CMC Markets vs IG (2026)

CMC Markets vs IG: the verdict

IG is the stronger broker overall on the 2026 scoring, at 77 of 100 and rank 13 of 32 against CMC Markets on 68 and rank 21, a result that cuts against the usual rough-parity framing. CMC Markets wins on cost: the May to June 2026 capture put its Standard EUR/USD at 0.50 pips, second of the 21 standard accounts benchmarked, while IG measured 1.13 pips despite advertising near 0.60. The cheaper broker still loses the overall call, because IG carries a higher trust sub-score, a broader range at 17,000 plus markets against 12,000 plus, and a gentler inactivity trigger, while the CMC Markets platform line-up in Australia has narrowed.

This is a like-for-like comparison of the two longest-running ASIC-regulated CFD brokers in Australia, both listed in London and both trading locally since 2002. The figures below come from the 2026 capture and from the individual CMC Markets review and IG review rather than from broker marketing.

Specifications compared

The licence row and the “trading locally since 2002” line are two different facts at both brokers, and the section below separates them.

Regulation and trust

The CMC Markets CFD business runs through CMC Markets Asia Pacific Pty Ltd on ASIC AFSL 238054, current since 24 February 2004, and the parent CMC Markets plc is listed on the London Stock Exchange. Australian IG CFD accounts sit with IG Australia Pty Ltd on AFSL 515106, while the group’s two-decade local history traces to a separate legacy entity, IG Markets Limited under AFSL 220440. So the “since 2002” claim belongs to each group’s local presence rather than to the exact entity a CFD account opens with today.

Both parents file audited accounts under listed-company disclosure rules, both segregate retail money at an Approved Australian Bank, and both belong to AFCA. On the trust sub-score IG edges ahead, reflecting the wider tier-1 regulator stack and the deeper corporate record behind the reviewed entity.

Getting the entity right matters more here than at most comparisons, because the CMC Markets share-investing arm sits under yet another licence again. The share-investing section below sets that out in full.

Costs: CMC Markets wins the spread

CMC Markets is the cheaper broker on spread and it is not close. On the no-commission Standard account the 2026 capture measured EUR/USD at 0.50 pips, one of the tightest figures in the market and second of the 21 standard accounts in the lowest spread rankings. IG measured 1.13 pips on the same pair over May to June 2026, near the bottom of the field, even though its advertised from-figure sits around 0.60. Across the eight-pair standard basket the gap holds, at 0.89 pips against 1.62.

Three things pull against that spread win and explain why the cheaper broker loses overall. Cost is only one scoring axis, and the stronger IG trust sub-score plus its far broader range outweigh it. The CMC Markets cost profile is also not uniformly low: its inactivity fee bites at A$15 a month after just 12 months dormant, against A$25 a quarter after a more lenient 24 months at IG. And while the CMC Markets currency conversion fee of around 0.30% undercuts 0.50% at IG, neither broker matches the raw-spread specialists, so a cost-first forex scalper would shortlist Pepperstone or IC Markets instead.

For a casual or multi-asset trader who values the Standard-account spread, CMC Markets is genuinely the cheaper entry, and the A$0 minimum deposit against A$100 at IG lowers the bar further.

Platforms in Australia

Neither broker is a platform maximalist in Australia, which surprises traders who assume the two biggest names carry everything.

IG Australia offers no MT5, no cTrader and no native TradingView trading. Its strength sits in the proprietary IG web platform, backed by ProRealTime charting, MT4 for legacy expert advisors, the L2 Dealer direct-market-access route and a documented trading API. CMC Markets retired MT5 for Australian clients in 2022 and has never offered cTrader, so its line-up is Next Generation, MT4 and TradingView, with the proprietary Next Generation platform doing the heavy lifting and widely rated the best discretionary CFD platform in the local market.

On automation and social tooling the two split cleanly. CMC Markets has no copy product of its own and supports MetaTrader-based social and copy trading through the MT4 signal communities plus the TradingView social features, whereas IG offers no copy or social trading at all. A trader committed to MT5, cTrader or native TradingView execution should look past both.

ASX share investing: CMC Invest vs IG Share Investing

This is the clearest dividing line between the two, and it is one that offshore CFD brands cannot copy. Share investing at each broker runs through a separate legal entity from the CFD business, which decides how the shares are actually held.

CMC Invest is operated by CMC Markets Stockbroking Limited under ASIC AFSL 246381, a distinct licence from the CFD entity’s AFSL 238054, and it is CHESS-sponsored: ASX-listed shares and ETFs are registered in the client’s own name under a Holder Identification Number. Those holdings sit on the CHESS sub-register in that name, so if CMC Markets ever stopped operating the ASX shares would stay registered to the HIN rather than pooled with an administrator’s assets. International shares at CMC Invest are held custodially through BNP Paribas, so the CHESS benefit applies to the ASX portion specifically. On brokerage, CMC Invest charges A$0 on a first ASX buy under A$1,000 per security each day, which keeps small direct purchases cheap.

IG Share Investing takes the custodial route instead. Australian holdings are registered under Citicorp Nominees Pty Limited, the Citi nominee company, so the client holds a beneficial interest rather than legal title in their own name.

Neither model is inherently unsafe and both sit under ASIC-regulated entities, and the distinction is real for an investor who wants direct legal ownership and portability of their ASX holdings. There CMC Invest has the stronger structure. For a CFD-only trader the point is moot; for anyone planning to buy and hold ASX shares alongside a trading account, it is the single biggest reason to weigh CMC Markets over IG. The full detail on holding equities against share and stock CFDs sits on the dedicated page.

Which should you choose

Choose IG if you want the stronger all-round broker: the higher trust sub-score, the widest market range available to Australian retail at 17,000 plus including 13,000 plus share CFDs, 24/7 support and defined-risk Knock-Outs and Barriers, accepting a wider measured forex spread and a A$100 minimum in return.

Pick CMC Markets if the Standard-account spread is your priority, if you want the Next Generation platform, or if you plan to hold ASX shares in your own name through CHESS-sponsored CMC Invest, and you are comfortable with the 24/5 support window and the A$15 monthly inactivity fee after a year.

Most multi-asset traders land on IG on the strength of trust and range, while cost-led and share-owning Australians have a genuine case for CMC Markets.

A note on risk before you decide. Both brokers sit under the ASIC retail protections, including the 30:1 leverage cap on major currency pairs, the 2:1 cap on crypto CFDs, mandatory negative balance protection and a standardised margin close-out at 50% of initial margin. Most retail clients lose money trading CFDs, so treat leverage and the defined-risk products, meaning Knock-Outs, Barriers and guaranteed stop-loss orders that cap a loss at a set level for a premium, as ways to bound risk mechanically rather than to remove it. Read the full CMC Markets review and IG review before opening either account, and set both against the wider field in the guide to the best forex brokers in Australia.