Interactive Brokers vs Scalable Capital (2026):
Savings plans, fees, and who wins for EU investors
Scalable Capital and IBKR solve different problems. Scalable is Germany’s deepest ETF savings plan broker — free plans on 2,700+ ETFs, automatic Abgeltungsteuer handling, and a 2.50% Overnight account with no balance threshold. IBKR is the global default for multi-currency portfolios, institutional FX rates, and exchange access that reaches far beyond German markets. This comparison shows which one costs you less in practice — and when each is the right call.
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TL;DR
- You need multi-currency accounts — deposit EUR, hold USD, convert deliberately.
- You invest in USD-denominated or non-EUR assets and want institutional FX rates.
- You are based outside Scalable Capital’s six available countries.
- You want global exchange access beyond German-listed securities.
- You are comfortable managing your own annual tax declaration.
- You are in Germany or Austria and want automatic Abgeltungsteuer handling.
- Monthly savings plan contributions into UCITS ETFs are your core workflow — free on both plans.
- You want 2.50% p.a. cash interest on any balance with no minimum threshold.
- You want a simpler platform without the IBKR learning curve.
- You invest exclusively in EUR-denominated ETFs and have no multi-currency needs.
Quick comparison
| Category | Interactive Brokers | Scalable Capital |
|---|---|---|
| ETF commission (one-off) | €3 min / 0.05% (Fixed); from €1.25 min (Tiered + exchange fees) | PRIME ETFs ≥€250 free (FREE plan); all trades ≥€250 free (PRIME+) |
| ETF savings plans | Recurring Investments — commissions apply per execution | Free on 2,700+ ETFs — both FREE and PRIME+ plans |
| Monthly plan cost | None | FREE: €0 / PRIME+: €4.99/month |
| FX conversion | ~0.002% manual ($2 min); ~0.03% auto — best-in-class | EUR-only broker — no FX conversion available |
| Custody fee | None | None |
| Cash interest rate | ~1.44% p.a. (EUR, April 2026) | 2.50% p.a. (Overnight account, variable) |
| Cash interest threshold | Above €10,000 only | No minimum — any balance |
| Automated German tax | No — self-declare all obligations | Yes — Abgeltungsteuer withheld automatically |
| Banking licence | No — brokerage firm | Yes — ECB full banking licence (2025) |
| Cash deposit protection | €20,000 investor compensation (IBKR Ireland) | Up to €500,000 (PRIME+, 5 banks); €100,000+ (FREE) |
| Fractional shares | Varies by country (stocks and ETFs) | Via savings plans only — not in lump-sum trades |
| Multi-currency | Yes — 29 currencies | No — EUR only |
| Exchange access | 170+ markets globally | EIX, gettex, Xetra (DE-focused) |
| Robo-advisor | No | Yes — Scalable Wealth (DE/AT only) |
| Countries available | Pan-European, global | DE, AT (full); FR, IT, ES, NL (broker only) |
| Platform complexity | High — built for professionals | Low — clean mobile and web app |
Savings plans: Scalable wins clearly — here is the gap
For investors who build their portfolio through monthly contributions rather than large lump sums, the savings plan comparison is the most important cost difference between these two brokers.
- All ETF savings plan executions: €0 — on both FREE and PRIME+ plans.
- 2,700+ ETFs eligible — more than any other German broker.
- From €1 minimum. Nine execution dates per month.
- Monthly, bi-monthly, quarterly, semi-annual, or annual frequency.
- Fractional ETF amounts available via savings plans.
- Schedule automatic purchases of eligible European-listed shares daily, weekly, or monthly.
- Normal Fixed or Tiered commissions apply per execution — at least €3 per contribution on Fixed.
- Feature is oriented around stocks rather than UCITS ETFs specifically.
- Not a zero-commission equivalent to Scalable’s savings plans.
Annual cost for a monthly savings plan investor — three contribution sizes
12 contributions per year. Scalable FREE plan vs IBKR Fixed pricing. No custody fee at either broker.
| Monthly contribution | Scalable FREE (savings plan) | IBKR Fixed (Recurring Investments) | Annual difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| €100/month | €0 | €36 (12 × €3 min) | Scalable saves €36 |
| €500/month | €0 | €36 (12 × €3 min) | Scalable saves €36 |
| €1,000/month | €0 | €72 (12 × €6 at 0.05% above €6k) | Scalable saves €72 |
Fees for one-off trades: IBKR Fixed vs Scalable FREE and PRIME+
For investors who also make occasional lump-sum trades outside savings plans, the fee structure looks different at each broker.
| Trade size | IBKR Fixed | Scalable FREE | Scalable PRIME+ |
|---|---|---|---|
| Below €250 | €3 min | €0.99 | €0.99 |
| €250 (PRIME ETF, EIX/gettex) | €3 min | Free | Free |
| €500 (non-PRIME ETF, EIX/gettex) | €3 min | €0.99 | Free |
| €2,000 | €3 min | €0.99 (PRIME) / Free (PRIME+) | Free |
| €6,000 | €3 min | €0.99 (PRIME) / Free (PRIME+) | Free |
| €10,000 | €5 (0.05%) | €0.99 (PRIME) / Free (PRIME+) | Free |
| Xetra (any size) | €3 min / 0.05% | €3.99 + 0.01% venue fee | €3.99 + 0.01% venue fee |
Cash interest: Scalable wins on rate and threshold
Both brokers pay interest on idle cash — but the rates and thresholds are meaningfully different. For investors who hold substantial uninvested cash, this is a real annual cost difference.
- No minimum balance — interest accrues on any amount.
- Separate Tagesgeld account with its own IBAN — activate in the app or browser in under a minute, no re-identification needed. Transfers to and from the broker account are real-time.
- Broker cash itself earns 0% — the Overnight account is the yield product.
- Only paid on cash above €10,000. Below that: €0.
- Accounts under €100,000 NAV receive a proportional rate.
- Rate varies with ECB policy — check IBKR’s interest rate page for current figures.
| Idle cash balance | Scalable (2.50% on full balance) | IBKR (~1.44% above €10k) | Annual difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| €5,000 | €125 | €0 (below threshold) | Scalable earns €125 more |
| €15,000 | €375 | ~€72 (1.44% on €5k above threshold) | Scalable earns €303 more |
| €30,000 | €750 | ~€288 (1.44% on €20k above threshold) | Scalable earns €462 more |
FX workflow: IBKR wins — but only if you need it
IBKR’s FX advantage is frequently cited in EU broker comparisons. In the context of IBKR vs Scalable Capital specifically, the relevance depends entirely on what you invest in.
- ~0.002% FX markup via manual Spot FX conversion — best-in-class for retail.
- 29 currencies — hold EUR and USD simultaneously; convert deliberately, not on every trade.
- ~0.03% auto-conversion (no minimum) for smaller amounts — cheaper than the $2 manual minimum below roughly €6,500.
- Access to US-domiciled ETFs and global securities priced in foreign currencies.
- No FX conversion available — the account is EUR-denominated only.
- Trades on EIX, gettex, and Xetra — all EUR-priced securities.
- If you only buy EUR-denominated UCITS ETFs, you do not need FX conversion at either broker.
- USD-denominated or foreign-currency securities are not accessible.
If you invest exclusively in EUR-denominated UCITS ETFs — which includes essentially every MSCI World, S&P 500, or ACWI tracker listed on European exchanges — you pay zero FX conversion at both brokers. The underlying fund holds USD assets; you buy a EUR share class. No currency conversion happens at the brokerage level.
IBKR’s FX advantage becomes material when you want to hold USD cash, buy US-listed ETFs or stocks directly, or build a multi-currency portfolio. If none of those apply, FX cost is not a differentiator between IBKR and Scalable Capital — and you should evaluate the two brokers on savings plan cost, cash interest, and tax handling instead.
Abgeltungsteuer: Scalable handles it automatically, IBKR doesn’t
For German tax residents, this is one of the most practically useful differences between the two brokers — and one that is frequently underweighted in comparisons.
- Automatically calculates, withholds, and remits Abgeltungsteuer (25% flat capital gains tax + solidarity surcharge) directly to the Finanzamt.
- In most standard cases, German investors do not need to declare broker gains on their annual tax return.
- Freistellungsauftrag up to the €1,000 annual allowance submitted directly through the platform — applied automatically to future gains.
- Annual tax certificates issued — allow extra time during peak tax season as delays are a known complaint.
- IBKR provides an annual activity report but does not file taxes or handle country-specific obligations on your behalf.
- German investors must manually declare capital gains and apply their Freistellungsauftrag themselves.
- You are responsible for calculating taxable gains, withholding tax offsets, and any applicable levies.
- This is meaningful annual overhead — factor it into the total cost of using IBKR as a German resident.
Safety and regulation — different structures, both solid
Both brokers are among the more robustly regulated options available to EU investors. The key structural difference: Scalable Capital is a licensed bank; IBKR is a brokerage firm. For securities, both hold client assets as segregated positions. For cash, the protection frameworks differ meaningfully.
| Category | Interactive Brokers (EU clients) | Scalable Capital |
|---|---|---|
| Regulatory structure | Brokerage firm — IBKR Ireland Limited | Full ECB banking licence (2025) + BaFin supervision |
| Primary regulator | Central Bank of Ireland (CBI) | BaFin + Deutsche Bundesbank + ECB |
| Securities custody | Segregated client assets — separate from broker capital | Segregated at Scalable Capital Bank GmbH — own custody since Nov 2025, legally in your name, separate from any company balance sheet |
| Cash protection | €20,000 investor compensation (ICS, 90% of losses) | Up to €500,000 PRIME+ (5 banks × €100,000 + voluntary guarantee); €100,000+ FREE |
| Financial strength | S&P 500 member (Aug 2025); $20.5B equity capital; 74% employee-owned; NASDAQ listed | €30B+ AUM; backed by BlackRock and Tencent; 1M+ clients |
At both brokers, your ETF and stock positions are held as segregated client assets — legally in your name and separate from the broker’s own balance sheet. If either broker were to fail, your securities would not be part of the insolvency estate. This is standard practice under EU securities law (MiFID II) and applies equally to both.
IBKR’s €20,000 investor compensation is a brokerage protection scheme — it covers losses if the firm fails, not market losses. Scalable’s €100,000 statutory deposit guarantee per bank is a banking protection scheme — a fundamentally different and typically stronger framework for idle cash. For investors holding substantial uninvested cash, the Scalable PRIME+ multi-bank structure offers considerably more protection headroom.
Where each broker is available
Geographic availability is a hard constraint. If you are not in one of Scalable Capital’s six markets, this comparison ends here — IBKR is your option.
| Country | IBKR | Scalable Capital — broker | Scalable Capital — auto tax |
|---|---|---|---|
| 🇩🇪 Germany | Yes — full features | Yes — full features | Yes — automatic |
| 🇦🇹 Austria | Yes — full features | Yes — full features | Partial — verify |
| 🇫🇷 France | Yes — full features | Broker only — no robo | No |
| 🇮🇹 Italy | Yes — full features | Broker only — no robo | No |
| 🇪🇸 Spain | Yes — full features | Broker only — no robo | No |
| 🇳🇱 Netherlands | Yes — full features | Broker only — no robo | No |
| Other EU / Switzerland / UK | Yes — full features | Not available | Not available |
Who each broker fits — and the honest bottom line
- You are a German or Austrian resident building a monthly UCITS ETF portfolio via savings plans.
- You want Abgeltungsteuer handled automatically — and your Freistellungsauftrag applied without manual action.
- You keep idle cash alongside your portfolio and want 2.50% p.a. with no minimum balance threshold.
- You invest exclusively in EUR-denominated ETFs and have no multi-currency needs.
- You want a simple, clean platform without an IBKR-level learning curve.
- You want the deepest ETF savings plan catalogue (2,700+ funds, nine execution dates per month).
- You are based outside Scalable Capital’s six available countries.
- You need multi-currency accounts — EUR and USD positions simultaneously, converted at institutional rates.
- You want access to USD-denominated securities or global exchanges beyond German markets.
- Your portfolio has grown to a size where FX efficiency and global access become material advantages.
- You are comfortable managing your own annual tax declaration.
- You want a broker you are unlikely to outgrow regardless of portfolio size or strategy complexity.
For most German or Austrian investors doing monthly savings plan contributions into EUR-denominated UCITS ETFs, Scalable Capital is cheaper, simpler, and has better tax integration. Savings plans are free, the Overnight account pays more at any balance size, and Abgeltungsteuer is handled without any action on your part. The FREE plan costs nothing for trading — the comparison is effectively €0/year at Scalable versus €36/year minimum at IBKR for the same 12 monthly contributions.
IBKR becomes the right answer when your strategy outgrows EUR-only investing. The FX workflow, multi-currency accounts, and global exchange access have no equivalent at Scalable Capital — and these advantages compound meaningfully at scale. The practical upgrade path many investors follow: Scalable Capital as the automated savings base, IBKR added as the portfolio grows in size and strategic complexity.
If you are outside Germany or Austria: the comparison is largely settled. IBKR is available everywhere and does not restrict features by country. Scalable Capital’s strongest differentiators — automatic Abgeltungsteuer, the robo-advisor — do not apply outside the two core markets.
Open your account once your plan is clear
German and Austrian savings plan investors: Scalable Capital FREE costs nothing and gives you the deepest ETF catalogue available. Multi-currency investors, or anyone outside Scalable’s six markets: IBKR is the default. Compare current terms on their official sites before committing.
Go deeper
Frequently asked questions
Is Interactive Brokers or Scalable Capital cheaper for German ETF investors?
It depends entirely on how you invest. For pure savings plan investors, Scalable Capital is cheaper — all savings plan executions are free on both FREE and PRIME+ plans. IBKR charges a minimum of €3 per trade on Fixed pricing, so 12 monthly contributions cost at least €36 per year. For investors who need multi-currency accounts or USD-denominated assets, IBKR’s ~0.002% FX rate becomes the more relevant differentiator — Scalable Capital is a EUR-only broker with no multi-currency support.
Can I use Scalable Capital outside Germany?
Scalable Capital is available in Germany, Austria, France, Italy, Spain, and the Netherlands. Full feature access — including the robo-advisor (Scalable Wealth) and automatic Abgeltungsteuer handling — is only available in Germany and Austria. In France, Italy, Spain, and the Netherlands, only the self-directed broker is available with no automated local tax handling. IBKR is available pan-European and globally with no meaningful feature restrictions by country of residence.
How do ETF savings plans compare between IBKR and Scalable Capital?
Scalable Capital has the deeper and cheaper savings plan offer. It covers 2,700+ ETFs with all executions free on both FREE and PRIME+ plans, starting from €1, with nine execution dates available per month and flexible frequency options. IBKR’s Recurring Investments feature allows scheduled purchases of eligible European-listed shares, but normal Fixed or Tiered commissions still apply per execution — at least €3 per contribution on Fixed pricing. For zero-commission automated ETF investing, Scalable Capital is the clear winner for investors based in its available markets.
Which broker pays more interest on uninvested cash — IBKR or Scalable Capital?
Scalable Capital pays more in most scenarios. The Overnight account pays 2.50% p.a. (variable) on unlimited cash with no minimum balance on both FREE and PRIME+. IBKR pays approximately 1.44% p.a. (EUR, April 2026) on cash above €10,000 only — below that threshold you earn nothing. On a €15,000 cash balance, Scalable pays interest on the full €15,000 while IBKR pays interest on only €5,000. The gap narrows at very large balances, but Scalable’s zero-threshold structure is a consistent structural advantage for most retail investors. Always verify current rates on each broker’s official page as both track ECB policy.
Does Scalable Capital handle German taxes automatically?
Yes, for German tax residents. Scalable Capital automatically withholds and remits Abgeltungsteuer (25% capital gains tax plus solidarity surcharge) to the Finanzamt on your behalf. In most standard cases, German investors do not need to report broker gains on their annual tax return. You can also submit an exemption order (Freistellungsauftrag) up to the €1,000 annual allowance directly through the platform — it is applied automatically. Annual tax certificates are issued, though delivery can be slow during peak tax season. IBKR provides an annual activity report but handles no tax obligations on your behalf — you are fully responsible for declaring capital gains and any other local tax obligations.
Which broker has better investor protection for uninvested cash?
Scalable Capital offers stronger cash protection. On PRIME+, cash is distributed across up to five banks — giving up to €500,000 in statutory deposit protection (€100,000 per bank) plus additional voluntary guarantees from participating banks. On FREE, cash is distributed across banks and qualifying UCITS money market funds, each bank covered by the €100,000 statutory guarantee. Scalable Capital Bank GmbH holds a full ECB banking licence (since 2025). IBKR holds EU client assets via Interactive Brokers Ireland Limited under a brokerage structure, with investor compensation up to €20,000 covering 90% of losses if the broker fails. Securities are held as segregated client assets at both brokers — that protection is equivalent.
Does Interactive Brokers work in Germany?
Yes. IBKR is available to German residents with no feature restrictions. German clients are onboarded to Interactive Brokers Ireland Limited, regulated by the Central Bank of Ireland, with investor compensation up to €20,000. All IBKR features are available — multi-currency accounts, global exchange access, the FX conversion workflow, the Stock Yield Enhancement Program, and Recurring Investments. German investors who use IBKR must handle their own Abgeltungsteuer declarations, unlike Scalable Capital which automates this entirely for German tax residents.
Which broker should a German long-term ETF investor choose?
For German investors doing monthly savings plan contributions into EUR-denominated UCITS ETFs, Scalable Capital wins on total annual cost, convenience, and tax handling. Savings plans are free, the Overnight account pays 2.50% p.a. with no balance threshold, and Abgeltungsteuer is handled automatically. IBKR becomes the better choice when your portfolio grows in complexity — when you need multi-currency accounts, USD-denominated positions, global exchange access, or a platform that scales without country restrictions. The practical path many investors follow: Scalable Capital as the starting point for automated saving, IBKR added as portfolio size and strategy complexity make its advantages material.
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QuantRoutine provides educational content only. Nothing on this page is an offer, solicitation, or recommendation to buy or sell any security or to open an account with any specific broker. Investments can lose value, and past performance does not guarantee future results. You are responsible for your own investment, tax, and legal decisions. Always review each broker’s current terms, fees, and eligibility on their official website before opening or funding an account.