Best Trading Apps in Australia (2026)

Summary

Mobile is now the default for many Australian retail traders. Around two-thirds of session time on the brokers we work with happens on iPhone or Android, not desktop. The gap between mobile and desktop has closed considerably since 2020. Most ASIC-regulated brokers now offer a fully featured mobile app with biometric login, push notifications, charting, order management and instant deposit/withdrawal.

The shortlist that matters in 2026:

• Best overall: Plus500, clean, fast, beginner-friendly, ASIC-regulated (AFSL 417727)
• Best for active traders: Pepperstone cTrader app, depth-of-market on mobile, fast execution
• Best for beginners: eToro, social and copy trading built into the app
• Best multi-asset: Interactive Brokers GlobalTrader / IBKR Mobile, 150+ markets in one app
• Best for ASX shares: CMC Stockbroking via the CMC app, real ASX shares plus CFDs in one place
• Best proprietary platform app: CMC Next Generation app, desktop-grade features on mobile
• Best for charting: Pepperstone TradingView mobile or OANDA TradingView mobile

If you only want one recommendation: Plus500 if you’re new and want to focus on a few CFD trades a week. Pepperstone if you’re an active forex or CFD trader who wants depth-of-market and tight spreads on mobile.

What “best” means here

We score apps against six criteria with equal weight:

• App Store and Google Play rating (current 30-day rolling average)
• Order placement and management quality
• Charting and indicators
• Biometric login (FaceID / TouchID / fingerprint)
• Push notifications during AU trading hours
• Mobile parity with desktop (which features are missing on mobile)

Live ASIC regulation is a precondition, not a scoring criterion. All apps below are from AFSL holders and AFCA members.

Comparison table: top trading apps in Australia

App	Broker	iOS	Android	Biometric	Charting	Demo	AFSL
Plus500	Plus500	Yes	Yes	FaceID, TouchID, fingerprint	Basic + 100+ indicators	Yes (unlimited)	417727
Pepperstone (cTrader)	Pepperstone	Yes	Yes	FaceID, TouchID, fingerprint	Full cTrader charts	Yes	414530
Pepperstone (MT5)	Pepperstone	Yes	Yes	FaceID, TouchID	Full MT5 charts	Yes	414530
CMC Next Generation	CMC Markets	Yes	Yes	FaceID, TouchID, fingerprint	80+ indicators, pattern recognition	Yes (unlimited)	238054
eToro	eToro	Yes	Yes	FaceID, TouchID, fingerprint	Pro charts (TradingView powered)	Yes (USD 100k virtual)	491139
IG Trading	IG Markets	Yes	Yes	FaceID, TouchID	Full IG web charts	Yes	220440
Capital.com	CCapital.com	Yes	Yes	FaceID, TouchID, fingerprint	TradingView charts embedded	Yes (USD 1k virtual)	513393
IC Markets cTrader	IC Markets	Yes	Yes	FaceID, TouchID, fingerprint	Full cTrader charts	Yes	335692
Mitrade	Mitrade	Yes	Yes	FaceID, TouchID, fingerprint	Basic + 50+ indicators	Yes	398528
IBKR Mobile / GlobalTrader	Interactive Brokers	Yes	Yes	FaceID, TouchID, fingerprint	Full IBKR charts	Yes (paper trading)	245574
OANDA fxTrade	OANDA	Yes	Yes	FaceID, TouchID	Full OANDA charts	Yes	412981
FP Markets (cTrader / MT5)	FP Markets	Yes	Yes	FaceID, TouchID	Platform-native charts	Yes	286354

Apps verified on the Australian App Store and Google Play on 12 May 2026. Biometric availability depends on device hardware.

All apps above are from AFSL holders and AFCA members. ASIC retail leverage caps apply on mobile the same as on desktop.

Best trading apps by category

Best overall: Plus500

Plus500’s app is consistently the highest-rated CFD app on the AU App Store. The interface is deliberately simple: tap an instrument, see the price, place a trade. Charting is functional rather than spectacular, but the basics are covered: candlesticks, line, bars, plus around 100 indicators and a clean drawing toolset.

Where Plus500 wins is workflow. Account opening on mobile takes around 5 minutes (we’ve timed it). Deposits via Apple Pay or PayID land in seconds. The free guaranteed stop-loss feature is one tap on the order screen. Push notifications during AU market hours are reliable.

Plus500 (AFSL 417727) is ASIC-regulated and an AFCA member. The pricing model is a markup on the underlying spread rather than RAW + commission, so active scalpers pay more than they would on Pepperstone or IC Markets. For a casual trader placing a few CFDs a week, the cost is reasonable and the ease of use is unmatched on mobile.

For the full review see Plus500 review.

Best for active traders: Pepperstone cTrader app

Pepperstone (AFSL 414530) offers MT4, MT5, cTrader and TradingView. For mobile, the cTrader app is our top pick for active forex and CFD traders. Depth-of-market is included on mobile, which is rare. Order types cover OCO, trailing stops and bracket orders. EUR/USD averages 0.06 pips plus AUD 7 round-turn commission on the Razor account.

Execution speed on mobile cTrader is in the same range as desktop in our testing. For day traders who place 10+ trades a session, the difference between Pepperstone cTrader on mobile and a typical proprietary mobile platform is meaningful.

See Pepperstone review and the cTrader brokers page.

Best for beginners: eToro

eToro (AFSL 491139) is built around social and copy trading. The app shows you what other traders are doing, lets you copy them with one tap, and integrates real shares, ETFs and CFDs. The charting is solid (TradingView under the hood) but the real strength is the discoverability for new traders. You can browse top traders, see their historical performance, and start with USD 200 minimum to copy.

eToro pricing is wider than RAW broker spreads (around 1 pip on EUR/USD) but the account is simpler to manage for someone new to trading. ASIC oversight applies. ASIC retail leverage caps apply.

See eToro review and the copy trading platforms page.

Best multi-asset: Interactive Brokers GlobalTrader / IBKR Mobile

Interactive Brokers (AFSL 245574) covers 150+ markets across forex, ASX shares, US shares, options, futures, fixed-income and mutual funds. The IBKR Mobile app exposes most of that on phone. GlobalTrader is the simplified app aimed at retail clients who want a cleaner interface than full IBKR Mobile.

The trade-off is a steeper learning curve than Plus500 or eToro. IBKR is built for active multi-asset traders and the UI assumes you know what a contract specification is. For a trader who wants forex plus ASX direct shares plus US options in one app, there’s no real alternative.

See IBKR review.

Best for ASX shares (alongside CFDs): CMC

CMC Markets (AFSL 238054) is ASX-listed and operates a stockbroking arm alongside the CFD business. The CMC app supports both: real ASX shares (CHESS-sponsored, you own the shares) and CFDs across forex, indices, commodities and global equities, all under one login. For traders who want one app for ASX investing and active CFD trading, CMC is the strongest AU option.

See CMC Markets review.

Best proprietary platform app: CMC Next Generation

The Next Generation app is the closest thing to a desktop-grade trading platform on a phone. 80+ technical indicators, pattern recognition, custom layouts that sync to desktop, client sentiment overlay, and a working economic calendar. Most proprietary mobile apps strip out features. CMC keeps almost all of them.

See CMC Markets review.

Best for charting on mobile: TradingView native via Pepperstone or OANDA

If charting matters more than anything else, TradingView’s mobile app with native broker integration via Pepperstone or OANDA gives you the strongest mobile chart on the market. Pine Script, multi-timeframe analysis, custom indicators, all on phone. Order placement from the chart works the same way it does on desktop.

See TradingView brokers page.

AU mobile considerations

A few things matter more for AU retail clients than the global app rankings suggest.

AU App Store availability. All apps in our table are listed on the Australian iOS App Store and Google Play Australia. A few global brokers list apps that work in Australia but aren’t in the AU store directly. We exclude those because the verification flow gets messy.

Push notifications during AU trading hours. Forex runs 24/5 in Australia from Monday morning to Saturday morning AEDT. Most major equity and index instruments respect AU trading session hours. Push notifications for AU clients should fire on the AU clock, not GMT or UTC. Plus500, CMC, IG, Pepperstone, eToro and IBKR all handle AU time zones correctly. A handful of smaller brokers default to UTC, which means notifications can land at 3am AEDT. Test before relying on alerts.

Biometric login. FaceID, TouchID and Android fingerprint are now standard across all major AU broker apps. Always enable in the app settings. The trade-off (very minor security risk vs convenience) tilts heavily toward enabling.

AUD account funding from mobile. PayID instant deposits work on most AU broker apps. Apple Pay and Google Pay are increasingly supported (Plus500, CMC, eToro). Card-funded deposits typically settle within a few minutes. Bank transfer can take 1 to 2 business days.

Data usage. Mobile trading apps stream live prices. On 4G or 5G, expect 50 to 200 MB per active trading session. Wi-Fi recommended at home. If you trade exclusively on mobile data, double-check your plan’s data allowance.

Push permissions. iOS asks for push permission on first launch. Grant it for trade fills, margin alerts and stop-loss execution notifications. You won’t get re-prompted if you decline; you’d have to enable manually in iOS Settings.

Mobile vs desktop: what’s missing

Most AU broker apps are now within 90% feature parity with desktop. The gaps that remain:

• Custom indicator development. MT4/MT5 EAs and custom indicators are written and compiled on desktop. Mobile runs the compiled code; you can’t edit it on phone.
• Multi-monitor charting. Phone screens limit you to one or two charts at a time. Active traders who need 4+ charts side-by-side default to desktop.
• Advanced order types on some proprietary apps. OCO and bracket orders are sometimes desktop-only on smaller proprietary platforms. cTrader, MT5 and the major proprietary apps (CMC, IG) cover them on mobile.
• Account opening on a few brokers. Most brokers handle opening on web with mobile completion. A small number still require desktop for the AUSTRAC verification step.
• Tax reporting and account history exports. PDF and CSV exports for ATO tax reporting are usually desktop-only or email-on-request.

For most AU retail traders, mobile-first works. Keep desktop for setup, EA configuration, and tax-time reports.

ASIC, AFSL and mobile trading

The same regulatory framework applies on mobile as on desktop. The app is software. The broker is the AFSL holder. A few specifics worth knowing for mobile traders:

• Retail leverage caps. ASIC’s Product Intervention Order applies regardless of whether you trade on phone or desktop. 30:1 on major forex pairs, 20:1 on minor pairs and gold, 10:1 on other commodities, 5:1 on share CFDs, 2:1 on cryptocurrency CFDs.
• Negative balance protection. Mandatory for retail clients, on phone the same as on desktop. Your account cannot go below zero.
• Margin close-out. Triggers at 50% of initial margin. The app will display margin level live. Set push alerts at 80% to give yourself time to react.
• AFCA membership. Every broker on this page is an AFCA member. Disputes about a mobile-placed trade are handled the same way as desktop disputes. You raise the complaint with the broker first; AFCA is the escalation path.
• AUSTRAC ID verification. Required at account opening. The mobile flow is the same as desktop: photo of driver’s licence or passport, selfie, address proof.
• Tax. ATO treats CFD profits as assessable income (per TR 2005/15) regardless of platform. We are not licensed to provide tax advice. Speak to a registered tax agent about your circumstances.

For the wider regulatory context see our forex broker reviews hub and the best Australian forex brokers guide.

Choosing the right app for you

Three honest filters cut the choice quickly.

How active are you? Casual traders (a few CFDs a week) should look at Plus500, eToro, Capital.com or Mitrade for the simplest workflow. Active traders (10+ trades a week) should look at Pepperstone cTrader, IC Markets cTrader or CMC Next Generation. Multi-asset traders (forex plus ASX plus options) should look at Interactive Brokers.

What instruments do you need? Forex only: most apps cover it. ASX shares plus CFDs: CMC. US options or futures plus forex: IBKR. Crypto CFDs: Eightcap and Capital.com have the broadest range under ASIC’s 2:1 retail crypto cap.

What’s your phone? Most apps work on iOS 16+ and Android 10+. Older devices may struggle with TradingView or IBKR Mobile, both of which are graphically intensive. CMC, Plus500 and eToro all work on older hardware.

If you’re not sure: install the demo apps for two or three options, place 10 trades on each, then commit. Most demo accounts run unlimited or for at least 30 days.