Skip to content
Calculadora Capital

XTB vs DEGIRO

5 min readReviewed By Thorben Rasmus IdelReviewed by Nahar Geva

The two brokers use opposite cost models: XTB charges no commission but 0.5% on currency conversion; DEGIRO charges about €2 per order but converts at 0.25%. So neither is simply "cheaper": it depends on your order size and the currency you buy in. We compared both using each broker’s own published figures.

Independent: we earn no commission on any product listed on this page. The ranking follows only the criteria below.

Which to choose, depending on your case

  • Choose XTB if…

    XTB logo

    XTB

    You invest small amounts, or often, and mostly in euros. With no per-order commission, buying €100 costs nothing; on DEGIRO it would cost €2, which is 2% of the amount invested. It is also the only one of the two supervised by the CMVM, and its investor protection is slightly higher (€20,100 vs €20,000).

  • Choose DEGIRO if…

    DEGIRO

    You buy in dollars or place larger orders. At 0.25%, FX conversion is half XTB’s: on a $10,000 purchase that is €25 versus €50, which dwarfs the €2 order cost. It holds a banking licence, so idle cash is covered up to €100,000 by the German deposit guarantee, and its Popular ETF Selection costs €1 per trade.

Side-by-side comparison

Comparison of the reviewed products
ProductStock commissionETF commissionFX conversionAnnual holding costSupervisionInvestor protection
XTB logoXTB0 %0 %0,5 %Sem custo de manutençãoCMVM e KNF20 100 €
DEGIRO2 €1 € a 3 €0,25 %Conectividade: máx. 2,50 €/ano por bolsaBaFin · AFM/DNB20 000 € (90 %) · 100 000 € em dinheiro

How we ranked these

We receive no commission from either broker. We verified every figure in each broker’s own documentation (several Portuguese comparison sites publish out-of-date values) and compared them against these criteria:

  • Total cost per trade: commission, handling and FX conversion combined, not just the advertised commission.
  • The effect of order size: a flat per-order cost penalises small purchases; a percentage on conversion penalises large foreign-currency amounts.
  • Recurring costs: maintenance, custody, inactivity and connectivity.
  • Supervision: the CMVM, or another member state’s regulator.
  • Investor protection: which scheme applies, to which assets, and up to what amount.

Each option in detail

XTB logo

XTB

XTB S.A.

Supervised by the CMVM and the KNF (Poland)

Best for: Small or frequent orders, mostly in euros, and investors who value CMVM supervision.

Stock commission
0 %
ETF commission
0 %
FX conversion
0,5 %
Annual holding cost
Sem custo de manutenção
Supervision
CMVM e KNF
Investor protection
20 100 €

Strengths

  • No commission on stocks and ETFs up to €100,000 of monthly volume
  • Supervised by the CMVM: status verifiable in the regulator’s public register
  • Invest from €1, with no opening, maintenance or withdrawal fees
  • Investor protection of €20,100, slightly above DEGIRO

Weaknesses

  • FX conversion at 0.5%, double DEGIRO’s, it bites on dollar-denominated assets
  • Above €100,000/month it charges 0.2% per trade, with a €10 minimum
  • Uninvested cash is not covered by a bank deposit guarantee
Visit official site →Data verified 28 Jul 2026

DEGIRO

flatexDEGIRO Bank SE, Dutch branch

German bank supervised by BaFin · the Dutch branch is supervised by the AFM and the DNB

Best for: Larger orders, foreign-currency purchases, and investors who want idle cash covered by a bank deposit guarantee.

Stock commission
2 €
ETF commission
1 € a 3 €
FX conversion
0,25 %
Annual holding cost
Conectividade: máx. 2,50 €/ano por bolsa
Supervision
BaFin · AFM/DNB
Investor protection
20 000 € (90 %) · 100 000 € em dinheiro

Strengths

  • FX conversion at 0.25%, half of XTB’s
  • Banking licence: cash in the account is covered by the German deposit guarantee up to €100,000
  • Its Popular ETF Selection costs €1 per trade, the handling fee alone
  • The connectivity cost (0.25%, capped at €2.50 per year per exchange) does not apply to Euronext Lisbon

Weaknesses

  • It charges per order: €2 on a share on Euronext Lisbon or in the US, which penalises small purchases
  • Investor compensation covers 90% of assets, up to €20,000
  • Not supervised by the CMVM: it operates under the German and Dutch regulators
  • An annual connectivity cost on each foreign exchange you trade on
Visit official site →Data verified 12 Aug 2026

Decided? Run the numbers on your own case:

Calculate your capital gains →

Frequently asked questions

Which is cheaper, XTB or DEGIRO?
It depends on order size and currency. On a €500 purchase in euros, XTB charges nothing and DEGIRO charges €2. On a $10,000 purchase, XTB’s conversion (0.5%, about €50) costs more than double DEGIRO’s (0.25%, about €25), even after adding the €2 order cost. Small euro orders favour XTB; large foreign-currency orders favour DEGIRO.
Is my money protected the same way at both?
No. DEGIRO holds a banking licence, so uninvested cash is covered by the German deposit guarantee up to €100,000; assets are covered by the German investor compensation scheme at 90%, up to €20,000. At XTB, investor protection applies up to €20,100. Neither uses a Portuguese scheme.
Do I have to declare both on my Portuguese tax return?
Yes. Both are foreign brokers: no Portuguese tax is withheld, capital gains go in Anexo J and a foreign account must be flagged. The reporting responsibility is entirely yours, whichever broker you use.

Sources

  1. 1.XTB: conta e taxas (comissões, limite de volume, conversão cambial, proteção) · XTB · retrieved 28 Jul 2026
  2. 2.DEGIRO: preçário (comissões por transação, manuseamento, conectividade, conversão) · DEGIRO · retrieved 12 Aug 2026
  3. 3.DEGIRO: como protegemos os seus investimentos (garantia de depósitos e compensação do investidor) · DEGIRO · retrieved 12 Aug 2026
  4. 4.Registo de intermediários financeiros autorizados · CMVM (Comissão do Mercado de Valores Mobiliários) · retrieved 12 Aug 2026