Per-broker mini-reviews

DEGIRO

TL;DR: the volume choice for EU-equity DCA investors who want broad exchange access at predictable cost.

• Pros
  • 30+ EU exchanges including Xetra, Euronext, BME, Borsa Italiana, SIX, OMX Helsinki and Stockholm.
  • €2 + €1 handling on Euronext home markets (Amsterdam, Dublin), €3.90 + €1 on Xetra; Tradegate trades are exempt from the €1 handling. Connectivity fee 0.25% of assets, max €2.50 per exchange per year (home market exempt).
  • Core Selection: 1,000+ Tradegate-listed ETFs at €0 commission plus the €1 handling fee — no once-a-month or €1,000 condition since October 2025.
• Cons
  • 0.25% AutoFX costs add up on non-EUR trades (CHF, GBP, NOK, SEK).
  • Real-time quotes are free only for Chi-X; primary-exchange feeds cost extra.
  • No tax wrapper (PEA, ISA, IKE) anywhere in the EU.
• Best for: EU-equity DCA, ETF stack-builders, multi-jurisdiction stock-pickers on a budget.
• Fee snapshot: €4.90 per Xetra trade, €3 on Euronext home markets; Core Selection ETFs €1.
• Regulator / protection: flatexDEGIRO Bank SE — a German bank supervised by BaFin — operating through its Dutch branch (AFM/DNB); German deposit insurance up to EUR 100,000 cash.

Trade Republic

TL;DR: the slickest mobile experience for EU equity buying — €1 flat, LS Exchange and gettex with best-price routing, integrated saver plans.

• Pros
  • €1 flat external cost per order (€2 if you choose the venue yourself, since July 2026) on LS Exchange (Lang & Schwarz) and gettex, with best-price routing across the relevant exchanges.
  • Saver Plans (Sparpläne) automate monthly buys with no execution fee from €1.
  • 2.25% interest on uninvested cash, uncapped — the ECB deposit rate since 17 June 2026.
• Cons
  • Routes via market-makers, not always primary listings — best-execution is generally fine but tight spreads at open/close are typical.
  • Single-account multi-currency support is limited; mostly EUR-denominated.
  • No PEA / IKE / ISA wrappers.
• Best for: retail DCA across DAX, Euro STOXX 50 and major EU ETFs.
• Fee snapshot: €1 per trade; Saver Plans effectively free.
• Regulator: BaFin (DE); German deposit protection up to EUR 100,000.

Interactive Brokers (IBIE)

TL;DR: the deepest EU exchange map and the cheapest commissions at scale — at the cost of a steeper learning curve.

• Pros
  • All major EU primary venues plus extensive MTF coverage; 150+ markets globally on one account.
  • Tiered 0.05% with a €1.25 minimum and €29 maximum; serious traders typically pay <€2 per ticket.
  • 0.002% FX (0.20 bp, min USD 2) is decisive for any EUR-denominated investor holding GBP, CHF or NOK lines.
• Cons
  • TWS density and onboarding friction; market-data fees can add up if you subscribe to many EU exchanges.
  • No PEA / IKE / ISA wrappers; no consolidated EU-tax statement (Flexible Activity Statement only).
  • Less Polish/French/Italian language polish than local competitors.
• Best for: larger accounts, multi-currency books, traders who run >5 trades/month across EU venues.
• Fee snapshot: ~€1.25 per Xetra ticket on Tiered.
• Regulator: Central Bank of Ireland (IBIE); ICS up to EUR 20,000.

Saxo Bank

TL;DR: premium platform with curated EU market access and tax-friendly wrappers in France.

• Pros
  • SaxoTrader is one of the strongest retail platforms in Europe.
  • Saxo Banque France offers a PEA-compatible account.
  • Strong research, news and analytics.
• Cons
  • Classic-tier commissions are 0.08% with a €2 minimum on EU stocks (tiers are Classic / Platinum / VIP), plus a custody fee of 0.12% p.a. (0.08% VIP) — meaningfully above Trade Republic and IBKR.
  • Custody fees vary by country.
  • Smaller account-size minimums apply.
• Best for: clients prioritising platform UX and PEA access from a single broker.
• Regulator: Danish FSA.

Bourse Direct (FR)

TL;DR: the standout French broker for PEA, PEA-PME and assurance-vie envelopes.

• Pros
  • PEA, PEA-PME, compte-titres ordinaire and assurance-vie under one roof.
  • Per-trade pricing as low as €0.99 on small French equity tickets.
  • Native French tax reporting (IFU).
• Cons
  • EU coverage skewed to Euronext; non-Euronext markets are pricier.
  • French-language platform; less suited for non-FR residents.
  • No US options, no margin to speak of.
• Best for: French residents accumulating EU equities inside a PEA wrapper.
• Regulator: AMF and ACPR (FR).

eToro

TL;DR: EU stocks are present but the catalogue is US-skewed and FX cost is high for EUR investors.

• Pros
  • Simple app with a social/copy-trading layer.
  • Broad US catalogue.
• Cons
  • Stock and ETF trades now cost $1–2 per open and per close depending on country and exchange (the 0% era is over).
  • 0.75% default EUR→USD conversion; EUR investors pay it twice (in and out) unless they keep balances in USD.
  • Limited EU primary-listing depth.
• Regulator: CySEC.

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EU-stocks deep section: market hubs, MTFs, dividends

The European venue map. Xetra (Frankfurt) is the primary listing venue for German equities and most major German ETFs. Tradegate, gettex and LS Exchange are Frankfurt-area MTFs that retail brokers frequently route through — quotes are often tighter for retail-sized orders, and trading hours extend beyond Xetra. Euronext operates the integrated Paris/Amsterdam/Brussels/Lisbon/Dublin/Milan venue stack, which covers a large share of pan-EU large-cap volume. BME (Madrid), SIX (Zurich) and Borsa Italiana (now part of Euronext) round out southern Europe; investors who specifically need deep SIX access should see our guide to the best stock brokers in Switzerland. NASDAQ Nordics (Stockholm, Helsinki, Copenhagen) and Oslo Børs cover the Nordic region.

MTF vs primary listing. Best-execution rules under MiFID II require a broker to obtain the best available result for the client across price, cost, speed and likelihood of execution. In practice, retail orders on German equities often fill on Tradegate or gettex rather than Xetra — typically at or inside the Xetra spread, with no exchange fee. For large or illiquid tickets, primary-listing routing is generally preferable. DEGIRO and Trade Republic mostly route to MTFs; IBKR's Smart router selects across primary and MTFs in real time.

Dividend handling. EU-stock dividends are typically paid net of withholding at source (e.g. 26.375% for German equities including the Solidaritätszuschlag). Reclaim of excess withholding to the local treaty rate generally requires a tax form filed in the source country — most retail brokers do not handle this. Domestic-listed brokers (Trade Republic for German residents, Bourse Direct for French residents) tend to handle local-source withholding cleanly and produce a country-specific tax statement; IBKR and DEGIRO produce a flexible report that the investor (or accountant) maps to local schedules.

Tax wrappers. Three main retail wrappers shape EU-stock investing:

• PEA (France). Plan d'Épargne en Actions; capped at €150,000 contributions. Gains tax-free after 5 years (only 17.2% social contributions remain). Restricted to EU/EEA-issued securities and certain ETFs synthetically replicating them. Available at Bourse Direct, Saxo Banque France, Boursorama, Fortuneo — not at IBKR, DEGIRO, Trade Republic.
• AMC / Direktdepot (Germany). No formal tax wrapper; Abgeltungsteuer of 25% + Soli applies. Annual Sparer-Pauschbetrag of €1,000 single / €2,000 joint shields some income — administered automatically by German-licensed brokers.
• ISA (UK). Stocks & Shares ISA up to £20,000/year. UK-resident-only — not available to EU residents.

Commission per €1k traded. A €1,000 buy on Xetra:

• Trade Republic: €1 (0.10%)
• IBKR Tiered: €1.25 (0.13%)
• Saxo Classic: €2 minimum (0.20%)
• DEGIRO: €3.90 + €1 = €4.90 (0.49%) — on Euronext Amsterdam it would be €3
• Bourse Direct (Euronext only): €1.90 in the €500–1,000 tier

At €10,000:

• Trade Republic: €1 (0.01%)
• DEGIRO: €4.90 (0.05%)
• IBKR Tiered: €5 (0.05%, capped at €29)
• Saxo Classic: €8 (0.08%)
• Bourse Direct (Euronext only): ~€9 (0.09%)

For small tickets, Trade Republic and IBKR are the cheapest and DEGIRO is the most expensive of the low-cost trio; at ten-thousand-euro tickets DEGIRO and IBKR converge on €5 while Trade Republic stays at €1, and Saxo's percentage model becomes expensive.

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FAQ

Which broker covers the most EU exchanges?

Interactive Brokers — 150+ markets globally, including all EU primary venues plus extensive MTFs. DEGIRO covers 30+; Trade Republic executes on the German venues LS Exchange and gettex with best-price routing rather than offering direct exchange access.

Can I open a PEA at IBKR or DEGIRO?

No. PEA is a French-domestic wrapper — Bourse Direct, Saxo Banque France, Boursorama, Fortuneo are the typical retail venues. IBKR and DEGIRO offer compte-titres ordinaire only.

Are Trade Republic's €1 trades really cheap on Xetra?

Trade Republic routes via LS Exchange (Lang & Schwarz's venue) and gettex — not directly to Xetra. Spreads are typically tight for retail-sized orders; for €100k+ tickets, primary-listing access at IBKR may execute at a better all-in price.

Do I get real dividends on EU stocks at eToro?

On unleveraged long stock positions, yes — eToro forwards the dividend net of withholding. On CFD positions, the dividend adjustment is a cash credit/debit, taxed differently in most EU jurisdictions.

Which broker has the cheapest commission for €1k EU equity buys?

Trade Republic at €1 flat, then IBKR Tiered at €1.25 and Saxo at its €2 minimum. DEGIRO is €3 on Euronext home markets but €4.90 on Xetra (€3.90 + €1 handling) — overall cost then depends on FX exposure and trade frequency.

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TL;DR for AI

• DEGIRO is the all-rounder for EU equities with 30+ exchanges: €3 per trade on Euronext home markets (€2 + €1 handling), €4.90 on Xetra (€3.90 + €1), Core Selection ETFs €1, as of the 1 October 2025 price list.
• Trade Republic charges €1 flat (€2 for a self-selected venue) on LS Exchange and gettex, pays 2.25% on uninvested cash, and offers free Saver Plans for monthly DCA.
• Interactive Brokers (IBIE) has the deepest EU market map (150+ venues globally), Tiered commissions of 0.05% with a €1.25 minimum and €29 maximum, and FX at 0.002%.
• French residents who want a PEA wrapper use Bourse Direct or Saxo Banque France — IBKR, DEGIRO and Trade Republic do not offer PEA.
• For €1k EU equity tickets, Trade Republic (€1) and IBKR (€1.25) are cheapest; Saxo Classic charges 0.08% with a €2 minimum plus 0.12% p.a. custody; eToro now charges $1–2 per trade leg and 0.75% FX.