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Best Options App For Short Selling 2026

Updated: February 24, 2025

Written by:

Mikhail Vnuchkov

Reviewed by:

Olga Shendetskaya

Go to broker

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Your capital is at risk.

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1
Best Options App For Short Selling 2026 - eToro

The eToro broker was founded in 2007. The company promotes itself as a social trading platform working with traders from over 140 countries. The broker has several divisions operating under different jurisdictions and licensed by different regulators. For example, eToro (Europe) is licensed by the Cypriot regulator CySEC (109/10) and eToro (UK) is licensed by the British regulator FCA (583263). The broker also has a representative office in Australia and the USA.

👍 Advantages of trading with eToro for traders:

•High level of reliability ensured by the licenses of respected regulatory authorities and participation in the compensation funds.

•Wide selection of assets quoted at stock exchanges in the UK, U.S., Australia and Asia.

•An opportunity to combine active trading with social trading and passive investing.

•Zero-fee trading of a number of stocks.

•Access to ready-made diversified asset portfolios with various risk levels.

•Provision of leverage, educational materials on various markets and user-friendly trading platforms that can run on any device.

•Zero fees for portfolio management, depositing funds and account maintenance.

👎 Disadvantages of eToro for traders:

•High minimum deposit for users of a number of countries.

•No live chat on the website for quick connection to customer support.

STUDY REVIEW

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2
Best Options App For Short Selling 2026 - AvaTrade

AvaTrade was founded in 2006 in Dublin, Ireland. The company has offices in 10 countries. It currently has over 300, 000 registered users and processes more than 2 million transactions every month. These factors contribute to AvaTrade being a reliable and trusted broker. They are accredited across five continents and are one of the market leaders. The broker is regulated by the Australian Securities and Investment Commission (ASIC, 406684), the Japanese FSA ( 1662), and the South African FSCA ( 45984). AvaTrade holds accreditation by the Central Irish Bank ( C53877 ), the Abu Dhabi Financial Services Regulatory Authority (190018), and the British Virgin Islands Financial Services Commission ( SIBA/L/13/1049), CySEC ( 347/17). AvaTrade allows traders to trade stocks, securities, indices, cryptocurrencies, and currency pairs. In total, the offer more than 1,200 tools to customers.

👍 Advantages of trading with AvaTrade for traders:

•a wide range of trading instruments;

•there is a license for the provision of services on the territory of 5 continents;

•customer service operates around the clock;

•provides competent assistance to users in 14 languages;

•a wide choice of convenient trading platforms;

•ability to trade from mobile devices;

•availability of an account for representatives of Islam (swap-free);

•for reliable storage of customer funds, the broker uses a segregated account;

•option for automated trading;

•no restrictions on trade and scalping;

•availability of training materials and conducting webinars.

👎 Disadvantages of AvaTrade for traders:

•the site interface is not user-friendly;

•customer service efficiency and response time

•trading terminals are prone to occasionally freeze.

STUDY REVIEW

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3
Best Options App For Short Selling 2026 - eOption

The eOption broker (eoption.com) is an American stockbroker headquartered in Glenview, Illinois. It has been operating since 2007 and is a member of FINRA (CRD#: 7297/SEC#: 8-21765) and SIPC. It specializes in options trading and also acts as an intermediary in trades involving the popular securities classes. The company offers low trading commissions, super-fast execution of orders, and modern platforms with an advanced set of analytical tools. In 2020-2021, eOption was recognized as the best options broker by several resources such as Investopedia, The Tokenist, Benzinga, Investormint, and NerdWallet.

👍 Advantages of trading with eOption for traders:

•Low commissions for options trading — $0.10 per contract plus $1.99 per trade.

•No minimum deposit requirements for cash trading accounts opened by US residents.

•FINRA membership and the protection of clients’ funds are available through Securities Investor Protection Corporation (SIPC).

•Access to professional trading platforms such as DAS and Sterling Trader Pro are developed by third-party software developers for the proprietary eOption terminal.

•An affiliate program with high rewards.

•Compensation for commissions for funds or assets from other brokerage firms and institutions transfer.

•Prompt support by phone and online chat in the trading platform during company business hours.

👎 Disadvantages of eOption for traders:

•The narrow range of choice of investment solutions to generate passive income.

•You cannot trade Pink Sheet and Bulletin Board stocks.

•There is no online chat on the company's website.

STUDY REVIEW

4
Best Options App For Short Selling 2026 - SoFi Invest

SoFi (Social Finance, Inc.) is an investment company founded in 2011 by graduates of Stanford Business School to provide federal and private student loans. The SoFi Invest division appeared in 2019 to provide brokerage services to active traders and passive investors from the United States. Currently, the broker is a member of FINRA (CRD#: 151717/SEC#: 8-68389) and SIPC and serves over 1,800,000 clients. SoFi Invest offers to invest in stocks (including fractional ones), cryptocurrencies, ETFs, and IPO.

👍 Advantages of trading with SoFi Invest for traders:

•Membership with FINRA and SIPC. These organizations monitor the broker’s compliance with the rules specified in the Client Agreement.

•Clients can combine transactions with stock market instruments with lending, insurance, and financial planning.

•Providing clients with two types of investment: active trading with securities and a passive option with asset management by an automated advisor.

•No commissions for trading stocks and ETFs, or asset portfolio management.

•Possibility to invest in fractional shares of companies.

👎 Disadvantages of SoFi Invest for traders:

•Only US residents can open an account with this broker.

•To invest in an IPO, you need to have more than $3000 on your account.

•Day traders can trade if they have an amount of $25,000 or more on their account.

STUDY REVIEW

5
Best Options App For Short Selling 2026 - Wealthsimple

Wealthsimple is a robo-advisor (algorithmic trading robot) that was founded in 2014 in Canada and also provides services in the UK. It is regulated by the UK and Canadian Securities Commissions, including the FCA (747883) and IIROC, and participates in the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS) as well as the Canadian Investor Protection Fund (CIPF). Wealthsimple serves over 1 million investors and manages £3 billion of investments.

👍 Advantages of trading with Wealthsimple for traders:

•No minimum deposit requirements for the basic account.

•Top-notch security and regulation by reputable securities commissions and participation in compensation schemes.

•Ability to earn income passively, i.e., without having to actively trade yourself.

•No additional charges for account maintenance, deposit, withdrawal, and use of a mobile application.

•A simple principle for charging commissions for portfolio management is a fixed percentage of the deposited amount.

•Possibility to open accounts not only in pounds sterling but also in Canadian dollars.

•Detailed statistics on commissions and rebalancing of the formed portfolios, which are available in the personal cabinet on the website and in the mobile application.

👎 Disadvantages of Wealthsimple for traders:

•Registration is only available to UK and Canadian residents.

•The site does not have an online chat for prompt communication with the support team.

•The formation of an individual portfolio by an investment specialist is available when depositing £100,000 or more.

STUDY REVIEW

Best Options App For Short Selling 2026 – Security for Traders

Broker’s security and reliability are a priority factor for choosing a mobile app to trade in financial markets. TU analysts performed an analysis of the Top 5 brokers and published the results of their research below.

eToro - Security for Traders

Security (Protection for Investors)

eToro is a financial holding company, each registered office of which is regulated at the place of location of the headquarters. The European office operates on the license No. 109/10 issued by CySEC, the British office – license No. 583263 issued by FCA, the Australia office — license AFSL No.491139 issued by ASIC. eToro is also supervised by the regulators of Malta and the Seychelles.

Accounts opened on eToro UK Ltd. are subject to the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS). Under its terms, each customer of the company's UK office can receive up to 85,000 British pounds in compensation in the event of eToro's bankruptcy. The CySEC regulator guarantees investment protection in the amount of up to EUR 20,000 euros to all clients of eToro (Europe) Ltd.

👍 Advantages

The broker operates on the licenses of respected international regulators
Retail traders are provided with negative balance protection
Brokerage services are provided in compliance with the MiFID.

👎 Disadvantages

The compensation schemes apply only to the clients of European and British offices of eToro.
Low leverage in compliance with the regulators’ requirements
Identity and bank account verification is mandatory

AvaTrade - Security for Traders

Security (Investors’ Protection)

Information

The activity of AvaTrade is regulated by 7 commissions: European CBI, Australian ASIC, South African FSCA, Japanese FSA and FFAJ, and the authorities of the British Virgin Islands B.V.I. FSC and CySEC.

To obtain accreditation from each of the regulatory authorities, it is necessary to follow clear regulations and comply with all the declared requirements for the provision of financial services.

The activity of AvaTrade fully complies with the criteria of regulators and the broker's regulations. Thanks to this, reliable legal relations between the company and consumers are ensured. The safety of financial assets is observed.

👍 Advantages

Trading operations are conducted under clear regulations
Relations between the broker and the trader are regulated by the agreement
Regulation by 7 authorities allows a customer to submit a claim from any country
Protection of customer funds using storage at segregated accounts
Licenses and other regulating documents are freely available at the broker’s website

👎 Disadvantages

Before the start of cooperation with the broker it is necessary to familiarize yourself with a lot of documents
Claims from only major investors are accepted

eOption - Security for Traders

Security (Protection for Investors)

Information

The eOption broker is a member of Regal Securities, Inc., which is a financial holding company that is a member of the Securities Investor Protection Corporation (SIPC) and is a FINRA member.

SIPC protects broker clients up to $500,000 with a $250,000 limit on cash payments. Moreover, the Hilltop Securities, Inc. clearing firm acquired Excess SIPC insurance, which covers up to $150 million in net worth of client accounts from an underwriting syndicate at Lloyd's of London. Insurance coverage per client is up to $25 million for securities and up to $900,000 for cash.

👍 Advantages

SIPC settles the balance of clients of a member company in the event of bankruptcy and financial insolvency.
If the broker violates the terms of the offer, you can file a claim with the supervisory authority.
No problems with withdrawals

👎 Disadvantages

You have to provide a complete package of documents confirming your social and tax status to open an account.
Regulators limit the choice of payment systems available for making trades

SoFi Invest - Security for Traders

Security (Protection for Investors)

Information

The holding company Social Finance, Inc. (SoFi) includes several companies. Brokerage services and active investment products are offered by SoFi Securities LLC, a member of FINRA and SIPC. SIPC insurance coverage is up to $500,000 per client (but not more than $250,000 for monetary claims).

Automated investing and advisory services are provided by SoFi Wealth LLC, a SEC-registered investment advisor company. Cryptocurrency transactions and accounts are handled by SoFi Digital Assets, LLC, which according to the US Treasury Department’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) qualifies as a monetary services company. All securities are cleared and stored by APEX Corporation.

👍 Advantages

SIPC insurance policy is available to active investors
You can file a claim with FINRA

👎 Disadvantages

SIPC protection does not apply to cryptocurrency accounts
Identity verification and complete information on sources of income are required
The choice of payment systems is limited

Wealthsimple - Security for Traders

Security (Protection for Investors)

Information

The Wealthsimple brand is owned by Wealthsimple UK Ltd and is registered in England and Wales under number 747883. The regulator of the activities is the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). Clients in the UK are covered by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS), so their funds are protected up to £85,000 and investments up to £50,000.

Canada-based Wealthsimple Inc. is registered with the Securities Commissions of Ontario (OSC), British Columbia (BCSC), Alberta (ASC), Manitoba (MSC), and with the Autorité des Marchés Financiers as the portfolio manager. It is also a member of the Investment Industry Regulatory Organization of Canada (IIROC) and the Canadian Investor Protection Fund (CIPF).

👍 Advantages

The reputable regulators of England and Canada control the financial activities
Two-factor authentication (2FA) and data encryption are applied
FSCS and CIPF deposit and asset protection

👎 Disadvantages

You have to provide not only personal data but also tax information to open an account
Only UK and Canadian residents may open an account
Withdrawals are only possible via wire transfers

Summary

In the process of choosing the Best Options Trading App For Short Selling 2026, TU experts analyzed features of 5 different brokers. Now you can learn the final score given by the analysts to brokers. We evaluated all apps based on specified criteria.

	eToro	AvaTrade	eOption	SoFi Invest	Wealthsimple
Overall score	8.4	7.7	9.3	8.8	9
Execution of orders	9.1	8.05	9	8.5	8.7
Investment instruments	10	10	9.6	9.1	9.3
Withdrawal speed	5	5	9.4	8.9	9.1
Customer Support work	9.3	7.9	9.2	8.7	8.9
Variety of instruments	7.2	8.45	8.9	8.4	8.6
Trading platform	9.8	6.8	9.7	9.2	9.4
	Study Review	Study Review	Study Review	Study Review	Study Review
	Open an account Your capital is at risk.	Open an account Your capital is at risk.

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FAQ

If a broker has several platforms, does it mean it offers several apps?

No. If a broker has several trading platforms, there is either an option to switch between them in the app, or only one trading platform is available (usually the proprietary one).

Can a platform function less effectively in the app than in the web version?

The platforms of reliable brokers with good apps work as smoothly as the web version. Therefore, there are almost no instances when the app runs poorly and the web version runs well. That may happen only in case of technical failures, which also happen rarely if the app is good.

Are there versions of the apps for tablets?

In some cases, Forex brokers develop separate versions of apps for smartphones, tablets and even for TV sets.

How are the apps protected against unauthorized access?

As a rule, in addition to the username and password, other security measures apply, for example two-factor authentication. In this case, you will need to enter a unique code to access your account.