easyMarkets vs Vanguard Personal Investor
easyMarkets and Vanguard Personal Investor are not really competing for the same investor. easyMarkets is a CFD and options broker for leveraged speculation on forex, indices and commodities — it doesn't support ASX shares at all. Vanguard Personal Investor is a low-cost ASX broker and managed-fund platform built for long-term, buy-and-hold investing in Vanguard products. The biggest practical difference: one is for trading derivatives, the other for building a portfolio of real ASX-listed assets.
- ›You want to trade CFDs, forex or options with leverage — easyMarkets supports these; Vanguard does not.
- ›You want to trade after hours or overnight, not just standard ASX trading hours.
- ›You want a demo account to practise strategies before risking real money.
- ›You want to deposit via crypto, Skrill or Neteller, not just bank transfers and BPAY.
- ›You're comfortable with a custodial model and inactivity fees (A$25) for a derivatives-focused account.
- ›You want to buy and hold ASX shares or ETFs — Vanguard offers $0 brokerage on Vanguard ETFs and $9 flat on other ASX stocks.
- ›You want to invest in Vanguard managed funds alongside ETFs in one platform.
- ›You want auto-invest / dollar-cost averaging with multiple schedule options — easyMarkets has no DCA feature.
- ›You need an Australian tax statement, distribution breakdown and CGT report to simplify your tax return.
- ›You want a joint account, trust account, SMSF or kids account — Vanguard supports all of these; easyMarkets does not.
Where they differ
| Fact | easyMarkets | Vanguard Personal Investor |
|---|---|---|
| ASX shares supported | No | Yes |
| Brokerage on ASX trades | N/A (no ASX trading) | $0 on Vanguard ETF buys; $9 flat on other ASX shares |
| CHESS sponsorship | Not applicable (CFD broker) | Custodian model (no individual HIN) |
| Minimum initial deposit | A$25 | A$200 |
| Auto-invest / DCA | No | Yes (multiple schedule options) |
Pick easyMarkets for leveraged derivatives trading; pick Vanguard Personal Investor for low-cost, long-term ASX investing.
Common questions
How do easyMarkets and Vanguard Personal Investor compare on asx shares supported?
easyMarkets: No. Vanguard Personal Investor: Yes. easyMarkets does not offer direct ASX share trading at all.
How do easyMarkets and Vanguard Personal Investor compare on brokerage on asx trades?
easyMarkets: N/A (no ASX trading). Vanguard Personal Investor: $0 on Vanguard ETF buys; $9 flat on other ASX shares. Vanguard is one of the cheapest options for buying Vanguard ETFs.
How do easyMarkets and Vanguard Personal Investor compare on chess sponsorship?
easyMarkets: Not applicable (CFD broker). Vanguard Personal Investor: Custodian model (no individual HIN). Neither platform offers CHESS-sponsored holdings.
When is easyMarkets the better choice over Vanguard Personal Investor?
Pick easyMarkets if you want to trade CFDs, forex or options with leverage — easyMarkets supports these; Vanguard does not; you want to trade after hours or overnight, not just standard ASX trading hours; you want a demo account to practise strategies before risking real money; or you want to deposit via crypto, Skrill or Neteller, not just bank transfers and BPAY.
When is Vanguard Personal Investor the better choice over easyMarkets?
Pick Vanguard Personal Investor if you want to buy and hold ASX shares or ETFs — Vanguard offers $0 brokerage on Vanguard ETFs and $9 flat on other ASX stocks; you want to invest in Vanguard managed funds alongside ETFs in one platform; you want auto-invest / dollar-cost averaging with multiple schedule options — easyMarkets has no DCA feature; or you need an Australian tax statement, distribution breakdown and CGT report to simplify your tax return.
easyMarkets or Vanguard Personal Investor — what's the verdict?
Pick easyMarkets for leveraged derivatives trading; pick Vanguard Personal Investor for low-cost, long-term ASX investing.
All data points side-by-side
Every verified fact for both platforms. Differences are highlighted.
| Field | easyMarkets | Vanguard Personal Investor |
|---|---|---|
| account structure | ||
| CHESS sponsorship model | — | custodian |
| Individual HIN | — | No |
| Individual account | Yes | Yes |
| Joint account | No | Yes |
| Company account | Yes | Yes |
| Trust account | No | Yes |
| SMSF account | No | Yes |
| Kids / minor account | No | Yes |
| asset coverage | ||
| ASX shares supported | No | Yes |
| ASX ETFs supported | No | Yes |
| US shares supported | No | No |
| US ETFs supported | No | No |
| Other markets supported | ||
| Fractional shares (ASX) | No | No |
| Fractional shares (US) | No | No |
| Options trading | Yes | No |
| CFDs supported | Yes | No |
| Managed funds | No | Yes |
| Bonds supported | No | No |
| IPO access | No | No |
| costs hidden | ||
| Holds USD account | Yes | — |
| FX currency switch trick | No | — |
| Market data fees | $0/month | $0/month |
| Conditional order fees | $0 | $0 |
| Corporate action fees | — | Participation in voluntary corporate actions (rights issues, SPPs, takeovers) is NOT available through Vanguard Personal Investor for ETFs or direct shares - investors cannot participate. Mandatory corporate actions (e.g. dividends) flow through automatically. No corporate action fees disclosed. |
| costs visible | ||
| ASX brokerage minimum | — | $0 |
| ASX brokerage percentage | — | 0% |
| ASX free trade conditions | — | $0 brokerage on all buys of Vanguard ETFs (Vanguard managed funds incur no brokerage at all). $0 brokerage on Vanguard ETFs/funds purchased via Auto Invest. Sells of Vanguard ETFs incur $9 flat. ASX direct (non-Vanguard) shares: $9 flat both ways. |
| Monthly platform fee | $0/month | $0/month |
| Annual platform fee | $0/year | $0/year |
| Inactivity fee | $25 | $0 |
| Withdrawal fee (AUD) | $0 | $0 |
| Off-market transfer fee | — | $0 |
| identity and trust | ||
| Legal entity name | easyMarkets Pty Ltd | Vanguard Investments Australia Ltd |
| AFSL number | 246,566 | 227,263 |
| Year founded | 2,003 | 2,020 |
| Parent / ownership | Blue Capital Markets Ltd (private, Cyprus-headquartered easyMarkets group) | The Vanguard Group, Inc. (US) - mutual structure owned by US-domiciled Vanguard fund investors |
| Country of incorporation | AU | AU |
| Public company status | private | private |
| money movement | ||
| Minimum initial deposit | $25 | $200 |
| Minimum subsequent purchase | $0 | $1 |
| Deposit methods | Credit/Debit Card (Visa, Mastercard, Amex), Bank Wire Transfer, BPAY, Skrill, Neteller, POLi, Crypto (BTC, ETH, USDT) | BPAY, Direct credit (EFT), Direct debit |
| Settlement period | — | T+2 (ASX) |
| Withdrawal time | 1 business day to process; 3-10 business days for funds to arrive depending on method | Up to 3 business days from processing date (processed same day if requested before 4pm AET) |
| platform ux | ||
| iOS app | Yes | Yes |
| Android app | Yes | Yes |
| Desktop platform | Yes | No |
| Demo account | Yes | No |
| Free real-time market data | Yes | No |
| Free research reports | Yes | No |
| 2FA support | SMS + authenticator | SMS |
| Customer support channels | phone, email, live chat | Phone, Secure message (in-app) |
| Support hours (AU time) | 24/5 (Monday to Friday, around the clock during market hours) | Monday to Friday, 8am to 6pm AET (phone) |
| Education content | structured courses | structured |
| tax and reporting | ||
| Australian tax statement | No | Yes |
| Distribution component breakdown | No | Yes |
| CGT calculator / report | No | Yes |
| Sharesight / Navexa integration | No | Yes |
| trading mechanics | ||
| Market orders | Yes | Yes |
| Limit orders | Yes | Yes |
| Stop loss orders | Yes | No |
| Conditional orders | Yes | No |
| Auto-invest / DCA | No | Yes |
| Auto-invest sophistication | none | multiple |
| DRP (dividend reinvestment) | No | No |
| After-hours / overnight trading | Yes | No |