Plus500 Review 2022

Trust

In our trust category, we place most importance on how a broker is regulated. So let’s dive in and take a look at how the different entities of Plus500 across the globe are regulated and how this impacts you as a trader. (We rate regulators on a scale of 1 to 3, with 1 reflecting the highest level of trust.)

The various entities of Plus500 are regulated as follows:

• Plus500CY Ltd is authorized and regulated by the Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (#250/14) and covers clients in the European Economic Area (EEA). (We rate CySEC as a Tier 1 regulator).
• Plus500UK Ltd is authorized and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (#509909) and covers clients in the United Kingdom. (We rate FCA as a Tier 1 regulator.)
• Plus500SG Pte Ltd is licensed by the Monetary Authority of Singapore (#CMS100648-1) and the IE Singapore (#PLUS/CBL/2018), covering clients in Singapore. (We rate MAS as a Tier 1 regulator.)
• Plus500AU Pty Ltd is licensed by Australian Securities and Investments Commission, (AFSL #417727), Financial Markets Authority in New Zealand (FSP #486026) and the Financial Sector Conduct Authority in South Africa (FSP #47546). (We rate ASIC as a Tier 1 regulator, FMA as a Tier 2 regulator and FSC as a Tier 2 regulator.)
• Plus500SEY Ltd is authorised and regulated by the Seychelles Financial Services Authority (Licence No. SD039). (We rate the Seychelles FSA as a Tier 3 regulator.)

Why is it important to know where your broker subsidiary (entity) is regulated?

Different regulators provide different levels of protection. For example, Plus500 clients in Europe benefit from the oversight of CySEC. CySEC requires that clients have negative balance protection, which means that they cannot lose more than their deposit. Client funds must be held in segregated accounts, which are protected in the event of a broker going bankrupt. In addition, Plus500CY is a member of the CySEC Investor Compensation Fund (“ICF”), which provides compensation of up to €20,000 to clients in the event of broker insolvency. By contrast, a trader working with a broker entity regulated offshore would not have these benefits guaranteed to them.

In the table below we break down the mandated protections and benefits by entity, regulator and region:

Stability and Transparency

In our tests for the Trust category we also cover factors relating to stability and transparency. Here, we focused on how long the broker has been in business, the size of the company and how transparent they are in terms of information being readily available.

Founded in 2008, Plus500 has a substantial operating history. Plus500 is also a publicly traded company, listed on the London Stock Exchange and a constituent of the FTSE 250 Index. As a publicly traded company, Plus500 must disclose financial reports, allowing for greater insight into the stability of the company.

In our research, Plus500 showed a good level of transparency in areas such as their regulatory status, fees and general background information. Information and materials are readily available on the website. The regulatory status of different subsidiaries is covered at the footer of each page. The Fees and Charges page clearly outlines all costs. A User Agreement (Terms of service) document is also available on the Terms & Agreements page.

In summary, we rated Plus500 as having a high level of trust and stability due to the following factors:

• Being regulated by multiple top-tier agencies.
• Having a lengthy operating history.
• Being a publicly traded company valued at over a billion dollars.
• Having a high level of transparency.

Fees

Plus500 offers a standard account and a professional account. We tested a live Standard Account, but the only difference between the two is the amount of leverage offered. The fees are the same for both accounts.

Plus500 earns money mainly from spreads (the gap between the bid and offer prices of an asset). Plus500 does not charge commissions, with the exception of a small number of CFDs on shares, and a Currency Conversion Fee per trade. There is also a fee for guaranteed stop-loss orders, which varies based on the size of the order and the instrument traded. A guaranteed stop-loss is a type of stop-loss order that ensures your position will be closed at a set price level.

Trading Fees

Spreads at Plus500 are variable, meaning that they fluctuate slightly. The size of the spread depends on the level of liquidity in the market. Liquidity describes the extent to which an instrument can be bought and sold quickly and without moving the market. Tighter spreads are typically seen when there is greater liquidity in the market.

We tested the spreads at Plus500 across different asset classes in a live account using the WebTrader platform. The test was done at 8AM GMT and at 3PM GMT on December 1st 2021. We made our tests at two different times to allow greater perspective. 8AM GMT is the London open, when there is a great deal of liquidity in the forex market and therefore tighter spreads in currency pairs. 3PM GMT is a quieter time, shortly before the opening of the New York stock exchange.

Spread costs at Plus500 were mixed in our tests. In forex they were competitive, while in some commodities such as gold they were higher than average. Spreads in the stock CFDs we tested were also higher than average. Spreads in indices were fairly competitive.

Plus500 will also charge a Currency Conversion Fee for all trades on instruments denominated in a currency different from the currency of your account.

Swap fees (the cost of holding a position overnight) were higher than average at Plus500.

In the table below you can see the Swap Long (the cost/credit of holding a buy position overnight) and the Swap Short (the cost/credit of holding a sell position overnight) for one full sized contract. A full sized contract is 100,000 units of the base currency (the first currency quoted in the pair).

We recorded the data on November 29th and 30th 2021.

Non-Trading Fees

Plus500 does not charge any deposit, withdrawal or account closing fees. For accounts that are idle for over 3 months, a $10 per month inactivity fee is charged.

Are Fees at Plus500 Competitive?

We judged that fees at Plus500 are average to competitive. Some instruments such as EUR/USD have competitive spreads, while others for example gold are not. Overnight swap fees were relatively high.

Platforms and Tools

Plus500 have clearly invested heavily in their proprietary WebTrader platform, which has taken ease of use to a new level. Robinhood, the US stock broker, has a famously slick, minimalist and intuitive platform. Plus500 has successfully brought a platform with similar strengths to the CFD trading.

WebTrader

Plus500`s proprietary trading platform called WebTrader is accessible via web browser, Windows 10 app, tablets and smartphones. Plus500 does not offer a desktop trading platform.

WebTrader allows users to easily create watchlists, analyze charts, enter trades and monitor positions in the market.

Plus500 offers a free demo account and the WebTrader platform makes it easy to flip between demo and live trading in a single click. A dark mode option helps make the screen easy on your eyes at night, also accessible via a single click.

Traders often need to pull up an instrument at short notice. Having a good search feature is a key part of a trading platform. Plus500 has a great search tool at the top of the screen that makes it super easy to find whatever asset you may be looking for.

All basic order types such as market, limit and stop loss are available. Trailing stop orders and guaranteed stop loss orders are also available. Guaranteed stops can protect traders from black swan events and unexpected market swings, but they incur an additional cost.

Charting capabilities are strong within the WebTrader platform. Multiple chart types are available, such as Candles, Renko and Range Bars. Over 100 technical indicators can be applied to the charts along with classic drawing tools such as Fibonacci retracement levels. Available time frames for charts range from 1 minute to 1 week.

Alerts from the WebTrader platform can update you when the price of an asset reaches a certain level or changes by a set percentage. You can also elect to be alerted if Plus500 Traders’ Sentiments reach a certain level.

Traders’ Sentiments show the percentage of the client base of Plus500 that are long (buyers) vs. the percentage that are short (sellers). When Traders’ Sentiments reach extreme leves, for example 95% long and 5% short, this is recognized as a potentially powerful contrarian indicator. It is viewed as contrarian in the sense that when a very high percentage of traders are positioned either long or short, there may be an imminent reversal in the price trend.

Alerts can be received by email, SMS or push notifications. The minimalist layout of the platform makes these functions super easy to use, even for beginners.

While the UX is very good, the platform lacks some advanced features such as backtesting and automated trading. Alternative platforms such as MetaTrader 4 or cTrader that have these capabilities are not available at Plus500. Other features popular among day traders, such as 1-click trading are also not available on the WebTrader platform.

Overall, the platform is also not highly customizable, but there is a nice feature called multiple charts view that allows you to view different charts laid out to your preference on the same screen.

This is key for traders who use intermarket relationships or who like to stay on top of what is going on across multiple time frames for their strategy. In the image above you can see that trading from the chart is an available feature also.

Plus500 has been conscious of the importance of account security, with two-factor authentication available for both mobile and web platforms.

We concluded that Plus500 has a very good platform, which is especially good for beginners and swing traders who hold positions for days. For day traders and scalpers who are constantly in and out of the market, the lack of one-click trading is a major drawback. To begin trading, novice traders are advised to use a demo account first.

Mobile Trading

Plus500 has created an impressive app that offers both an intuitive interface and some advanced functionality.

The Plus500 mobile app is available for iOS, Android, and Windows. The functionality of the mobile app is very similar to the web platform. It has an intuitive interface and offers a range of great features, including:

• Two-Factor Authentication. Better security can be set up by having a verification code sent via SMS for every log in from a new device.
• Demo Mode. Users can easily switch between a demo account and live trading within the app.
• Alerts. Users can have alerts sent via email, SMS or push notification when an asset reaches a set level.
• Economic Calendar. The Plus500 economic calendar shows all the key information relating to upcoming releases such as the expected market impact, analyst expectations, and figures from previous releases. It also shows instruments likely to be most impacted by the news.
• Watchlists. Users can follow popular instruments, a particular asset class, risers and fallers or create their own list of instruments to follow. These can all be accessed under the categories tab.

Charting on the mobile app is robust and provides:

• 13 Chart Types. A broader than average range, from Bar chart to Point & Figure charts.
• 10 Time Frames. These range from 1 Minute to 1 Week.
• 110 Indicators. A very wide range of indicators (more than MetaTrader) from Accumulation/Distribution to ZigZag.
• 21 Drawing Tools. These include classics such as Fibonacci, Gartley and Pitchfork.

One drawback is that charts from the web platform do not sync with mobile. Overall, we concluded that this is an excellent app, better than average for the industry.

Order Execution

Plus500 is a dealing desk/market maker broker, meaning that they set the bid (buy) and offer (sell) prices internally and automatically take the other side of a clients trade. This contrasts with STP/ECN brokers who provide clients direct access to other market participants. (STP stands for straight through processing and ECN stands for electronic communications network).

Tradable Instruments

As a leading CFD broker you might expect Plus500 to have a wide range of tradable assets and it certainly has strength in this category. The range of tradable instruments at Plus500 covers forex, commodities, indices, shares from multiple exchanges, exchange-traded funds (ETFs) and cryptocurrencies. Plus500 goes beyond what is offered at most CFD brokers by also offering CFDs on options.

CFDs (Contract for Differences) are financial derivative products that allow traders to speculate in various markets without owning the underlying assets. Tradable instruments at Plus500 include the following assets:

• 71 Currency Pairs. A currency pair combines two different currencies, with the value of one currency quoted against the other. For example EUR/USD, which reflects the value of the euro measured in dollars.
• 22 Commodity CFDs. Commodities are raw products, such as gold and oil.
• 1,500+ Global Stock CFDs. A stock is a security that represents partial ownership of a corporation. Keep in mind that when trading stock CFDs you are speculating on the price of a stock without actually taking ownership of the underlying company.
• 28 Index CFDs. An index is a basket of trading instruments that is used to gauge a market sector, stocks within an exchange or the economy of a country.
• 14 Cryptocurrency CFDs. Cryptocurrencies, such as Bitcoin, are digital currencies that are secured by cryptography.
• 104 ETF CFDs. Exchange traded funds (ETF) are financial instruments that track an index or sector and trade like a stock on an exchange.

Within the forex market, users can trade major, minor and exotic currencies, with a total of 71 different pairs offered. Available cryptocurrency CFDs include leaders such as Bitcoin, Ethereum, Litecoin and the Crypto 10 Index.

Commodity CFDs are based on futures contracts from exchanges such as the Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT), the Intercontinental Exchange (ICE) and the New York Mercantile Exchange (NYMEX). Gold, crude oil, natural gas and corn are among the popular commodities available to trade.

A massive number of CFDs on shares are available, from exchanges ranging from the US to Hong Kong. Using CFDs, traders are able to speculate on the price movement of popular stocks such as Apple and Tesla without owning the underlying stock. Leading indices such as the S&P 500 or the FTSE 100 are also available.

While a broad range of markets are available, some instruments such as bonds are not available. Below is a sampling of instruments across the various asset classes.

Overall, we judged that Plus500 has an impressive range of tradable instruments, well above average for the industry.

Customer Service

Within the WebTrader platform, Plus500 offers 24/7 chat support. There is also email support via a contact form. Phone support is not available.

In our tests, customer service agents responded almost immediately via chat and were helpful and well informed. We tested support with a wide range of questions, from easy to hard. For example ‘are spreads at Plus500 fixed or variable’ and ‘what is the fee for a guaranteed stop loss order?’. Support is available in 16 different languages, including English, Spanish, German, Italian, Mandarin, French, Arabic and Russian.

Despite the lack of phone support, we concluded that customer support at Plus500 is strong, due to the positive experience we had via chat and email.

Deposit & Withdrawals Options

Plus500 supports a wide range of payment providers making it easy to deposit and withdraw from your brokerage account. Funds can be transferred via Visa and Mastercard (debit or credit), Paypal, Skrill or bank wire. Plus500 does not charge a fee for making deposits and withdrawals.

Deposits

Deposits are typically available instantly, with the exception of bank wire. Bank wires can take up to 5 days because of the additional processing time of the bank itself.

Withdrawals

Withdrawals take a bit longer because Plus500 needs to examine your account to check whether the requested amount can be withdrawn. This depends on factors such as your actual balance, the margin requirements of your open positions and any documents that may be outstanding.

All withdrawal requests are normally processed by Plus500 within 1 business day before being sent out. However, it can take a few additional days depending on the payment method that is used. For electronic wallets, the total processing time is usually 1-3 business days and for credit/debit card refunds, the funds should be visible on your account within 5 business days depending on the processing time of the card issuer. Bank wires can take 5 business days since it does not depend entirely on Plus500 and involve bank authorities as well.

It is the policy of Plus500, wherever possible, to process withdrawal payments back to the same payment method used to make the deposit.

We concluded that Plus500 is better than the industry average for this category for the following reasons:

• Good range of deposit/withdrawal options.
• No deposit/withdrawal fees.
• Reasonable processing times.

Account Types and Terms

The account opening process at Plus500 is simple and fast. In order to open a live account users must prove their identity and address by uploading the relevant documents to the platform.

When opening an account with the Plus500CY entity we had to also fill out a brief Know Your Customer (KYC) questionnaire. KYC aims to ensure that brokers understand the clients’ risk tolerance, investment knowledge, and financial position.

The minimum deposit is 100 units of your local currency and 500 when using bank transfers. Accounts can be opened in over 16 different base currencies, which is a larger range than most brokers.

Leverage

One of the reasons that traders are attracted to the forex and CFD markets is the high degree of available leverage. Leverage is the use of borrowed funds to increase the size of your trading positions beyond what would be possible using only the cash in your account.

A standard account offers a maximum of 1:30 leverage. This means that with an account of $1,000, you can control up to $30,000 worth of positions in the market. Traders can apply for a professional account, which offers higher leverage, but the costs and platform are the same.

With a standard account, the following leverage is available:

• Major Forex: 1:30
• Non-major Forex, Gold and Major Equity Indices: 1:20
• Commodities other than gold and non-major equity indices: 1:10
• Shares: 1:5
• Crypto: 1:2

Investors with a professional account can trade with a maximum leverage of 1:300. This means that with an account of $1,000, you can control up to $300,000 worth of positions in the market. In order to qualify for a professional account users must show a financial portfolio of over €500,000 and relevant financial experience. Professional accounts do not have ICF rights.

Here is the available leverage for professional accounts:

• Major Forex: 1:300
• Major Indices, Minor Forex: 1:300
• Commodities, Minor Indices: 1:150
• Shares: 1:20
• Crypto: 1:20

Leverage is often described as a ‘double-edged sword’ because it can amplify both your profits and losses. Leveraged trading comes with a high level of risk and can often result in significant losses.

Demo and Islamic Accounts

An unlimited demo account is available that allows you to hone your skills without risking any money. Plus500 also offers a swap free Islamic account that adheres to the principles of Sharia law.

Plus500 accepts clients from the majority of countries globally. However, like most CFD brokers, Plus500 does not accept clients from the United States or from FATF (Financial Action Task Force) blacklisted countries North Korea and Iran.

Research

On the Plus500 website there is a section with articles covering news and market insights. These are written by in-house analysts and explore major themes, such as How Is The Omicron Strain Expected To Impact Markets? Reports are published three or four times a week. The quality of the content is good, with useful information and ideas. However, the volume/frequency of content lags some of the major competitors in the industry. They also lack video or webinar content as part of their research materials.

Plus500 has some great research tools built into the platform. Within the WebTrader platform there is an economic calendar and a calendar of corporate events. It is convenient that the economic calendar is built into the platform rather than being on the website as with many other brokers. The calendar also has some unique features such as showing a list of the trading instruments that are related to each economic release.

Another useful research tool built into the platform is Trader Sentiment. When entering an order you can see Trader Sentiment information showing the percentage of clients that are long versus those that are short. Trader Sentiment shows when there are extremes in market sentiment, with a high percentage of traders either long or short an instrument. These can serve as an indicator of turning points in the market.

Education

Educational materials are fairly minimal at Plus500. They provide an ebook called Trading with Plus500 and on the website there are 10 videos covering topics such as popular trading strategies and trading alerts. Most of the videos are quite superficial and are only a couple of minutes long. There is an FAQ section that can help traders get quick answers to queries ranging from the account verification process to how funds can be withdrawn.
In the area of education, Plus500 lags some leading CFD brokers who offer a wider range of resources such as courses and live webinars.

The Bottom Line

Plus500 is a good option for a CFD trader looking for a stable, easy to use trading platform with a wide range of instruments and reasonable trading costs.

Overall we had a very positive experience with Plus500. The WebTrader platform is one of the most intuitive and user-friendly on the market. There is an exciting range of instruments to trade and we judged the pricing ranged from average to competitive in most areas.

Traders should be conscious of swap fees (the cost of holding a trade overnight) though as they could add up to be substantial over time.

This is a great platform for beginners and casual traders. It is not a suitable choice for algorithmic traders and scalpers who are in and out of the markets in seconds. To begin trading, readers are advised to use a demo account first.

Plus500 shined in almost every category, but their educational materials have room for improvement.

Clients of Plus500 have the reassurance that the company’s subsidiaries are regulated in multiple jurisdictions globally and that they have negative balance protection.

FAQ