What is an international broker?

Any stockbroker that accepts clients from more than one country and offers trading access to global stock exchanges is considered an international broker. Some online stock brokers in the U.S. only accept U.S. citizens. Meanwhile, other U.S. brokers support residents of Canada, Australia, the U.K., broader Europe, or other countries across the globe. Ultimately, what matters is that the broker is regulated and licensed to do business in your country of residence.

Can a non-U.S. citizen open a brokerage account?

It depends. In many cases, if you are a legal resident in the U.S. but not a U.S. citizen, then proper identification may be enough to open a U.S. brokerage account. If you reside outside of the United States and are not a U.S. citizen, you may still be able to open a brokerage account. As long as the online broker accepts applications from your country of residence, then you should be able to proceed.

How do I buy stocks internationally?

To buy foreign stocks, you must first open an international brokerage account. Then, after funding your account, you may need to request access (including price data) for the exchange you want to trade. Alternatively, simply search for the specific symbol to see if it is available to trade from within your account. Example: A trader who wants to buy British Petroleum PLC (LSE: BP) would enter the symbol BP on the trading platform. If you enter this on the Interactive Brokers platform, BP will yield a few results, but the correct one if you want to buy it on the London Stock Exchange (LSE) is “BP PLC – LSE.” Companies can have multiple results because they may be dually-listed, trade as an American Deposit Receipt (ADR), or trade as a Contract for Difference (CFD). Bottom line: you will need to know the exchange and symbol to buy an international stock.

Which broker is best for international trading?

Interactive Brokers is the best U.S.-based international stock broker because it provides you access to the most exchanges and supports clients from the widest variety of countries. That said, the best international broker will vary depending on where you live. Use our international trading search tool above to compare trading platforms available across the globe.

Best International Brokers for Stock Trading 2023

Written by Blain Reinkensmeyer
Edited by Carolyn Kimball
Fact-checked by Steven Hatzakis

May 24, 2023

The StockBrokers.com best online brokers 2023 review, our 13th annual, took three months to complete and produced over 40,000 words of research. Here's how we tested. Our editorial content is independent and unbiased; here's how we make money.

This guide summarizes the best online brokers for international trading in 2023. To qualify, online brokers must be based in the United States, must be U.S.-regulated, and offer international investors the ability to buy and sell stocks.

Currently, there are very few U.S. brokers that support non-U.S. citizens as clients. This is mostly due to the complexities surrounding international regulations, customer service, and language translation.

If you are U.S. citizen and want to buy stocks overseas, the three best international brokers are Interactive Brokers, Fidelity Investments, and Charles Schwab.