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Interactive Brokers Promotions of 2024

Review Updated
Robin Hartill, CFP
Ashley Maready
Eric McWhinnie
Many or all of the products here are from our partners that compensate us. It’s how we make money. But our editorial integrity ensures that our product ratings are not influenced by compensation. Terms may apply to offers listed on this page.

Interactive Brokers is a robust trading platform that's known for commission-free trading and low margin rates. Read on for a look at a couple current Interactive Brokers promotions available to users.

Interactive Brokers: Earn up to $200 per referral

Interactive Brokers
Learn More for Interactive Brokers

On Interactive Brokers' Secure Website.

Ratings Methodology

Our Rating:

Rating image, 4.5 out of 5 stars.
4.5/5 Circle with letter I in it. Our ratings are based on a 5 star scale. 5 stars equals Best. 4 stars equals Excellent. 3 stars equals Good. 2 stars equals Fair. 1 star equals Poor. We want your money to work harder for you. Which is why our ratings are biased toward offers that deliver versatility while cutting out-of-pocket costs.
= Best
= Excellent
= Good
= Fair
= Poor
Bottom Line

A great low-cost option for small trade volume. While the interface isn't as clean or modern as other brokers, it gets the job done. Interactive Brokers is also a great choice for options investors, traders, and those trading on margin.

Fees:

As low as $0 stock trades

Account Minimum:

$0

Learn More for Interactive Brokers

On Interactive Brokers' Secure Website.

How you earn it: If you have an Interactive Brokers (IBKR) account with at least $2,000 and you've made at least one trade, you can earn a $200 referral bonus for each person who signs up for an individual or joint account using your unique application link. You'll receive the bonus once the person you referred deposits at least $10,000 within 30 days of opening their account and maintains the balance for one year.

The person you refer can receive $1 in IBKR shares for each $100 in value they add to their account. For example, if they transferred $1,000 in cash to their new Interactive Brokers account, they'd receive $10 worth of IBKR shares. But they'll need to maintain their average balance for one year before their shares vest and become available. The maximum value of the shares a new referral can receive is $1,000.

How you qualify: You can only receive 15 referral bonuses per calendar year, or 30 total. That means if you referred 15 friends or family members during the year and they each met the deposit requirements, you could earn up to $3,000 in 2024. However, the maximum you can earn through this promotion is $6,000 if you refer 30 people over multiple calendar years.

The offer only applies to taxable brokerage accounts. If the person you refer to Interactive Brokers opens a tax-advantaged account, such as an individual retirement account (IRA), neither of you will be eligible for the bonus. Geographic restrictions also apply.

You won't qualify for the promotion if you and your referral live in the same household. You're also prohibited from involvement in any trading activity in the referral account.

Details: This is a fairly competitive brokerage referral bonus, though the requirements to earn it are more onerous than what you find with most online brokerage referral programs. Your referral needs to deposit $10,000 and maintain that balance for one year.

For example, Robinhood offers a bonus of gift stock for each person you refer who opens an account and links it to their bank or debit card. There's no minimum deposit requirement they need to make for you to earn the bonus. Though there's the potential to earn gift stock valued between $5 and $200, Robinhood says the gift stock will be worth $5 for about 99% of users who refer someone.

Offer expires: No expiration date is listed, but Interactive Brokers reserves the right to change the terms of its referral program at any time.

Interactive Brokers: Free trial for advanced tools

How you earn it: Interactive Brokers offers a free trial for its Trader Workstation platform, IBKR Mobile, and IBKR Desktop, along with its advanced trading tools, and research. You can simulate trading with $1 million in the trial account, though of course, that $1 million is hypothetical money. If you like what you see with the free trial, you'll need to open a live account and fund it with real money to start trading.

How you qualify: You only need to provide your email address and create a username and password to begin your free trial.

Details: Beyond getting access to research materials that you might otherwise have to pay for, you're not really getting much for free here. To start investing, you'll need to switch to a live account and then fund the account. Many platforms offer virtual or paper trading so would-be investors can take a test run before investing actual money.

What else should you know about Interactive Brokers bonuses?

Brokerage firms often change their promotional offers. Check this page in the future, as we'll keep it updated on any changes to Interactive Brokers bonuses and promotions.

Are Interactive Brokers promotions worth it?

If you're an Interactive Brokers customer who's happy with the stock trading app, referring friends and family members who have at least $10,000 to invest could be worthwhile. But keep in mind that this promotion isn't a quick way to earn cash. You'll only receive the bonus if your referral opens an account, deposits a $10,000 minimum, and maintains at least a $10,000 balance for at least a year.

Alternatives to Consider

We recommend comparing brokerage options to ensure the account you're selecting is the best fit for you. To make your search easier, here's a short list of our best trading platforms of 2024.

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4.0/5 Circle with letter I in it. Our ratings are based on a 5 star scale. 5 stars equals Best. 4 stars equals Excellent. 3 stars equals Good. 2 stars equals Fair. 1 star equals Poor. We want your money to work harder for you. Which is why our ratings are biased toward offers that deliver versatility while cutting out-of-pocket costs.
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FAQs

  • Interactive Brokers pays a $200 referral bonus for each person you refer who deposits at least $10,000 and maintains the $10,000 minimum balance for a year. Your referral receives $1 of IBKR stock for every $100 they deposit.

  • To get $1,000 of IBKR stock for free, you'll need to sign up for an account using a referral code from a friend. You'll receive $1 of IBKR stock for every $100 you transfer up to $1,000. So to get the full $1,000, you'd need to transfer $100,000. You'll then need to maintain your balance for a full year before you'll have access to your shares.

  • You won't receive the Interactive Brokers referral bonus until your family member or friend has held the account for one year and maintained at least a $10,000 balance. If the person you refer receives a bonus of IBKR stock, they'll have a one-year vesting period before they can access their shares.

  • You can get up to 15 referral bonuses from Interactive Brokers in a calendar year, but you're limited to 30 referral bonuses overall.