Written by ForexBrokers.com
In this head to head comparison of CMC Markets vs Exness, 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.
CMC Markets, established in 1989, is a veteran in the online trading industry, known for being publicly traded on a stock exchange, which adds an extra layer of transparency and accountability. They hold an impressive six Tier-1 licenses, reflecting a highly trusted status. Additionally, CMC Markets has one Tier-2 license, supporting their overall reliability. With a perfect Trust Score of 99 out of 99 from ForexBrokers.com, CMC Markets provides traders with confidence in their regulatory oversight and industry standing despite not being a bank.
Founded in 2008, Exness has steadily gained credibility in the trading world, though it isn't publicly traded. Geared towards earning trust, Exness holds two Tier-1 licenses and three Tier-2 licenses, positioning it as a trusted broker. With a ForexBrokers.com Trust Score of 81, Exness is considered a secure platform for traders. It offers a solid choice for those seeking a regulated online broker while also not operating as a bank.
| Feature |
CMC Markets
|
Exness
|
|---|---|---|
| Year Founded | 1989 | 2008 |
| Publicly Traded (Listed) | Yes | No |
| Bank | No | No |
| Tier-1 Licenses | 6 | 2 |
| Tier-2 Licenses | 1 | 3 |
| Tier-3 Licenses | 0 | 0 |
| Tier-4 Licenses | 0 | 3 |
CMC Markets earns 5 stars and ranks #1 out of 63 brokers for Commissions and Fees. Its everyday pricing is competitive, with typical EUR/USD spreads around 0.61 pips (Aug 2023 data). The FX Active plan charges $2.50 per side in commission with minimum spreads of zero, delivering an all-in cost of about 0.5 pips on the EUR/USD and several other major pairs. CMC’s average spreads tend to stay close to its advertised minimums, and frequent traders can lower costs further via the Price Plus Scheme, which offers tiered spread discounts based on Trading Points (for example, 1,250 standard lots in a month would qualify for a 20% discount at Tier 4).
Exness earns 4 stars and ranks #36 out of 63 for Commissions and Fees. It offers multiple account types: Standard Cent (highest spreads) and Standard (slightly lower spreads), both with market execution; Pro (lower spreads without commissions) with a choice of instant or market execution; and two commission-based options with tighter spreads. The Zero Spread account charges a $0.05 per-trade commission with market execution, while the Raw account charges up to $7 per round turn ($3.5 per side). For Zero Spread and Raw, margin calls trigger at 30%, and there are no stated restrictions on leverage or stop-out settings.
Bottom line: CMC Markets generally delivers lower all-in trading costs—especially for active FX traders using FX Active—supported by average spreads that closely track its minimums. Exness stands out for flexibility across account types and the ability to choose between commission-free or commission-based pricing, though its ranking suggests higher typical costs than CMC Markets. Always compare average spreads and total per-trade costs (spread plus commission) for the pairs you trade most.
| Feature |
CMC Markets
|
Exness
|
|---|---|---|
| Minimum Deposit | $0 | $10 |
| Average Spread EUR/USD - Standard | 1.3 | N/A |
| All-in Cost EUR/USD - Active | 0.65 | N/A |
| Active Trader or VIP Discounts [DELETED] | ||
| Non-wire bank transfer | Yes | No |
| PayPal (Deposit/Withdraw) | Yes | No |
| Skrill (Deposit/Withdraw) | No | Yes |
| Visa/Mastercard (Credit/Debit) [DELETED] | ||
| Bank Wire (Deposit/Withdraw) | Yes | Yes |
Dive deeper: Best Low Spread Forex Brokers.
CMC Markets offers a far wider range of investments than Exness. It lists 12,029 tradeable symbols versus Exness’ 209, and 141 forex pairs compared with 96. Both brokers support forex trading as CFDs or spot, and both offer cryptocurrency derivatives (but not direct, delivered crypto). A key difference: CMC Markets lets you buy exchange‑traded stocks on U.S. and international exchanges, while Exness does not. Both include copy trading.
For Range of Investments, CMC Markets earns 5 stars and ranks #9 out of 63 brokers on ForexBrokers.com, while Exness scores 3.5 stars and ranks #56. If you want the widest selection across markets—especially access to U.S. and international shares—CMC Markets stands out; if your focus is mainly forex with copy trading, Exness may cover the basics.
| Feature |
CMC Markets
|
Exness
|
|---|---|---|
| Forex Trading (Spot or CFDs) | Yes | Yes |
| Tradeable Symbols (Total) | 12029 | 209 |
| Forex Pairs (Total) | 141 | 96 |
| U.S. Stock Trading (Non CFD) | Yes | 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.
CMC Markets and Exness both check the key boxes for traders who care about platform choice. Each broker offers a free demo (paper) account, a proprietary platform built in-house, and support for MetaTrader 4 (MT4) and MetaTrader 5 (MT5). You can trade in a web browser or with a Windows desktop download, use copy trading features, and place orders directly from charts.
Where they differ is in third-party evaluations. For trading platforms and tools, ForexBrokers.com rates CMC Markets at 5 stars and ranks it #4 out of 63 brokers, while Exness earns 4 stars and ranks #26. In short, both provide broad platform coverage and chart trading, but CMC Markets scores higher overall for platforms and tools in independent testing.
| Feature |
CMC Markets
|
Exness
|
|---|---|---|
| Virtual Trading (Demo) | Yes | Yes |
| Proprietary Desktop Trading Platform | Yes | Yes |
| 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 [DELETED] | ||
| ZuluTrade [DELETED] | ||
| Charting - Indicators / Studies (Total) | 73 | 107 |
| Charting - Drawing Tools (Total) [DELETED] | ||
| Charting - Trade From Chart | Yes | Yes |
| Watchlists - Total Fields [DELETED] |
Dive deeper: Best MetaTrader 4 Brokers, Best MetaTrader 5 Brokers.
Both CMC Markets and Exness offer full-featured mobile trading apps for iPhone and Android. Each app supports price alerts, real-time quote watchlists, drawing tools like trendlines, and responsive charting. These essentials make it easy to track forex and stocks on the go and act quickly when markets move.
The key differences come down to syncing, chart tools, and overall ratings. CMC Markets syncs watchlists with your web account and auto-saves chart drawings; Exness does not. Exness provides more built-in technical studies (35 vs. CMC’s 29), which may appeal to indicator-focused traders. That said, CMC Markets earns a higher score for mobile: 5 stars and #5 out of 63 brokers at ForexBrokers.com, versus Exness at 4 stars and #26. Choose CMC if seamless syncing and saved annotations matter most; pick Exness if you want a wider range of indicators.
| Feature |
CMC Markets
|
Exness
|
|---|---|---|
| Android App | Yes | Yes |
| Apple iOS App | Yes | Yes |
| Mobile Price Alerts | Yes | Yes |
| Watchlist Syncing | Yes | No |
| Mobile Charting - Indicators / Studies | 29 | 35 |
| Mobile Charting - Draw Trendlines | Yes | Yes |
| Mobile Charting - Multiple Time Frames | ||
| Mobile Charting - Trendlines Autosave | Yes | No |
| Mobile Watchlist | Yes | Yes |
Dive deeper: Best Forex Trading Apps.
CMC Markets and Exness both cover the basics for market research: daily market commentary, forex headlines from leading sources like Bloomberg or Reuters, an economic calendar, and sentiment tools that show the ratio of long vs. short positions. Neither broker includes TipRanks or Acuity Trading. The key difference comes down to third‑party tools: CMC Markets offers Autochartist for pattern recognition, while Exness integrates Trading Central instead. Your preference may hinge on which toolkit you find more useful for your trading style.
For overall quality, CMC Markets earns 5 stars for Research and ranks #6 out of 63 brokers, while Exness holds 3.5 stars and ranks #42, according to ForexBrokers.com. If you want a wider set of in-house research features paired with Autochartist, CMC Markets stands out; if Trading Central is a must-have, Exness fits the bill. Both deliver timely news and market insights to help you prepare for the trading day.
| Feature |
CMC Markets
|
Exness
|
|---|---|---|
| Daily Market Commentary | Yes | Yes |
| Forex News (Top-Tier Sources) | Yes | Yes |
| Autochartist | Yes | No |
| Trading Central (Recognia) | No | Yes |
| Client sentiment data | Yes | Yes |
| TipRanks | No | No |
| Signal Centre (Acuity Trading) | No | No |
| Economic Calendar | Yes | Yes |
Dive deeper: Best Brokers for Forex Research.
Comparing CMC Markets vs Exness for beginner education: CMC Markets stands out with a 5-star Education rating and a #10 ranking out of 63 brokers at ForexBrokers.com, while Exness holds 3.5 stars and ranks #47. Both brokers offer at least 10 beginner videos and at least 10 advanced videos, giving new traders clear starting points and room to progress across forex and CFD topics.
If live learning is important, Exness hosts monthly educational webinars; CMC Markets does not. It wasn’t specified whether either broker meets a formal “10-piece” forex/CFD education library threshold, offers a searchable archive of past webinars, or provides a large investor dictionary (50+ terms). In short, CMC Markets is the stronger pick for overall education quality, while Exness is appealing if you want ongoing live webinars alongside beginner-friendly videos.
| Feature |
CMC Markets
|
Exness
|
|---|---|---|
| Education (Forex or CFDs) | ||
| Webinars | No | Yes |
| Client Webinars (Archived) [DELETED] | ||
| Videos - Beginner Trading Videos | Yes | Yes |
| Videos - Advanced Trading Videos | Yes | Yes |
| Investor Dictionary (Glossary) [DELETED] |
Dive deeper: Best Forex Brokers for Beginners.
After testing 63 of the best forex brokers, our research and account testing finds that CMC Markets is better than Exness. CMC Markets finished with an overall rank of #4, while Exness finished with an overall rank of #43.
CMC Markets is well-trusted across the globe, and delivers a terrific trading experience thanks to its excellent pricing and selection of over 12,000 tradeable instruments.
| Feature |
CMC Markets
|
Exness
|
|---|---|---|
| Overall Rating |
|
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| Trust Score | 99 | 81 |
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Both CMC Markets and Exness do not provide the option to purchase actual cryptocurrencies, focusing instead on offering cryptocurrency derivatives for their trading platforms.
CMC Markets vs Exness: CMC supports ACH/SEPA, PayPal, and bank wires (no Skrill), while Exness supports Skrill and bank wires (no ACH/SEPA or PayPal), with Visa/Mastercard availability not specified for both.
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 | CMC Markets | Exness | |
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| Trust Score | 99 | 81 | |
| Winner | check_circle | ||
| Review | CMC Markets Review | Exness Review |
| Broker Screenshots | CMC Markets | Exness | |
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| Regulation | CMC Markets | Exness | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Trust Score | 99 | 81 | |
| Year Founded | 1989 | 2008 | |
| Publicly Traded (Listed) | Yes | No | |
| Bank | No | No | |
| Regulated in one or more EU or EEA countries (MiFID). | Yes | Yes | |
| Tier-1 Licenses | 6 | 2 | |
| Tier-2 Licenses | 1 | 3 | |
| Tier-3 Licenses | 0 | 0 | |
| Tier-4 Licenses | 0 | 3 |
| Tier-1 Licenses (Highly Trusted) | CMC Markets | Exness | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Australia (ASIC Authorised) | Yes | No | |
| Canada (CIRO Authorised) | Yes | No | |
| Hong Kong (SFC Authorised) | No | No | |
| Japan (SFC Authorised) | No | No | |
| Singapore (MAS Authorised) | Yes | No | |
| Switzerland (FINMA Authorised) | |||
| United Kingdom (U.K.) (FCA Authorised) | Yes | Yes | |
| USA (CFTC Authorized) | No | No | |
| New Zealand (FMA Authorised) | Yes | No | |
| Regulated in one or more EU or EEA countries (MiFID). | Yes | Yes |
| Tier-2 Licenses (Trusted) | CMC Markets | Exness | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kenya (CMA Authorised) | Yes | ||
| Israel (ISA Authorised) | No | No | |
| South Africa (FSCA Authorised) | No | Yes | |
| UAE (DFSA, FSRA, or SCA Authorised) | Yes | Yes | |
| India (SEBI Authorised) | No | No | |
| Jordan (JSC Authorised) | Yes |
| Investments | CMC Markets | Exness | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Forex Trading (Spot or CFDs) | Yes | Yes | |
| Tradeable Symbols (Total) | 12029 | 209 | |
| Forex Pairs (Total) | 141 | 96 | |
| U.S. Stock Trading (Non CFD) | Yes | 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 | CMC Markets | Exness | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average Spread EUR/USD - Standard | 1.3 | N/A | |
| All-in Cost EUR/USD - Active | 0.65 | N/A | |
| Inactivity Fee | Yes | No | |
| Execution: Agency Broker | No | Yes | |
| Execution: Market Maker | Yes | Yes |
| Funding | CMC Markets | Exness | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Minimum Deposit | $0 | $10 | |
| PayPal (Deposit/Withdraw) | Yes | No | |
| Skrill (Deposit/Withdraw) | No | Yes | |
| Bank Wire (Deposit/Withdraw) | Yes | Yes | |
| Non-wire bank transfer | Yes | No |
| Trading Platforms | CMC Markets | Exness | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Proprietary Desktop Trading Platform | Yes | Yes | |
| 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 |
| Trading Tools | CMC Markets | Exness | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Virtual Trading (Demo) | Yes | Yes | |
| Price Alerts | Yes | Yes | |
| Charting - Indicators / Studies (Total) | 73 | 107 | |
| Charting - Trade From Chart | Yes | Yes | |
| Charts can be saved | Yes | Yes |
| Mobile Trading | CMC Markets | Exness | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Android App | Yes | Yes | |
| Apple iOS App | Yes | Yes | |
| Mobile Price Alerts | Yes | Yes | |
| Mobile Watchlist | Yes | Yes | |
| Watchlist Syncing | Yes | No | |
| Mobile Charting - Indicators / Studies | 29 | 35 | |
| Mobile Charting - Draw Trendlines | Yes | Yes | |
| Mobile Charting - Trendlines Autosave | Yes | No | |
| Mobile Research - Economic Calendar | Yes | Yes |
| Research | CMC Markets | Exness | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Daily Market Commentary | Yes | Yes | |
| Forex News (Top-Tier Sources) | Yes | Yes | |
| Autochartist | Yes | No | |
| Trading Central (Recognia) | No | Yes | |
| TipRanks | No | No | |
| Client sentiment data | Yes | Yes | |
| Economic Calendar | Yes | Yes |
| Education | CMC Markets | Exness | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Webinars | No | Yes | |
| Videos - Beginner Trading Videos | Yes | Yes | |
| Videos - Advanced Trading Videos | Yes | Yes |
| Major Forex Pairs | CMC Markets | Exness | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 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 | CMC Markets Review | Exness Review |
| Overall | CMC Markets | Exness | |
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| Trust Score | 99 | 81 | |
| Winner | check_circle | ||
| Review | CMC Markets Review | Exness Review |
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