Written by ForexBrokers.com
In this head to head comparison of Capital.com vs IFC Markets, 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.
Capital.com, established in 2016, and IFC Markets, founded in 2006, both offer online brokerage services, yet differ significantly in their regulatory standings. Capital.com boasts a higher ForexBrokers.com Trust Score of 87, marking it as a trusted platform. In comparison, IFC Markets holds a Trust Score of 73, placing it in the average risk category. Neither company is publicly traded or operates as a bank. However, Capital.com holds three Tier-1 licenses, renowned for high trust, while IFC Markets has none. Both brokers maintain one Tier-2 license, recognized as trusted but less stringent than Tier-1 regulations.
| Feature |
Capital.com
|
IFC Markets
|
|---|---|---|
| Year Founded | 2016 | 2006 |
| Publicly Traded (Listed) | No | No |
| Bank | No | No |
| Tier-1 Licenses | 3 | 0 |
| Tier-2 Licenses | 1 | 1 |
| Tier-3 Licenses | 0 | 0 |
| Tier-4 Licenses | 2 | 1 |
Capital.com stands out on commissions and fees, earning 5/5 stars and ranking #3 out of 63 brokers at ForexBrokers.com. Its dynamic EUR/USD spread averaged 0.6712 pips in April 2024, which is lower than the industry average and attractive for low-cost forex trading. Capital.com offers a universal retail account and a professional account for eligible traders; note that professional clients do not receive the same regulatory protections as retail clients.
IFC Markets earns 4/5 stars and ranks #32 out of 63 for Commissions and Fees. Its typical EUR/USD spread is 1.44 pips—higher than the industry average of 1.08—though the new ECN account can bring effective costs to about 1.1 pips after a 0.005% commission on both sides of the trade. Traders may also appreciate the lack of inactivity fees and the availability of active trader discounts.
In a head-to-head comparison, Capital.com generally offers cheaper day-to-day spreads for forex, making it the stronger pick for straightforward low-cost trading. IFC Markets narrows the gap for higher-volume traders via its ECN pricing and adds value with no inactivity fees, which may appeal to cost-conscious traders who aren’t active every month.
| Feature |
Capital.com
|
IFC Markets
|
|---|---|---|
| Minimum Deposit | $20 | $1 |
| Average spread (EUR/USD) - Standard account | 0.64 | 1.44 |
| All-in Cost EUR/USD - Active | 0.67 | 1.1 |
| Non-wire bank transfer | No | No |
| PayPal (Deposit/Withdraw) | Yes | No |
| Skrill (Deposit/Withdraw) | Yes | No |
| Bank Wire (Deposit/Withdraw) | Yes | Yes |
Dive deeper: Best Low Spread Forex Brokers.
Comparing the range of investments, Capital.com offers far more choice with 5,585 tradeable symbols and 125 forex pairs, versus IFC Markets’ 630 symbols and 49 pairs. Both brokers support forex trading (CFD or spot) and offer cryptocurrency CFDs, but neither lets you buy actual crypto. In ForexBrokers.com’s Range of Investments category, Capital.com scores 4.5/5 stars and ranks 18th out of 63 brokers, while IFC Markets scores 3.5/5 and ranks 31st.
For specific features, neither broker lets you buy U.S.-listed stocks for direct ownership. IFC Markets does offer some exchange-traded shares on international markets, which Capital.com does not. IFC Markets also supports copy trading, while Capital.com does not. Choose Capital.com for the widest selection of instruments and currency pairs, or go with IFC Markets if you want copy trading and access to certain international shares.
| Feature |
Capital.com
|
IFC Markets
|
|---|---|---|
| Forex Trading (Spot or CFDs) | Yes | Yes |
| Tradeable Symbols (Total) | 5585 | 630 |
| Forex Pairs (Total) | 125 | 49 |
| U.S. Stocks (Shares) | No | No |
| Global Stocks (Non-U.S. Shares) | No | Yes |
| Copy Trading | No | Yes |
| Cryptocurrency (Underlying) | No | No |
| Cryptocurrency (CFDs) | 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). |
Dive deeper: Best Copy Trading Platforms.
Capital.com vs IFC Markets: both brokers offer a free demo account for paper trading, in-house proprietary platforms, a Windows desktop download, and a web-based platform. Each lets you place trades directly from charts and supports MetaTrader 4 (MT4). Key differences: IFC Markets also offers MetaTrader 5 (MT5) and copy trading, while Capital.com does not. If you want MT5 or social/copy features, IFC Markets has the edge; if you’re fine with MT4 and a broker-built platform, both are suitable.
For Trading Platforms and Tools, Capital.com is rated 4.5 out of 5 stars and ranks #10 out of 63 brokers on ForexBrokers.com, while IFC Markets is rated 4 out of 5 stars and ranks #29. In short, Capital.com scores higher overall, but IFC Markets may be the better fit if MT5 or copy trading is important to you.
| Feature |
Capital.com
|
IFC Markets
|
|---|---|---|
| Virtual Trading (Demo) | Yes | Yes |
| Proprietary Desktop Trading Platform | Yes | Yes |
| Desktop Platform (Windows) | Yes | Yes |
| Web Platform | Yes | Yes |
| Copy Trading | No | Yes |
| MetaTrader 4 (MT4) | Yes | Yes |
| MetaTrader 5 (MT5) | No | Yes |
| Charting - Indicators / Studies (Total) | 97 | 30 |
| Charting - Trade From Chart | Yes | Yes |
Dive deeper: Best MetaTrader 4 Brokers, Best MetaTrader 5 Brokers.
Capital.com and IFC Markets both deliver full-featured mobile trading apps for iPhone and Android. Each app supports price alerts, 30 technical studies for charting, trendline drawing, and autosaving your chart annotations—handy for picking up where you left off. For everyday trading tasks, either app covers the basics traders expect.
The key difference is watchlist syncing: IFC Markets syncs watchlists between the mobile app and your online account, while Capital.com does not. In terms of quality scores, Capital.com earns 4.5 out of 5 stars and ranks #11 out of 63 brokers for Mobile Trading Apps on ForexBrokers.com, whereas IFC Markets scores 4 stars and ranks #34. If seamless watchlists across devices matter most, IFC Markets has the edge; if app polish and overall ranking are your priority, Capital.com is the stronger pick.
| Feature |
Capital.com
|
IFC Markets
|
|---|---|---|
| Android App | Yes | Yes |
| Apple iOS App | Yes | Yes |
| Mobile Price Alerts | Yes | Yes |
| Mobile Watchlists - Syncing | No | Yes |
| Mobile Charting - Indicators / Studies | 30 | 30 |
| Mobile Charting - Draw Trendlines | Yes | Yes |
| Mobile Charting - Trendlines Autosave | Yes | Yes |
Dive deeper: Best Forex Trading Apps.
Capital.com and IFC Markets both cover the basics for market research: each provides daily market commentary, an economic calendar, and a sentiment tool that shows the long/short ratio across instruments. Capital.com goes further by offering forex news from top-tier sources such as Bloomberg, Reuters, or Dow Jones, and it also includes TipRanks research—two additions IFC Markets does not provide.
Neither broker integrates Autochartist, Trading Central, or Acuity Trading tools. Independent ratings reflect the gap in features: Capital.com earns 4.5 out of 5 stars for Research and ranks 14th out of 63 brokers at ForexBrokers.com, while IFC Markets scores 3.5 stars and ranks 30th. If you want stronger news coverage and third‑party insights, Capital.com is the better pick; if you only need commentary, a calendar, and sentiment data, either broker will do.
| Feature |
Capital.com
|
IFC Markets
|
|---|---|---|
| Daily Market Commentary (Articles) | Yes | Yes |
| Forex News (Top-Tier Sources) | Yes | No |
| Autochartist | No | No |
| Trading Central | No | No |
| Client sentiment data | Yes | Yes |
| TipRanks | Yes | No |
| Acuity Trading | No | No |
| Economic Calendar | Yes | Yes |
Dive deeper: Best Brokers for Forex Research.
Comparing Capital.com vs IFC Markets for beginner education, both brokers deliver plenty of easy-to-follow learning materials. Each offers a sizable video library with at least 10 beginner-focused lessons and 10 advanced tutorials, giving newcomers a clear path from basics to more complex ideas. You’ll find on-demand content that covers trading topics including forex and CFDs; however, neither broker hosts monthly live educational webinars.
Independent ratings tilt the scales toward Capital.com for education quality: it earns 4.5 out of 5 stars and ranks #8 out of 63 brokers at ForexBrokers.com, while IFC Markets scores 3.5 stars and ranks #25. If you want a stronger, higher-rated learning experience for beginners, Capital.com is the better pick, whereas IFC Markets still offers a solid video-based path for getting started.
| Feature |
Capital.com
|
IFC Markets
|
|---|---|---|
| Webinars | No | No |
| Videos - Beginner Trading Videos | Yes | Yes |
| Videos - Advanced Trading Videos | Yes | Yes |
Dive deeper: Best Forex Brokers for Beginners.
After testing 63 of the best forex brokers, our research and account testing finds that Capital.com is better than IFC Markets. Capital.com finished with an overall rank of #12, while IFC Markets finished with an overall rank of #33.
Capital.com stands out for its quality research, strong educational content, and innovative web platform. Capital.com holds fewer regulatory licenses and offers a narrower range of markets than some of the best brokers, but still significantly outperforms the industry average.
| Feature |
Capital.com
|
IFC Markets
|
|---|---|---|
| Overall Rating |
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| Trust Score | 87 | 73 |
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In this comparison, online brokers Capital.com and IFC Markets both do not offer the ability to buy actual (delivered) cryptocurrency, but each does provide cryptocurrency CFD trading.
Capital.com vs IFC Markets: neither supports ACH or SEPA transfers; Capital.com supports PayPal, Skrill, and bank wire deposits/withdrawals, while IFC Markets lacks PayPal and Skrill and offers only bank wires; Visa/Mastercard availability is not specified for either.
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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| Trust Score | 87 | 73 | |
| Winner | check_circle | ||
| Review | Capital.com Review |
| Broker Screenshots | Capital.com | IFC Markets | |
|---|---|---|---|
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