Written by ForexBrokers.com
In this head to head comparison of CMC Markets vs Octa, we will compare the trading platforms, mobile apps, range of investments, costs, market research, and more. Let's dive in.
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CMC Markets vs Octa: CMC Markets was founded in 1989 and is publicly traded, while Octa began in 2011 and is not publicly traded. Neither broker is a bank. Based on ForexBrokers.com’s Trust Score, CMC Markets scores 99/99 (90–99 = highly trusted), and Octa scores 73/99 (70–79 = average risk; 80–89 = trusted; 60–69 = high risk; below 59 = not trusted).
On regulation, CMC Markets holds six Tier-1 licenses (considered highly trusted by ForexBrokers.com) and one Tier-2 license (trusted). Octa holds one Tier-1 license and one Tier-2 license. In short, CMC Markets carries more top-tier regulatory approvals, while Octa has fewer.
| Feature |
CMC Markets
|
Octa
|
|---|---|---|
| Year Founded | 1989 | 2011 |
| Publicly Traded (Listed) | Yes | No |
| Bank | No | No |
| Tier-1 Licenses | 6 | 1 |
| Tier-2 Licenses | 1 | 1 |
| Tier-3 Licenses | 0 | 0 |
| Tier-4 Licenses | 0 | 1 |
CMC Markets is the stronger choice for commissions and fees, earning a 5-star rating and ranking #4 out of 36 brokers at ForexBrokers.com. It stands out for consistently low spreads across all account types, including an average EUR/USD spread of 0.61 pips based on its August 2023 pricing data. CMC also offers an active trader discount program, plus its FX Active pricing model, which charges $2.50 per side with minimum spreads from 0 pips, creating a 0.5 pip all-in cost on EUR/USD and several other major pairs.
Octa has improved its pricing and now competes more closely with low-cost MetaTrader brokers, but it still trails CMC Markets overall. Octa earns 4 stars and ranks #26 out of 36 brokers for commissions and fees. Its average EUR/USD spread is listed at 0.5 pips for EU clients and 0.9 pips for international clients, though Octa does not provide a date range for these spread figures, which makes them harder to compare directly with brokers that do.
In simple terms, CMC Markets offers clearer pricing and stronger value for most traders, especially if low trading costs are a top priority. Octa can still be a good low-cost option, but its fee structure depends more on account type and regulator, and it has more limits that may affect active traders.
| Feature |
CMC Markets
|
Octa
|
|---|---|---|
| Minimum Deposit | $0 | $25 |
| Average spread (EUR/USD) - Standard account | 1.3 | 0.9 |
| All-in Cost EUR/USD - Active | 0.65 | N/A |
| Non-wire bank transfer | Yes | No |
| PayPal (Deposit/Withdraw) | Yes | No |
| Skrill (Deposit/Withdraw) | No | Yes |
| Bank Wire (Deposit/Withdraw) | Yes | Yes |
Dive deeper: Best Low Spread Forex Brokers.
When it comes to range of investments, CMC Markets gives traders far more choice than Octa. CMC Markets offers 12,029 tradeable symbols and 141 forex pairs, while Octa offers 300 symbols and 35 forex pairs. Both brokers support forex trading, copy trading, international exchange-traded shares, and cryptocurrency CFDs, but neither lets clients buy actual cryptocurrency.
There is also a clear difference in stock access: CMC Markets lets clients buy exchange-traded securities on U.S. markets as well as international exchanges, while Octa only offers international exchange-traded securities. Reflecting this wider selection, CMC Markets is rated 5 stars for Range of Investments and ranks #9 out of 36 brokers at ForexBrokers.com, compared with Octa’s 3.5 stars and #33 ranking.
| Feature |
CMC Markets
|
Octa
|
|---|---|---|
| Forex Trading (Spot or CFDs) | Yes | Yes |
| Tradeable Symbols (Total) | 12029 | 300 |
| Forex Pairs (Total) | 141 | 35 |
| U.S. Stocks (Shares) | Yes | No |
| Global Stocks (Non-U.S. Shares) | Yes | Yes |
| Copy Trading | Yes | 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). | 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 Octa both give traders a strong set of platform choices, including free demo accounts, their own in-house platform, Windows desktop software, web-based trading, MetaTrader 4, MetaTrader 5, and copy trading. Each broker also lets users trade directly from charts, which can make order entry faster and easier for beginners and active traders alike. In short, both platforms cover the key basics for trading online, whether you prefer to use a browser, download software, or practice first with simulated trading.
Where they differ is in overall platform quality and industry ranking. CMC Markets is rated 5 out of 5 stars for Trading Platforms and Tools and ranks #6 out of 36 brokers on ForexBrokers.com, while Octa earns 4 out of 5 stars and ranks #30. If you are comparing CMC Markets vs Octa for trading tools, CMC Markets stands out as the stronger pick overall, although Octa still offers many of the same core features traders look for.
| Feature |
CMC Markets
|
Octa
|
|---|---|---|
| Virtual Trading (Demo) | Yes | Yes |
| Proprietary Desktop Trading Platform | Yes | Yes |
| Desktop Platform (Windows) | Yes | Yes |
| Web Platform | Yes | Yes |
| Copy Trading | Yes | Yes |
| MetaTrader 4 (MT4) | Yes | Yes |
| MetaTrader 5 (MT5) | Yes | Yes |
| Charting - Indicators / Studies (Total) | 73 | 30 |
| Charting - Trade From Chart | Yes | Yes |
Dive deeper: Best MetaTrader 4 Brokers, Best MetaTrader 5 Brokers.
CMC Markets and Octa both make it easy to trade on the go, with iPhone and Android apps, price alerts, trendline drawing, and automatic saving for chart drawings. Both platforms give mobile users the core tools they need to monitor the market and manage trades from a phone or tablet.
That said, CMC Markets has the edge for mobile trading apps overall. It offers watchlist symbol syncing, so changes made in the app carry over to the online account, while Octa does not. CMC Markets is also rated 5 stars for mobile trading apps and ranks #5 out of 36 brokers by ForexBrokers.com, compared with Octa’s 4 stars and #29 ranking. Octa does slightly lead in charting depth with 30 technical studies versus 29 for CMC Markets, but CMC Markets remains the stronger pick for most mobile traders.
| Feature |
CMC Markets
|
Octa
|
|---|---|---|
| Android App | Yes | Yes |
| Apple iOS App | Yes | Yes |
| Mobile Price Alerts | Yes | Yes |
| Mobile Watchlists - Syncing | Yes | No |
| Mobile Charting - Indicators / Studies | 29 | 30 |
| Mobile Charting - Draw Trendlines | Yes | Yes |
| Mobile Charting - Trendlines Autosave | Yes | Yes |
Dive deeper: Best Forex Trading Apps.
When it comes to market research, both CMC Markets and Octa give traders useful everyday tools. Each broker offers daily market commentary, forex news from top names like Bloomberg, Reuters, and Dow Jones, Autochartist tools, and an economic calendar for tracking key global events. Neither broker includes Trading Central, TipRanks, or Acuity Trading research.
The main difference is that CMC Markets adds a sentiment tool showing long and short positioning across currency pairs and other instruments, while Octa does not. That extra feature, along with CMC Markets’ 5-star Research rating and #6 ranking out of 36 brokers from ForexBrokers.com, helps it edge ahead of Octa, which holds a 4-star Research rating and a #24 ranking.
| Feature |
CMC Markets
|
Octa
|
|---|---|---|
| Daily Market Commentary (Articles) | Yes | Yes |
| Forex News (Top-Tier Sources) | Yes | Yes |
| Autochartist | Yes | Yes |
| Trading Central | No | No |
| Client sentiment data | Yes | No |
| TipRanks | No | No |
| Acuity Trading | No | No |
| Economic Calendar | Yes | Yes |
Dive deeper: Best Brokers for Forex Research.
When it comes to beginner-friendly learning tools, CMC Markets gives new traders a stronger education offering than Octa. Both brokers provide at least 10 beginner videos and at least 10 advanced videos, so each one has useful material for people at different skill levels. CMC Markets also earns a perfect 5-star Education rating and ranks #10 out of 36 brokers on ForexBrokers.com, which points to a more complete learning experience overall.
Octa still has value for beginners, especially because it offers monthly online client webinars, which CMC Markets does not. That said, Octa is rated 4 stars for Education and ranks #32 out of 36, suggesting a less extensive education section than CMC Markets. In short, Octa may appeal to learners who like live webinars, but CMC Markets is the better choice for those who want a wider range of trading education resources.
| Feature |
CMC Markets
|
Octa
|
|---|---|---|
| Webinars | No | Yes |
| 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 CMC Markets is better than Octa. CMC Markets finished with an overall rank of #5, while Octa finished with an overall rank of #34.
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
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Octa
|
|---|---|---|
| Overall Rating |
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| Trust Score | 99 | 73 |
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In the CMC Markets vs Octa comparison, neither online broker lets you buy actual (delivered) cryptocurrencies, but both support trading cryptocurrency CFDs.
In a CMC Markets vs Octa comparison for deposits and withdrawals, online broker CMC Markets supports ACH/SEPA and PayPal (Octa does not), both offer bank wire transfers, Octa alone supports Skrill (CMC Markets does not), and Visa/Mastercard availability is not specified for either broker.
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 | Octa | |
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| Trust Score | 99 | 73 | |
| Winner | check_circle | ||
| Review | CMC Markets Review | Octa Review |
| Broker Screenshots | CMC Markets | Octa | |
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| Regulation | CMC Markets | Octa | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Trust Score | 99 | 73 | |
| Year Founded | 1989 | 2011 | |
| Publicly Traded (Listed) | Yes | No | |
| Bank | No | No | |
| Regulated in one or more EU or EEA countries (MiFID). | Yes | Yes | |
| Tier-1 Licenses | 6 | 1 | |
| Tier-2 Licenses | 1 | 1 | |
| Tier-3 Licenses | 0 | 0 | |
| Tier-4 Licenses | 0 | 1 |
| Tier-1 Licenses (Highly Trusted) | CMC Markets | Octa | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Australia (ASIC Authorised) | Yes | No | |
| Canada (CIRO Authorised) | Yes | No | |
| Hong Kong (SFC Authorised) | No | No | |
| Japan (FSA Authorised) | No | No | |
| Singapore (MAS Authorised) | Yes | No | |
| Switzerland (FINMA Authorised) | |||
| United Kingdom (U.K.) (FCA Authorised) | Yes | No | |
| 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 | Octa | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kenya (CMA Authorised) | |||
| Israel (ISA Authorised) | No | No | |
| South Africa (FSCA Authorised) | No | Yes | |
| UAE (DFSA, FSRA, or CMA Authorised) | Yes | No | |
| India (SEBI Authorised) | No | No | |
| Jordan (JSC Authorised) |
| Investments | CMC Markets | Octa | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Forex Trading (Spot or CFDs) | Yes | Yes | |
| Tradeable Symbols (Total) | 12029 | 300 | |
| Forex Pairs (Total) | 141 | 35 | |
| U.S. Stocks (Shares) | Yes | No | |
| Global Stocks (Non-U.S. Shares) | Yes | Yes | |
| Copy Trading | Yes | 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). | 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 | Octa | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average spread (EUR/USD) - Standard account | 1.3 | 0.9 | |
| All-in Cost EUR/USD - Active | 0.65 | N/A | |
| Inactivity Fee | Yes | No | |
| Order execution: Agency | No | Yes | |
| Order execution: Market Maker | Yes | Yes |
| Funding | CMC Markets | Octa | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Minimum Deposit | $0 | $25 | |
| 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 | Octa | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Proprietary Desktop Trading Platform | Yes | Yes | |
| Desktop Platform (Windows) | Yes | Yes | |
| Web Platform | Yes | Yes | |
| Copy Trading | Yes | Yes | |
| MetaTrader 4 (MT4) | Yes | Yes | |
| MetaTrader 5 (MT5) | Yes | Yes | |
| cTrader | No | No |
| Trading Tools | CMC Markets | Octa | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Virtual Trading (Demo) | Yes | Yes | |
| Price Alerts | Yes | Yes | |
| Charting - Indicators / Studies (Total) | 73 | 30 | |
| Charting - Trade From Chart | Yes | Yes | |
| Charts can be saved | Yes | Yes |
| Mobile Trading | CMC Markets | Octa | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Android App | Yes | Yes | |
| Apple iOS App | Yes | Yes | |
| Mobile Price Alerts | Yes | Yes | |
| Mobile Watchlist [DELETED] | |||
| Mobile Watchlists - Syncing | Yes | No | |
| Mobile Charting - Indicators / Studies | 29 | 30 | |
| Mobile Charting - Draw Trendlines | Yes | Yes | |
| Mobile Charting - Trendlines Autosave | Yes | Yes | |
| Mobile Research - Economic Calendar | Yes | Yes |
| Research | CMC Markets | Octa | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Daily Market Commentary (Articles) | Yes | Yes | |
| Forex News (Top-Tier Sources) | Yes | Yes | |
| Autochartist | Yes | Yes | |
| Trading Central | No | No | |
| TipRanks | No | No | |
| Client sentiment data | Yes | No | |
| Economic Calendar | Yes | Yes |
| Education | CMC Markets | Octa | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Webinars | No | Yes | |
| Videos - Beginner Trading Videos | Yes | Yes | |
| Videos - Advanced Trading Videos | Yes | Yes |
| Major Forex Pairs | CMC Markets | Octa | |
|---|---|---|---|
| GBP/USD [DELETED] | |||
| USD/JPY [DELETED] | |||
| EUR/USD | Yes | Yes | |
| USD/CHF [DELETED] | |||
| USD/CAD [DELETED] | |||
| NZD/USD [DELETED] | |||
| AUD/USD [DELETED] | |||
| Review | CMC Markets Review | Octa Review |
| Overall | CMC Markets | Octa | |
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| Trust Score | 99 | 73 | |
| Winner | check_circle | ||
| Review | CMC Markets Review | Octa Review |
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