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PepperstoneTickmill Review
Written by Steven Hatzakis
Edited by John Bringans
Fact-checked by Blain Reinkensmeyer
CFDs are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. 70% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider. You should consider whether you understand how CFDs work and whether you can afford to take the high risk of losing your money.
Tickmill has evolved from a plain-vanilla MetaTrader platform provider into a multi-asset broker that offers a growing selection of platforms alongside ultra-competitive spreads on its commission-based Raw account.
Overall
-
Minimum Deposit:
$100 -
Trust Score:
86 -
Tradeable Symbols (Total):
725
Can I open an account with this broker?
Yes, based on your detected country of HK, you can open an account with this broker.
Tickmill pros & cons
Pros
- Founded in 2014, Tickmill is regulated in two Tier-1 jurisdictions, two Tier-2 jurisdictions, and one Tier-4 jurisdiction.
- Pricing for Tickmill’s Raw account is highly competitive, helping the broker earn our 2024 Annual Award for #1 Commissions and Fees.
- Tickmill offers the full MetaTrader suite (including platform add-ons) and earned Best in Class honors for MetaTrader in our 2024 Annual Awards.
- Offers the CQG and AgenaTrader platform for futures and options trading ($1,000 deposit required).
- Tickmill is a solid choice for professional trading and algo trading.
- Education from the CME, along with interactive sentiment data and website widgets from Acuity Trading help to complement research at Tickmill.
- Tickmill's copy trading offering includes Tickmill Social Trading (Only available via its Seychelles entity).
- Tickmill offers automated trading (via Capitalise) as well as Signal Centre (powered by Acuity) to deliver trading signals and research for traders.
Cons
- While its number of markets have recently increased, Tickmill still only offers a limited range of tradeable assets compared to the best forex brokers in our Offering of Investments category.
- Pricing for Tickmill's Classic account is not as competitive, and the recent removal of its VIP account is a small but notable setback for active traders who were looking for deeper savings on commission costs.
- The TradingView platform has been discontinued at Tickmill for futures and options trading.
- Autochartist and Pelican Trading were recently discontinued at Tickmill.
Overall summary
| Feature |
Tickmill
|
|---|---|
| Overall Rating |
|
| Trust Score | 86 |
| Offering of Investments |
|
| Commissions & Fees |
|
| Platform & Tools |
|
| Research |
|
| Mobile Trading |
|
| Education |
|
ForexBrokers.com has been reviewing online forex brokers for over eight years, and our reviews are the most cited in the industry. Each year, we collect thousands of data points and publish tens of thousands of words of research. Here's how we test.
Is Tickmill safe?
Tickmill is considered Trusted, with an overall Trust Score of 86 out of 99. Tickmill is not publicly traded and does not operate a bank. Tickmill is authorised by two Tier-1 regulators (Highly Trusted), one Tier-2 regulator (Trusted), zero Tier-3 regulators (Average Risk), and one Tier-4 regulator (High Risk). Tickmill is authorised by the following Tier-1 regulators: Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), the Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (CySEC), and regulated in the European Union via the MiFID passporting system. Learn more about Trust Score or see where the different Tickmill entities are regulated.
| Feature |
Tickmill
|
|---|---|
| Year Founded | 2014 |
| Publicly Traded (Listed) | No |
| Bank | No |
| Tier-1 Licenses | 2 |
| Tier-2 Licenses | 2 |
| Tier-3 Licenses | 0 |
| Tier-4 Licenses | 1 |
Offering of investments
Tickmill offers a total of 725 tradeable symbols encompassing CFDs on 61 currency pairs, 18 indices, 8 metals, 4 bonds, 7 commodities (energies and agricultural) and nine cryptocurrencies. There are also at least 109 symbols available for futures and options trading which are all accessible through a separate dedicated account. The following table summarizes the different investment products available to Tickmill clients.
Cryptocurrency: Cryptocurrency trading at Tickmill is available through CFDs, but not available through trading the underlying asset (e.g. buying Bitcoin). Note: Crypto CFDs are not available to retail traders from any broker's U.K. entity, nor to U.K. residents.
| Feature |
Tickmill
|
|---|---|
| Forex Trading (Spot or CFDs) | Yes |
| Tradeable Symbols (Total) | 725 |
| Forex Pairs (Total) | 63 |
| U.S. Stock Trading (Non CFD) | No |
| Int'l Stock Trading (Non CFD) | No |
| Social Trading / Copy Trading | Yes |
| Cryptocurrency (Physical) | No |
| Cryptocurrency (Derivative) | Yes |
| Disclaimers | Note: Crypto CFDs are not available to retail traders from any broker's U.K. entity, nor to U.K. residents (except to Professional clients). |
Commissions and fees
Tickmill offers two accounts: Classic and Raw. The Raw account replaced the Pro account, introducing a new increased commission structure of $3 per side (up from $2 per side) or $6 per standard lot. Bottom line: Despite the recent increase, Tickmill still ranks among the best brokers for active traders, thanks to its low average spreads and effective all-in cost after factoring in the per trade commission on its new Raw account.
Classic accounts: The Classic account is entirely commission-free; traders only pay the bid/ask spread. However, average spreads for the Classic account are much higher (at 1.76 pips as of August 2023) than Tickmill’s Raw account.
Spreads: Tickmill lists 0.11 pips as a typical spread for the EUR/USD on its Raw (previously Pro) account for October 2023. It’s worth noting, however, that the all-in cost was 0.51 pips when factoring in the RT commission equivalent of 0.4 pips ($2 per side), which has now increased to 0.6. This means the all-in cost would come to 0.71 pips. It is also worth noting that Tickmill records typical spread data during normal market conditions (when spreads are narrower).
Raw account: The Raw account replaced Tickmill's Pro account, following the discontinuation of the VIP account offering. With the Raw account, traders get access to Tickmill's most competitive spreads and per-trade commissions of $3 per side per 100,000 units. It's also worth mentioning that Tickmill has kept the barrier to entry low with a minimum of just $100 for its Raw account. The Raw account's low-cost spreads along with its versatile execution policies for algo trading make it a great choice for most traders, despite the recent per-trade commission increase.
| Feature |
Tickmill
|
|---|---|
| Minimum Deposit | $100 |
| Average Spread EUR/USD - Standard | 0.51 |
| All-in Cost EUR/USD - Active | 0.31 |
| Active Trader or VIP Discounts | No |
| ACH or SEPA Transfers | No |
| PayPal (Deposit/Withdraw) | Yes |
| Skrill (Deposit/Withdraw) | Yes |
| Visa/Mastercard (Credit/Debit) | Yes |
| Bank Wire (Deposit/Withdraw) | Yes |
Mobile trading apps
Tickmill is primarily a MetaTrader broker, with iOS and Android versions of the MT4 and MT5 app available for download from the Apple App Store and Android Play Store. Additional mobile trading apps available at Tickmill include speciality trading platforms for futures and options, such as CQG and AgenaTrader. It’s also worth noting that Tickmill has launched a proprietary mobile app strictly for account management purposes (no trading). Overall, Tickmill can't compete with the best mobile trading apps.
| Feature |
Tickmill
|
|---|---|
| Android App | Yes |
| Apple iOS App | Yes |
| Mobile Alerts - Basic Fields | Yes |
| Watchlists - Total Fields | 7 |
| Watchlist Syncing | No |
| Charting - Indicators / Studies (Total) | 30 |
| Charting - Drawing Tools (Total) | 15 |
| Mobile Charting - Draw Trendlines | Yes |
| Mobile Charting - Multiple Time Frames | Yes |
| Mobile Economic Calendar | Yes |
Other trading platforms
Tickmill continues to cement its status as a multiasset broker, with the launch of MetaTrader 5 from its U.K. and EU entity. Tickmill has also taken the step of including the CQG platform for futures and options trading (U.K.-only), alongside the Mercury-version of the AgenaTrader platform. Tickmill has made real strides in its expansion of platform offerings, putting it in competition with the brokers that lead the industry – despite its lack of a proprietary trading platform.
Platforms overview: Tickmill is a MetaTrader-only broker that offers the standard out-of-the-box experience for MT4 and MT5. The CQG platform is available for futures and options (for U.K. traders). The Agena Trader platform and other third-party applications are also available at Tickmill, with Direct Market Access (DMA) to popular futures exchanges in the U.S. and Europe.
Trading tools: Other notable add-ons are available from FX Blue as part of the Advanced Trading toolkit package. VPS hosting – a useful tool for algorithmic traders – is also available at Tickmill. Last but not least, Tickmill offers an API with connectivity to additional 3rd-party trading platforms.
| Feature |
Tickmill
|
|---|---|
| Virtual Trading (Demo) | Yes |
| Proprietary Platform | No |
| Desktop Platform (Windows) | Yes |
| Web Platform | Yes |
| Social Trading / Copy Trading | Yes |
| MetaTrader 4 (MT4) | Yes |
| MetaTrader 5 (MT5) | Yes |
| DupliTrade | No |
| ZuluTrade | No |
| Charting - Indicators / Studies (Total) | 30 |
| Charting - Drawing Tools (Total) | 15 |
| Charting - Trade From Chart | Yes |
| Watchlists - Total Fields | 7 |
Market research
Tickmill is competitive in its offering of market research and continues to improve in this category each year. That said, Tickmill still can’t compete with industry leaders like IG and Saxo when it comes to depth, personalization, and overall quality.
Research overview: Tickmill produces daily articles on its Expert Blog that cover technical and fundamental analysis, along with video updates published on its YouTube channel. Tickmill’s third-party research tools consist of forex news headlines which stream from Investing.com, and Myfxbook powers the broker's economic calendar. Tickmill also delivers content across social media, such as its dedicated FaceBook group and its Telegram channel.
Market news and analysis: Tickmill does a fine job pairing solid market coverage with a good balance of research content. There are articles that focus on technical analysis, paired with offerings like the Weekly Live Markets & Trade Analysis series that analyze market fundamentals. Tickmill also offers archived webinars, technical and fundamental analysis videos, and news updates on its YouTube page – such as its daily Chart Hits series which are quick one-minute updates. Finally, Tickmill provides interactive sentiment data from the CME, and integrated widgets with sentiment data, along with the Signal Centre, for trading signals, powered by Acuity Trading.
Copy trading: Besides the native Signals market available in MetaTrader, Tickmill now only offers two platforms for social copy-trading that connect directly to your MetaTrader account, following the discontinuation of its ZuluTrade and Pelican Trading offer globally (except for grandfathered clients). There is Tickmill Social, the company's in-house copy trading solution which is only available in its Seychelles entity, and the AutoTrade feature of Myfxbook that is available to clients not registered under the firm's U.K. or EU branches.
| Feature |
Tickmill
|
|---|---|
| Daily Market Commentary | Yes |
| Forex News (Top-Tier Sources) | Yes |
| Autochartist | No |
| Trading Central (Recognia) | No |
| Social Sentiment - Currency Pairs | Yes |
Education
Tickmill's educational content is nearly up to par with the average industry offering. It does grant access to a large catalogue of archived webinars, but Tickmill lacks a variety of educational articles.
Learning center: Highlights include live educational courses, a handful of comprehensive eBooks, infographics, and weekly webinars that are hosted in various languages and archived on YouTube. There are also educational resources for learning about futures, powered by the CME available on Tickmill’s website.
Room for improvement: Tickmill continues to expand its educational offering, in both its scope of material and variety of formats. For instance, its recently introduced Masterclass series, available on YouTube channel, features hour-long sessions that cover topics of interest for beginners and advanced traders. Tickmill also offers its Bright Minds series and the T-Show podcast-style series; I found these series insightful and educational. Written articles have picked up on its blog which is a good sign of progress within this category.
Introducing a dedicated educational portal that makes it possible to filter content by experience level would be a notable organizational boost. Some of the best brokers offer lesson programs, complete with quizzes and progress tracking – features that are currently absent at Tickmill.
Tickmill education:
| Feature |
Tickmill
|
|---|---|
| Education (Forex or CFDs) | Yes |
| Client Webinars | Yes |
| Client Webinars (Archived) | Yes |
| Videos - Beginner Trading Videos | Yes |
| Videos - Advanced Trading Videos | Yes |
| Investor Dictionary (Glossary) | Yes |
Final thoughts
Tickmill is most valuable to high-volume, high-balance traders who are looking to trade only the most popular forex and CFD instruments. Tickmill complements its MetaTrader offering with a good variety of copy-trading platforms and offers multiple account options with varying pricing structures.
Thanks to Tickmill's low effective average spreads (when factoring its per-trade commission and low average spreads in its Raw account), it earned our 2024 Annual Award for #1 Commissions & Fees. Tickmill also earned Best in Class honors for Social Copy Trading, MetaTrader, and Algo Trading in 2024.
Drawbacks to consider are its small range of markets, limited research material, and lackluster educational content. While the Raw account does have highly competitive pricing, the top forex brokers offer far more than low-cost trading.
About Tickmill
Tickmill was founded in 2014 by Brothers Ingmar and Illimar Mattus, both long-time forex industry entrepreneurs with significant experience in financial services. Today the Tickmill brand holds regulatory status in the U.K., Cyprus, South Africa, The United Arab Emirates, Seychelles, and Labuan in Malaysia. According to its website, Tickmill Group has over 250 staff and more than 327,000 customers.
ForexBrokers.com 2024 Annual Awards
For the ForexBrokers.com 2024 Annual Awards, brokers were evaluated against ForexBrokers.com’s 8 Primary Categories: Commissions & Fees, Offering of Investments, Platforms & Tools, Mobile Trading Apps, Research, Education, Trust Score, and Overall.
Best in Class honors were awarded to the Top 7 forex brokers in each of the following areas: Beginners, Social Copy Trading, Ease of Use, MetaTrader, Algo Trading, Crypto Trading, and Professional Trading.
For more information, see how we test.
Category awards
|
Tickmill
|
Commissions & Fees | Algo Trading | MetaTrader | Social Copy Trading |
| Rank #1 | ||||
| Streak #1 | 4 | |||
| Best in Class | ||||
| Best in Class Streak | 4 | 3 | 2 | 3 |
2024 Review Methodology
At ForexBrokers.com, our reviews of online forex brokers and their products and services are based on our collected data as well as the observations and qualified opinions of our expert researchers. Each year we publish tens of thousands of words of research on the top forex brokers and monitor dozens of international regulator agencies (read more about how we calculate Trust Score here).
Our research team conducts thorough testing on a wide range of features, products, services, and tools (collecting and validating thousands of data points in the process). We test all available trading platforms for each broker – whether they are proprietary or come from third-party providers – and evaluate them based on a host of data-driven variables.
We also take an in-depth look at each broker’s commissions and fees, such as bid/ask spreads – including the average spread data for some of the most popular forex currency pairs. We research other trading costs, such as inactivity or custody fees, minimum deposit requirements, VIP rebates and/or discounts, and a range of other important fee-based data points.
Some of the other important research categories that are factored into our testing include mobile trading accessibility and capability, availability of market research and educational content, and each broker’s overall Trust Score.
All content on ForexBrokers.com is handwritten by a writer, fact-checked by a member of our research team, and edited and published by an editor. Generative AI tools are not a part of our content creation or product testing processes. Our ratings, rankings, and opinions are entirely our own, and the result of our extensive research and decades of collective experience covering the forex industry. Read our Generative AI policy to learn more.
Read our full explanation and accounting of our research and testing process to learn more about how we test.
Forex Risk Disclaimer
There is a very high degree of risk involved in trading securities. With respect to margin-based foreign exchange trading, off-exchange derivatives, and cryptocurrencies, there is considerable exposure to risk, including but not limited to, leverage, creditworthiness, limited regulatory protection and market volatility that may substantially affect the price, or liquidity of a currency or related instrument. It should not be assumed that the methods, techniques, or indicators presented in these products will be profitable, or that they will not result in losses. Read more on forex trading risks.
Article Resources
Different Tickmill Regulation Tickmill Education, Tickmill YouTube channel
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Show allAbout the Editorial Team
Steven Hatzakis is the Global Director of Research for ForexBrokers.com. Steven previously served as an Editor for Finance Magnates, where he authored over 1,000 published articles about the online finance industry. A forex industry expert and an active fintech and crypto researcher, Steven advises blockchain companies at the board level and holds a Series III license in the U.S. as a Commodity Trading Advisor (CTA).
John Bringans is the Senior Editor of ForexBrokers.com. An experienced media professional, John has close to a decade of editorial experience with a background that includes key leadership roles at global newsroom outlets. He holds a Bachelor’s Degree in English Literature from San Francisco State University, and conducts research on forex and the financial services industry while assisting in the production of content.
Blain Reinkensmeyer has 20 years of trading experience with over 2,500 trades placed during that time. He heads research for all U.S.-based brokerages on StockBrokers.com and is respected by executives as the leading expert covering the online broker industry. Blain’s insights have been featured in the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Forbes, and the Chicago Tribune, among other media outlets.