Written by ForexBrokers.com
Is AvaTrade better than HFM? In our analysis of 23 international regulators across 39 of the best forex brokers, AvaTrade is considered low-risk, with an overall Trust Score of 93 out of 99. HotForex is considered average-risk, with an overall Trust Score of 85 out of 99. Learn more about Trust Score.
| Overall Rating | AvaTrade | HFM | IG |
|---|---|---|---|
| Overall Rating | |||
| Commissions & Fees | |||
| Offering of Investments | |||
| Platform & Tools | |||
| Mobile Trading | |||
| Research | |||
| Education | |||
| Trust Score | 93 | 85 | 99 |
| Winner | check_circle | ||
| Review | AvaTrade Review | HFM Review | IG Review |
| Regulation | AvaTrade | HFM | IG |
|---|---|---|---|
| Trust Score | 93 | 85 | 99 |
| Year Founded | 2006 | 2010 | 1974 |
| Publicly Traded (Listed) | No | No | Yes |
| Bank | No | No | Yes |
| Tier-1 Licenses | 4 | 1 | 7 |
| Tier-2 Licenses | 3 | 3 | 2 |
| Tier-3 Licenses | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Authorised in European Union | Yes | Yes | 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. | 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) | AvaTrade | HFM | IG |
|---|---|---|---|
| ASIC Authorised (Australia) | Yes | No | Yes |
| IIROC Authorised (Canada) | Yes | No | No |
| SFC Authorised (Hong Kong) | No | No | No |
| CBI Authorised (Ireland) | Yes | No | No |
| FSA Authorised (Japan) | Yes | No | Yes |
| MAS Authorised (Singapore) | No | No | Yes |
| FINMA Authorised (Switzerland) | No | No | Yes |
| FCA Authorised (U.K.) | No | Yes | Yes |
| CFTC Registered (USA) | No | No | Yes |
| FMA Authorised (New Zealand) | No | No | Yes |
| Tier-2 Licenses (Average Trust) | AvaTrade | HFM | IG |
|---|---|---|---|
| CBRC Authorised (China) | No | No | No |
| CySEC Authorised (Cyprus) | Yes | Yes | No |
| SEBI Authorised (India) | No | No | No |
| ISA Authorised (Israel) | Yes | No | No |
| CBR Authorised (Russia) | No | No | No |
| FSCA Authorised (South Africa) | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| SEC Authorised (Thailand) | No | No | No |
| DFSA / Central Bank Authorised (UAE) | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Tier-3 Licenses (Low Trust) | AvaTrade | HFM | 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) | Yes | No | No |
| FSC Authorised (Mauritius) | No | Yes | No |
| VFSC Authorised (Vanuatu) | No | No | No |
| Investments | AvaTrade | HFM | IG |
|---|---|---|---|
| Forex Trading (Spot or CFDs) | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Tradeable Symbols (Total) | 1260 | 3500 | 19537 |
| Forex Pairs (Total) | 55 | 47 | 100 |
| U.S. Stock Trading (Non CFD) | No | No | Yes |
| Int'l Stock Trading (Non CFD) | No | 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 | AvaTrade | HFM | IG |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average Spread EUR/USD - Standard | 0.91 (Aug 2020) | 1.2 (August 2021) | 0.86 (September 2022) |
| All-in Cost EUR/USD - Active | 0.61 (Aug 2020) | 0.9 (August 2021) | 0.5957 (September 2022) |
| Active Trader or VIP Discounts | Yes | No | Yes |
| Execution: Agency Broker | No | No | Yes |
| Execution: Market Maker | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Funding | AvaTrade | HFM | IG |
|---|---|---|---|
| Minimum Initial Deposit | $100 | $5 | £250.00 |
| PayPal (Deposit/Withdraw) | Yes | No | Yes |
| Skrill (Deposit/Withdraw) | Yes | Yes | No |
| Visa/Mastercard (Credit/Debit) | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Bank Wire (Deposit/Withdraw) | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Trading Platforms | AvaTrade | HFM | 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 | Yes | No |
| cTrader | No | No | No |
| DupliTrade | Yes | No | No |
| ZuluTrade | Yes | No | No |
| Trading Tools | AvaTrade | HFM | IG |
|---|---|---|---|
| Virtual Trading (Demo) | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Alerts - Basic Fields | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Watchlists - Total Fields | 6 | 7 | 14 |
| Charting - Indicators / Studies (Total) | 90 | 15 | 33 |
| Charting - Drawing Tools (Total) | 13 | 30 | 20 |
| Charting - Trade From Chart | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Charts can be saved | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Mobile Trading | AvaTrade | HFM | 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 | Yes | No | Yes |
| Mobile Charting - Indicators / Studies | 73 | 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 | AvaTrade | HFM | IG |
|---|---|---|---|
| Daily Market Commentary | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Forex News (Top-Tier Sources) | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Autochartist | No | Yes | Yes |
| Trading Central (Recognia) | Yes | No | No |
| Social Sentiment - Currency Pairs | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Economic Calendar | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Education | AvaTrade | HFM | IG |
|---|---|---|---|
| Has Education - Forex or CFDs | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Client Webinars | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Client Webinars (Archived) | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Videos - Beginner Trading Videos | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Videos - Advanced Trading Videos | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Investor Dictionary (Glossary) | Yes | No | Yes |
| Major Forex Pairs | AvaTrade | HFM | 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 | AvaTrade Review | HFM Review | IG Review |
| Overall | AvaTrade | HFM | IG |
|---|---|---|---|
| Overall Rating | |||
| Commissions & Fees | |||
| Offering of Investments | |||
| Platform & Tools | |||
| Mobile Trading | |||
| Research | |||
| Education | |||
| Trust Score | 93 | 85 | 99 |
| Winner | check_circle | ||
| Review | AvaTrade Review | HFM 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 AvaTrade vs HFM.
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. AvaTrade holds 4 global Tier-1 licenses, while HFM holds 1. Both AvaTrade and HFM hold 3 global Tier-2 licenses. In our analysis of 23 international regulators across 50 brokers, AvaTrade earned a higher Trust Score than HFM.
To compare the trading platforms of both AvaTrade and HFM, 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 AvaTrade and HFM offer MetaTrader 4 (MT4).AvaTrade and HFM both offer copy trading.
AvaTrade provides traders 55 currency pairs (e.g., EUR/USD) compared to HFM's 47 available pairs. Forex pairs aside, HFM offers traders access to 3500 CFDs while AvaTrade has 1260 available CFDs, a difference of 2240.
AvaTrade is not publicly-traded and does not operate a bank. AvaTrade is authorised by four tier-1 regulators (high trust), four tier-2 regulators (average trust), and one tier-3 regulator (low trust). AvaTrade is authorised by the following tier-1 regulators: Australian Securities & Investment Commission (ASIC), Central Bank of Ireland (CBI) and the Japanese Financial Services Authority (JFSA), and via Friedberg Direct, with the Investment Industry Regulatory Organization of Canada (IIROC).
HotForex is not publicly traded and does not operate a bank. HotForex is authorised by one tier-1 regulator (high trust), three tier-2 regulators (average trust), and one tier-3 regulator (low trust). HotForex is authorised by the following tier-1 regulator: Financial Conduct Authority (FCA).
AvaTrade is a trusted global brand best known for offering an extensive selection of trading platforms for forex and CFD traders, as well as exceptional educational content that helped it nab a Best in Class rating for Beginners for 2022.
Alongside its enhanced MetaTrader offering and quality research, HFM (HF Markets), previously known as HotForex, offers a proprietary copy trading platform, HFcopy, and provides a decent selection of over 1,000 CFDs and 47 forex pairs. Still, trading costs at HFM are slightly above the industry average, and its HF mobile app does not yet support trading.
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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