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InvestinGoal » Compare Forex Brokers » AvaTrade vs IG Markets

AvaTrade vs IG Markets: Comparison and Analysis

Written by Filippo Ucchino Fact-Checked by Luca Puddu Publication Date Last Updated
Our verdict · CFD trading

IG Markets is better than AvaTrade for CFD trading in the UK by a small margin, because it is regulated in the UK by the FCA, while AvaTrade is not, asks for no minimum deposit, where AvaTrade asks for 100.00 USD, and lists more tradable symbols (17,000 against 1,250). IG Markets charges 5.08 USD per lot to trade EUR/USD, among the lowest of UK brokers, runs TradingView and ProRealTime next to the MetaTrader platforms both brokers share, and allows VPS hosting with a guaranteed stop loss, filling orders in 14 ms. AvaTrade, on the other hand, is the only one of the two to run cTrader, holds more account base currencies (six against one) and opens fixed-spread, copy trading and corporate accounts, with copy and social trading. Both brokers cover CFDs on commodities, forex, indices and stocks, add options and futures, allow scalping, hedging, expert advisors and API access, provide a demo account, and credit deposits on the same day with withdrawals in 1 day.

Our verdict · Real stock investing

AvaTrade and IG Markets cannot be compared for real stock investing in the UK, because AvaTrade is a CFD broker and does not offer real stocks to buy. If you want to invest in real stocks and you are choosing between AvaTrade and IG Markets, IG Markets is the better option of the two, because it charges no fees on US stocks and lets you trade options and futures as well.

Scores, winners and data below compare these brokers as CFD brokers: leveraged trading on forex, indices, commodities and crypto. Scores, winners and data below compare these brokers as stock brokers: real shares and ETFs you own outright.

AvaTrade

CFDCFD This broker offers CFD trading: leveraged contracts that follow the price of an asset without owning it. Switch the comparison to CFD to rate it on that. Not regulated in your country AvaTrade has no licence from the regulator of the country this site is for, so local investor protections do not apply.
AvaTrade review ›
82CFDOverall score InvestinGoal score from 0 to 100, calculated from the data in this comparison across 12 areas (regulation, safety, costs, platforms and more). CFD and stock trading are scored separately: the number follows the side selected above. not offeredStocksOverall score InvestinGoal score from 0 to 100, calculated from the data in this comparison across 12 areas (regulation, safety, costs, platforms and more). CFD and stock trading are scored separately: the number follows the side selected above.
Open Account

76% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider.

Best overall Best overall

IG Markets

CFDCFD This broker offers CFD trading: leveraged contracts that follow the price of an asset without owning it. Switch the comparison to CFD to rate it on that. StocksStocks This broker lets you buy real assets that you own outright. Switch the comparison to Stocks to rate it on that. Regulated in your country IG Markets holds a licence from the regulator of the country this site is for, so local investor protections apply.
IG Markets review ›
90CFDOverall score InvestinGoal score from 0 to 100, calculated from the data in this comparison across 12 areas (regulation, safety, costs, platforms and more). CFD and stock trading are scored separately: the number follows the side selected above. 88StocksOverall score InvestinGoal score from 0 to 100, calculated from the data in this comparison across 12 areas (regulation, safety, costs, platforms and more). CFD and stock trading are scored separately: the number follows the side selected above.
Open Account

69% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider.

Best for

1 / 12
What we compare A comparison of the kinds of traders AvaTrade and IG Markets are best suited to, based on what each one actually offers in United Kingdom.

AvaTrade is better than IG Markets for news traders, while IG Markets is better for day traders and algo traders. Both are a good fit for high-volume traders, scalpers and CFD stock traders.

Best for
Overall score AvaTrade 82 -8 not offered IG Markets 90 Best 88
Day trading i
Long-term investing i
Professional traders i
High-volume traders i
Scalpers i
Swing traders i
News traders i
Algo traders i
Stock traders i
Crypto traders i
Futures traders i
Options traders i

Regulation

2 / 12
What we compare A comparison between the financial authorities that supervise AvaTrade and the ones that supervise IG Markets.
Regulation
Section score AvaTrade 100 not offered IG Markets 100 100
Tier-1 regulators
ESMA (European Union) i CBI (Ireland)
FCA (United Kingdom) i
ASIC (Australia) i
CFTC (United States) i
NFA (United States) i
SEC (United States) i
CIRO (Canada) i
MAS (Singapore) i
SFC (Hong Kong) i
JFSA (Japan) i
FINMA (Switzerland) i
Tier-2 regulators
FMA (New Zealand) i
CBR (Russia) i
FSCA (South Africa) i
DFSA (Dubai) i
CSRC (China) i
ISA (Israel) i
LFSA (Malaysia) i
JSC (Jordan) i
CMA (Kenya) i
Tier-3 regulators
FSA (Seychelles) i
MMA (Maldives) i
SCB (Bahamas) i
FSC (Mauritius) i
VFSC (Vanuatu) i
FSC (Belize) i
CIMA (Cayman Islands) i
SV FSA (Saint Vincent and the Grenadines) i
FSRC (St. Kitts & Nevis) i
BMA (Bermuda) i
BVI FSC (British Virgin Islands) i
EDR (External Dispute Resolution) i

Safety

3 / 12
What we compare A comparison of the tools and services that AvaTrade and IG Markets have in place to protect your money in United Kingdom.
Safety
Section score AvaTrade 87 -4 not offered IG Markets 91 Best 91
Company info
Is it publicly traded i
Is it a bank i
Year founded i 2006 1974
Parent company i Ava Trade Ltd IG Group Holdings plc
CEO i Dáire Ferguson Breon Corcoran
Money safety
Segregated client funds i
Two-factor authentication i
Investor compensation scheme i
Additional money insurance i
Partner bank i Barclays|Lloyds
Brand power
Number of customers worldwide i 820,000
Annual revenue i USD 987,300,000
Monthly website search traffic i 97.1K monthly visits

Costs

4 / 12
What we compare A comparison of what it costs to trade with AvaTrade and with IG Markets in United Kingdom, both on each trade and on holding the account.

IG Markets is better than AvaTrade for CFD costs.

There is no like-for-like comparison for real stock costs, as AvaTrade is a CFD broker and does not offer real stocks.

Costs
Section score AvaTrade 31 -56 not offered IG Markets 87 Best 75
Broker fees
Deposit fees i
Withdrawal fees i
Overnight fees i
Inactivity fees i
Currency conversion fees i
Discounts on volume i
Real time market data fee i
Dividend withholding i
Account opening fees i
Account maintenance fee i
Portfolio management fee i
Fees on CFDs
Forex commission per lot i Free
EUR/USD average standard spread i
0.85 pips
EUR/USD average raw spread i
0.165 pips
EUR/USD average fixed spread i
0.9 pips
EUR/USD total cost per lot i USD 5.075
S&P 500 fees (CFD) i 0.25 points 0.4 points
Gold fees (CFD) i 0.34 points 0.3 points
Bitcoin fees (CFD) i USD 36
US stocks fees (CFD) i USD 2.6 USD 0.02
Fees on stocks
Stock fee type i Commission
US stocks fees (real) i Free
ETF fees (real) i Free
Management costs i
Connection costs i
Fees on futures
Futures fees per contract i USD 1.75 USD 2
Platform fees i
Fees on options
Options fees per contract i USD 2
Event fees i
Fees on savings plans
IRA opening fee i
IRA maintenance fee i
401k opening fee i
401k maintenance fee i

Available markets

5 / 12
What we compare A comparison of the markets and products you can trade with AvaTrade and with IG Markets in United Kingdom, and of how many instruments each one gives access to.

AvaTrade and IG Markets are equally good for CFD markets.

IG Markets and AvaTrade cannot be compared for real stock markets, because IG Markets is a broker offering both CFDs and stocks while AvaTrade is a CFD broker.

Available markets
Section score AvaTrade 100 not offered IG Markets 100 100
Total tradable symbols i 1,250 17,000
Currency pairs i
Indices i
Commodities i
Stocks i
ETF i
Cryptocurrencies i
Bonds i
Interest rates i
Portfolios i
CFDs i Commodities, Crypto, Forex, Indices, Stocks Commodities, Crypto, Forex, Indices, Stocks
Futures i Commodities, Crypto, Forex, Indices Indices, Commodities
Options i Forex Commodities, Forex, Indices, Stocks
Assets you can own i

Platform

6 / 12
What we compare A comparison of the trading platforms that AvaTrade and IG Markets make available to their clients in United Kingdom.

AvaTrade is better than IG Markets for platforms.

AvaTrade does not offer real stocks, being a CFD broker, so IG Markets and AvaTrade cannot be compared for platforms.

Platform
Section score AvaTrade 94 Best not offered IG Markets 91 -3 91
Proprietary platform i
MetaTrader 4 i
MetaTrader 5 i
cTrader i
Social trading platform i
Copy trading platform i
ZuluTrade i
TradingView i
Duplitrade i
Mirror Trader i
NinjaTrader i
AutoChartist i
Real time pricing i
5 digit pricing i
One-click trading i

Mobile

7 / 12
What we compare A comparison of the mobile apps of AvaTrade and IG Markets in United Kingdom, and of what each one lets you do from your phone.

AvaTrade and IG Markets are equally good for mobile trading.

AvaTrade does not offer real stocks, being a CFD broker, so IG Markets and AvaTrade cannot be compared for mobile trading.

Mobile
Section score AvaTrade 93 not offered IG Markets 93 93
Proprietary app i
Social trading app i
Copy trading app i
MetaTrader 4 app i
MetaTrader 5 app i
cTrader app i
Mobile trading signals i
Mobile alerts i
Mobile charting tools i
Mobile drawing tools i
Mobile watchlist i
Smartwatch app i

Trading features

8 / 12
What we compare A comparison of the trading tools and strategies that AvaTrade and IG Markets allow on their platforms in United Kingdom.

IG Markets is better than AvaTrade for CFD trading features.

AvaTrade does not offer real stocks, being a CFD broker, so IG Markets and AvaTrade cannot be compared for real stock trading features.

Trading features
Section score AvaTrade 81 -8 not offered IG Markets 89 Best 92
Trade execution
Broker type i Agency Agency
Average execution time i 14 ms
Slippage occurrence i 11%
Requotes occurrence i
Tier-1 liquidity providers i
PFOF i
Leverage
Major FX pairs leverage i 30:1 30:1
Minor/Exotic FX pairs leverage i 20:1 20:1
Major indices leverage i 20:1 20:1
Minor indices leverage i 10:1 10:1
Gold leverage i 20:1 20:1
Commodities leverage i 10:1 10:1
Equities leverage i 5:1 5:1
Cryptocurrency leverage i 2:1
Risk management
Stop losses i
Take profits i
Limit orders i
Trailing stop i
Margin call i
OCO orders i
Guaranteed stop loss i
Negative balance protection i
Minimum trade size (FX) i 0.01 lots 0.01 lots
Minimum trade size (stocks) i USD 0 USD 0
Fractional stocks i
Trading compliance
Scalping strategies allowed i
Hedging strategies allowed i
Automated trading strategy allowed i
EAs use allowed i
HFT strategy allowed i
VPS use allowed i
API use allowed i
Price scraping allowed i
FIFO rule applies i

Account types

9 / 12
What we compare A comparison of the kinds of account you can open at AvaTrade and at IG Markets in United Kingdom, and of who each one is meant for.

AvaTrade is better than IG Markets for CFD account types.

AvaTrade does not offer real stocks, being a CFD broker, so IG Markets and AvaTrade cannot be compared for real stock account types.

Account types
Section score AvaTrade 65 Best not offered IG Markets 46 -19 29
Demo account i
Unlimited demo account i
Standard account i
Micro account i
Cent account i
Nano account i
Raw spread account i
ECN account i
Swap-free account i
Islamic account i
Professional traders account i
Fixed spread account i
Spread betting account i
Copy trading account i
Corporate account i
Managed account i
Stock investing account i
Margin investing account i
Savings account i
Retirement account i

Account opening

10 / 12
What we compare A comparison of what it takes to open and fund an account with AvaTrade and with IG Markets in United Kingdom.

AvaTrade is better than IG Markets for account opening.

IG Markets and AvaTrade cannot be set side by side for account opening, as AvaTrade is a CFD broker and does not offer real stocks, unlike IG Markets.

Account opening
Section score AvaTrade 82 Best not offered IG Markets 62 -20 62
Minimum deposit i USD 100 USD 0
Minimum withdrawal i USD 0 USD 100
Wire transfers i
Credit cards i
Debit cards i
eWallets i PayPal, Neteller, Skrill
Local payment methods i
Account base currencies i AUD, EUR, GBP, JPY, USD, ZAR GBP
Deposit waiting time i Instant Instant
Withdrawal waiting time i up to 1 business days up to 1 business days
Bonus program i

Customer care

11 / 12
What we compare A comparison of the customer support of AvaTrade and IG Markets in United Kingdom, in how it can be reached and how fast it answers.

IG Markets is better than AvaTrade for customer care.

There is no like-for-like comparison for customer care, as AvaTrade is a CFD broker and does not offer real stocks.

Customer care
Section score AvaTrade 67 -11 not offered IG Markets 78 Best 78
Number of languages supported i 22 12
Website languages i Afrikaans, Arabic, German, English, Finnish, French, Hungarian, Indonesian, Italian, Korean, Mongolian, Malay, Dutch, Polish, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish, Swedish, Thai, Turkish, Urdu, Chinese Arabic, Danish, German, English, French, Italian, Dutch, Norwegian, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish, Swedish
Website available in English i
Customer support languages i Afrikaans, Arabic, German, English, Finnish, French, Hungarian, Indonesian, Italian, Korean, Mongolian, Malay, Dutch, Polish, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish, Swedish, Thai, Turkish, Urdu, Chinese Arabic, Danish, German, English, French, Italian, Dutch, Norwegian, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish, Swedish
Customer support in English i
Call back request i
Email support i
Phone support i
Live chat i
Priority customer support i
Dedicated account manager i
Cash sweep i
Stock lending i
Distributes proceeds i
Tax withholding agent i
Tax assistance i

Learning

12 / 12
What we compare A comparison of the educational material that AvaTrade and IG Markets provide to their clients in United Kingdom.

IG Markets is better than AvaTrade for learning.

There is no like-for-like comparison for learning, as AvaTrade is a CFD broker and does not offer real stocks.

Learning
Section score AvaTrade 83 -17 not offered IG Markets 100 Best 100
Education
Education center i
Education for beginners i
Education for advanced traders i
Webinars i
Tutorials i
Glossary i
Research
Economic calendar i
Traders' sentiment i
Daily market commentary i
Daily trading ideas i
News via social media i
Professional reports i
Watchlist i
AvaTrade
Open Account 76% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider.
IG Markets
Open Account 69% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider.
Our verdict

AvaTrade vs IG Markets: which one should you choose?

AvaTrade

CFD Choose AvaTrade if you want an online CFD broker with cTrader and copy and social trading.

Open Account 76% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider.
IG Markets

CFD Choose IG Markets, regulated in the UK by the FCA, if you want a CFD and forex broker with a wide choice of markets, low trading costs and no minimum deposit.

Stocks Choose IG Markets if you want a broker for securities investing with commission-free US stocks.

Open Account 69% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider.

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