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CMC Markets vs Forex.com: Comparison and Analysis

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

CMC Markets has a small advantage over Forex.com for CFD trading, thanks to a lower EUR/USD cost (7.00 USD per lot against 14.50 USD), more platforms (MetaTrader 5 and TradingView), and more tradable symbols (12,000 against 150). Forex.com, on the other hand, has faster execution (3 ms against 9 ms) and allows expert advisors, high-frequency trading strategies, VPS and API access. CMC Markets is regulated by BaFin, the FCA, ASIC and CIRO. Forex.com is regulated by CySEC, the FCA, ASIC, CIRO and the JFSA, with an offshore company regulated by CIMA (Cayman Islands). Both brokers offer a demo account, allow scalping and hedging, and process funding and withdrawals in 2 days. Both offer crypto CFDs except at their UK companies. CMC Markets asks for no minimum deposit, while at Forex.com the minimum is 100.00 USD at most companies and 106.00 USD at the Australian company.

Best overall

CMC Markets

CFDCFD CMC Markets offers CFD trading: leveraged contracts that follow the price of an asset without owning it. Switch the comparison to CFD/FX to rate it on that. FXFX CMC Markets offers forex trading: currency pairs such as EUR/USD, traded with leverage. Forex is rated together with CFDs, on the CFD/FX side.
CMC Markets review ›
85CFD/FXOverall score CMC Markets scores 85/100 for CFD/FX trading. The overall score is calculated from the data in this comparison across 12 areas.
Open Account

78% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider.

Forex.com

CFDCFD Forex.com offers CFD trading: leveraged contracts that follow the price of an asset without owning it. Switch the comparison to CFD/FX to rate it on that. FXFX Forex.com offers forex trading: currency pairs such as EUR/USD, traded with leverage. Forex is rated together with CFDs, on the CFD/FX side.
Forex.com review ›
81CFD/FXOverall score Forex.com scores 81/100 for CFD/FX trading. The overall score is calculated from the data in this comparison across 12 areas.
Open Account

77% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider.

Best for

What we compare A comparison of the kinds of traders CMC Markets and Forex.com are best suited to, based on what each one actually offers in .
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CMC Markets is better than Forex.com for day traders, while Forex.com is better for professional traders. High-volume traders, scalpers and swing traders can choose either CMC Markets or Forex.com.

Best for
Overall score CMC Markets 85 Best Forex.com 81 -4
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

What we compare A comparison between the financial authorities that supervise CMC Markets and the ones that supervise Forex.com.
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CMC Markets and Forex.com are both regulated by top-tier authorities, CMC Markets by BaFin, ASIC (Australia) and the FCA (United Kingdom) and Forex.com by CySEC, ASIC (Australia) and the SFC (Hong Kong).

Regulation
Section score CMC Markets 100 Forex.com 100
Tier-1 regulators
ESMA (European Union) i BaFin (Germany) CySEC (Cyprus)
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

What we compare A comparison of the tools and services that CMC Markets and Forex.com have in place to protect your money in .
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CMC Markets and Forex.com both offer segregated client funds and an investor compensation scheme. CMC Markets also offers additional money insurance.

Safety
Section score CMC Markets 95 Best Forex.com 86 -9
Company info
Is it publicly traded i
Is it a bank i
Year founded i 1989 1999
Parent company i CMC Markets plc StoneX Group (via GAIN Capital)
CEO i Peter Cruddas Glenn Stevens
Money safety
Segregated client funds i
Two-factor authentication i
Investor compensation scheme i
Additional money insurance i
Partner bank i Barclays Bank Ireland, J.P. Morgan SE N/A
Brand power
Number of customers worldwide i 1,000,000 400,000
Annual revenue i USD 324,700,000 USD 169,500,000
Monthly website search traffic i 10.5M monthly visits 1.9M monthly visits

Costs

What we compare A comparison of what it costs to trade with CMC Markets and with Forex.com in , both on each trade and on holding the account.
4 / 12

CMC Markets is better than Forex.com for costs, because CMC Markets is cheaper on EUR/USD, at 7 USD per lot (against Forex.com's 14.5 USD), charges lower Bitcoin CFD fees, at 15 USD (against Forex.com's 40 USD), and does not charge inactivity fees, unlike Forex.com. Neither CMC Markets nor Forex.com charges account maintenance fees or deposit fees.

Costs
Section score CMC Markets 81 Best Forex.com 31 -50
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 USD 5 USD 10About this value. This is the forex commission per lot at StoneX Europe Ltd (CySEC). At Forex.com's other companies: USD 14 (Canada), USD 10 (other accepted countries), Free (the UK, Japan), USD 5 (Australia).
EUR/USD average standard spread i
0.7 pips
1.7 pips
EUR/USD average raw spread i
0.2 pips
EUR/USD average fixed spread i
EUR/USD total cost per lot i USD 7 USD 14.5
S&P 500 fees (CFD) i 0.5 points 0.4 points
Gold fees (CFD) i 0.2 points 0.1 points
Bitcoin fees (CFD) i USD 15 USD 40
US stocks fees (CFD) i USD 0.02 USD 0.018
Fees on stocks
Stock fee type i Commission, Percentage
US stocks fees (real) i
ETF fees (real) i
Management costs i
Connection costs i
Fees on futures
Futures fees per contract i
Platform fees i
Fees on options
Options fees per contract i Free
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

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

Forex.com is better than CMC Markets for available markets. Both CMC Markets and Forex.com offer CFDs on commodities, crypto, forex, indices and stocks.

Available markets
Section score CMC Markets 75 -10 Forex.com 85 Best
Total tradable symbols i 12,000 150
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
Options i
Assets you can own i

Platform

What we compare A comparison of the trading platforms that CMC Markets and Forex.com make available to their clients in .
6 / 12

CMC Markets is better than Forex.com for platforms, since CMC Markets offers MetaTrader 5, social trading and copy trading, which Forex.com does not. Both CMC Markets and Forex.com offer a proprietary platform and MetaTrader 4.

Platform
Section score CMC Markets 97 Best Forex.com 88 -9
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

What we compare A comparison of the mobile apps of CMC Markets and Forex.com in , and of what each one lets you do from your phone.
7 / 12

Forex.com is better than CMC Markets for mobile trading, because Forex.com offers mobile trading signals, mobile charting tools and mobile drawing tools, which CMC Markets does not. Both CMC Markets and Forex.com offer a proprietary mobile app and the MetaTrader 4 app.

Mobile
Section score CMC Markets 73 -20 Forex.com 93 Best
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

What we compare A comparison of the trading tools and strategies that CMC Markets and Forex.com allow on their platforms in .
8 / 12

Forex.com is better than CMC Markets for trading features, because Forex.com executes orders faster, within 3 ms (against CMC Markets' 9 ms), and offers tier-1 liquidity providers and VPS hosting, which CMC Markets does not. Both CMC Markets and Forex.com offer negative balance protection and trailing stops.

Trading features
Section score CMC Markets 69 -18 Forex.com 87 Best
Trade execution
Broker type i Agency Agency
Average execution time i 9 ms 3 ms
Slippage occurrence i
Requotes occurrence i 0.08%
Tier-1 liquidity providers i
PFOF i
Leverage
Major FX pairs leverage i 30:1About this value. This is the major fx pairs leverage at CMC Markets Germany GmbH (BaFin). At CMC Markets' other companies: 30:1 (Australia, the UK), 50:1 (Canada). 30:1About this value. This is the major fx pairs leverage at StoneX Europe Ltd (CySEC). At Forex.com's other companies: 50:1 (Canada), 200:1 (other accepted countries), 30:1 (the UK, Australia), 25:1 (Japan).
Minor/Exotic FX pairs leverage i 20:1About this value. This is the minor/exotic fx pairs leverage at CMC Markets Germany GmbH (BaFin). At CMC Markets' other companies: 20:1 (Australia, the UK), 33:1 (Canada). 20:1About this value. This is the minor/exotic fx pairs leverage at StoneX Europe Ltd (CySEC). At Forex.com's other companies: 33:1 (Canada), 200:1 (other accepted countries), 20:1 (the UK, Australia), 25:1 (Japan).
Major indices leverage i 20:1About this value. This is the major indices leverage at CMC Markets Germany GmbH (BaFin). At CMC Markets' other companies: 20:1 (Australia, the UK), 10:1 (Canada). 20:1About this value. This is the major indices leverage at StoneX Europe Ltd (CySEC). At Forex.com's other companies: 10:1 (Canada, Japan), 400:1 (other accepted countries), 20:1 (the UK, Australia).
Minor indices leverage i 10:1 10:1About this value. This is the minor indices leverage at StoneX Europe Ltd (CySEC). At Forex.com's other companies: 6:1 (Canada), 100:1 (other accepted countries), 10:1 (the UK, Australia, Japan).
Gold leverage i 20:1 20:1About this value. This is the gold leverage at StoneX Europe Ltd (CySEC). At Forex.com's other companies: 13:1 (Canada), 200:1 (other accepted countries), 20:1 (the UK, Australia).
Commodities leverage i 10:1About this value. This is the commodities leverage at CMC Markets Germany GmbH (BaFin). At CMC Markets' other companies: 10:1 (Australia, the UK), 30:1 (Canada). 10:1About this value. This is the commodities leverage at StoneX Europe Ltd (CySEC). At Forex.com's other companies: 25:1 (Canada), 100:1 (other accepted countries), 10:1 (the UK, Australia).
Equities leverage i 5:1About this value. This is the equities leverage at CMC Markets Germany GmbH (BaFin). At CMC Markets' other companies: 5:1 (Australia, the UK), 3:1 (Canada). 5:1About this value. This is the equities leverage at StoneX Europe Ltd (CySEC). At Forex.com's other companies: 3:1 (Canada), 20:1 (other accepted countries), 5:1 (the UK, Australia, Japan).
Cryptocurrency leverage i 2:1 2:1About this value. This is the cryptocurrency leverage at StoneX Europe Ltd (CySEC). At Forex.com's other companies: 100:1 (other accepted countries), 2:1 (Australia).
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

What we compare A comparison of the kinds of account you can open at CMC Markets and at Forex.com in , and of who each one is meant for.
9 / 12

Forex.com is better than CMC Markets for account types, since Forex.com offers an Islamic account, a swap-free account and a raw spread account, which CMC Markets does not. CMC Markets and Forex.com both offer a demo account and a professional traders account.

Account types
Section score CMC Markets 48 -4 Forex.com 52 Best
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

What we compare A comparison of what it takes to open and fund an account with CMC Markets and with Forex.com in .
10 / 12

CMC Markets and Forex.com are equally good for account opening, since CMC Markets does not require a minimum deposit (against Forex.com's 100 USD). On the other hand, Forex.com offers 3 account base currencies (against CMC Markets' 2), and supports e-wallets, which CMC Markets does not. Both CMC Markets and Forex.com offer credit cards and debit cards.

Account opening
Section score CMC Markets 65 -2 Forex.com 67
Minimum deposit i USD 0 USD 100About this value. This is the minimum deposit at StoneX Europe Ltd (CySEC). At Forex.com's other companies: USD 100 (Canada, other accepted countries, the UK, Japan), USD 106 (Australia).
Minimum withdrawal i USD 0 USD 0
Wire transfers i
Credit cards i
Debit cards i
eWallets i PayPalAbout this value. This is the ewallets at StoneX Europe Ltd (CySEC). It is different at Forex.com's companies in other accepted countries.
Local payment methods i
Account base currencies i EUR, USDAbout this value. This is the account base currencies at CMC Markets Germany GmbH (BaFin). It is different at CMC Markets' companies in Australia. EUR, GBP, USDAbout this value. This is the account base currencies at StoneX Europe Ltd (CySEC). It is different at Forex.com's companies in Australia.
Deposit waiting time i up to 2 business days up to 2 business days
Withdrawal waiting time i up to 2 business days up to 2 business days
Bonus program i

Customer care

What we compare A comparison of the customer support of CMC Markets and Forex.com in , in how it can be reached and how fast it answers.
11 / 12

CMC Markets is better than Forex.com for customer care, because CMC Markets offers customer support in 9 languages (against Forex.com's 2), and has a website in 9 languages (against Forex.com's 7). CMC Markets and Forex.com both offer a dedicated account manager and phone support.

Customer care
Section score CMC Markets 73 Best Forex.com 66 -7
Number of languages supported i 9 7
Website languages i German, English, French, Italian, Norwegian, Polish, Spanish, Swedish, Chinese Arabic, German, English, Japanese, Polish, Spanish, Chinese
Website available in English i
Customer support languages i German, English, French, Italian, Norwegian, Polish, Spanish, Swedish, Chinese English, Chinese
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

What we compare A comparison of the educational material that CMC Markets and Forex.com provide to their clients in .
12 / 12

CMC Markets is better than Forex.com for learning, since CMC Markets offers an economic calendar, which Forex.com does not. CMC Markets and Forex.com both offer education for advanced traders and webinars.

Learning
Section score CMC Markets 100 Best Forex.com 95 -5
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
CMC Markets
Open Account 78% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider.
Forex.com
Open Account 77% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider.
Our verdict

CMC Markets vs Forex.com: which one should you choose?

CMC Markets

CFD/FX Choose CMC Markets if you want a CFD broker with low trading costs, a choice of trading platforms and a wide choice of markets.

Open Account 78% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider.
Forex.com

CFD/FX Choose Forex.com if you want a forex brokerage service with fast order execution, expert advisors and fixed-spread accounts.

Open Account 77% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider.

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