There is no single best Singapore broker, only the best one for what you actually trade. If you buy SGX blue chips and want the shares in your own name, only a CDP-linked account does that. If you trade US stocks or want the lowest fee floor, custodian-model apps like moomoo, Webull, Tiger or Interactive Brokers charge less per trade. The headline 'zero commission' you see everywhere is real but partial: most brokers still charge a platform fee, a minimum per trade, and SGX's own clearing and trading fees that no broker can waive. This guide compares the fees you will pay in 2026 across the online brokers and the bank-linked houses, explains the CDP-versus-custodian trade-off that decides ownership, lists minimum deposits and current promos, and sets out what to check for each kind of investor.
Before fees, settle ownership. A CDP-linked account holds your SGX shares directly in your own Central Depository sub-account, registered in your name. You receive dividends and annual report mailings straight from the company, you vote at AGMs, and if you ever leave the broker the shares stay put because they were never held under the broker's name. The catch is cost: as of October 2026, CDP-linked trades at the bank houses run roughly 0.18% to 0.28% commission with a minimum of up to S$25 per order before GST, though OCBC Securities has charged no minimum on online SGX trades since 5 October 2026, and DBS Vickers charges no commission on Singapore trades for investors aged 18 to 25 under a promotion it calls limited-time.
A custodian account is the model nearly every low-cost app uses. The broker holds your shares in its own nominee account at CDP and you are the beneficial owner, not the registered one. Fees are far lower, often under 0.10% with a minimum near S$1 to S$2, but you depend on the broker to pass through dividends and corporate actions, and moving your shares out later usually costs a transfer fee. On modest amounts, custodian is the cheaper route; CDP costs more per trade but keeps the shares in your own name. Our CDP glossary entry explains the depository in plain terms.
If you have not decided whether to buy individual stocks at all, read our guide to starting investing in Singapore first, because a robo-advisor or one ETF may suit you better than any brokerage.
| Feature | CDP-linked account | Custodian account |
|---|---|---|
| Whose name holds the shares | Yours, in your CDP sub-account | Broker's nominee, you are beneficial owner |
| Typical SGX cost | ~0.18% to 0.28%, min up to S$25 | Often under 0.10%, min ~S$1 to S$2 |
| Dividends and AGM rights | Direct from the company | Passed through by the broker |
| Leaving the broker | Shares stay in CDP, nothing to move | Transfer fee usually applies |
| Main draw | Shares registered in your name | Lower fees and US market access |
When a broker advertises 'zero commission' on SGX stocks, it is waiving its own commission, not the exchange's charges. Every SGX trade carries SGX's clearing fee of 0.0325% of contract value and a trading fee of 0.0075%, plus 9% GST on fees, and CDP-linked settlement adds a Settlement Instruction fee of S$0.35. These are small on a typical trade but they are floor costs that sit underneath any promo.
What this means in practice: a genuinely 'free' SGX trade still costs you roughly 0.04% in unavoidable exchange and clearing charges plus GST. So when you compare brokers, compare the all-in number, not the marketing line. The same logic applies to US stocks, where SEC and FINRA pass-through fees apply on sells regardless of which broker you use.
For Singapore-listed stocks and ETFs held under custody, the cheapest brokers in June 2026 cluster among the newer apps. Longbridge advertises lifetime 0% commission with a 0.03% platform fee (minimum S$0.99) and waives that platform fee for the first 90 days. Webull, moomoo and Tiger run promotional zero-commission windows for new clients, after which they settle into roughly a 0.05% to 0.06% all-in rate with a minimum near S$1 to S$2. CMC Invest charges 0.04% with a S$2 minimum and bundles a handful of free trades a month.
The figures below are custodian-account, pre-funded rates verified against each broker's pricing pages in June 2026. Promotional commission waivers expire, so the steady-state rate is what matters once you are past your first year. Read the deal, then read what you pay in month thirteen.
| Broker | Commission | Platform fee | Minimum per trade | New-user promo |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Longbridge | 0% (lifetime) | 0.03% | S$0.99 | Platform fee waived 90 days |
| Webull | 0.025% | 0.025% | ~S$1.60 | 1 year SGX commission-free |
| moomoo | 0.03% | 0.03% | ~S$1.98 | 1 year SGX commission-free |
| CMC Invest | 0.04% | Included | S$2.00 | Free trades each month |
| Tiger Brokers | 0.03% | 0.03% | ~S$1.99 | Time-limited commission waiver |
| Syfe Trade | 0.06% | Included | ~S$1.98 | Free trades on base tier |
| Interactive Brokers | 0.08% | Included | S$2.50 | None |
Update, 13 October 2026: OCBC Securities dropped its S$25 minimum commission on online SGX trades from 5 October 2026. If you want shares in your own name, your choices narrow to the bank-linked and traditional houses plus a few apps that support CDP linkage. As of October 2026, OCBC Securities, UOB Kay Hian and POEMS price SGX cash trades on a tiered scale, from about 0.275% below S$50,000 down to 0.18% or 0.20% above S$100,000, with a S$25 minimum at UOB Kay Hian and on most POEMS trades. DBS Vickers charges a flat 0.18% at any size, with a minimum of S$27.25 including GST, and its limited-time promotion lets investors aged 18 to 25 trade Singapore shares with no commission. DBS Vickers, UOB Kay Hian, Maybank Securities and POEMS offer a cheaper pre-funded or cash-upfront tier around 0.12% with a S$10 to S$10.90 minimum. At DBS Vickers that rate covers buys only, so sells pay the standard 0.18%. Pre-funded trades may also settle into custody rather than CDP, so confirm before you assume direct title.
moomoo and Tiger now also support CDP-linked SGX trades, but at a higher rate than their custodian model, around 0.22% with a minimum near S$9.98 to S$10 plus the S$0.35 SI fee. The arithmetic, before GST: moomoo's 0.22% costs less than DBS Vickers' S$25 minimum on trades under about S$11,400, and more than DBS Vickers' flat 0.18% on anything larger. If you are opening your first CDP and brokerage account, our step-by-step CDP account guide walks through the application.
| Broker | Below S$50k | S$50k to S$100k | Above S$100k | Minimum |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| DBS Vickers (cash) | 0.18% | 0.18% | 0.18% | S$27.25 |
| OCBC Securities | 0.275% | 0.22% | 0.18% | None (online, from 5 Oct 2026) |
| UOB Kay Hian | 0.275% | 0.22% | 0.20% | S$25 |
| Phillip Securities (POEMS) | 0.28% | 0.22% | 0.18% | S$10 up to S$3,500, then S$25 |
| Maybank Securities | 0.275% | 0.22% | 0.18% | S$25 |
| moomoo (CDP-linked) | ~0.22% | ~0.22% | ~0.22% | ~S$9.98 |
Update, 13 October 2026: moomoo's current fee schedule charges its US$0.99 platform fee on every US order, so this guide no longer mentions a fee-free first year. US stocks are where the custodian apps shine, because there is no CDP equivalent and most beginners buy the S&P 500 or Nasdaq through a US-listed ETF. Webull and IG advertise zero commission and zero platform fee on US stocks in October 2026. moomoo charges no commission on US stocks but adds a US$0.99 platform fee to every order. Interactive Brokers and Longbridge price per share, around US$0.005 with a US$1 minimum, which is cheapest for large orders. Watch the foreign exchange spread on funding a US-dollar wallet, since a wide FX markup can quietly cost more than the commission itself.
For a buy-and-hold investor putting S$500 a month into a single US ETF, a per-order platform fee matters more than the headline commission. On a S$500 trade, a US$0.99 fee is about 0.2%; on a S$5,000 trade it rounds to nothing. Match the fee shape to your order size. If you are weighing individual US stocks against a simpler route, our active versus passive investing comparison lays out why one broad ETF often beats stock-picking on both effort and result.
| Broker | Commission | Platform fee | Minimum |
|---|---|---|---|
| Webull | US$0 | US$0 | Nil |
| IG | US$0 | US$0 | Nil |
| moomoo | US$0 (lifetime) | US$0.99 per order | US$0.99 |
| Interactive Brokers | US$0.005 per share | Included | US$1 |
| Longbridge | US$0 | US$0.005 per share | US$0.99 |
| Tiger Brokers | US$0.01 per share | Included | ~US$1.99 |
| CMC Invest | 0.03% | Included | US$3 |
If you would rather drip-feed a fixed sum each month than place trades, a regular savings plan (RSP) suits you. FSMOne runs an ETF RSP with 0% processing fees across SGX, US, Hong Kong and London ETFs, while POEMS Share Builders covers selected SGX stocks, REITs and ETFs at around 0.3% a year. OCBC's Blue Chip Investment Plan charges 0.3% (or S$5, whichever is higher) on 14 SGX blue chips. Investors under 30 pay a flat 0.88% with no minimum instead, on up to S$500 per counter a month, so S$100 costs 88 cents rather than the S$5 minimum. Recurring purchases on the apps are usually fee-light during promos, so check the steady-state cost.
CPF Ordinary Account money is invested under the CPF Investment Scheme, and SRS money under its own separate scheme, so check that a broker offers the account type you need. POEMS and the bank houses are CPFIS-approved; POEMS prices CPF stock trades around 0.08% with no minimum, and DBS Vickers charges its 0.18% cash rate on CPF and SRS trades. Some apps take both too: moomoo lists CPF and SRS accounts at its CDP rate, 0.10% commission plus a 0.12% platform fee, each with a S$4.99 minimum. Before you invest CPF, check how much of your Ordinary Account you can use and the long-term cost of forgoing the 2.5% floor rate, with our compound interest calculator and the broader CPF Investment Scheme guide.
Update, 13 October 2026: FairPrice vouchers no longer appear on the promo pages of Webull, moomoo, Longbridge or IG, so this section now lists what those pages show. Welcome rewards rotate constantly and exist to win your deposit, so treat any figure as a snapshot. As of October 2026, Webull (up to S$1,938) and moomoo (up to S$1,100) give free shares that unlock only after your deposit has stayed in for a set period, plus stock vouchers or trading coupons. Longbridge lists welcome rewards worth up to S$1,388 and advertises free stocks and an interest boost on idle cash. IG pays up to S$168 in cash if you fund S$1,000 in one go, make three buy trades and keep the money in for 30 days, for accounts opened from 1 October to 31 December 2026.
Three things to read before you chase a promo: the minimum deposit and how long it must stay locked, whether free shares vest immediately or only after a holding period, and the cut-off date. A 'free' S$50 voucher that requires S$3,000 held for two months is a return on your idle cash, not free money, so weigh it against what that cash earns elsewhere. Never deposit more than you planned to invest just to claim a reward, and confirm the live terms on the broker's own promo page on the day you sign up.
Every broker named here operates under a Monetary Authority of Singapore Capital Markets Services licence and is required to segregate client money and assets from its own. You can confirm any firm's status on the MAS Financial Institutions Directory before you fund an account. Segregation means that if the firm itself failed, your segregated assets are not part of the firm's pool of creditors.
What licensing does not give you is protection against losses. There is no government compensation scheme for falling stock prices, and the Singapore Deposit Insurance Corporation's S$100,000 cover applies to bank deposits, not to brokerage holdings or money market funds. US shares held via a broker's US affiliate may carry SIPC custody protection if that broker fails, which still does not protect you from the stock going down. Your real risk is the investments you choose, which is why diversification and position sizing matter far more than the logo on the app. Sense-check your overall picture with our net worth calculator before sizing into single stocks.
No broker is cheapest for every kind of trade. These are the checks that separate them, grouped by what you plan to buy, and nothing stops you adding a second broker later.
No single broker is best for every beginner. Four things separate them: the fee shape (commission, platform fee and minimum per trade), whether your shares sit in your own CDP account or with a custodian, whether the broker takes CPF or SRS money, and any minimum deposit. Custodian apps such as moomoo, Webull and Longbridge charge less per SGX trade. A CDP-linked account at a bank broker such as DBS Vickers or UOB Kay Hian costs more per trade but registers the shares in your name.
Custodian accounts are cheaper, often under 0.10% with a roughly S$1 to S$2 minimum, and suit cost-conscious or US-focused investors. CDP-linked accounts cost more, around 0.18% to 0.28% with a minimum of up to S$25 at most bank brokers (DBS Vickers charges investors aged 18 to 25 no commission on Singapore trades during a limited-time promotion), but the shares sit in your own name with direct dividends and AGM rights, which long-term SGX holders often prefer.
As of October 2026, Webull and IG advertise zero commission and zero platform fee on US stocks, while moomoo charges no commission but a US$0.99 platform fee on every order. Interactive Brokers and Longbridge price per share and are cheapest for large orders. Watch the FX spread when funding a US-dollar wallet.
No. Zero commission waives only the broker's own commission. Every SGX trade still carries the exchange's 0.0325% clearing fee, 0.0075% trading fee, 9% GST on fees, and a S$0.35 settlement instruction fee on CDP trades. US trades carry small SEC and FINRA pass-through fees on sells. Compare the all-in cost, not the headline.
This is general financial information for Singapore, not personal financial advice. Figures change, so verify current rates against the official sources above before acting. See our full disclaimer.
Junxiong-WFG Organisation is an authorised representative of AIA Financial Advisers Private Limited (Reg. No. 201715016G).