FOREX.com vs IC Markets 2024

FOREX.com is publicly traded, does not operate a bank, and is authorised by seven Tier-1 regulators (Highly Trusted), one Tier-2 regulators (Trusted), zero tier-3 regulators (Average Risk), and one Tier-4 regulator (High Risk). FOREX.com is authorised by the following Tier-1 regulators: Australian Securities & Investment Commission (ASIC), Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS), Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), Canadian Investment Regulatory Organization (CIRO), Japanese Financial Services Authority (JFSA), Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), and regulated in the European Union via the MiFID passporting system.

IC Markets is not publicly traded and does not operate a bank. IC Markets is authorised by two Tier-1 regulators (Highly Trusted), zero Tier-2 regulators (Trusted), zero Tier-3 regulators (Average Risk), and two Tier-4 regulators (High Risk). IC Markets is authorised by the following tier-1 regulators: Australian Securities & Investment Commission (ASIC) and regulated in the European Union via the MiFID passporting system.

FOREX.com is a trusted brand that delivers an excellent trading experience for forex and CFDs traders across the globe. It offers a wide range of markets and provides an impressive suite of proprietary platforms – alongside limited access to MetaTrader.

IC Markets’ competitive pricing and scalable execution make it an excellent option for algorithmic traders. Though it supports an impressive range of third-party tools and plugins, IC Markets’ research and education offerings are not as impressive as those offered by industry leaders.

To open a trading account with FOREX.com, you'll need to make an initial minimum deposit of $100.

IC Markets requires a minimum deposit of $200 before you can open an account and start trading.

It's important to make sure that your forex broker accepts the funding options and deposit methods that work best for you. FOREX.com offers Visa/Mastercard (Credit/Debit), Bank Wire (Deposit/Withdraw) and PayPal (Deposit/Withdraw) for banking, whereas IC Markets provides Visa/Mastercard (Credit/Debit), Bank Wire (Deposit/Withdraw), PayPal (Deposit/Withdraw), Skrill (Deposit/Withdraw) and Neteller (Deposit/Withdraw).

Comparing the trading costs of forex and CFDs is not easy. Not every broker publishes average spread data, and pricing structures vary. Based on our thorough, data-driven testing of each broker's commissions and fees, we found that IC Markets offers better pricing overall for traders.

Methodology: When testing each broker's commissions, fees, and pricing, we analyze multiple trade scenarios and award points based on the expansiveness (or inexpensiveness) of the broker's spreads. We then run multiple scenarios for different investor types, incorporating any miscellaneous fees, to determine an "all-in" cost per trade. Learn more about how we test.

At ForexBrokers.com, we track over 110 international regulatory agencies and sort them by tiers (Tier-1, Tier-2, Tier-3, Tier-4, and Tier-5) to help you choose well-regulated, highly trusted forex brokers. Learn more about our proprietary Trust Score rating system. Based on our research on the regulatory status of over 60 brokers, we've found that FOREX.com holds 7 global Tier-1 licenses, while IC Markets holds 2. FOREX.com holds 1 global Tier-2 licenses, while IC Markets holds 0.

After evaluating each broker based on their number of held licenses, years in business, and a range of other data-driven variables, we've determined that FOREX.com (99) earned a higher Trust Score than IC Markets (84).

To compare the trading platforms of both FOREX.com and IC Markets, we tested each broker's trading tools, research capabilities, and mobile apps. For trading tools, FOREX.com offers a better experience. With research, FOREX.com offers superior market research. Finally, we found FOREX.com to provide better mobile trading apps.

Here’s what trading platforms are available at FOREX.com:

• Proprietary Platform - Yes
• Web Platform - Yes
• cTrader - No
• DupliTrade - No
• MT4 - Yes
• MT5 - Yes
• ZuluTrade - No
• TradingView - Yes

Here’s what trading platforms are available at IC Markets:

• Proprietary Platform - No
• Web Platform - Yes
• cTrader - Yes
• DupliTrade - No
• MT4 - Yes
• MT5 - Yes
• ZuluTrade - Yes
• TradingView - Yes

The MetaTrader trading platform suite is wildly popular among forex and CFD traders across the globe. Both FOREX.com and IC Markets offer MetaTrader 4 (MT4). Forex traders also appreciate the ability to engage in social copy trading. While IC Markets offers copy trading, FOREX.com does not.

FOREX.com provides traders 91 currency pairs (e.g., EUR/USD) compared to IC Markets's 61 available pairs. If you are interested in trading a full range of securities, FOREX.com offers traders access to 5500 tradeable symbols, while IC Markets offers access to 3583 tradeable symbols; so FOREX.com offers 1917 more tradeable symbols than IC Markets.

We found in our testing that FOREX.com offers a more diverse selection of investment options than IC Markets, allowing you to trade Forex Trading (Spot or CFDs), U.S. Stocks (CFD) and Cryptocurrency (Derivative). Neither have Cryptocurrency (Physical) and Spread Betting.