex Trading (Spot or CFDs) | Yes | Yes |
| Tradeable Symbols (Total) | 8500 | 1000 |
| Forex Pairs (Total) | 90 | 39 |
| U.S. Stock Trading (Non CFD) | Yes | No |
| Int'l Stock Trading (Non CFD) | Yes | Yes |
| Social Trading / Copy Trading | No | Yes |
| Cryptocurrency (Physical) | Yes | No |
| Cryptocurrency (Derivative) | Yes | Yes |
| Disclaimers | Note: Crypto CFDs are not available to retail traders from any broker's U.K. entity, nor to U.K. residents (except to Professional clients). | Note: Crypto CFDs are not available to retail traders from any broker's U.K. entity, nor to U.K. residents (except to Professional clients). |
Dive deeper: Best Copy Trading Platforms.
Interactive Brokers and VT Markets both offer simulated trading, allowing users to hone their skills with a free virtual demo account. While both provide Windows-based desktop and web-based trading platforms, Interactive Brokers stands out with its in-house developed trading platform, offering 85 drawing tools for charting and the ability to place trades directly from stock charts. By contrast, VT Markets does not have a proprietary platform but supports popular alternatives like MetaTrader 4 and MetaTrader 5, along with offering copy trading options.
When it comes to customizing watch lists, Interactive Brokers excels with 659 columns for users to personalize their experience, compared to just 7 available with VT Markets. Rated 5 stars for its trading platforms and tools, Interactive Brokers is ranked #3 among 62 brokers by ForexBrokers.com, reflecting its comprehensive toolset and user support. VT Markets, with a solid 4-star rating, is ranked #47, making it a respectable choice, particularly for users who prefer platforms like MetaTrader.
| Feature |
Interactive Brokers
|
VT Markets
|
|---|---|---|
| Virtual Trading (Demo) | Yes | Yes |
| Proprietary Platform | Yes | No |
| Desktop Platform (Windows) | Yes | Yes |
| Web Platform | Yes | Yes |
| Social Trading / Copy Trading | No | Yes |
| MetaTrader 4 (MT4) | No | Yes |
| MetaTrader 5 (MT5) | No | Yes |
| DupliTrade | No | No |
| ZuluTrade | No | No |
| Charting - Indicators / Studies (Total) | 155 | 15 |
| Charting - Drawing Tools (Total) | 85 | 30 |
| Charting - Trade From Chart | Yes | Yes |
| Watchlists - Total Fields | 659 | 7 |
Dive deeper: Best MetaTrader 4 Brokers, Best MetaTrader 5 Brokers.
When it comes to mobile trading apps, both Interactive Brokers and VT Markets offer options for iPhone and Android users. They provide features like stock or forex price alerts, watchlist creation with real-time quotes, and the ability to draw trendlines on charts, catering to the needs of traders who rely heavily on their mobile devices. However, Interactive Brokers stands out due to its watchlist symbol syncing feature, allowing users to have consistent watchlists across both mobile and online platforms, whereas VT Markets does not offer this functionality. Additionally, Interactive Brokers provides 97 technical studies for charting compared to VT Markets' 30, offering more tools for technical analysis.
Both apps support viewing multiple time frames on a chart, useful for traders analyzing data at various intervals. However, neither app automatically saves drawings on charts. When weighed by user ratings, Interactive Brokers shines with a perfect 5-star rating for its mobile trading app, and an impressive ranking of #4 out of 62 brokers. Meanwhile, VT Markets holds a 4-star rating and ranks #44. These rankings suggest that while both brokers offer competitive apps, Interactive Brokers may provide a more comprehensive and user-friendly experience on mobile.
| Feature |
Interactive Brokers
|
VT Markets
|
|---|---|---|
| Android App | Yes | Yes |
| Apple iOS App | Yes | Yes |
| Mobile Alerts - Basic Fields | Yes | Yes |
| Watchlist Syncing | Yes | No |
| Mobile Charting - Indicators / Studies | 97 | 30 |
| Mobile Charting - Draw Trendlines | Yes | Yes |
| Mobile Charting - Multiple Time Frames | Yes | Yes |
| Mobile Charting - Drawings Autosave | No | No |
| Mobile Watchlist | Yes | Yes |
Dive deeper: Best Forex Trading Apps.
When comparing the market research offerings of Interactive Brokers and VT Markets, both online brokers provide valuable resources to assist traders in navigating the financial markets. Both firms deliver daily market commentary and offer forex news coverage from leading sources such as Bloomberg, Reuters, and Dow Jones. They also equip traders with technical analysis tools from Trading Central and provide sentiment-based trading tools that display the ratio of long or short positions across currency pairs and other instruments. Additionally, each broker features an economic calendar showcasing global news events that may impact trading.
Despite these similarities, Interactive Brokers stands out with a more comprehensive research arsenal. Unlike VT Markets, Interactive Brokers includes market research from TipRanks and utilises tools from Acuity Trading like Signal Centre. These key differences contribute to Interactive Brokers receiving a higher research rating of 5 stars, compared to VT Markets' 3.5 stars. Furthermore, Interactive Brokers is ranked third in the research category by ForexBrokers.com, while VT Markets trails at thirty-sixth, reflecting its relatively limited research offerings.
| Feature |
Interactive Brokers
|
VT Markets
|
|---|---|---|
| Daily Market Commentary | Yes | Yes |
| Forex News (Top-Tier Sources) | Yes | Yes |
| Autochartist | No | No |
| Trading Central (Recognia) | Yes | Yes |
| Social Sentiment - Currency Pairs | Yes | Yes |
| TipRanks | Yes | No |
| Signal Centre (Acuity Trading) | Yes | No |
| Economic Calendar | Yes | Yes |
Dive deeper: Best Brokers for Forex Research.
When it comes to educational resources for beginners, both Interactive Brokers and VT Markets offer educational materials on forex and CFDs, providing a good start for those new to trading. Each broker provides a collection of at least 10 educational pieces such as articles and videos focused specifically on these topics. However, Interactive Brokers stands out by offering regular online educational webinars open to clients at least once a month, while VT Markets does not provide this resource. Moreover, Interactive Brokers grants access to a searchable archive of previously recorded webinars, offering continued learning opportunities beyond live sessions, whereas VT Markets lacks this feature.
Both brokers provide a healthy selection of educational videos catering to beginners. Interactive Brokers, however, extends its video library further with advanced content aimed at experienced traders, which VT Markets does not match. Furthermore, both platforms support trading education with an investor dictionary, helping users familiarize themselves with essential investing terms. In terms of educational quality and accessibility, Interactive Brokers earns a top-tier rating of 5 stars, claiming the third spot out of 62 brokers ranked by ForexBrokers.com in the Education category. In contrast, VT Markets receives a 3.5-star rating and ranks much lower at 55th place in the same category.
| Feature |
Interactive Brokers
|
VT Markets
|
|---|---|---|
| Education (Forex or CFDs) | Yes | Yes |
| Client Webinars | Yes | No |
| Client Webinars (Archived) | Yes | No |
| Videos - Beginner Trading Videos | Yes | Yes |
| Videos - Advanced Trading Videos | Yes | No |
| Investor Dictionary (Glossary) | Yes | Yes |
Dive deeper: Best Forex Brokers for Beginners.
After testing 62 of the best forex brokers, our research and account testing finds that Interactive Brokers is better than VT Markets. Interactive Brokers finished with an overall rank of #2, while VT Markets finished with an overall rank of #45.
Interactive Brokers is a highly trusted multi-asset broker with an extensive offering of tradeable global markets. It delivers competitive fees and high-quality research and education, as well as a modern, institutional-grade trading platform suite.
| Feature |
Interactive Brokers
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VT Markets
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|---|---|---|
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| Trust Score | 99 | 70 |
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Interactive Brokers allows users to purchase actual delivered cryptocurrency, while both Interactive Brokers and VT Markets offer the ability to buy cryptocurrency derivatives.
Interactive Brokers supports ACH and SEPA transfers, as well as bank wire deposits and withdrawals, while VT Markets provides more varied options, including Skrill, Visa, Mastercard, and bank wires, but lacks ACH and SEPA transfer capabilities.
Please note:
We review each broker’s overall global offering – a “Yes” checkmark in our Compare Tool does not guarantee the availability of any specific features in your country of residence. To verify the availability of any features within your country of residence, please contact the broker directly.
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0 of 5| Overall Rating | Interactive Brokers | VT Markets | |
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| Trust Score | 99 | 70 | |
| Winner | check_circle | ||
| Review | Interactive Brokers Review | VT Markets Review |
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| Regulation | Interactive Brokers | VT Markets | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Trust Score | 99 | 70 | |
| Year Founded | 1977 | 2016 | |
| Publicly Traded (Listed) | Yes | No | |
| Bank | No | No | |
| Regulated in one or more EU or EEA countries (MiFID). | Yes | No | |
| Tier-1 Licenses | 9 | 1 | |
| Tier-2 Licenses | 2 | 1 | |
| Tier-3 Licenses | 0 | 0 | |
| Tier-4 Licenses | 0 | 0 |
| Tier-1 Licenses (Highly Trusted) | Interactive Brokers | VT Markets | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Australia (ASIC Authorised) | Yes | Yes | |
| Canada (CIRO Authorised) | Yes | No | |
| Hong Kong (SFC Authorised) | Yes | No | |
| Japan (SFC Authorised) | Yes | No | |
| Singapore (MAS Authorised) | Yes | No | |
| Switzerland (FINMA Authorised) | Yes | No | |
| United Kingdom (U.K.) (FCA Authorised) | Yes | No | |
| USA (CFTC Authorized) | Yes | No | |
| New Zealand (FMA Authorised) | No | No | |
| Regulated in one or more EU or EEA countries (MiFID). | Yes | No |
| Tier-2 Licenses (Trusted) | Interactive Brokers | VT Markets | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kenya (CMA Authorised) | No | No | |
| Israel (ISA Authorised) | No | No | |
| South Africa (FSCA Authorised) | No | Yes | |
| UAE (DFSA/Central Bank Authorised) | Yes | No | |
| India (SEBI Authorised) | Yes | No | |
| Jordan (JSC Authorised) | No | No |
| Investments | Interactive Brokers | VT Markets | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Forex Trading (Spot or CFDs) | Yes | Yes | |
| Tradeable Symbols (Total) | 8500 | 1000 | |
| Forex Pairs (Total) | 90 | 39 | |
| U.S. Stock Trading (Non CFD) | Yes | No | |
| Int'l Stock Trading (Non CFD) | Yes | Yes | |
| Social Trading / Copy Trading | No | Yes | |
| Cryptocurrency (Physical) | Yes | No | |
| Cryptocurrency (Derivative) | Yes | Yes | |
| Disclaimers | Note: Crypto CFDs are not available to retail traders from any broker's U.K. entity, nor to U.K. residents (except to Professional clients). | Note: Crypto CFDs are not available to retail traders from any broker's U.K. entity, nor to U.K. residents (except to Professional clients). |
| Cost | Interactive Brokers | VT Markets | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average Spread EUR/USD - Standard | 0.59 | 1.2 | |
| All-in Cost EUR/USD - Active | 0.59 | 0.8 | |
| Active Trader or VIP Discounts | Yes | No | |
| Inactivity Fee | No | No | |
| Execution: Agency Broker | Yes | No | |
| Execution: Market Maker | No | Yes |
| Funding | Interactive Brokers | VT Markets | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Minimum Deposit | $0 | $100 | |
| PayPal (Deposit/Withdraw) | No | No | |
| Skrill (Deposit/Withdraw) | No | Yes | |
| Visa/Mastercard (Credit/Debit) | No | Yes | |
| Bank Wire (Deposit/Withdraw) | Yes | Yes | |
| ACH or SEPA Transfers | Yes | No |
| Trading Platforms | Interactive Brokers | VT Markets | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Proprietary Platform | Yes | No | |
| Desktop Platform (Windows) | Yes | Yes | |
| Web Platform | Yes | Yes | |
| Social Trading / Copy Trading | No | Yes | |
| MetaTrader 4 (MT4) | No | Yes | |
| MetaTrader 5 (MT5) | No | Yes | |
| cTrader | No | No | |
| DupliTrade | No | No | |
| ZuluTrade | No | No |
| Trading Tools | Interactive Brokers | VT Markets | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Virtual Trading (Demo) | Yes | Yes | |
| Alerts - Basic Fields | Yes | Yes | |
| Watchlists - Total Fields | 659 | 7 | |
| Charting - Indicators / Studies (Total) | 155 | 15 | |
| Charting - Drawing Tools (Total) | 85 | 30 | |
| Charting - Trade From Chart | Yes | Yes | |
| Charts can be saved | Yes | Yes |
| Mobile Trading | Interactive Brokers | VT Markets | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Android App | Yes | Yes | |
| Apple iOS App | Yes | Yes | |
| Mobile Alerts - Basic Fields | Yes | Yes | |
| Mobile Watchlist | Yes | Yes | |
| Watchlist Syncing | Yes | No | |
| Mobile Charting - Indicators / Studies | 97 | 30 | |
| Mobile Charting - Draw Trendlines | Yes | Yes | |
| Mobile Charting - Multiple Time Frames | Yes | Yes | |
| Mobile Charting - Drawings Autosave | No | No | |
| Mobile Economic Calendar | Yes | Yes |
| Research | Interactive Brokers | VT Markets | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Daily Market Commentary | Yes | Yes | |
| Forex News (Top-Tier Sources) | Yes | Yes | |
| Autochartist | No | No | |
| Trading Central (Recognia) | Yes | Yes | |
| TipRanks | Yes | No | |
| Social Sentiment - Currency Pairs | Yes | Yes | |
| Economic Calendar | Yes | Yes |
| Education | Interactive Brokers | VT Markets | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Education (Forex or CFDs) | Yes | Yes | |
| Client Webinars | Yes | No | |
| Client Webinars (Archived) | Yes | No | |
| Videos - Beginner Trading Videos | Yes | Yes | |
| Videos - Advanced Trading Videos | Yes | No | |
| Investor Dictionary (Glossary) | Yes | Yes |
| Major Forex Pairs | Interactive Brokers | VT Markets | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 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 | |
| Review | Interactive Brokers Review | VT Markets Review |
| Overall | Interactive Brokers | VT Markets | |
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| Trust Score | 99 | 70 | |
| Winner | check_circle | ||
| Review | Interactive Brokers Review | VT Markets Review |
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