IC Markets is primarily a broker for scalpers and algorithmic traders, with 200K+ active traders, over 60% of whom are trading using algorithms. While it offers decent technology and liquidity, is it the best choice for your trading requirements? Read my comprehensive IC Markets alternatives and find out.
Overview of IC Markets Alternatives
 |  |  |  |  | |
Trading Platform(s) | MetaTrader 4, MetaTrader 5, cTrader, Proprietary platform, Web-based | MetaTrader 4, MetaTrader 5, Proprietary platform | MetaTrader 4, MetaTrader 5, Trading View | Other, MetaTrader 4, MetaTrader 5, Web-based+ | MetaTrader 4, MetaTrader 5, Trading View |
Regulators | Yes ASIC, CySEC, FSCA | Yes CMA, CySEC, FCA, FSC Mauritius, FSCA | Yes ASIC, CySEC, FCA, SCB | Yes ASIC, BVI, Central Bank of Ireland, FFAJ, FSCA, KNF, MiFID | Yes FMA, FSA |
Minimum Deposit | |||||
Automated Trading | |||||
Social/Copy Trading | |||||
Average Trading Cost EUR/USD | 1.1 pips | 0.1 pips | 1.0 pips | 0.9 pips | 1.3 pips |
| Visit Website | Visit Website | Visit Website | Visit Website | Visit Website |
Important Factors in Finding IC Markets Alternatives
I focused my IC Markets alternatives analysis on the five categories below, as they form the core trading conditions for most profitable traders.
Here are the five most crucial factors when evaluating IC Markets alternatives:
1. Fees: They are my top priority, as they directly impact profitability and indicate which trading strategies a broker supports or passively discourages.
2. Account Opening: Most brokers have a user-friendly online application with minimal personal data collection. Account verification is mandatory, and the primary difference among brokers is the minimum deposit requirement.
3. Deposit & Withdrawals: Every reputable broker offers bank wires and credit card deposits. Traders should look for non-banking options, cryptocurrencies, localized options, and withdrawal times to gauge the competitiveness of financial transactions. Geographic and regulatory restrictions also apply.
4. Trading Platforms: MT4 is the undisputed market leader, as 80+% of daily order flow is algorithmic, but some brokers push their proprietary alternatives.
5. Markets & Products: Traders should ensure their broker offers the markets and products they require for their strategies and portfolios.
IC Markets Alternatives
FP Markets
FP Markets offers traders five trading platforms, a well-balanced asset selection, quality MT4/MT5 upgrades, and MAM/PAMM accounts for traditional account management.
Fees
The competitive commission-based pricing environment starts with Forex spreads of 0.9 pips for a $6.00 per 1.0 standard round lot commission.
Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
Low Forex fees | None |
Competitive swap rates | |
No hidden costs |
Account Opening
The FP Markets online account application is straightforward but collects more data than many other brokers.
Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
Digital account application | Lengthy application with data mining |
Ten account base currencies | |
Trusted broker |
Deposit & Withdrawals
FP Markets offers 25+ funding methods, which include bank wires, credit/debit cards, online payment processors, and cryptocurrencies.
Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
No deposit fees | Potential currency conversion fees |
No withdrawal fees | |
18+ deposit currencies |
Trading Platforms
FP Markets has MT4, MT5, cTrader, TradingView, Iress, and proprietary mobile apps. It also offers Myfxbook Autotrade and Signal Start for copy traders.
Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
12 quality MT4/MT5 plugins, and Trading Central and Autochartist | None |
MAM/PAMM modules for traditional account management | |
VPS hosting for low-latency 24/5 market access |
Markets & Products
Traders benefit from a balanced asset selection, including cryptocurrencies, ETFs, and bonds.
Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
Good choice of ETFs and commodities | None |
Balanced asset selection | |
In-house copy trading service |
Verdict
FP Markets trumps IC Markets with its choice of payment processors.
FXTM
The ultra-low trading fees make FXTM an excellent choice for scalpers and algorithmic traders.
Fees
FXTM offers commission-based Forex fees from raw spreads of 0.0 pips for a commission between $0.80 and $4.00 per 1.0 standard round lot.
Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
Excellent commission-based Forex pricing environment and transparency | $5 monthly inactivity fee after six months of dormancy |
Price improvement technology with an average cost reduction of $3.00 per lot | |
No internal deposit or withdrawal fees |
Account Opening
The user-friendly FXTM account application only requires a name, country of residence, valid phone number, e-mail, and password.
Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
User-friendly, digital account application | Limited account base currencies |
Fast account opening process | |
Low minimum deposit requirement |
Deposit & Withdrawals
Traders can deposit using bank wires, credit/debit cards, Skrill, Neteller, Perfect Money, PayRedeem, GlobePay, Google Pay, FasaPay, M-Pesa, and localized payment methods.
Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
No deposit fees | Potential currency conversion fees |
Fast deposit processing times | |
User-friendly back office |
Trading Platforms
FXTM offers its proprietary mobile app FXTM Trader alongside MT4, the leading algorithmic trading platform, and its successor, MT5.
Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
MT4/MT5 trading platforms for algorithmic and copy trading | Insufficient trading platform upgrades |
Proprietary mobile app ideal for the in-house copy trading service | |
MT4 plugin and actionable trading recommendations |
Markets & Products
FXTM offers fewer but highly liquid assets, ideal for scalpers and high-frequency traders, which includes 55+ currency pairs.
Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
A balanced choice of liquid assets covering five sectors | No ETFs |
Physical share dealing in 399 US blue chip stocks | No bonds or other fixed-income assets |
Embedded MT4/MT5 copy trading services and FXTM Invest |
Verdict
FXTM bests IC Markets with its ultra-low pricing environment.
Eightcap
Eightcap maintains a distinct competitive edge with Capitalise AI, offering traders algorithmic trading solutions in a code-free environment.
Fees
The commission-based cost structure at Eightcap, starts from minimum Forex spreads of 0.0 pips with a commission of $7.00 per 1.0 standard round lot.
Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
Competitive Forex fees | No volume-based rebate program |
No non-trading fees | |
Good pricing transparency |
Account Opening
Traders can open an Eightcap account by providing their e-mail address, desired password, name, and country of residence.
Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
User-friendly, digital account application | None |
Fast account opening process | |
Seven account base currencies |
Deposit & Withdrawals
Eightcap payment processors are bank wires, credit/debit cards, Skrill, Neteller, PayPal, BPay, Union Pay, FasaPay, PIX, Dragon Pay, cryptocurrencies, and localized payment processors.
Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
No deposit fees or withdrawal fees | Potential currency conversion fees |
Fast payment processing times | |
User-friendly back office |
Trading Platforms
Traders get MT4 with the Capitalise AI plugin, MT5 with the FlashTrader plugin, and TradingView with its 50M+ social trading community.
Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
VPS hosting for low-latency 24/5 Forex trading | None |
Capitalise AI for code-free algorithmic trading | |
TradingView for social traders |
Markets & Products
Eightcap maintains a well-balanced asset selection of 800+ instruments across five asset classes, suitable for most strategies.
Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
Well-balanced asset selection | No bonds or other fixed-income assets |
Excellent beginner research and education via Eightcap Labs and Trade Zone | No ETF trading |
AI-powered economic calendar |
Verdict
Eightcap beats IC Markets with the Capitalise AI plugin for MT4.
AvaTrade
AvaTrade is one of the most trusted brokers, offering an excellent choice of trading platforms, including specialized ones.
Fees
Traders get reasonable commission-free Forex fees at AvaTrade of 0.9 pips or $9.00 per 1.0 standard round lot.
Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
Reasonable Forex fees | Inactivity and administration fee |
Competitive commodity spreads | |
No hidden costs |
Account Opening
The AvaTrade online application form only requires a name, e-mail, and phone number.
Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
User-friendly, digital account application | None |
Fast account opening process | |
Seven account base currencies |
Deposit & Withdrawals
Traders may use bank wires, credit/debit cards, Skrill, Neteller, WebMoney, and PayPal to deposit and withdraw at AvaTrade.
Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
No deposit fees | Currency conversion fees |
No withdrawal fees | |
Trusted withdrawal process |
Trading Platforms
AvaTrade offers MT4, MT5, WebTrader, AvaOptions, AvaTradeGO, Ava Social, the mobile apps of MT4/MT5, and DupliTrade for copy traders.
Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
MT4 Guardian Angel plugin | None |
Trading Central plugin | |
VPS hosting for low-latency 24/5 market access |
Markets & Products
AvaTrade presents traders with a balanced asset selection that includes cryptocurrencies, ETFs, bonds, and FX options.
Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
Good choice of ETFs | None |
Well-balanced asset selection | |
Industry-leading education for beginners |
Verdict
AvaTrade outdoes IC Markets with its educational content.
BlackBull Markets
BlackBull Markets ensures traders have a competitive edge with its industry-leading asset selection in a low-cost ECN pricing environment and superb trading infrastructure.
Fees
Traders benefit from competitive commission-based trading fees with Blackbull, consisting of minimum Forex spreads from 0.0 pips for a commission between $4.00 and $6.00 per lot.
Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
Competitive Forex fees and low swap rates | None |
No internal deposit or withdrawal fees | |
Pricing transparency |
Account Opening
BlackBull Markets only asks for a desired e-mail address, password, name, date of birth, country of residence, and phone number. Alternatively, traders can use their Google, Facebook, or Apple IDs.
Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
Digital account application | None |
No data mining | |
Well-regulated and trusted |
Deposit & Withdrawals
Traders can deposit and withdraw with Blackbull via bank wires, credit/debit cards, Skrill, Neteller, FasaPay, Union Pay, POLi, Boleto, beeteller, AstroPay, FXPay, HexoPay, PaymentAsia, Use Pay, SEPA, Help2Pay, cryptocurrencies, and localized options.
Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
No deposit fees | $5 withdrawal fee |
Low minimum deposit requirements | |
Choice of deposit currencies |
Trading Platforms
With MT4, MT5, cTrader, TradingView, BlackBull CopyTrader, and BlackBull Trade, BlackBull Markets ensure traders can trade however they prefer.
Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
VPS hosting for low-latency 24/5 Forex trading | None |
API trading | |
ZuluTrade, Myfxbook Autotrade, and BlackBull Social for copy traders |
Markets & Products
BlackBull Markets caters to all strategies with an asset selection exceeding 26,000 trading instruments, including 200 currency pairs.
Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
Excellent asset selection | None |
Cutting-edge trading infrastructure | |
Quality research and education for beginners |
Verdict
BlackBull Markets leads IC Markets with its asset selection.
Bottom Line
My review of IC Markets alternatives concluded with the following results:
- FP Markets has an excellent choice of payment processors
- FXTM has the lowest trading fees for active high-volume traders
- Eightcap shines with the Capitalise AI plugin for MT4
- AvaTrade offers industry-leading educational resources
- BlackBull Markets delivers the best asset selection
