Update, October 2026: I wrote this review in 2022. Since then eToro has listed its own shares on Nasdaq (May 2025), launched a Stocks and Shares ISA for UK customers and scrapped its inactivity fee. The fees and features below are checked against eToro’s own website in October 2026.
Here is my real-life review of trading with eToro.
After two profitable years on the platform, it became my main online broker. I signed up during the pandemic under the username @stockrockets and have never looked back.
What I love most about eToro is the social side. It brings traders from all over the world together to share ideas.
It’s also good fun, and I enjoy spending hours on it. Think of it as Twitter for investing.
What is eToro?
eToro is a multi-asset investing platform founded in Tel Aviv in 2007. It’s built around a community of investors who can follow each other, share ideas and learn together.
In 2010 eToro launched social trading, which lets you copy the portfolios of other investors. Beginners can learn by watching what experienced investors do.
Today you can invest in shares, ETFs, commodities, currencies and crypto, and trade CFDs. In the UK, eToro is run by eToro (UK) Ltd, which is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FRN 583263).
eToro fees for UK investors
- ETFs: no commission.
- Shares: a flat commission of $1 or $2 per trade, depending on the exchange.
- Stamp duty: 0.5% on purchases of UK shares, as with any UK broker.
- Currency conversion: none when you buy UK assets from a GBP account. Buying US shares means converting pounds to dollars, which costs 0.75% on the converted amount.
- Crypto: 1% to buy and 1% to sell for most customers.
- Withdrawals: free from a GBP account.
- Inactivity fee: none.
Advantages of eToro
The power of the crowd
eToro helps you think through trades before you make them. You can test ideas on other investors and learn from their mistakes. Just remember that a hot tip from a stranger is not research.
Easy to use
The interface is very user friendly, which makes buying and selling simple, especially on the mobile app. Here’s a screenshot of my portfolio on my iPhone. I can check my investments any time of day.
An ISA is now available
When I first wrote this review, eToro had no ISA, which was a big drawback for UK investors. That has changed. The eToro Stocks and Shares ISA lets you invest up to £20,000 a year with no tax on dividends or gains, and eToro charges no commission on shares inside it.
Disadvantages of eToro
Customer service
When I opened my account, a query about some Tesco dividends took over two weeks to resolve. Support runs mainly through the help centre and tickets, so don’t expect instant answers.
No SIPP
eToro still doesn’t offer a pension. If you want a SIPP, you’ll need another provider such as Hargreaves Lansdown or Freetrade.
US-dollar costs
eToro’s share commission is charged in dollars, and buying US shares means converting your pounds. If you trade often, those small costs add up.
Who is eToro good for?
Beginners
eToro lets you see what other investors are doing, read their analysis or copy them. Beginners with money to invest can let a more experienced investor manage part of their portfolio while they learn.
My suggestion for newcomers is to start with the free demo account and practise without risking real money. Once you’ve signed up, you can switch to the virtual portfolio inside the app.
Investors short on time
If you don’t have time to trade yourself, CopyTrader lets you copy a “Popular Investor”. Popular Investors have to show a track record and stay within risk limits to remain in the programme. Copying still carries risk: past performance doesn’t guarantee future results, and you can lose money if the person you copy does. Read our guide to eToro copy trading before you start.
Who is eToro not so good for?
Long-term investors who use CFDs
CFDs carry overnight fees, so holding them for months gets expensive. For long-term investing, buy the real shares or ETFs, ideally inside the ISA, rather than CFDs.
People who want a pension
With no SIPP, eToro can only be part of your plan.
Final thoughts
I love the social side of eToro. I can share ideas with investors all over the world.
Ease of use is its best feature. The website and app are simple to use, the charting tools are good and there’s plenty of free research.
Customer service can be slow, but that only matters if you run into a problem. The arrival of an ISA fixed the biggest weakness for UK investors.
Overall, I’d recommend eToro to beginners who want to start investing and learn from others. You can create an account in a few minutes.
eToro is a multi-asset platform which offers both investing in stocks and crypto assets, as well as trading CFDs. CFDs are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. 51% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider. You should consider whether you understand how CFDs work and whether you can afford to take the high risk of losing your money.
Crypto: Don’t invest unless you’re prepared to lose all the money you invest. This is a high-risk investment and you should not expect to be protected if something goes wrong. Take 2 mins to learn more.
Your capital is at risk. Past performance is not an indication of future results. This content is for information and education only and is not investment advice.
Pedro is passionate about finance, marketing, and technology. He is a growth manager at several online projects and a former digital marketer for a fintech company.
Interesting write up – did you come out with any profit in the end?
I’ve just signed up for eToro for my own ‘experiment’ – too soon for me to do a write up, I’ll wait for maybe 4-6 months to see how it goes.
It was a mixed bag. I don’t think I am a very good trader. I had a couple of wins early on and then was hit by a couple of losses. But overall I did make a profit using etroro. I had a friend when I was still at university who was really good. I just ‘copy traded’ off of him and made a decent profit this way. It is no surprise that he is working in an investment bank now! As for me, I think I will stick to long term investing. It won’t win me loads of money overnight but it is the far more secure and stable option.
How is your ‘experiment’ in trading going?
Good to hear that you made a profit – I just need to copy trade someone like your friend, haha!
Although I’m reading up on trading, I already know that I’m not a very good trader – I just hope to make a little on the side with this and like you, stick with long term investing.
I’m barely a month into my ‘experiment’ so one day I’m in a bit of profit, the next I’m not! I’m just copying traders, not doing my own! Let’s hope they make me a bit of money!
I joined Etoro last year and have been copying you for a while now, keep up the good work 👌🏻