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FXCM vs IC Markets: Comparison and Analysis

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

FXCM and IC Markets are two great brokers for scalping and automated trading. However, IC Markets is the better choice if you are looking for a lower EUR/USD cost (7.80 USD per lot against 10.98 USD), MetaTrader 5, cTrader and ETFs to trade. FXCM is better because it has a proprietary trading platform and faster execution (17 ms against 66 ms). FXCM is regulated by CySEC, the FCA and ASIC, with an offshore company registered in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, while IC Markets is regulated by CySEC and ASIC, with an offshore company regulated by the FSA (Seychelles). FXCM and IC Markets both offer a demo account and allow scalping, hedging and expert advisors. FXCM asks for 50.00 USD at its European, UK and offshore companies, except at its Australian company, which asks for no minimum deposit. IC Markets asks for 224.00 USD at its European company, 200.00 USD at its Australian company and no minimum deposit at its offshore company.

FXCM

CFDCFD FXCM 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 FXCM offers forex trading: currency pairs such as EUR/USD, traded with leverage. Forex is rated together with CFDs, on the CFD/FX side.
FXCM review ›
85CFD/FXOverall score FXCM scores 85/100 for CFD/FX trading. The overall score is calculated from the data in this comparison across 12 areas.
Open Account

66% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider.

IC Markets

CFDCFD IC 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 IC Markets offers forex trading: currency pairs such as EUR/USD, traded with leverage. Forex is rated together with CFDs, on the CFD/FX side.
IC Markets review ›
87CFD/FXOverall score IC Markets scores 87/100 for CFD/FX trading. The overall score is calculated from the data in this comparison across 12 areas.
Open Account

72.52% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider.

Best for

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

FXCM is better than IC Markets for high-volume traders. IC Markets, on the other hand, is better for professional traders. Scalpers, swing traders and news traders can choose either FXCM or IC Markets.

Best for
Overall score FXCM 85 -2 IC Markets 87
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 FXCM and the ones that supervise IC Markets.
2 / 12

FXCM and IC Markets are both regulated by top-tier authorities, FXCM by CySEC, ASIC (Australia) and the FCA (United Kingdom) and IC Markets by CySEC and ASIC (Australia).

Regulation
Section score FXCM 100 IC Markets 100
Tier-1 regulators
ESMA (European Union) i CySEC (Cyprus) 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 FXCM and IC Markets have in place to protect your money in .
3 / 12

Both FXCM and IC Markets offer segregated client funds and an investor compensation scheme.

Safety
Section score FXCM 79 IC Markets 78 -1
Company info
Is it publicly traded i
Is it a bank i
Year founded i 1999 2007
Parent company i Jefferies Financial Group International Capital Markets Pty Ltd
CEO i Brendan Callan Andrew Budzinski
Money safety
Segregated client funds i
Two-factor authentication i
Investor compensation scheme i
Additional money insurance i
Partner bank i N/A Eurobank
Brand power
Number of customers worldwide i
Annual revenue i
Monthly website search traffic i 383.6K monthly visits 2.2M monthly visits

Costs

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

IC Markets is better than FXCM for costs, since IC Markets is cheaper on EUR/USD, at 7.8 USD per lot (against FXCM's 10.98 USD), has tighter S&P 500 CFD spreads, at 0.36 points (against FXCM's 0.6 points), and has tighter gold CFD spreads, at 0.08 points (against FXCM's 0.3 points). Neither FXCM nor IC Markets charges account maintenance fees or deposit fees.

Costs
Section score FXCM 55 -10 IC Markets 65 Best
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 11.59About this value. This is the forex commission per lot at Stratos Europe Limited (CySEC). At FXCM's other companies: USD 8 (other accepted countries), USD 5 (the UK), Free (Australia). USD 7
EUR/USD average standard spread i
0.836 pips
0.8 pips
EUR/USD average raw spread i
0.2 pips
0.06 pips
EUR/USD average fixed spread i
EUR/USD total cost per lot i USD 10.975 USD 7.8
S&P 500 fees (CFD) i 0.6 points 0.36 points
Gold fees (CFD) i 0.3 points 0.08 points
Bitcoin fees (CFD) i USD 30 USD 6.46
US stocks fees (CFD) i USD 0.23 USD 0.02
Fees on stocks
Stock fee type i Spread 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 Free
Platform fees i
Fees on options
Options fees per contract i
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 FXCM and with IC Markets in , and of how many instruments each one gives access to.
5 / 12

FXCM and IC Markets are close on available markets. Both FXCM and IC Markets offer CFDs on commodities, crypto, forex, indices and stocks. IC Markets has a slight edge, as it offers CFDs on ETFs, and gives access to 2,850 tradable symbols (against FXCM's 2,800).

Available markets
Section score FXCM 75 IC Markets 75
Total tradable symbols i 2,800 2,850
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, ETF, Forex, Indices, Stocks
Futures i
Options i
Assets you can own i

Platform

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

FXCM is better than IC Markets for platforms, as FXCM offers a proprietary platform, which IC Markets does not. FXCM and IC Markets both offer MetaTrader 4 and social trading.

Platform
Section score FXCM 94 Best IC Markets 89 -5
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 FXCM and IC Markets in , and of what each one lets you do from your phone.
7 / 12

FXCM is better than IC Markets for mobile trading, since FXCM offers a social trading app and a copy trading app, which IC Markets does not. FXCM and IC Markets both offer a proprietary mobile app and the MetaTrader 4 app.

Mobile
Section score FXCM 100 Best IC Markets 93 -7
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 FXCM and IC Markets allow on their platforms in .
8 / 12

FXCM and IC Markets are equally good for trading features, since FXCM executes orders faster, within 17 ms (against IC Markets' 66 ms), and offers guaranteed stop losses. On the other hand, IC Markets allows for high-frequency trading. Both FXCM and IC Markets offer negative balance protection and trailing stops.

Trading features
Section score FXCM 96 IC Markets 93 -3
Trade execution
Broker type i Agency NDD
Average execution time i 17 ms 66 ms
Slippage occurrence i 14.64%
Requotes occurrence i
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 Stratos Europe Limited (CySEC). At FXCM's other companies: 1000:1 (other accepted countries), 30:1 (the UK, Australia). 30:1About this value. This is the major fx pairs leverage at IC Markets (EU) Ltd (CySEC). At IC Markets' other companies: 30:1 (Australia), 5000:1 (other accepted countries).
Minor/Exotic FX pairs leverage i 20:1About this value. This is the minor/exotic fx pairs leverage at Stratos Europe Limited (CySEC). At FXCM's other companies: 1000:1 (other accepted countries), 20:1 (the UK, Australia). 20:1About this value. This is the minor/exotic fx pairs leverage at IC Markets (EU) Ltd (CySEC). At IC Markets' other companies: 20:1 (Australia), 5000:1 (other accepted countries).
Major indices leverage i 20:1About this value. This is the major indices leverage at Stratos Europe Limited (CySEC). At FXCM's other companies: 1000:1 (other accepted countries), 20:1 (the UK, Australia). 20:1About this value. This is the major indices leverage at IC Markets (EU) Ltd (CySEC). At IC Markets' other companies: 20:1 (Australia), 200:1 (other accepted countries).
Minor indices leverage i 10:1About this value. This is the minor indices leverage at Stratos Europe Limited (CySEC). At FXCM's other companies: 1000:1 (other accepted countries), 10:1 (the UK, Australia). 10:1About this value. This is the minor indices leverage at IC Markets (EU) Ltd (CySEC). At IC Markets' other companies: 10:1 (Australia), 200:1 (other accepted countries).
Gold leverage i 20:1About this value. This is the gold leverage at Stratos Europe Limited (CySEC). At FXCM's other companies: 1000:1 (other accepted countries), 20:1 (the UK, Australia). 20:1About this value. This is the gold leverage at IC Markets (EU) Ltd (CySEC). At IC Markets' other companies: 20:1 (Australia), 2000:1 (other accepted countries).
Commodities leverage i 10:1About this value. This is the commodities leverage at Stratos Europe Limited (CySEC). At FXCM's other companies: 1000:1 (other accepted countries), 10:1 (the UK, Australia). 10:1About this value. This is the commodities leverage at IC Markets (EU) Ltd (CySEC). At IC Markets' other companies: 10:1 (Australia), 1000:1 (other accepted countries).
Equities leverage i 5:1About this value. This is the equities leverage at Stratos Europe Limited (CySEC). At FXCM's other companies: 20:1 (other accepted countries), 5:1 (the UK, Australia). 5:1About this value. This is the equities leverage at IC Markets (EU) Ltd (CySEC). At IC Markets' other companies: 5:1 (Australia), 20:1 (other accepted countries).
Cryptocurrency leverage i 2:1About this value. This is the cryptocurrency leverage at Stratos Europe Limited (CySEC). At FXCM's other companies: 400:1 (other accepted countries), 2:1 (Australia). 2:1About this value. This is the cryptocurrency leverage at IC Markets (EU) Ltd (CySEC). At IC Markets' other companies: 2:1 (Australia), 500:1 (other accepted countries).
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 FXCM and at IC Markets in , and of who each one is meant for.
9 / 12

IC Markets is better than FXCM for account types, since IC Markets offers a professional traders account, a corporate account and a managed account, which FXCM does not. FXCM and IC Markets both offer a demo account and a copy trading account.

Account types
Section score FXCM 57 -22 IC Markets 79 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 FXCM and with IC Markets in .
10 / 12

IC Markets is better than FXCM for account opening, given that IC Markets offers 10 account base currencies (against FXCM's 5), credits deposits faster, within the same day (against FXCM's 1 day), and pays out withdrawals faster, within 1 day (against FXCM's 2 days). However, the minimum deposit is lower at FXCM, at 50 USD (against IC Markets' 224 USD).

Account opening
Section score FXCM 82 -3 IC Markets 85 Best
Minimum deposit i USD 50About this value. This is the minimum deposit at Stratos Europe Limited (CySEC). At FXCM's other companies: USD 50 (other accepted countries, the UK), USD 0 (Australia). USD 224About this value. This is the minimum deposit at IC Markets (EU) Ltd (CySEC). At IC Markets' other companies: USD 200 (Australia), USD 0 (other accepted countries).
Minimum withdrawal i USD 0 USD 0
Wire transfers i
Credit cards i
Debit cards i
eWallets i PayPal, Neteller, SkrillAbout this value. This is the ewallets at Stratos Europe Limited (CySEC). It is different at FXCM's companies in other accepted countries. PayPal, Neteller, Skrill
Local payment methods i
Account base currencies i AUD, CHF, EUR, GBP, USDAbout this value. This is the account base currencies at Stratos Europe Limited (CySEC). It is different at FXCM's companies in Australia. AUD, CAD, CHF, EUR, GBP, HKD, JPY, NZD, SGD, USDAbout this value. This is the account base currencies at IC Markets (EU) Ltd (CySEC). It is different at IC Markets' companies in Australia.
Deposit waiting time i up to 1 business days Instant
Withdrawal waiting time i up to 2 business days up to 1 business days
Bonus program i

Customer care

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

IC Markets is better than FXCM for customer care, because IC Markets offers customer support in 17 languages (against FXCM's 13), has a website in 17 languages (against FXCM's 13), and offers a dedicated account manager, which FXCM does not. Both FXCM and IC Markets offer phone support and live chat.

Customer care
Section score FXCM 67 -20 IC Markets 87 Best
Number of languages supported i 13 17
Website languages i Arabic, German, Greek, English, French, Hebrew, Indonesian, Malay, Portuguese, Spanish, Tagalog, Vietnamese, Chinese Arabic, Bulgarian, Czech, German, English, French, Croatian, Indonesian, Italian, Korean, Malay, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish, Thai, Vietnamese, Chinese
Website available in English i
Customer support languages i Arabic, German, Greek, English, French, Hebrew, Indonesian, Malay, Portuguese, Spanish, Tagalog, Vietnamese, Chinese Arabic, Bulgarian, Czech, German, English, French, Croatian, Indonesian, Italian, Korean, Malay, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish, Thai, Vietnamese, 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 FXCM and IC Markets provide to their clients in .
12 / 12

FXCM and IC Markets are equally good for learning, as both offer education for advanced traders and webinars.

Learning
Section score FXCM 100 IC Markets 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
FXCM
Open Account 66% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider.
IC Markets
Open Account 72.52% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider.
Our verdict

FXCM vs IC Markets: which one should you choose?

FXCM

CFD/FX Choose FXCM if you want an online CFD broker with a proprietary trading platform and fast execution.

Open Account 66% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider.
IC Markets

CFD/FX Choose IC Markets if you want a forex broker with low trading costs and cTrader.

Open Account 72.52% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider.

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