Written by ForexBrokers.com
Is Alpari better than TopFX? In our analysis of 23 international regulators across 39 of the best forex brokers, Alpari is considered low-risk, with an overall Trust Score of 67 out of 99. TopFX is considered high-risk, with an overall Trust Score of 67 out of 99. Learn more about Trust Score.
| Overall Rating | Alpari | TopFX | IG |
|---|---|---|---|
| Overall Rating | |||
| Commissions & Fees | |||
| Offering of Investments | |||
| Platform & Tools | |||
| Mobile Trading | |||
| Research | |||
| Education | |||
| Trust Score | 67 | 67 | 99 |
| Winner | check_circle | ||
| Review | TopFX Review | IG Review |
| Regulation | Alpari | TopFX | IG |
|---|---|---|---|
| Trust Score | 67 | 67 | 99 |
| Year Founded | 1998 | 2010 | 1974 |
| Publicly Traded (Listed) | No | No | Yes |
| Bank | No | No | Yes |
| Tier-1 Licenses | 0 | 0 | 7 |
| Tier-2 Licenses | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| Tier-3 Licenses | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Authorised in European Union | No | No | Yes |
| About Regulation | A “Yes” for any individual regulator indicates that the broker has at least one brand or entity that is licensed and/or authorized by that regulator within its group/organizational structure. Learn more about Trust Score. | A “Yes” for any individual regulator indicates that the broker has at least one brand or entity that is licensed and/or authorized by that regulator within its group/organizational structure. Learn more about Trust Score. |
| Tier-1 Licenses (High Trust) | Alpari | TopFX | IG |
|---|---|---|---|
| ASIC Authorised (Australia) | No | No | Yes |
| IIROC Authorised (Canada) | No | No | No |
| SFC Authorised (Hong Kong) | No | No | No |
| CBI Authorised (Ireland) | No | No | No |
| FSA Authorised (Japan) | No | No | Yes |
| MAS Authorised (Singapore) | No | No | Yes |
| FINMA Authorised (Switzerland) | No | No | Yes |
| FCA Authorised (U.K.) | No | No | Yes |
| CFTC Registered (USA) | No | No | Yes |
| FMA Authorised (New Zealand) | No | No | Yes |
| Tier-2 Licenses (Average Trust) | Alpari | TopFX | IG |
|---|---|---|---|
| CBRC Authorised (China) | No | No | No |
| CySEC Authorised (Cyprus) | No | Yes | No |
| SEBI Authorised (India) | No | No | No |
| ISA Authorised (Israel) | No | No | No |
| CBR Authorised (Russia) | No | No | No |
| FSCA Authorised (South Africa) | No | No | Yes |
| SEC Authorised (Thailand) | No | No | No |
| DFSA / Central Bank Authorised (UAE) | No | No | Yes |
| Tier-3 Licenses (Low Trust) | Alpari | TopFX | IG |
|---|---|---|---|
| SCB Authorised (Bahamas) | No | No | No |
| IFSC Authorised (Belize) | No | No | No |
| CIMA Authorised (Cayman Islands) | No | No | No |
| BMA Authorised (Bermuda) | No | No | Yes |
| FSC Authorised (British Virgin Islands) | No | No | No |
| FSC Authorised (Mauritius) | Yes | No | No |
| VFSC Authorised (Vanuatu) | No | No | No |
| Investments | Alpari | TopFX | IG |
|---|---|---|---|
| Forex Trading (Spot or CFDs) | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Tradeable Symbols (Total) | 105 | 655 | 19537 |
| Forex Pairs (Total) | 46 | 60 | 100 |
| U.S. Stock Trading (Non CFD) | No | No | Yes |
| Int'l Stock Trading (Non CFD) | Yes | No | Yes |
| Social Trading / Copy Trading | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Cryptocurrency (Physical) | No | No | No |
| Cryptocurrency (CFD) | Yes | Yes | 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). | 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). | 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). |
| Cost | Alpari | TopFX | IG |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average Spread EUR/USD - Standard | N/A | N/A | 0.86 (September 2022) |
| All-in Cost EUR/USD - Active | N/A | N/A | 0.5957 (September 2022) |
| Active Trader or VIP Discounts | Yes | No | Yes |
| Execution: Agency Broker | Yes | No | Yes |
| Execution: Market Maker | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Funding | Alpari | TopFX | IG |
|---|---|---|---|
| Minimum Initial Deposit | $20 | Depends on payment method | £250.00 |
| PayPal (Deposit/Withdraw) | No | Yes | Yes |
| Skrill (Deposit/Withdraw) | Yes | Yes | No |
| Visa/Mastercard (Credit/Debit) | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Bank Wire (Deposit/Withdraw) | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Trading Platforms | Alpari | TopFX | IG |
|---|---|---|---|
| Proprietary Platform | Yes | No | Yes |
| Desktop Platform (Windows) | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Web Platform | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Social Trading / Copy Trading | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| MetaTrader 4 (MT4) | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| MetaTrader 5 (MT5) | Yes | No | No |
| cTrader | No | Yes | No |
| DupliTrade | No | No | No |
| ZuluTrade | No | No | No |
| Trading Tools | Alpari | TopFX | IG |
|---|---|---|---|
| Virtual Trading (Demo) | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Alerts - Basic Fields | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Watchlists - Total Fields | 7 | 7 | 14 |
| Charting - Indicators / Studies (Total) | 30 | 30 | 33 |
| Charting - Drawing Tools (Total) | 15 | 15 | 20 |
| Charting - Trade From Chart | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Charts can be saved | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Mobile Trading | Alpari | TopFX | IG |
|---|---|---|---|
| Android App | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Apple iOS App | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Mobile Alerts - Basic Fields | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Mobile Watchlist | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Watchlist Syncing | No | No | Yes |
| Mobile Charting - Indicators / Studies | 30 | 30 | 33 |
| Mobile Charting - Draw Trendlines | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Mobile Charting - Multiple Time Frames | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Mobile Charting - Drawings Autosave | No | Yes | Yes |
| Forex Calendar | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Research | Alpari | TopFX | IG |
|---|---|---|---|
| Daily Market Commentary | No | No | Yes |
| Forex News (Top-Tier Sources) | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Autochartist | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Trading Central (Recognia) | No | Yes | No |
| Social Sentiment - Currency Pairs | No | Yes | Yes |
| Economic Calendar | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Education | Alpari | TopFX | IG |
|---|---|---|---|
| Has Education - Forex or CFDs | Yes | No | Yes |
| Client Webinars | No | No | Yes |
| Client Webinars (Archived) | No | No | Yes |
| Videos - Beginner Trading Videos | Yes | No | Yes |
| Videos - Advanced Trading Videos | No | No | Yes |
| Investor Dictionary (Glossary) | Yes | No | Yes |
| Major Forex Pairs | Alpari | TopFX | IG |
|---|---|---|---|
| GBP/USD | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| USD/JPY | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| EUR/USD | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| USD/CHF | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| USD/CAD | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| NZD/USD | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| AUD/USD | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Review | TopFX Review | IG Review |
| Overall | Alpari | TopFX | IG |
|---|---|---|---|
| Overall Rating | |||
| Commissions & Fees | |||
| Offering of Investments | |||
| Platform & Tools | |||
| Mobile Trading | |||
| Research | |||
| Education | |||
| Trust Score | 67 | 67 | 99 |
| Winner | check_circle | ||
| Review | TopFX Review | IG Review |
Comparing forex brokers side by side is no easy task. For our 2022 annual forex broker review, we spent hundreds of hours assessing 39 forex and CFD brokerages to find the best forex broker. Let's compare Alpari vs TopFX.
Comparing the trading costs of forex and CFDs is not easy. Not every broker publishes average spreads data, and pricing structures vary. Based on our thorough annual assessment, IG offers better pricing overall for traders.
At ForexBrokers.com, we track where each forex and CFD broker is regulated across over 23 international regulator databases. Here's our findings. Both Alpari and TopFX hold 0 global Tier-1 licenses. TopFX holds 1 global Tier-2 licenses, while Alpari holds 0. In our analysis of 23 international regulators across 50 brokers, Alpari and TopFX earned the same Trust Score.
To compare the trading platforms of both Alpari and TopFX, we tested each broker's trading tools, research capabilities, and mobile apps. For trading tools, IG offers a better experience. With research, IG offers superior market research. Finally, we found IG to provide better mobile trading apps.
For forex and CFDs traders, copy trading and MetaTrader are both popular platform options. Both Alpari and TopFX offer MetaTrader 4 (MT4).Alpari and TopFX both offer copy trading.
TopFX provides traders 60 currency pairs (e.g., EUR/USD) compared to Alpari's 46 available pairs. Forex pairs aside, TopFX offers traders access to 655 CFDs while Alpari has 105 available CFDs, a difference of 550.
Alpari is not publicly traded and does not operate a bank. Alpari is authorised by zero tier-1 regulators (high trust), zero tier-2 regulator (average trust), and one tier-3 regulator (low trust).
TopFX is not publicly traded and does not operate a bank. TopFX is authorised by zero tier-1 regulators (high trust) and one tier-2 regulator (average trust).
Alpari is one of the oldest MetaTrader brokers, and an early pioneer of social copy-trading. Best known in Eastern Europe, Alpari offers a small but growing selection of CFD markets and platform tools, but lacks regulatory licenses in top-tier jurisdictions.
TopFX offers the MetaTrader and cTrader platform suites, and grants access to a medium range of CFD markets and forex pairs. However, TopFX struggles to compete with the best brokers in several categories, including market research and education.
Overall winner: IG
Please note:
We review each broker’s overall global offering – a “Yes” checkmark in our Compare Tool does not guarantee the availability of any specific features in your country of residence. To verify the availability of any features within your country of residence, please contact the broker directly.
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