Written by ForexBrokers.com
In this head to head comparison of Octa vs ATFX, we will compare the trading platforms, mobile apps, range of investments, costs, market research, and more. Let's dive in.
CFDs are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. Between 51% and 89% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs. You should consider whether you understand how CFDs work and whether you can afford to take the high risk of losing your money.
Both Octa and ATFX were established in the 2010s, with Octa starting in 2011 and ATFX in 2017. Neither of these brokers is a publicly traded company or affiliated with a bank, offering pure online trading options. When it comes to regulatory strength, ATFX stands out with four Tier-1 licenses and two Tier-2 licenses, indicating a strong level of trust. Octa, on the other hand, holds one each of Tier-1 and Tier-2 licenses, which positions it at a moderate level of trust within the industry.
According to ForexBrokers.com's Trust Score, ATFX scores an 85 out of 99, categorizing it as a trusted broker. In contrast, Octa receives a score of 72, placing it in the average risk category. These scores reflect their standing in terms of customer confidence and regulatory oversight, with ATFX generally being seen as a more reliable option for traders seeking a higher level of regulatory assurance.
| Feature |
Octa
|
ATFX
|
|---|---|---|
| Year Founded | 2011 | 2017 |
| Publicly Traded (Listed) | No | No |
| Bank | No | No |
| Tier-1 Licenses | 1 | 4 |
| Tier-2 Licenses | 1 | 2 |
| Tier-3 Licenses | 0 | 0 |
| Tier-4 Licenses | 1 | 1 |
When comparing the commissions and fees of online brokers Octa and ATFX, Octa has made notable improvements in pricing, particularly gaining ground among the lowest-cost MetaTrader brokers. Octa offers an impressive no-slippage rate on 97.5% of its orders and does not charge overnight carry costs. However, it still imposes certain restrictions that may limit high-frequency traders. The fees you incur at Octa depend on your chosen account type and the regulatory entity overseeing your account, which varies by region. Meanwhile, spreads at Octa differ depending on the regulatory entity, with European clients typically benefiting from better rates on the EUR/USD pair.
On the other hand, ATFX offers limited transparency, as average spread data is not available. This lack of specific spread information can make it challenging to compare its pricing to other brokers directly. While ATFX may present certain benefits, the absence of detailed spread data is a significant drawback for traders looking to make well-informed decisions about commissions and fees.
In terms of ratings and rankings, Octa receives a commendable four out of five stars for its commissions and fees, securing a mid-range position at number 29 among 63 brokers ranked by ForexBrokers.com. Conversely, ATFX receives a lower rating of three out of five stars, placing it towards the bottom at rank 60. This comparison highlights Octa's recent strides in fee competitiveness, setting it apart from ATFX in this category.
| Feature |
Octa
|
ATFX
|
|---|---|---|
| Minimum Deposit | $25 | $500 |
| Average Spread EUR/USD - Standard | 0.9 | N/A |
| All-in Cost EUR/USD - Active | N/A | N/A |
| Active Trader or VIP Discounts | No | No |
| ACH or SEPA Transfers | No | No |
| PayPal (Deposit/Withdraw) | No | No |
| Skrill (Deposit/Withdraw) | Yes | Yes |
| Visa/Mastercard (Credit/Debit) | Yes | Yes |
| Bank Wire (Deposit/Withdraw) | Yes | Yes |
Dive deeper: Best Low Spread Forex Brokers.
When comparing the range of investment options offered by online brokers Octa and ATFX, both provide opportunities for forex trading through CFDs or spot contracts. Octa boasts a wider selection with 300 tradeable symbols, including 35 forex pairs, whereas ATFX offers a more focused list with 150 tradeable symbols, but slightly more forex pairs at 44. Neither broker currently allows clients to invest in U.S. exchange-traded securities directly, although Octa provides access to international exchanges, giving traders the possibility to invest in companies like Vodafone. Both brokers include copy trading and the capability to trade cryptocurrency derivatives, yet they do not offer real, deliverable cryptocurrency investments.
In terms of ratings, both Octa and ATFX are awarded 3.5 stars for their range of investments by ForexBrokers.com. For those seeking broader trading opportunities, Octa places slightly higher at rank #52 out of 63 brokers, compared to ATFX's rank of #57. While each platform presents a robust set of tradeable options, Octa serves investors looking for a bit more variety, particularly with access to international equities.
| Feature |
Octa
|
ATFX
|
|---|---|---|
| Forex Trading (Spot or CFDs) | Yes | Yes |
| Tradeable Symbols (Total) | 300 | 150 |
| Forex Pairs (Total) | 35 | 44 |
| U.S. Stock Trading (Non CFD) | No | No |
| Int'l Stock Trading (Non CFD) | Yes | No |
| Social Trading / Copy Trading | Yes | Yes |
| Cryptocurrency (Physical) | No | No |
| Cryptocurrency (Derivative) | 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). |
Dive deeper: Best Copy Trading Platforms.
Both Octa and ATFX provide traders with an array of trading platforms and tools that cater to diverse trading preferences. For those starting out or testing strategies, both brokers offer the benefit of free virtual demo accounts, allowing users to practice trading without financial risk. Octa distinguishes itself by offering a proprietary trading platform, adding a unique option for its clients, whereas ATFX relies solely on popular third-party platforms. Both Octa and ATFX facilitate trading via Windows-based desktop downloads and web browser platforms, ensuring flexibility to trade from multiple devices. Furthermore, copy trading is supported by both brokers, as well as the widely-used MetaTrader 4 (MT4) and MetaTrader 5 (MT5) platforms. However, neither broker includes support for DupliTrade or ZuluTrade services.
In terms of trading tools, Octa and ATFX stand on even ground with 15 drawing tools available for charting, enabling traders to analyze market trends effectively. Both platforms also allow direct trading from stock charts, enhancing the user experience. Watch list features for both brokers include seven custom fields, supporting personalized market monitoring. Despite these similarities, Octa receives a slightly higher rating for trading platforms and tools with 4 stars compared to ATFX's 3.5 stars. Moreover, in the rankings by ForexBrokers.com, Octa holds a stronger position at 37 out of 63 brokers, while ATFX ranks 62, indicating a more favorable perception of Octa's offerings within the trading community.
| Feature |
Octa
|
ATFX
|
|---|---|---|
| Virtual Trading (Demo) | Yes | Yes |
| Proprietary Platform | Yes | No |
| Desktop Platform (Windows) | Yes | Yes |
| Web Platform | Yes | Yes |
| Social Trading / Copy Trading | Yes | Yes |
| MetaTrader 4 (MT4) | Yes | Yes |
| MetaTrader 5 (MT5) | Yes | Yes |
| DupliTrade | No | No |
| ZuluTrade | No | No |
| Charting - Indicators / Studies (Total) | 30 | 30 |
| Charting - Drawing Tools (Total) | 15 | 15 |
| Charting - Trade From Chart | Yes | Yes |
| Watchlists - Total Fields | 7 | 7 |
Dive deeper: Best MetaTrader 4 Brokers, Best MetaTrader 5 Brokers.
When comparing the mobile trading apps of online brokers Octa and ATFX, both offer applications for iPhone and Android devices, providing access to stock or forex alerts and the ability to create watchlists with live quotes. However, neither broker offers the convenience of syncing watchlists between the mobile app and the online account. Despite this, both apps allow users to draw trendlines on charts, view multiple time frames, and automatically save drawings. Octa stands out with a more comprehensive selection of technical studies, offering 30 compared to ATFX's 7.
In terms of user satisfaction and expert rankings, Octa edges out ATFX with a 4-star rating for its mobile trading app, compared to ATFX's 3.5-star rating. This difference in ratings reflects in their overall rankings among 63 brokers in the Mobile Trading Apps category, where Octa is positioned at #36, far ahead of ATFX, which ranks at #63, according to ForexBrokers.com.
| Feature |
Octa
|
ATFX
|
|---|---|---|
| Android App | Yes | Yes |
| Apple iOS App | Yes | Yes |
| Mobile Alerts - Basic Fields | Yes | Yes |
| Watchlist Syncing | No | No |
| Mobile Charting - Indicators / Studies | 30 | 7 |
| Mobile Charting - Draw Trendlines | Yes | Yes |
| Mobile Charting - Multiple Time Frames | Yes | Yes |
| Mobile Charting - Drawings Autosave | Yes | Yes |
| Mobile Watchlist | Yes | Yes |
Dive deeper: Best Forex Trading Apps.
When it comes to market research, both Octa and ATFX provide essential tools and services to aid their users. Octa offers daily market commentary and boasts forex news from prestigious sources such as Bloomberg, Reuters, or Dow Jones, giving investors access to high-quality information. On the other hand, ATFX also offers daily market commentary, but does not provide forex news from top-tier sources. Both brokers provide technical and fundamental analysis tools from Autochartist, aiding users in making informed trading decisions. However, ATFX takes a slight edge with the inclusion of tools from Trading Central, which Octa does not offer. Additionally, neither broker currently provides a sentiment-based trading tool or market research from TipRanks, nor do they offer research tools from Acuity Trading.
For investors looking to stay abreast of global market movements, both Octa and ATFX offer economic calendars that outline current and upcoming global news events. Despite both brokers offering valuable market resources, Octa outshines ATFX, earning a 4-star research rating compared to ATFX's 3 stars. In the annual ranking by ForexBrokers.com of 63 brokers, Octa is further recognized at a higher position, ranking 27th compared to ATFX's 54th place. These ratings suggest that while both brokers provide useful market research tools, Octa may offer a slightly more comprehensive package for keen traders.
| Feature |
Octa
|
ATFX
|
|---|---|---|
| Daily Market Commentary | Yes | Yes |
| Forex News (Top-Tier Sources) | Yes | No |
| Autochartist | Yes | Yes |
| Trading Central (Recognia) | No | Yes |
| Social Sentiment - Currency Pairs | No | No |
| TipRanks | No | No |
| Signal Centre (Acuity Trading) | No | No |
| Economic Calendar | Yes | Yes |
Dive deeper: Best Brokers for Forex Research.
When it comes to educational resources for beginners, both Octa and ATFX provide a wide range of options to get new traders started with forex and CFDs. Each broker delivers at least ten educational materials, including articles, videos, and webinars, focused on these subjects. A notable difference, however, is that Octa hosts monthly online educational webinars for its clients, while ATFX does not offer this feature. Both platforms offer a searchable archive of past webinars, making it easy for users to revisit content at their convenience.
For those looking for video content, both Octa and ATFX provide a collection of over ten beginner-friendly videos. However, Octa takes it up a notch by also offering advanced educational videos for more experienced traders, something ATFX lacks. Additionally, both brokers include an investor dictionary with over 50 terms to help demystify the language of trading. Overall, Octa achieves a higher educational rating of four stars compared to ATFX's three stars, reflecting its broader and more inclusive educational resources. Nevertheless, in rankings by ForexBrokers.com, ATFX comes in higher at 28 out of 63 brokers, while Octa is positioned at 42, indicating differences in perception or criteria used for ranking.
| Feature |
Octa
|
ATFX
|
|---|---|---|
| Education (Forex or CFDs) | Yes | Yes |
| Client Webinars | Yes | No |
| Client Webinars (Archived) | Yes | Yes |
| Videos - Beginner Trading Videos | Yes | Yes |
| Videos - Advanced Trading Videos | Yes | No |
| Investor Dictionary (Glossary) | Yes | Yes |
Dive deeper: Best Forex Brokers for Beginners.
After testing 63 of the best forex brokers, our research and account testing finds that Octa is better than ATFX. Octa finished with an overall rank of #47, while ATFX finished with an overall rank of #51.
Octa offers a basic, low-cost MetaTrader platform experience alongside its social copy-trading platform.
| Feature |
Octa
|
ATFX
|
|---|---|---|
| Overall Rating |
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| Trust Score | 72 | 85 |
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Both Octa and ATFX do not offer the ability to buy actual delivered cryptocurrency, but they each provide the option to trade cryptocurrency derivatives.
Both online brokers, Octa and ATFX, do not support ACH or SEPA transfers nor PayPal for deposits or withdrawals, but they both offer Skrill, Visa or Mastercard, and bank wire options for funding accounts.
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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0 of 5| Overall Rating | Octa | ATFX | |
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| Trust Score | 72 | 85 | |
| Winner | check_circle | ||
| Review | Octa Review |
| Broker Screenshots | Octa | ATFX | |
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| Regulation | Octa | ATFX | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Trust Score | 72 | 85 | |
| Year Founded | 2011 | 2017 | |
| Publicly Traded (Listed) | No | No | |
| Bank | No | No | |
| Regulated in one or more EU or EEA countries (MiFID). | Yes | Yes | |
| Tier-1 Licenses | 1 | 4 | |
| Tier-2 Licenses | 1 | 2 | |
| Tier-3 Licenses | 0 | 0 | |
| Tier-4 Licenses | 1 | 1 |
| Tier-1 Licenses (Highly Trusted) | Octa | ATFX | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Australia (ASIC Authorised) | No | Yes | |
| Canada (CIRO Authorised) | No | No | |
| Hong Kong (SFC Authorised) | No | Yes | |
| Japan (SFC Authorised) | No | No | |
| Singapore (MAS Authorised) | No | No | |
| Switzerland (FINMA Authorised) | No | No | |
| United Kingdom (U.K.) (FCA Authorised) | No | Yes | |
| USA (CFTC Authorized) | No | No | |
| New Zealand (FMA Authorised) | No | No | |
| Regulated in one or more EU or EEA countries (MiFID). | Yes | Yes |
| Tier-2 Licenses (Trusted) | Octa | ATFX | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kenya (CMA Authorised) | No | No | |
| Israel (ISA Authorised) | No | No | |
| South Africa (FSCA Authorised) | Yes | Yes | |
| UAE (DFSA/Central Bank Authorised) | No | No | |
| India (SEBI Authorised) | No | No | |
| Jordan (JSC Authorised) | No | No |
| Investments | Octa | ATFX | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Forex Trading (Spot or CFDs) | Yes | Yes | |
| Tradeable Symbols (Total) | 300 | 150 | |
| Forex Pairs (Total) | 35 | 44 | |
| U.S. Stock Trading (Non CFD) | No | No | |
| Int'l Stock Trading (Non CFD) | Yes | No | |
| Social Trading / Copy Trading | Yes | Yes | |
| Cryptocurrency (Physical) | No | No | |
| Cryptocurrency (Derivative) | 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). |
| Cost | Octa | ATFX | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average Spread EUR/USD - Standard | 0.9 | N/A | |
| All-in Cost EUR/USD - Active | N/A | N/A | |
| Active Trader or VIP Discounts | No | No | |
| Inactivity Fee | No | No | |
| Execution: Agency Broker | Yes | No | |
| Execution: Market Maker | Yes | Yes |
| Funding | Octa | ATFX | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Minimum Deposit | $25 | $500 | |
| PayPal (Deposit/Withdraw) | No | No | |
| Skrill (Deposit/Withdraw) | Yes | Yes | |
| Visa/Mastercard (Credit/Debit) | Yes | Yes | |
| Bank Wire (Deposit/Withdraw) | Yes | Yes | |
| ACH or SEPA Transfers | No | No |
| Trading Platforms | Octa | ATFX | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Proprietary Platform | Yes | No | |
| Desktop Platform (Windows) | Yes | Yes | |
| Web Platform | Yes | Yes | |
| Social Trading / Copy Trading | Yes | Yes | |
| MetaTrader 4 (MT4) | Yes | Yes | |
| MetaTrader 5 (MT5) | Yes | Yes | |
| cTrader | No | No | |
| DupliTrade | No | No | |
| ZuluTrade | No | No |
| Trading Tools | Octa | ATFX | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Virtual Trading (Demo) | Yes | Yes | |
| Alerts - Basic Fields | Yes | Yes | |
| Watchlists - Total Fields | 7 | 7 | |
| Charting - Indicators / Studies (Total) | 30 | 30 | |
| Charting - Drawing Tools (Total) | 15 | 15 | |
| Charting - Trade From Chart | Yes | Yes | |
| Charts can be saved | Yes | Yes |
| Mobile Trading | Octa | ATFX | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Android App | Yes | Yes | |
| Apple iOS App | Yes | Yes | |
| Mobile Alerts - Basic Fields | Yes | Yes | |
| Mobile Watchlist | Yes | Yes | |
| Watchlist Syncing | No | No | |
| Mobile Charting - Indicators / Studies | 30 | 7 | |
| Mobile Charting - Draw Trendlines | Yes | Yes | |
| Mobile Charting - Multiple Time Frames | Yes | Yes | |
| Mobile Charting - Drawings Autosave | Yes | Yes | |
| Mobile Economic Calendar | Yes | Yes |
| Research | Octa | ATFX | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Daily Market Commentary | Yes | Yes | |
| Forex News (Top-Tier Sources) | Yes | No | |
| Autochartist | Yes | Yes | |
| Trading Central (Recognia) | No | Yes | |
| TipRanks | No | No | |
| Social Sentiment - Currency Pairs | No | No | |
| Economic Calendar | Yes | Yes |
| Education | Octa | ATFX | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Education (Forex or CFDs) | Yes | Yes | |
| Client Webinars | Yes | No | |
| Client Webinars (Archived) | Yes | Yes | |
| Videos - Beginner Trading Videos | Yes | Yes | |
| Videos - Advanced Trading Videos | Yes | No | |
| Investor Dictionary (Glossary) | Yes | Yes |
| Major Forex Pairs | Octa | ATFX | |
|---|---|---|---|
| GBP/USD | Yes | Yes | |
| USD/JPY | Yes | Yes | |
| EUR/USD | Yes | Yes | |
| USD/CHF | Yes | Yes | |
| USD/CAD | Yes | Yes | |
| NZD/USD | Yes | Yes | |
| AUD/USD | Yes | Yes | |
| Review | Octa Review |
| Overall | Octa | ATFX | |
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| Trust Score | 72 | 85 | |
| Winner | check_circle | ||
| Review | Octa Review |
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