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CMC Markets vs Charles Schwab 2024

BrokerNotes.co

Written by BrokerNotes.co

August 06, 2024

Trying to decide between CMC Markets and Charles Schwab? We’ve taken the guesswork out of the equation with our Comparison Tool. Use our tool to compare hundreds of data points, side-by-side, to see how these two brokers stack up against each other.

Based on our extensive research, hands-on testing, and expert analysis of over a hundred data-driven variables, we've determined that, overall, CMC Markets ranks more highly than Charles Schwab.

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Compare

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Overall Rating CMC Markets Charles Schwab
Overall Rating star 9.6 /10 star 9.3 /10
Offering of Investments star 9.5 /10 star 9.5 /10
Commissions & Fees star 10 /10 star 8.0 /10
Platform & Tools star 9.5 /10 star 9.5 /10
Research star 10 /10 star 9.0 /10
Mobile Trading star 9.5 /10 star 9.5 /10
Education star 8.5 /10 star 9.0 /10
Account Type CMC Markets Charles Schwab
Standard Trade Size (100,000 units) info Yes Yes
Mini Trade Size (10,000 units) info Yes Yes
Micro Trade Size (1,000 units) info Yes No
Islamic Account info No No
Deposit/Withdrawal Options CMC Markets Charles Schwab
Minimum Deposit info $0 $0
Bank Wire (Deposit/Withdraw) info Yes Yes
Visa/Mastercard (Credit/Debit) info Yes No
PayPal (Deposit/Withdraw) info Yes No
ACH or SEPA Transfers info Yes Yes
Copy Trading CMC Markets Charles Schwab
Social Trading / Copy Trading info Yes No
DupliTrade info No No
ZuluTrade info No No
Cryptocurrency CMC Markets Charles Schwab
Cryptocurrency (Physical) info No No
Cryptocurrency (Derivative) info Yes Yes
Bitcoin info Yes No
Ethereum info Yes No
Forex Trading (Spot or CFDs) CMC Markets Charles Schwab
Forex Trading (Spot or CFDs) info Yes Yes
Mobile Trading - Forex or CFDs info Yes Yes
Indices (Index CFDs) CMC Markets Charles Schwab
DAX info Yes Yes
Dow Jones info Yes Yes
FTSE info Yes Yes
NASDAQ 100 info Yes Yes
Nikkei info Yes Yes
SP 500 info Yes Yes
Investments CMC Markets Charles Schwab
Forex Trading (Spot or CFDs) info Yes Yes
Spread Betting info Yes No
Social Trading / Copy Trading info Yes No
Metals info Yes Yes
Energies info Yes Yes
Agriculturals info Yes No
ETF info Yes Yes
U.S. Stocks (CFD) info Yes No
Trading Platforms CMC Markets Charles Schwab
Apple iOS App info Yes Yes
Android App info Yes Yes
Proprietary Platform info Yes Yes
Desktop Platform (Windows) info Yes Yes
Web Platform info Yes Yes
MetaTrader 4 (MT4) info Yes No
MetaTrader 5 (MT5) info No No
Regulatory Licenses CMC Markets Charles Schwab
Tier-1 Licenses info 5 5
Australia (ASIC Authorised) info Yes No
Canada (CIRO Authorised) info Yes Yes
Hong Kong (SFC Authorised) info No Yes
Japan (SFC Authorised) info No No
Singapore (MAS Authorised) info Yes Yes
Switzerland (FINMA Authorised) info No No
United Kingdom (U.K.) (FCA Authorised) info Yes Yes
USA (CFTC Authorized) info No Yes
New Zealand (FMA Authorised) info Yes No
Regulated in one or more EU or EEA countries (MiFID). info Yes info No
Tier-2 Licenses info 1 0
Tier-3 Licenses info 0 0
Research, Education CMC Markets Charles Schwab
Trading Central (Recognia) info No No
Forex News (Top-Tier Sources) info Yes Yes
Daily Market Commentary info Yes Yes
Autochartist info Yes No
Investor Dictionary (Glossary) info Yes Yes
Videos - Beginner Trading Videos info Yes Yes
Client Webinars (Archived) info Yes Yes
Trading Costs CMC Markets Charles Schwab
Minimum Deposit info $0 $0
Average Spread EUR/USD - Standard info 0.61 info 1.25 info
All-in Cost EUR/USD - Active info 0.51 info 1.25 info
Active Trader or VIP Discounts info Yes No
Trading Tools CMC Markets Charles Schwab
Watchlists - Total Fields info 11 580
Mobile Watchlist info Yes Yes
Charting - Indicators / Studies (Total) info 79 374
Mobile Charting - Indicators / Studies info 29 374
Trust Factors CMC Markets Charles Schwab
Year Founded info 1989 1971
Publicly Traded (Listed) info Yes Yes
Bank info No Yes
Regulated in one or more EU or EEA countries (MiFID). info Yes info No
Trust Score info 99 99
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CMC Markets vs Charles Schwab Comparison

Comparing forex brokers side by side is no easy task. Our research team has collected thousands of data points, written hundreds of thousands of words of research, and tested over 60 brokers to help you find the best forex brokers in the industry. Trying to decide between CMC Markets and Charles Schwab? Our independent database powered by our unbiased research will help you compare CMC Markets vs Charles Schwab side-by-side.

What is Trust Score?

Trust Score is a data-driven rating system that provides an at-a-glance rating of a broker’s overall trust by tracking 60+ brokers and over 100 regulatory jurisdictions across the globe. To make things clearer for everyday traders, we’ve created a five-tier system for regulators and Trust Score rating labels. Learn more about Trust Score, and check out our country guides to see the most trusted brokers in your country of residence.

Can I trust CMC Markets?

CMC Markets has a Trust Score of 99, giving it a "Highly Trusted" Trust Score Label.

Can I trust Charles Schwab?

Charles Schwab has a Trust Score of 99, giving it a "Highly Trusted" Trust Score Label.

Is CMC Markets a good broker?

CMC Markets is a highly trusted multi-asset broker regulated in multiple Tier-1 jurisdictions, with an overall Trust Score rating of 99. CMC's powerful Next Generation proprietary trading platform (available for web and mobile) delivers a huge selection of tradeable markets wrapped in a fantastic user experience. Traders at CMC Markets also gain access to MetaTrader 4, and forex traders in Australia can use the CMC Markets Invest app for exchange-traded equities. CMC Markets is a great choice for traders looking for high-quality research, good educational content, powerful trading tools, and low-cost forex trading.

Is Charles Schwab a good broker?

Charles Schwab is a leader in platform technology and trusted by millions of investors globally with trillions in assets under its brands. Available exclusively to U.S. residents, Charles Schwab's forex offering consists of just over 70 currency pairs, along with powerful research, trading tools, and comprehensive educational resources for investing.

What Tier-1 jurisdictions is each broker regulated in?

Tier-1 is reserved for the strictest, most stringent regulatory jurisdictions in the world. Tier-1 regulators impose additional capital requirements and require a tougher initial screening process. CMC Markets holds regulatory licenses in the following Tier-1 jurisdictions: Australia (ASIC Authorised), Canada (CIRO Authorised), Singapore (MAS Authorised), New Zealand (FMA Authorised) and United Kingdom (U.K.) (FCA Authorised). Charles Schwab, on the other hand, is licensed in these Tier-1 regulatory jurisdictions: Canada (CIRO Authorised), Hong Kong (SFC Authorised), Singapore (MAS Authorised), United Kingdom (U.K.) (FCA Authorised) and USA (CFTC Authorized). Neither have CBI Authorised (Ireland), Japan (SFC Authorised) and Switzerland (FINMA Authorised)

What Tier-2 jurisdictions is each broker regulated in? What about Tier-3?

Tier-2 and tier-3 licenses are still important in evaluating the overall trustworthiness of forex brokers. As far as tier-2 licenses go, CMC Markets is UAE (DFSA/Central Bank Authorised), while Charles Schwab is none.. Neither have China (CBRC Authorised), Cyprus (CySEC Authorised), India (SEBI Authorised), Israel (ISA Authorised), Russia (CBR Authorised), South Africa (FSCA Authorised) and Thailand (SEC Authorised). When comparing tier-3 licenses unfortunately, neither CMC Markets nor Charles Schwab are Bahamas (SCB Authorised), Belize (FSC Authorised), Bermuda (BMA Authorised), British Virgin Islands (FSC Authorised), Cayman Islands (CIMA Authorised), Mauritius (FSC Authorised) and Vanuatu (VFSC Authorised).. Neither have Vanuatu (VFSC Authorised).

Which broker offers more trading platforms?

Whether your broker develops its own proprietary platforms or provides access to popular third-party platforms, you should make sure you can use your preferred type of trading platform. In our testing, we found that both CMC Markets and Charles Schwab offer a Proprietary Platform and Desktop Platform (Windows). Neither have cTrader, DupliTrade and ZuluTrade

Does CMC Markets offer MetaTrader? Does Charles Schwab offer MetaTrader?

For MetaTrader CMC Markets provides MetaTrader 4 (MT4), while Charles Schwab provides neither of these. If MetaTrader is a must for you, read our guides on the best MT4 brokers or best MT5 brokers.. Neither have MetaTrader 5 (MT5)

How do CMC Markets and Charles Schwab differ in terms of minimum deposit? What about average spreads and funding options?

CMC Markets requires a minimum deposit of $0, while Charles Schwab requires a minimum deposit of $0. It's also important to ensure your broker accepts the funding options and deposit methods that work best for you. In our research, we've found that CMC Markets supports Bank Wire (Deposit/Withdraw), Visa/Mastercard (Credit/Debit) and PayPal (Deposit/Withdraw) for funding and deposit methods, whereas Charles Schwab supports Bank Wire (Deposit/Withdraw). Neither have Skrill (Deposit/Withdraw)

Which broker offers more tradeable asset classes, CMC Markets or Charles Schwab?

When choosing a forex broker, it’s important to consider each broker’s available investment products and tradeable asset classes. We’ve researched each broker’s individual offering of investments to help you pick the right broker for what you want to trade. During our testing, we found that CMC Markets delivers a more diverse selection of investment options than Charles Schwab, offering tradeable asset classes and investment types such as Forex Trading (Spot or CFDs), Spread Betting, Social Trading / Copy Trading, Metals, Energies, Agriculturals, ETF and U.S. Stocks (CFD).

We also keep track of each broker’s total number of tradeable symbols; CMC Markets offers 11925, and Charles Schwab offers a total of 40000 tradeable symbols.

Can I trade cryptocurrency with CMC Markets or Charles Schwab?

Crypto trading has become popular among forex traders across a range of international jurisdictions. As a result, many forex brokers now offer crypto products to their clients; most crypto assets are offered either as an underlying physical asset (such as when you own actual bitcoin assets, for example) or as a derivative product like a CFD. If you are looking to trade physical cryptocurrencies, you’ll find that neither CMC Markets nor Charles Schwab allow you to trade physical cryptocurrencies.

Who offers more research tools, CMC Markets or Charles Schwab?

Market research plays a huge role in any forex trader’s ability to conduct analysis within the global forex market. We test each broker’s research offering to help you decide which broker is right for your technical or fundamental analysis needs. CMC Markets delivers the following research tools: Autochartist, Daily Market Commentary, Stock Charts, Forex News (Top-Tier Sources) and Social Trading / Copy Trading. Charles Schwab, on the other hand, provides the tools listed here: Daily Market Commentary, Stock Charts and Forex News (Top-Tier Sources). Neither have Trading Central (Recognia)

Broker Reviews

Still looking for more information, read our broker reviews.

CMC Markets Review

Charles Schwab Review

Overall winner: CMC Markets

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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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