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Best advanced platforms for US stocks

For screening, automation and API access, the field narrows to a handful of platforms built for professionals.

Answer: 7 of the brokers we cover meet the criteria for this page. Ordered on those criteria, Pepperstone is the first name to look at — non-US residents trading US shares as CFDs. 6 of them give you real share ownership; 1 give CFD exposure only.

PepperstoneCFD — no ownership

★★★★★★★★★★4.5

Non-US residents trading US shares as CFDs

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Charles SchwabOwns the share

★★★★★★★★★★4.5

US residents

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IGShares or CFD

★★★★★★★★★★5.0

UK and AU investors

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What we screened on

API and algorithmic order support
Depth of screening and backtesting
Order routing control

The comparison table

Broker	What you get	Minimum	Fractional	Regulation	Extended hours
Pepperstone	CFD exposure only	None	n/a	FCA, ASIC, CySEC, DFSA, BaFin	Selected US share CFDs only — check the instrument schedule
Charles Schwab	Share ownership	None	Yes	SEC	Pre-market and after-hours sessions supported
IG	Share ownership	None	No	FCA, ASIC, MAS	Out-of-hours pricing on selected US shares
Interactive Brokers	Share ownership	None	Yes	SEC, FCA, CBI	Pre-market and after-hours routing available
moomoo	Share ownership	None	Yes	SEC, MAS, ASIC	Pre-market and after-hours supported
Saxo	Share ownership	None	No	DFSA, FCA, MAS	Available on selected US listings
Webull	Share ownership	None	Yes	SEC	Long pre-market and after-hours sessions

Broker by broker

Pepperstone

CFD — no ownership

★★★★★★★★★★4.5

A CFD and spread-betting broker, not a US stockbroker. It is on this site because for most non-US traders it is one of the few regulated routes to US-share exposure with leverage.

Minimum: None
Fractional: n/a
Regulators: FCA, ASIC, CySEC, DFSA, BaFin
US universe: 1,000+ US share CFDs

Non-US residents trading US shares as CFDs
Leveraged short-term positions
MetaTrader and TradingView users

CFDs are leveraged: you do not own the share, get no shareholder rights, and can lose more than you expect
Not available to US residents

Visit Pepperstone Full review

Charles Schwab

Owns the share

★★★★★★★★★★4.5

A full-service US brokerage; thinkorswim gives it a genuinely strong active-trading platform.

Minimum: None
Fractional: Yes
Regulators: SEC
US universe: Full US listed market

US residents
Long-term investors who want research and banking in one place
Options traders via thinkorswim

International account availability is limited and varies by country

Visit Charles Schwab Full review

IG

Shares or CFD

★★★★★★★★★★5.0

One of the few names offering genuine share dealing and CFDs under one login, with the rules changing by jurisdiction.

Minimum: None
Fractional: No
Regulators: FCA, ASIC, MAS
US universe: US share dealing plus a large US share CFD list

UK and AU investors
Traders who want share dealing and CFDs side by side

Inactivity fees on dormant accounts
Product mix differs sharply by country

Visit IG Full review

Interactive Brokers

Owns the share

★★★★★★★★★★5.0

The default answer for a non-US investor who wants to actually own US shares rather than a derivative of them.

Minimum: None
Fractional: Yes
Regulators: SEC, FCA, CBI
US universe: Full US listed market (NYSE, Nasdaq, AMEX) plus 150+ global markets

Real share ownership from almost any country
Multi-currency accounts
Options, futures and international listings in one account

The desktop platform is dense and unforgiving for first-timers
Data subscriptions are billed separately

Visit Interactive Brokers Full review

moomoo

Owns the share

★★★★★★★★★★5.0

Unusually deep data for the price; the offering differs a lot between its US, SG and AU entities.

Minimum: None
Fractional: Yes
Regulators: SEC, MAS, ASIC
US universe: US listed stocks, ETFs and options

Level 2 data on a budget
Asian-market investors buying US stocks

Promotional pricing changes often — read the current schedule
Feature set differs by entity

Visit moomoo Full review

Saxo

Shares or CFD

★★★★★★★★★★4.5

Priced for size — the tiering rewards larger balances and punishes small ones.

Minimum: None
Fractional: No
Regulators: DFSA, FCA, MAS
US universe: US listed stocks plus 50+ global exchanges

Larger portfolios
Investors wanting US plus European and Asian listings
Bank-grade custody

Costs bite at small account sizes
No fractional shares

Visit Saxo Full review

Webull

Owns the share

★★★★★★★★★★4.5

Charting and screening well beyond what a zero-commission app usually ships with.

Minimum: None
Fractional: Yes
Regulators: SEC
US universe: US listed stocks, ETFs and options

Active traders who want free charting
Paper trading before going live
Options

Support is app-based
Country availability varies

Visit Webull Full review

Frequently asked questions

Which broker is best for US stocks?

Pepperstone leads this list on our criteria: API and algorithmic order support. A CFD and spread-betting broker, not a US stockbroker. It is on this site because for most non-US traders it is one of the few regulated routes to US-share exposure with leverage.

Does a CFD count as owning the stock?

No. A contract for difference tracks the share price but confers no ownership, no voting rights and no real dividend — only a cash adjustment. It is a leveraged trading product, not an investment holding.

How is this list ordered?

By the criteria named on this page, using each broker's own published data. Commercial relationships never move a broker up a data-ordered table; where two brokers are genuinely equal on the criteria, our partners appear first and are labelled as partners.

Are the fees on this page current?

Every fee statement links to the broker's own pricing page, which is the authoritative source. We restate published figures rather than estimating them, and where a broker does not publish a number we print "not published".

Reviewed August 2026 · sources linked on each broker profile.