5 Best Crude Oil Trading Platforms

Trading crude oil allows you to invest in the world’s most dominant commodities market. You can speculate on global energy prices, hedge against market volatility or diversify your portfolio through various instruments such as futures contracts and contracts for difference (CFDs). 

Choosing the right broker is critical because crude oil trading platforms differ significantly in their fee structures, available contracts, research tools and user experience. 

Below are the five top brokers we’ve evaluated and chosen to help you navigate the market of crude oil trading. 

How We Chose The Best Crude Oil Trading Platforms

Our selection of crude oil trading platforms prioritizes brokers offering strong access through futures and CFDs. Key criteria includes competitive commission structures, intuitive platform usability, diverse account options with reasonable minimums, responsive customer services, broad asset class coverage and comprehensive educational resources. 

Interactive Brokers — Best for Global Access

Interactive Brokers (IBKR) is a great choice for trading crude, particularly for experienced traders and institutions seeking direct access to a variety of global futures markets with competitive pricing and advanced trading tools. It offers direct access to key crude oil futures contracts like West Texas Intermediate (WTI) and Brent on major exchanges, along with micro futures. 

• Commission Structure: Futures commissions of $0.25 to $0.85 are competitive and vary by exchange and contract. For CFDs, spreads are typically tight, and there may be a commission per trade or a markup in the spread. Overall costs are among the lowest for active traders. 

• Platform Usability: IBKR’s Trader Workstation (TWS) is suitable for professional and experienced traders. It provides charting tools, technical indicators and customizable layouts. The mobile app has high functionality but may be challenging for beginners.

• Account Options and Minimums: IBKR offers a range of account types, including individual, joint, IRA and institutional. Minimum deposits vary.

• Customer Service and Availability: 24/7 customer support via phone, email and live chat. Support is responsive and knowledgeable, catering to a global client base. 

• Asset Class Coverage: Covers stocks, options, futures (including crude oil contracts like WTI and Brent on the New York Mercantile Exchange (NYMEX) and Intercontinental Exchange (ICE)), forex, bonds, and CFDs in more than 160 markets in 36 countries. 

• Educational Content and Support: Educational resources include webinars and tutorials for all experience levels. 

• Drawbacks: TWS is complex and can have a steep learning curve for beginners. 

Who It’s Best For: Experienced and professional traders, active investors, and institutions requiring broad access to global markets. 

Plus500 — Best for Beginners

Plus500 caters to beginners and cost-conscious traders who want a straightforward, user-friendly platform for crude oil CFD and futures trading, particularly in the U.S. market. Its proprietary platform is easy to use with a clear interface and competitive spread-only or low-commission futures models, making it accessible for investors new to the commodity markets.

• Commission Structure: Operates on a spread-only model for its CFDs, meaning there are no direct commissions per trade. Spreads on crude oil CFDs are competitive. Overnight financing charges apply for holding positions open.

• Platform Usability: Features a proprietary, user-friendly WebTrader platform. The mobile app is easy to navigate and execute trades quickly. 

• Account Options and Minimums: Offers retail and professional accounts. Minimum deposits start at $100. 

• Customer Service and Availability: Provides 24/7 customer service through live chat and email. 

• Asset Class Coverage: Specializes in CFDs across a range of assets, including cryptocurrencies, forex, stocks, indices and commodities like crude oil (WTI and Brent). 

• Educational Content and Support: Offers a Trading Academy with educational materials and a free demo account for practice. 

• Drawbacks: Its focus on CFDs means you don’t own the underlying asset. You may incur overnight financing fees for holding positions long-term. The platform lacks advanced research and analysis tools, in-depth market news feeds and the ability to integrate third-party analytical or automated trading tools. 

Who It’s Best For: Beginners and casual traders who want an easy-to-use platform for speculating on crude oil price movements through CFDs outside the U.S. 

TradeStation — Best for Advanced Traders

TradeStation caters to active and advanced traders who want robust analysis tools, customizable strategies and direct access to futures markets. Its powerful desktop platform and competitive pricing on standard and micro crude oil futures enable users to develop, test and execute sophisticated trading approaches. 

• Commission Structure: Competitive commission rates for futures trading: Micro E-mini futures are as low as $0.35 per contract per side, and standard futures contracts start at $1.50 per contract per side. TradeStation also offers a commission-free stock and ETF trading option for non-futures assets. 

• Platform Usability: Provides customizable trading platforms, including TradeStation 10 Desktop, Web Trading and mobile apps. The platforms are designed for serious traders, offering advanced charting, strategy testing and order entry capabilities. 

• Account Options and Minimums: Caters to both individual and institutional traders with various account types. There is no strict minimum to open an account, but futures trading often has margin requirements. 

• Customer Service and Availability: Offers customer support via phone and email, typically during market hours. 

• Asset Class Coverage: Strong in futures (including WTI and Brent crude), options, stocks and ETFs. 

• Educational Content and Support: Educational resources include tutorials, webinars and articles focused on technical analysis and futures trading strategies. 

• Drawbacks: Less experienced users may be intimidated by the platform. TradeStation also has fees outside of core trading, such as inactivity fees and annual IRA maintenance fees. 

Who It’s Best For: Active and advanced traders, professional investors and those who use technical or quantitative trading strategies.

eToro — Best for Social Trading

eToro is a social trading platform that offers crude oil trading through CFDs. Social trading allows investors to observe and automatically replicate the trades of other successful traders on a community-driven platform. eToro stands out by integrating social features, particularly with its CopyTrader system. It’s best suited for beginners and social investors who want an intuitive platform, copy trading features, and a simplified approach to speculating on commodity price movements without the complexities of direct futures market access.

• Commission Structure: Futures trading on has a flat fee of $3 to $5 per action during the promotional beta launch. eToro is primarily a social trading platform that offers CFD trading with a spread-only model. Spreads on crude oil vary. 

• Platform Usability: Its user-friendly platform is designed for social trading and easy navigation. The copy trading feature is a major draw. 

• Account Options and Minimums: Offers individual trading accounts. Minimum deposit requirements are $100 to $200 depending on region. 

• Customer Service and Availability: Customer support is available through a ticketing system and live chat, primarily during business hours. 

• Asset Class Coverage: Offers a range of CFDs on commodities (including WTI crude oil), stocks, indices, forex and cryptocurrencies. It also allows direct investing in real stocks and ETFs in some regions. 

• Educational Content and Support: Provides basic educational content, webinars and market analysis. Its strength is its social trading, which allows users to learn from and copy experienced traders.

• Drawbacks: Its reliance on CFDs outside the U.S. market mean traders don’t own the underlying asset and are subject to overnight financing charges. The platform lacks advanced analytical tools, comprehensive research capabilities and customizable charting features. 

Who It’s Best For: Beginners, social investors and those who want a simplified approach to trading multiple asset classes.

E*TRADE — Best for In-Depth Research

E*TRADE’s platform allows access to crude oil trading primarily through futures contracts. It’s best suited for active traders and investors who want robust tools, in-depth research and competitive pricing for direct access to major energy futures markets, including both WTI and Brent crude. 

• Commission Structure: Future trades are $1.50 per side, per contract, plus applicable exchange and National Futures Association (NFA) fees. For other assets, E*TRADE offers commission-free trading for online U.S.-listed stock, ETF and options trades. 

• Platform Usability: E*TRADE’s Power E*TRADE platform offers advanced charting tools, technical pattern recognition and robust analysis features for active traders. It supports rapid order entry for futures through features like Futures Ladder. The customizable platform also offers paper trading for practice. Its mobile app offers much of the desktop functionality. 

• Account Options and Minimums: E*TRADE offers individual, joint, retirement and small business accounts. There isn’t a strict overall minimum to open a basic brokerage account, but futures trading requires margin minimums set by exchanges. The margin requirements determine the capital needed to open and hold a futures position. 

• Customer Service and Availability: E*TRADE provides customer support through its Active Trader Service team, which includes licensed futures specialists. Support is available via phone and email. 

• Asset Class Coverage: E*TRADE’s broad asset class coverage includes crude oil futures, stocks, options, ETFs, mutual funds, bonds and some cryptocurrency futures. It doesn’t offer DVDs on crude oil, but its direct futures access is comprehensive for both WTI and Brent. 

• Educational Content and Support: Educational resources for futures and options trading are strong. E*TRADE’s Knowledge section includes articles, videos and webinars covering trading basics, advanced strategies, market analysis and risk management. 

• Drawbacks: There can be a steep learning curve for absolute beginners. Fees like outgoing account transfers or wire transfers can add up. 

Who It’s Best For: Active traders and experienced investors who want robust trading platforms with advanced tools for technical analysis and strategy execution, particularly for trading crude oil and other futures contracts. 

Choosing The Best Crude Oil Trading Platform

Interactive Brokers provides global access to futures with competitive fees. Plus500 offers an intuitive CFD trading experience, though it lacks advanced analytical tools and direct asset ownership. TradeStation provides robust analysis and strategy development for futures, while eToro is great for social investors and beginners. E*TRADE is ideal for active traders seeking in-depth research and tools for direct crude oil futures access. 

The best choice depends on your trading experience, preferred instruments and investment goals. 

Frequently Asked Questions