Between 54-87% of retail CFD accounts lose money. Based on 69 brokers who display this data.
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BrokerDNA™
The BROKERDNA™ score tells you, overall, how reputable, suitable, and affordable a broker is compared to other brokers. This score is algorithmically-generated based on 31 factors. Neither our team, nor the brokers featured on our site, are able to change this without changing their service offering. Learn more here. |
ActivTrades
7.6
/10
VISIT ACTIVTRADES
The BROKERDNA™ score tells you, overall, how reputable, suitable, and affordable a broker is compared to other brokers. This score is algorithmically-generated based on 31 factors. Neither our team, nor the brokers featured on our site, are able to change this without changing their service offering. Learn more here. |
XTB
10
/10
VISIT XTB
The BROKERDNA™ score tells you, overall, how reputable, suitable, and affordable a broker is compared to other brokers. This score is algorithmically-generated based on 31 factors. Neither our team, nor the brokers featured on our site, are able to change this without changing their service offering. Learn more here. |
IG
9.8
/10
VISIT IG
The BROKERDNA™ score tells you, overall, how reputable, suitable, and affordable a broker is compared to other brokers. This score is algorithmically-generated based on 31 factors. Neither our team, nor the brokers featured on our site, are able to change this without changing their service offering. Learn more here. |
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About |
ActivTrades is regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. ActivTrades have provided Forex, Indices, Shares and Commodities trading services since 2001. |
XTB is regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. XTB have provided Forex, CFD, and social trading services since 2002. |
IG is regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority and ASIC. IG have provided forex, spread betting, CFD, and stock trading services since 1974. |
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Why choose them? |
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Headquarters | 1 Thomas More Square London E1W 1YN UK | Level 34, One Canada Square, Canary Wharf, E14 5AA, London, UK | London, UK | |
TRADING SERVICES OFFERED |
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Spot Forex | ||||
Forex (CFD) | ||||
CFD | ||||
Spread Betting | ||||
Social Trading | ||||
MARKETS & INSTRUMENTS | ||||
Forex (currency pairs) | 47 | 48 | 90 | |
Commodities Offered | 12 | 21 | 34 | |
Stocks Offered | 532 | 1606 | 8000 | |
Bitcoin | ||||
Majors | ||||
Indices | ||||
US Stocks | ||||
Penny stocks | ||||
Energies | ||||
Metals | ||||
Agriculturals | ||||
FTSE | ||||
Dow Jones | ||||
Dax | ||||
Nikkei | ||||
ETFs | ||||
IPO | ||||
See all instruments
71% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider |
See all instruments
77% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider. |
See all instruments
74% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading spread bets and CFDs with this provider |
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PLATFORM & FEATURES |
See the platforms and features offered by each broker |
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Screenshot |
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MT4 | ||||
MT5 | ||||
MT4 Mac | ||||
WebTrader | ||||
Mirror Trader | ||||
ZuluTrade | ||||
Sirix | ||||
cTrader | ||||
PAMM | ||||
Custom Platforms | Activ Trader | Xstation5 | ProRealTime & L2 Dealer | |
APPS |
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iOS |
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Android |
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Windows |
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Available Languages |
English, Spanish, Czech, Chinese, German, French, Italian, Polish, Portuguese, Romanian, Slovenian, Turkish, Arabic, and Russian. |
English, French, German, Spanish, and Portuguese |
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See platform & features
71% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider |
See platform & features
77% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider. |
See platform & features
74% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading spread bets and CFDs with this provider |
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ACCOUNT INFORMATION |
From micro accounts to ECN accounts, compare the accounts offered by ActivTrades and XTB |
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Demo account | ||||
Mini account | ||||
Micro account | ||||
Standard account | ||||
ECN Account | ||||
Islamic account | ||||
Zero spread account | ||||
VIP account | ||||
Fixed spreads | ||||
Variable spreads | ||||
See account options
71% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider |
See account options
77% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider. |
See account options
74% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading spread bets and CFDs with this provider |
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TRADING CONDITIONS |
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Scalping | ||||
Hedging | ||||
Expert advisors (EAs) | ||||
Virtual private server | ||||
Direct market access | ||||
STP broker | ||||
Market maker | ||||
Min trade | 0.01 Lot | 0.01 Lot | £1 | |
Max trade | £100/point | 100 Lot | Variable | |
Min deposit | $100 | $1 | $250 | |
RISK MANAGEMENT |
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Stop losses | ||||
Limit orders | ||||
One-click trading | ||||
Trailing stops | ||||
Price alerts | ||||
Signal trading | ||||
FUNDING METHODS |
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Credit card | ||||
Bank transfer | ||||
Standard account | ||||
Paypal | ||||
Neteller | ||||
Skrill | ||||
Payment processing time | Varies | Same day if requested before 1PM | Varies | |
Withdrawal processing time | 1 business day | Same day if requested before 1PM | Varies | |
See all funding options
71% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider |
See all funding options
77% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider. |
See all funding options
74% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading spread bets and CFDs with this provider |
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DETAILED INFO |
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Excluded countries | US,IN,PK,BD,IQ,IR,IL,AF,AU,CA | US,IN,PK,BD,IQ,IR,IL,AF,AU,CA | BE,FR,IN,IL,PL,ZW | |
Contact email | Send Email | Send Email | Send Email | |
Phone number | +44 (0) 207 6500 567 | 44 2036953085 | 44 20 7633 5300 | |
Live Chat | ||||
Website | https://www.activtrades.com/en/ | www.xtb.com | http://www.ig.com/ | |
Spreads: | ||||
EUR/USD (Average: 0.7 pips) | 0.5 pips + $0.00 | 0.1 pips | 0.6 pips + $1.00 | |
GBP/USD (Average: 1.1 pips) | 0.8 pips + $0.00 | 0.1 pips | 0.9 pips + $1.00 | |
USD/JPY (Average: 1.1 pips) | 0.5 pips + $0.00 | 0.1 pips | 0.7 pips + $1.00 | |
AUD/USD (Average: 0.8 pips) | 0.6 pips + $0.00 | 0.2 pips | 0.6 pips + $1.00 | |
USD/CHF (Average: 2.3 pips) | 1.0 pips + $0.00 | 0.2 pips | 1.5 pips + $1.00 | |
USD/CAD (Average: 2.9 pips) | 1.0 pips + $0.00 | 0.3 pips | 1.7 pips + $1.00 | |
NZD/USD (Average: 3.6 pips) | 1.0 pips + $0.00 | 0.3 pips | 2.0 pips + $1.00 | |
EUR/GBP (Average: 2.4 pips) | 0.8 pips + $0.00 | 0.1 pips | 0.9 pips + $1.00 | |
View all spreads
71% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider |
View all spreads
77% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider. |
View all spreads
74% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading spread bets and CFDs with this provider |
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FEES |
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Inactivity Fee | No | Yes | ||
Commission | Yes | Yes | Yes (0.1%) | |
Deposit Fee | Varies | No | Varies | |
Withdrawal Fee | No | No | No | |
View All Fees
71% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider |
View All Fees
77% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider. |
View All Fees
74% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading spread bets and CFDs with this provider |
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Last update |
All information collected from https://www.activtrades.com/en/. Last updated on 01/12/2019. |
All information collected from www.xtb.com. Last updated on 01/12/2019. |
All information collected from http://www.ig.com/. Last updated on 01/12/2019. |
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Company |
ActivTrades was found in 2001 as a small brokerage house in Switzerland, it has since grown to be a global award-winning broker for both retail and institutional traders. ActivTrades has seen rapid growth through with their focus on client satisfaction by providing the best trading technology including the latest MetaTrader 5, innovative trading tools like Autochartist and VPS hosting , outstanding customer service and competitive pricing with pips starting as low as 0.8 for EURUSD. |
XTB provides hyper fast execution and facilitates seminars with external professional traders, providing personalised education depending on your individual circumstances. |
Founded in 1974, IG are one of the largest and most respected brokers in the world. With over 125,000 traders, low margins and spreads, and a range of platforms, they're a popular choice for traders looking for a reputable broker that also offers a good range of markets and trading options. |
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Popular comparisons |
Popular comparisons feat. ActivTrades
ActivTrades vs IC Markets |
Popular comparisons feat. XTB
XTB vs IG |
Popular comparisons feat. IG
IG vs CMC Markets |
If you want a broker with a large range of instruments available to trade, XTB may be more suitable. ActivTrades and XTB offer similar trading methods.
You can determine a broker’s reliability & trustworthiness by looking at eight factors:
Based on these eight factors, we consider ActivTrades and XTB to be equally reliable. We’ve broken down why below:
ActivTrades and XTB are both regulated by Financial Conduct Authority
IG are also regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority.
If a broker has been around for a long period of time, they’re likely to be more reliable (in comparison, most scam brokers only exist for several years before they disappear).
This also suggests that a broker has good risk management processes that have prevented them being caught out by major financial events, as was the case with Alpari UK going bust when they were there was a policy reversal of capping the Swiss Franc against the Euro.
ActivTrades has been around for 18 years, while XTB have been around for 17 years. Our third alternative broker, IG, have been around for 45 years.
You wouldn’t want your broker paying their staff out of the same bank account account that you’re depositing your trading funds into, would you?
Fortunately, all regulated brokers must use segregated bank accounts to hold client money. This is one of the reasons why we only feature regulated brokers here on BrokerNotes.
All three brokers above will hold your money in a separate bank account.
Most tier-1 banks like Barclays and HSBC have been around for over 100 years and manage trillions of dollars of assets, proving that they have stood the test of time.
Both ActivTrades and XTB use tier one banks, but we are not sure of which bank specifically.
If a broker has been penalised by a regulator in the past five years, it may mean that they were caught doing something they shouldn’t be doing - which may be of concern to you as an end client.
We’re not aware of any penalties or fines imposed by regulators on ActivTrades or XTB in the past five years.
While not always the case, the number of traders a broker has can be a good metric for understanding how reputable a brokers is.
XTB is more popular with over 230,000 traders.
Companies that are publicly listed on a stock exchange tend to be considered more reputable as they will be required to disclose their financials, and aspects of their operations, to the public.
Both ActivTrades and XTB are privately owned companies.
Most reputable brokers tend to be headquartered in a major capital city or a financial hub such as Cyprus.
ActivTrades are based in 1 Thomas More Square London E1W 1YN UK, while XTB are based in Level 34, One Canada Square, Canary Wharf, E14 5AA, London, UK .
Assuming the brokers you’re choosing between are reputable, the next point to consider is whether they offer all of the features you require to trade.
This can be broken down into three categories:
If you’re looking to trade currency pairs, both ActivTrades and XTB offer forex trading. XTB have a slightly larger variety of currency pairs with 48 pairs, compared to 47 offered by ActivTrades. Also, if you’re looking to trade cryptocurrencies, XTB offers a handful of cryptocurrency CFDs to trade, including Bitcoin, Ethereum and Ripple.
Both ActivTrades and XTB allow you to trade commodities like gold, silver and crude oil.
ActivTrades also offer social trading, which allows you to follow the trading activity, engage in discussion, and even copy the trades of other traders.
If you trade forex, there’s a good chance you might want a broker that offers the popular MT4 trading platform. If that’s the case, both ActivTrades and XTB offer this. ActivTrades also offer the new & improved MT5 platform. Our alternative broker, IG, also offers MT4 and MT5.
In addition to the platform, you’ll also want to ensure that the broker you choose offers the account type best suited to your needs. XTB, for example, offer a mini account, standard account and VIP account.
If you have a certain trading style (e.g. scalping, hedging, or using EAs), you’ll want to double check that the broker you choose allows this, as not all of them do.
ActivTrades does allow scalping and hedging. While XTB also allows scalping and hedging. You can't trade with EAs (expert advisors) on ActivTrades but you can trade EAs (expert advisors) with XTB.
In terms of risk management tools, both brokers offer negative balance protection to prevent you owing your broker more than you’ve deposited.
ActivTrades also offer stop losses and limit orders to help you automate aspects of your trading strategy.
ActivTrades accept Neteller while XTB accept Paypal.
Comparing the fee structures of different brokers can be a minefield at times. The important thing to consider is what the spreads & fees are on the specific instruments and account type that you will be using.
For trading EUR/USD, ActivTrades charges 0.50 points, while XTB charges 0.20 points. Therefore, XTB is the more affordable for this instrument. If you want to compare their spreads across more instruments, You can jump back up to our comparison of their currency pair & indice spreads above.
Another consideration is whether or not your broker charges inactivity, deposit/withdrawal fees, or commissions on trades. If you’re a frequent trader, inactivity fees are unlikely to be an issue.
There’s no such thing as a perfect broker, but some are going to be a better fit for you than others.
Objectively, XTB is more reliable based on our criteria above. ActivTrades has a wider range of instruments to trade. XTB offer lower spreads on popular forex instruments like EUR/USD and are used by more traders.
Most brokers offer demo accounts, allowing you to test their platforms to see which is suitable for you. You can test drive their demos using the links below:
Finally, if you’re really not sure you can always use our free tool (takes 15 seconds) that will help you find a suitable broker based on your precise requirements here.