Traders consistently seek trusted and reliable trading platforms that suit their trading styles and preferences. Etoro and LMFX are online brokers providing trading services worldwide. Etoro is known for its social trading and multi-asset platform, regulated in four tier-1 jurisdictions and one tier-4 jurisdiction including CySEC, FCA, Finra, FSA-S, and SIPC. On the other hand, LMFX specializes in online forex and CFD trading. LMFX is an offshore forex broker and is not regulated by any regulatory authorities. While these brokers offer similar services, they each have their own strengths and weaknesses.
In this article, I have compared Etoro and LMFX in terms of trading platforms, Pros, Cons, regulations, tradable assets, fees, customer support, and overall trading experience score. This analysis will help you determine which broker better suits your trading style and preferences.
Etoro vs LMFX: In a Nutshell
Etoro
eToro is a multi-asset investment company that offers 5000+ trading instruments for clients worldwide. Its headquarters are located in Central Israel. The platform is known for its advanced proprietary social investing and copy-trading platform. eToro is regulated by multiple regulatory authorities including FCA, ASIC, CySEC, FINRA, SEC, and SIPC. etoro is also available on NASDAQ with the FTCV ticker. Â It has built a huge community comprising over 30 million traders who interact with each other while investors automatically copy the trades of expert traders. Additionally, you can trade real stocks, ETFs, and cryptos with eToro. To learn more, you can read our review on Etoro.Â
Etoro Overview
- Founded In: 2007
- Founder: Yoni Assia, Ronen Assia
- Headquarters: UK
- Minimum Deposit: $50
- Maximum Leverage: 30:1 EU, 50:1 USA
- Regulations: SEC, FINRA, FCA, CySEC, FSA-S, SIPC
- Trading platform: eToro Trading Platforms
- Account Types: Standard, Professional, Corporate
- Payment Options: Bank Wire (BankTransfer/SWIFT), VISA, MasterCard, Giropay, Local Bank Deposits, Local Bank Transfers, Neteller, PayPal, Skrill, UnionPay, WebMoney, Yandex Money
LMFX
Founded in 2015, LMFX is a forex and CFD broker that provides online trading services globally. It offers around 100 trading instruments through the MetaTrader 4 (MT4) platform. LMFX provides low spreads and fast execution speeds as an ECN/STP broker. The broker offers three account types: Premium, Fixed, and Zero. The broker offers a demo account for practice. The broker provides trading tools, including multiple calculators, an economic calendar, and a blog featuring market news and trading insights.
LMFX runs a monthly demo contest with a total prize pool of $1,750, awarded as live trading funds. It offers a 100% deposit match bonus for deposits of at least $100 and a Phoenix bonus for first-time deposits. The broker provides a free VPS service for traders who meet specific criteria. LMFX operates without regulation from any major financial authority. It accepts clients from various countries, except the USA and Canada.
LMFX Overview
- Founded In: 2015
- Trading Instruments: 100+ trading instruments including Forex, CFDs (Indices, Commodities, Metals, Shares)
- Minimum Deposit: $50
- Maximum Leverage: 1:1000
- Regulations: None
- Trading platform: MT4 on desktop, web, mobile
- Bonus: Available
- Account Types: Premium, Fixed, Zero, Micor, Islamic
- Payment Options: Crypto, Credit Card,
- Trading Styles: Scalping, hedging, EA Trading, News trading are allowed.
- Trading Tools:Economic calendar, Free VPS, trading calculators
- US Traders: Accepted
eToro vs LMFX: Features
eToro:
- Trading Instruments: Stocks, Indices, ETFs, Currencies, Commodities, Crypto
- Maximum leverage: 1:3000
- Minimum Deposit: $5
- Account Types: Personal (retail) account, professional account, corporate account, and Islamic account
- Trading Fees: Spread starting from 1 pip
- PAMM/ MAM: Not available. A dedicated Copy trading Platform is available
- Scalping: Not Allowed
- News Trading: Allowed
- EA/ Robot Trading: Not Allowed
LMFX
- Trading Instruments: Forex, Metals, Oil, Indices, Commodities, Shares
- Trading Platforms: Mt4, Web Trading, Mobile
- Minimum Deposit: $5
- Maximum Leverage: 1:1000
- Trading Fees: Spreads starting from 1 pips. LMFX charges a fixed commission for every lot traded. A lot is equal to 100,000 units of currency. If you have a zero account, the commission is $4 per lot which means $8 for a round lot.
- Minimum Trade Size: 0.01 lot.
- Maximum Trade Size (Lot restriction per Ticket): 50 Lots
- Funding Currencies: USD/EUR
- Trading Style Allowed: Almost all trading styles including Scalping, hedging, copy trading, and EA Trading.
- Stop Out Level (retail): 20%
- Margin Call Level: 50%
- Negative balance Protection: Yes
- Investor Protection: No
- Account Opening: Fully Online Account opening. It may take only 5 to 7 Minutes.
- KYC Verification: Required
Etoro vs LMFX: Pros and Cons
Etoro Pros & Cons
- Regulated in numerous jurisdictions including CySEC, FCA, ASIC, FinCEN, MSB, FSA Seychelles, FSC Gibraltar, and FSA Malta.
- Trading over 5,000 forex and CFD assets plus real stocks/ETFs and Cryptocurrencies.
- A large community of social traders
- Trading tools like market sentiments, news feed, Trading Central analysis, etc.
- Investors can copy the trades of expert traders or invest in ‘CopyPortfolios’
- Real Stocks and ETFs are Available
- Negative Balance Protection
- Traders pay withdrawal fees, inactivity fees, and conversion fees.
- You have no other platform choice than the eToro platform.
- You cannot automate your strategies via trading robots.
- No multiple account types; you can only have a retail account or a professional account.
- Margin trading is not available to U.S. users
- No limit orders for stocks.
- Not Available in American Samoa, Guam, Hawaii, Nevada, New York, Puerto Rico and US Virgin Islands
LMFX Pros & Cons
- The maximum leverage is as high as 1:1000.
- Tight Spread Starting from 0 pips
- Free VPS for high-volume traders.
- Allow Scalping, News Trading, EA Trading
- Does not have any FIFO Restrictions
- Deposit bonus and other bonuses.
- Due to the absence of regulatory restrictions, the broker is open to clients worldwide
- Multiple payment options including crypto and e-wallets.
- 4 Types of accounts available ( Premium, Micro, Fixed Zero)
- Traders are supported with trading tools like calculators, economic calendars, etc.
- Not Regulated by Any Authority
- Crypto CFDs are not available to Trade
- No Investor Protection Scheme
- No access to MetaTrader 5. Only MT4 and Webtrader are available.
- The minimum deposit for bank wire transfers is $250
- Managed Accounts and Social Trading (MAM, PAMM Accounts) are not Available
eToro vs LMFX: Side-by-Side Comparison
eToro Vs LMFX: Our Scores and Ratings
We rated both brokers, eToro and LMFX, on a scale of 1 to 10, with 0.1 increments. To achieve a comprehensive rating, we broadly grouped all services offered by brokers into 6 macro categories and assigned percentage weights to them. Each macro category is subdivided into several data points which contributes to the total score of 1.0-10.0 assigned to each macro category. Since all categories are not equally important, our weight percentage plays a significant role in assessing the broker accurately. For example, Regulation and Security contributes a total weight of 40% to the whole ratings because this is the most important rating category. To learn more, read our methodology.
eToro :
LMFX:
Final Verdict :
Both eToro and LMFX are online trading platforms in the industry, offering services to traders and investors. However, there are some differences between them. eToro is a multi-asset and social trading platform, providing over 5000+ trading instruments, including Forex, CFDs, real stocks, and cryptocurrencies. It offers both leverage and non-leverage tradable assets. On the other hand, LMFX is a forex and CFD broker that offers a wide range of trading instruments, including Forex, Indices, Commodities, Metals, Energy, Shares. Both platforms accept US clients.CFD trading is not usually allowed in the USA. Since offshore forex brokers are not regulated by any regulatory authority authorities, they can accept clients from anywhere, including the USA.
Our score for eToro is 8.5, and for LMFX, it is 3.6 (based on our research; a score above 8 is considered safe and trustworthy). If you are seeking a social trading platform where you can copy other successful traders and have a one-stop solution for various types of trading, you may choose eToro. However, if you prefer offshore or unregulated forex and CFD brokers, you may choose LMFX. Trading with unregulated or offshore forex brokers is always risky and not recommended.
