Home › Compare › Pepperstone vs Interactive Brokers
Pepperstone vs Interactive Brokers for US stocks
Interactive Brokers gives you the actual share; Pepperstone gives leveraged exposure to the price without ownership. That is not a preference — it is a different product, with different tax, dividend and risk treatment.
Pick Pepperstone if non-US residents trading US shares as CFDs. Pick Interactive Brokers if real share ownership from almost any country.
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.
Visit PepperstoneThe default answer for a non-US investor who wants to actually own US shares rather than a derivative of them.
Visit Interactive BrokersSide by side
| Pepperstone | Interactive Brokers | |
|---|---|---|
| What you hold | A CFD on the price | The share |
| US stock access | 1,000+ US share CFDs | Full US listed market (NYSE, Nasdaq, AMEX) plus 150+ global markets |
| Minimum deposit | None | None |
| Fractional shares | n/a | Yes |
| Published pricing | US share CFDs are commission-based on the Razor account and spread-based on Standard; overnight financing applies to positions held past the close. | IBKR Lite offers $0 commission on US listed stocks and ETFs for eligible clients; IBKR Pro is tiered/fixed per-share pricing. |
| Platforms | MetaTrader 4, MetaTrader 5, cTrader, TradingView | Trader Workstation, IBKR Desktop, IBKR Mobile, Client Portal, API |
| Extended hours | Selected US share CFDs only — check the instrument schedule | Pre-market and after-hours routing available |
| Regulation | FCA 684312, ASIC 414530, CySEC 388/20, DFSA F004356, BaFin 151148 | SEC SIPC member, FCA 208159, CBI C423427 |
| Founded | 2010 | 1978 |
Where each one wins
Pepperstone
- 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
Interactive Brokers
- 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
Frequently asked questions
Pepperstone or Interactive Brokers — which is better for US stocks?
Interactive Brokers gives you the actual share; Pepperstone gives leveraged exposure to the price without ownership. That is not a preference — it is a different product, with different tax, dividend and risk treatment. Pepperstone: non-US residents trading US shares as CFDs. Interactive Brokers: real share ownership from almost any country.
Which is cheaper?
Pepperstone: US share CFDs are commission-based on the Razor account and spread-based on Standard; overnight financing applies to positions held past the close. Interactive Brokers: IBKR Lite offers $0 commission on US listed stocks and ETFs for eligible clients; IBKR Pro is tiered/fixed per-share pricing. Both figures are restated from each broker's own pricing page; for small non-USD accounts, currency conversion usually costs more than commission does.
Which is better regulated?
Pepperstone is authorised by FCA, ASIC, CySEC, DFSA, BaFin; Interactive Brokers by SEC, FCA, CBI. What matters is which entity holds your account, since that determines your compensation scheme and leverage limits.
Reviewed August 2026. Figures restated from each broker's published pages.