How We Calculate the Trust Score
A 0-100 trust signal built from public regulator data, weighted across five dimensions.
Every broker on BrokerFit shows a Trust Score from 0 to 100. The industry median across our coverage is 72 — anything above that signals stronger-than-average safeguards for client money. The score is computed from public regulator data, broker disclosures, and audited registers; it is not influenced by commercial relationships.
The score is a single, comparable number designed to answer one question: if this broker disappeared tomorrow, how likely is it that retail clients would get their money back, and on what timeline? It is a trust signal, not a recommendation.
The Five Dimensions
Each dimension contributes to the final 0-100 score. We weight regulation and compensation most heavily because they determine the worst-case outcome.
Regulation & Licensing
40%Tier-1 regulators (SEC, FCA, ASIC, CySEC, BaFin, FINMA) score highest. Offshore-only licenses (SVG, Mauritius, Seychelles) score near zero. We deduct points for active sanctions, fines or licence suspensions in the last 36 months.
Investor Compensation Scheme
15%Whether the broker is a member of a statutory compensation fund (FSCS in the UK, ICF in the EU, SIPC in the US) and what the per-client coverage limit is. Schemes paying ≥€20,000 per client score full marks.
Client Fund Segregation
15%Whether client deposits are held in segregated accounts at top-tier banks, separate from the broker's operational capital. We require either explicit regulator-mandated segregation or a published bank reference.
Track Record
20%Years in operation, history of regulatory breaches, public scandals, ownership changes. A stable broker with 10+ years of clean operation scores higher than a recently launched one with the same license.
Transparency
10%Whether the broker publishes spreads, commissions, financing rates, AML policy and annual reports openly on its public site. We deduct points for fee schedules behind a login wall or for vague AML disclosures.
Regulation and compensation together carry 55% of the score because they determine the worst case — what happens to retail funds if the broker disappears.
How we scored XTB
A walkthrough of one real broker so the methodology is auditable. Numbers reflect public registers and disclosures as of 2026-05-07.
- 40%XTB holds two Tier-1 licences (FCA in the UK, KNF in Poland). Each Tier-1 licence adds 15 points up to a 40-point cap → 30/40.
- 20%XTB was founded in 2002 — 24 years of operation, no licence suspensions on record. Capped at 20/20.
- 15%XTB segregates client funds at Tier-1 banks separately from operating capital, mandated by both FCA and KNF rules → 15/15.
- 15%XTB clients are covered by FSCS (UK, up to £85k) and KNF Investor Compensation Scheme (Poland, up to €22k) → 15/15.
- 10%XTB is publicly listed on Warsaw Stock Exchange (XTB.WA), files audited annual reports → 10/10.
Total: 30 + 20 + 15 + 15 + 10 = 90 / 100.
Higher than the industry median of 72. The score does not mean XTB is the right broker for everyone — it means client funds are above-average protected.
How the 10 brokers we cover actually score
Apply the weights above to each broker's verified data — these are the raw points each one earns on every axis. Hover a column header for the full criterion name.
| Broker | Reg. | Comp. | Seg. | Track | Trans. | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Interactive Brokers | 40/40 | 15/15 | 15/15 | 20/20 | 10/10 | 100/100 |
| XTB | 40/40 | 15/15 | 15/15 | 20/20 | 10/10 | 100/100 |
| eToro | 40/40 | 15/15 | 15/15 | 20/20 | 10/10 | 100/100 |
| Admirals | 40/40 | 15/15 | 15/15 | 20/20 | 3/10 | 93/100 |
| EXANTE | 30/40 | 15/15 | 15/15 | 20/20 | 3/10 | 83/100 |
| Tickmill | 30/40 | 15/15 | 15/15 | 20/20 | 3/10 | 83/100 |
| Trading 212 | 30/40 | 15/15 | 15/15 | 20/20 | 3/10 | 83/100 |
| Freedom Finance | 30/40 | 0/15 | 15/15 | 20/20 | 10/10 | 75/100 |
| DEGIRO | 15/40 | 15/15 | 15/15 | 20/20 | 10/10 | 75/100 |
| Just2Trade | 15/40 | 15/15 | 15/15 | 20/20 | 3/10 | 68/100 |
Industry median = 72/100. A 70+ broker meets every must-have for retail; sub-60 signals at least one structural gap.
Where the data comes from
Every signal is traceable to a public register or filing. We do not rely on broker self-disclosure for licensing or compensation status.
What's Not in the Score
Customer support quality, mobile app UX, country availability, instrument breadth and fee level are not part of the Trust Score — those are surfaced separately on each broker page and in side-by-side comparisons. We deliberately keep the score focused on "will my money be safe" rather than "will I enjoy trading here".
Update Cadence
Trust Score inputs are reviewed manually each quarter, with an automatic refresh whenever a regulator publishes a new sanction or licence change. Each broker page shows the date of last verification next to the score.
Limitations
The Trust Score is built from public information; it cannot detect ongoing fraud that has not yet been disclosed by regulators. It does not predict your trading returns. It is a decision-support signal, not financial advice — always verify a broker's current licence on the regulator's official website before depositing.
Methodology FAQ
Why isn't customer service or app UX in the score?
The Trust Score answers one question — "can I get my money back if this broker collapses". Customer service quality, mobile app UX and platform speed are real concerns but they sit on a different axis (does the product work for me) than safety. We surface them separately on each broker page and in comparisons, but mixing them into a single number would dilute the trust signal.
How do you treat offshore-only licences?
A licence from SVG, Mauritius, Vanuatu, Seychelles or similar offshore jurisdictions on its own counts for zero in the regulation dimension. These regulators do not enforce client-money segregation rules and have no compensation schemes. If a broker holds an offshore licence in addition to a Tier-1 one, only the Tier-1 licence is counted.
What if a broker disputes its score?
We publish corrections publicly. Email us with a public-source correction (a regulator URL, an annual report PDF, an updated terms page) and we will re-verify and roll out the change within 7 days. We never edit a score in private — every change is visible on the broker page in the next quarterly update notice.
How often is the score recalculated?
Inputs are reviewed manually every quarter. Out-of-band updates happen whenever a regulator publishes a sanction, licence change or compensation-scheme update — typically within 48 hours of the regulator notice. The last verification date is shown on every broker page next to the score.
Why isn't broker size or AUM in the score?
Size correlates with stability but not deterministically — large brokers have failed (e.g. MF Global, FXCM in some jurisdictions). What protects retail clients is the combination of regulation, compensation and segregation, not the broker's balance sheet. We do show size data on broker pages for context, but it does not move the score.
Can affiliate partnerships influence a score?
No. The same scoring rules apply to every broker in our coverage, partner and non-partner alike. Where a partner broker scores lower than a non-partner, it stays lower — we would rather lose a commission than publish a score we cannot defend with public data.
Corrections & Feedback
Spot an outdated regulator number, a missing compensation scheme, or a recent sanction we have not picked up? Email us and we will investigate. Verified corrections are rolled out within 7 days.