Which Brokers Pay Interest on Uninvested Cash in 2026?

Why the cash in your brokerage account matters

Most guides compare brokers on trading commissions and forget the money that just sits there — the cash you haven't invested yet, the proceeds of a sale waiting for the next idea, the buffer you keep for a dip. On a €10,000 account holding 30% in cash, the difference between a broker paying 3.5% and one paying 0% is about €105 a year doing nothing but sitting still. Over a multi-year DCA plan with regular uninvested balances, it compounds into real money.

Since central-bank rates rose, several brokers started paying interest on uninvested cash to compete. Others still pay nothing and quietly earn the interest themselves. This page verifies who pays what, checked against each broker's own page in July 2026. Rates are variable and move with benchmark rates — always confirm the live figure before you rely on it.

Who pays interest on cash — verified table

Broker	Pays interest?	Headline rate	Key condition
XTB	Yes	GBP 4.00% · USD 3.45% · EUR 2.30%	Auto-enabled, no minimum, variable weekly
eToro	Yes	USD up to 3.55%	USD cash only; activate in dashboard; tiered by balance/region
Interactive Brokers	Yes	USD 3.13% · EUR 1.65% · GBP 3.20%	IBKR Pro; none on first $10k; scales with account value
Tickmill	Yes	USD 1.75% · GBP 1.75% · EUR 0%	Needs ≥$100 + an active account
Trading 212	Yes	Variable	Money-market funds; no minimum, all account types
Freedom Finance	Yes (opt-in)	SOFR / EURIBOR-linked	Separate "D-account" savings placement, not automatic
Admirals	No	—	Forex/CFD broker; no interest-on-cash product
Just2Trade	No	—	No interest-on-cash product
DEGIRO	Not confirmed	—	Could not verify a positive rate on the official page
EXANTE	Not confirmed	—	Public page lists interest only as a charge on negative balances

All rates are gross annual figures verified 2026-07-01 against each broker's own page, and every "Yes" links to our full review with the source. Because these rates track central-bank benchmarks, they change — treat the numbers as a snapshot, not a promise.

The brokers that pay a published rate

XTB is the most straightforward: interest is auto-enabled on the standard investment account with no minimum balance, currently around 4% on GBP, 3.45% on USD and 2.30% on EUR. The catch is honesty rather than hidden fees — the rate is variable and XTB can change it weekly, so it's a "check before you count on it" number.

eToro pays up to 3.55%, but only on USD cash, only after you activate it, and the tier depends on your balance and region (EU/UK residents start at 2.75% up to $50k; Germany-registered accounts get the full 3.55% at any balance). If your account is in EUR or GBP, remember eToro's currency conversion cost eats into the benefit.

Interactive Brokers is the professional's option: 3.13% USD / 1.65% EUR / 3.20% GBP on IBKR Pro. The important asterisk — IBKR pays nothing on the first $10,000 equivalent and the blended rate only reaches the headline once your account value is high (full rate around $100k NAV). For a small account, the effective rate is much lower than the sticker.

Tickmill pays 1.75% on USD and GBP (0% on EUR) on unused wallet funds, but only if you keep at least $100 and an active account. Note: a promotional "up to 7%" rate ran in spring 2026 and expired on 30 June — the standard rate is 1.75%, so ignore any lingering 7% headline.

The brokers that pay, but not a fixed number

Trading 212 pays interest on uninvested cash through qualifying money-market funds — no minimum, all account types, accrued daily and paid monthly. It genuinely pays; we simply don't quote a fixed rate here because the live figure moves and is published only on their own page.

Freedom Finance is different in kind: interest isn't automatic on your brokerage cash. You opt into a separate "D-account" savings placement where USD tracks SOFR and EUR tracks EURIBOR. It's closer to a linked savings account than a default sweep.

The brokers that pay nothing (and that's fine to know)

Admirals and Just2Trade have no interest-on-cash product at all — verified by the absence of any such feature on their official pages. For a CFD-focused or active trader who keeps little idle cash, this may not matter. For a buy-and-hold investor who parks cash between purchases, it's a real cost of choosing them.

For DEGIRO and EXANTE we could not confirm a positive rate from the official source (DEGIRO geo-blocks the relevant page from our checks; EXANTE's public page mentions interest only as a charge on negative balances). We'd rather say "unconfirmed" than print a number we couldn't verify — see our DEGIRO review and EXANTE review for what we could verify.

What actually determines what you earn

The headline rate is the least reliable part. Four things move the real number:

• Currency. Rates differ sharply by currency (USD and GBP tend to pay more than EUR right now). If your cash is in EUR but the good rate is on USD, a conversion fee can erase the gain.
• Balance thresholds. IBKR pays nothing on the first $10k and scales up with account value; eToro tiers by balance. A "3.5%" broker can pay you an effective 1% on a small account.
• Activity requirements. Tickmill needs an active account; some brokers exclude swap-free or dormant accounts. Idle-cash interest sometimes requires you not to be idle.
• Promo vs standard. Introductory "up to X%" rates expire. Always check whether the number is the current standard or a limited-time promotion.

Who should care most

If you trade rarely and keep a meaningful cash buffer — international and expat investors holding multi-currency balances, DCA investors between monthly buys, anyone waiting out volatility — cash interest can be worth more than shaving a few cents off commissions. If you're nearly always fully invested, it barely registers.

To put the cash-interest benefit next to the fees that offset it, run your numbers in our fee calculator, and use the broker comparison tool to see interest alongside commissions and FX costs side by side.

Frequently asked questions

Is interest on brokerage cash safe?

The cash is held under the broker's regulatory regime, not as a bank deposit, so investor-compensation limits apply (SIPC, FSCS, or the EU ICF depending on the entity) rather than deposit insurance. Money-market-fund models (Trading 212) carry the fund's risk profile, which is very low but not zero. It's not a savings account — read how each broker holds the cash.

Why would a broker pay me interest at all?

Brokers earn interest on client cash themselves. Paying some of it back is a competitive tool. The ones that pay nothing keep all of it — which is exactly why it's worth comparing.

Do these rates change?

Constantly. They track central-bank benchmarks and can change weekly. Every figure here is a July 2026 snapshot verified against the broker's page; confirm the live rate before deciding.

Does the interest apply to my whole balance?

Usually only to uninvested cash, and often only above (or below) certain thresholds. IBKR excludes the first $10k; eToro tiers it; others pay from the first unit. Check the balance band, not just the rate.

The bottom line

Six of the ten brokers we checked pay something on uninvested cash; two pay nothing; two we couldn't confirm. XTB is the cleanest for a published, auto-enabled rate; Interactive Brokers rewards larger accounts; eToro works if your cash is in USD. Don't choose a broker on cash interest alone — but if you hold idle cash, don't ignore it either, because the broker that pays nothing is quietly earning what could have been yours.

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Not financial advice. Cash-interest rates are variable and were verified against each broker's own page as of July 2026. Confirm the current rate and terms on the broker's site before opening an account.