Written by ForexBrokers.com
In this head to head comparison of Eightcap vs IronFX, 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.
Eightcap and IronFX are two online brokers that both started operations within a year of each other, with Eightcap established in 2009 and IronFX following in 2010. While neither broker is publicly traded or operates as a bank, they both hold 3 Tier-1 licenses, ensuring they are considered highly trusted authorities in the industry. However, neither holds any Tier-2 licenses.
When it comes to trustworthiness, as rated by ForexBrokers.com, Eightcap scores slightly higher with a Trust Score of 85, classifying it as a trusted broker. IronFX, on the other hand, closely trails with a Trust Score of 83, also falling into the trusted category. Both brokers are therefore positioned favorably for traders seeking reliable online trading platforms.
| Feature |
Eightcap
|
IronFX
|
|---|---|---|
| Year Founded | 2009 | 2010 |
| Publicly Traded (Listed) | No | No |
| Bank | No | No |
| Tier-1 Licenses | 3 | 3 |
| Tier-2 Licenses | 0 | 0 |
| Tier-3 Licenses | 0 | 0 |
| Tier-4 Licenses | 1 | 1 |
When comparing the commissions and fees between Eightcap and IronFX, both brokers offer distinct pricing structures that cater to various trading needs. Eightcap provides two account options, including the commission-based Raw account and the spread-only Standard account. The Raw account features an average spread of 0.06 pips, but once the per-side commission of $3.50 per trade is included, the all-in cost is around 0.76 pips. This rate is slightly below the industry average of 0.8 pips. Despite this, Eightcap remains marginally more costly than the most budget-friendly forex brokers. Eightcap earns a commendable 4-star rating for commissions and fees and is ranked #26 out of 63 brokers by ForexBrokers.com.
IronFX, on the other hand, shows potential for improvement in its pricing model, as it tends to feature spreads that exceed the industry average. The Standard variable spread account typically lists spreads of 1.8 pips, though specifics on the time frame for these figures are absent. Additionally, IronFX offers a zero fixed-spread account starting at no spread but imposes a $18 per lot commission, with spreads widening to 3 pips overnight. These factors contribute to IronFX's competitive positioning, with a 4-star rating for commissions and fees, though its ranking is lower at #46 out of 63 brokers according to ForexBrokers.com.
In conclusion, both Eightcap and IronFX offer trading solutions with unique cost structures. Eightcap appeals to traders seeking slightly lower all-in costs with its Raw account, while IronFX provides options like the zero fixed-spread account for those who prefer a different fee set-up, despite generally higher spreads. This comparison highlights the importance of assessing both commissions and associated account features when choosing a broker to ensure it aligns with individual trading strategies and budget considerations.
| Feature |
Eightcap
|
IronFX
|
|---|---|---|
| Minimum Deposit | $100 | $50 |
| Average Spread EUR/USD - Standard | 1.0 | 1.2 |
| All-in Cost EUR/USD - Active | 0.76 | N/A |
| Active Trader or VIP Discounts | No | Yes |
| ACH or SEPA Transfers | No | No |
| PayPal (Deposit/Withdraw) | Yes | 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 Eightcap and IronFX in terms of their available range of investments, both offer forex trading through CFDs or spot contracts. For those interested in variety, Eightcap provides access to 800 tradeable symbols, while IronFX offers 340. Although IronFX surpasses Eightcap in offering a larger selection of forex pairs—83 compared to 56—neither broker allows clients to purchase exchange-traded securities in the U.S. or international markets, such as Apple or Vodafone shares.
Both brokers accommodate investors seeking cryptocurrency derivatives, although they do not enable direct cryptocurrency purchases. Additionally, each platform supports copy trading, appealing to users interested in replicating successful strategies. Despite these similarities, Eightcap and IronFX both receive a 3.5-star rating for their range of investments. According to ForexBrokers.com, Eightcap ranks 40th, while IronFX falls behind at the 51st position among 63 brokers assessed in this category.
| Feature |
Eightcap
|
IronFX
|
|---|---|---|
| Forex Trading (Spot or CFDs) | Yes | Yes |
| Tradeable Symbols (Total) | 800 | 340 |
| Forex Pairs (Total) | 56 | 83 |
| U.S. Stock Trading (Non CFD) | No | No |
| Int'l Stock Trading (Non CFD) | No | 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.
When comparing Eightcap and IronFX, both brokers stand out by offering virtual demo accounts for simulated trading, making it easy for beginners to practice without risks. Neither broker develops a proprietary platform in-house, but both provide the widely-used MetaTrader 4 (MT4), with Eightcap also offering MetaTrader 5 (MT5). This gives Eightcap a slight edge for traders looking for more advanced tools. Both brokers have downloadable Windows-based desktop platforms and web-based trading options, ensuring accessibility from various devices. They also both offer copy trading but do not support DupliTrade or ZuluTrade.
Regarding charting tools, Eightcap and IronFX are evenly matched, providing 15 drawing tools and the ability to trade directly from stock charts. Watch lists are customizable in both platforms with seven available columns. However, Eightcap takes the lead with a higher rating of 4 stars, compared to IronFX's 3.5 stars, for trading platforms and tools. Additionally, Eightcap is ranked 38th among 63 brokers by ForexBrokers.com, surpassing IronFX, which holds the 61st position. This positions Eightcap as a slightly more attractive option for users seeking a comprehensive trading platform experience.
| Feature |
Eightcap
|
IronFX
|
|---|---|---|
| Virtual Trading (Demo) | Yes | Yes |
| Proprietary Platform | No | 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 | No |
| 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.
Both Eightcap and IronFX offer mobile trading apps for iPhone and Android devices, meeting the essential needs of traders on the go. They each provide stock or forex price alerts and allow for comprehensive charting, including 30 technical studies and the ability to draw trendlines. Users can also view charts across multiple time frames and enjoy auto-saving of their drawings. These features make each app a suitable choice for traders targeting detailed analysis and swift, informed decision-making.
However, Eightcap edges ahead in terms of user experience with its watchlist symbol syncing feature, which IronFX lacks. This functionality ensures that any changes made either on the app or via the online account remain up-to-date across platforms. Both apps allow for the creation of watchlists with real-time quotes, yet Eightcap’s app garners a slightly higher user rating of 4 stars compared to IronFX’s 3.5 stars. Consequently, Eightcap ranks higher for mobile trading by ForexBrokers.com, securing the 38th spot out of 63 brokers, while IronFX takes the 62nd position.
| Feature |
Eightcap
|
IronFX
|
|---|---|---|
| Android App | Yes | Yes |
| Apple iOS App | Yes | Yes |
| Mobile Alerts - Basic Fields | Yes | Yes |
| Watchlist Syncing | Yes | No |
| Mobile Charting - Indicators / Studies | 30 | 30 |
| 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.
Both Eightcap and IronFX provide daily market commentary, making them valuable options for traders seeking regular insights. While Eightcap excels with their sentiment-based trading tool that indicates the ratio of long or short positions across currency pairs, IronFX stands out by supplying forex news from prestigious sources like Bloomberg, Reuters, and Dow Jones. Furthermore, IronFX enhances its offering with research tools from Trading Central, providing additional technical analysis resources that Eightcap doesn't offer.
For traders needing an economic calendar, both brokers have you covered, displaying current and upcoming global news events. In terms of market research ratings, IronFX scores higher with 4 stars and ranks 28th among 63 brokers according to ForexBrokers.com. Meanwhile, Eightcap holds a 3.5-star rating and ranks 39th on the same list, indicating a slightly less comprehensive research service compared to IronFX. Overall, IronFX appears to have a more varied and advanced research suite, making it the more preferred choice for in-depth market analysis.
| Feature |
Eightcap
|
IronFX
|
|---|---|---|
| Daily Market Commentary | Yes | Yes |
| Forex News (Top-Tier Sources) | No | Yes |
| Autochartist | No | No |
| Trading Central (Recognia) | No | Yes |
| Social Sentiment - Currency Pairs | Yes | No |
| TipRanks | No | No |
| Signal Centre (Acuity Trading) | No | No |
| Economic Calendar | Yes | Yes |
Dive deeper: Best Brokers for Forex Research.
For beginners entering the world of online trading, both Eightcap and IronFX provide a foundation with a variety of educational resources focused on forex and CFDs. They each offer a selection of over 10 educational pieces such as articles, videos, and archived webinars, making it easier for novices to grasp essential trading concepts. Additionally, both brokers maintain accessible archives of recorded webinars, granting users the flexibility to learn at their own pace. Both also offer more than 10 beginner-friendly educational videos, making them solid options for those new to trading.
Despite similarities, there are subtle differences between the two. Eightcap excels with a comprehensive investor dictionary of over 50 terms, enhancing its educational offering for beginners. While neither broker provides regular educational webinars, both have been recognized by industry reviews, with IronFX slightly ahead in educational rankings, earning a four-star rating compared to Eightcap's 3.5 stars. However, Eightcap is ranked higher on ForexBrokers.com at #40, compared to IronFX at #44. These distinctions can help guide those starting their trading education journey in deciding which platform aligns best with their learning preferences.
| Feature |
Eightcap
|
IronFX
|
|---|---|---|
| Education (Forex or CFDs) | Yes | Yes |
| Client Webinars | No | No |
| Client Webinars (Archived) | Yes | Yes |
| Videos - Beginner Trading Videos | Yes | Yes |
| Videos - Advanced Trading Videos | No | 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 Eightcap is better than IronFX. Eightcap finished with an overall rank of #38, while IronFX finished with an overall rank of #48.
Eightcap enhances its status as a MetaTrader-only broker with support for a suite of third-party plug-ins, including TradingView.
| Feature |
Eightcap
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IronFX
|
|---|---|---|
| Overall Rating |
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| Trust Score | 85 | 83 |
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Both Eightcap and IronFX do not facilitate the purchase of actual cryptocurrencies but do offer the option to trade cryptocurrency derivatives.
Eightcap and IronFX both support Skrill, Visa, Mastercard, and bank wire transfers for deposits and withdrawals, but only Eightcap provides the option of using PayPal, while neither platform supports ACH or SEPA transfers.
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 | Eightcap | IronFX | |
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| Trust Score | 85 | 83 | |
| Winner | check_circle | ||
| Review | Eightcap Review |
| Broker Screenshots | Eightcap | IronFX | |
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| Regulation | Eightcap | IronFX | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Trust Score | 85 | 83 | |
| Year Founded | 2009 | 2010 | |
| Publicly Traded (Listed) | No | No | |
| Bank | No | No | |
| Regulated in one or more EU or EEA countries (MiFID). | Yes | Yes | |
| Tier-1 Licenses | 3 | 3 | |
| Tier-2 Licenses | 0 | 0 | |
| Tier-3 Licenses | 0 | 0 | |
| Tier-4 Licenses | 1 | 1 |
| Tier-1 Licenses (Highly Trusted) | Eightcap | IronFX | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Australia (ASIC Authorised) | Yes | Yes | |
| Canada (CIRO Authorised) | No | No | |
| Hong Kong (SFC Authorised) | No | No | |
| Japan (SFC Authorised) | No | No | |
| Singapore (MAS Authorised) | No | No | |
| Switzerland (FINMA Authorised) | No | No | |
| United Kingdom (U.K.) (FCA Authorised) | Yes | 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) | Eightcap | IronFX | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kenya (CMA Authorised) | No | No | |
| Israel (ISA Authorised) | No | No | |
| South Africa (FSCA Authorised) | No | No | |
| UAE (DFSA/Central Bank Authorised) | No | No | |
| India (SEBI Authorised) | No | No | |
| Jordan (JSC Authorised) | No | No |
| Investments | Eightcap | IronFX | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Forex Trading (Spot or CFDs) | Yes | Yes | |
| Tradeable Symbols (Total) | 800 | 340 | |
| Forex Pairs (Total) | 56 | 83 | |
| U.S. Stock Trading (Non CFD) | No | No | |
| Int'l Stock Trading (Non CFD) | No | 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 | Eightcap | IronFX | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average Spread EUR/USD - Standard | 1.0 | 1.2 | |
| All-in Cost EUR/USD - Active | 0.76 | N/A | |
| Active Trader or VIP Discounts | No | Yes | |
| Inactivity Fee | No | No | |
| Execution: Agency Broker | Yes | Yes | |
| Execution: Market Maker | Yes | Yes |
| Funding | Eightcap | IronFX | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Minimum Deposit | $100 | $50 | |
| PayPal (Deposit/Withdraw) | Yes | 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 | Eightcap | IronFX | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Proprietary Platform | No | 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 | No | |
| cTrader | No | No | |
| DupliTrade | No | No | |
| ZuluTrade | No | No |
| Trading Tools | Eightcap | IronFX | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 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 | Eightcap | IronFX | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Android App | Yes | Yes | |
| Apple iOS App | Yes | Yes | |
| Mobile Alerts - Basic Fields | Yes | Yes | |
| Mobile Watchlist | Yes | Yes | |
| Watchlist Syncing | Yes | No | |
| Mobile Charting - Indicators / Studies | 30 | 30 | |
| 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 | Eightcap | IronFX | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Daily Market Commentary | Yes | Yes | |
| Forex News (Top-Tier Sources) | No | Yes | |
| Autochartist | No | No | |
| Trading Central (Recognia) | No | Yes | |
| TipRanks | No | No | |
| Social Sentiment - Currency Pairs | Yes | No | |
| Economic Calendar | Yes | Yes |
| Education | Eightcap | IronFX | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Education (Forex or CFDs) | Yes | Yes | |
| Client Webinars | No | No | |
| Client Webinars (Archived) | Yes | Yes | |
| Videos - Beginner Trading Videos | Yes | Yes | |
| Videos - Advanced Trading Videos | No | No | |
| Investor Dictionary (Glossary) | Yes | Yes |
| Major Forex Pairs | Eightcap | IronFX | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 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 | Eightcap Review |
| Overall | Eightcap | IronFX | |
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| Trust Score | 85 | 83 | |
| Winner | check_circle | ||
| Review | Eightcap Review |
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