Written by ForexBrokers.com
In this head to head comparison of FP Markets vs HFM, 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.
Comparing online brokers FP Markets and HFM: FP Markets launched in 2005, while HFM began in 2010. Neither broker is publicly traded or operates as a bank. On regulation, both hold two Tier‑1 licenses (viewed as highly trusted by ForexBrokers.com). For Tier‑2 licenses (considered trusted), FP Markets holds one, while HFM holds three.
Trust Score: FP Markets scores 90/99 with ForexBrokers.com, placing it in the highly trusted range (90–99). HFM scores 85/99, which sits in the trusted range (80–89). For context, ForexBrokers.com classifies 70–79 as average risk, 60–69 as high risk, and below 59 as not trusted.
| Feature |
FP Markets
|
HFM
|
|---|---|---|
| Year Founded | 2005 | 2010 |
| Publicly Traded (Listed) | No | No |
| Bank | No | No |
| Tier-1 Licenses | 2 | 2 |
| Tier-2 Licenses | 1 | 3 |
| Tier-3 Licenses | 0 | 0 |
| Tier-4 Licenses | 2 | 2 |
FP Markets comes out ahead of HFM on commissions and fees, especially for traders using its MetaTrader, cTrader, and Raw ECN accounts. FP Markets’ Raw ECN pricing is very competitive, with average spreads around 0.1 pips and an all-in cost of about 0.8 pips after commission, while its cTrader Raw account charges a flat $6 per round-turn standard lot for forex. By comparison, FP Markets’ Standard account is more expensive because of wider spreads, and its Australia-based Iress platform can add costs unless you qualify for higher-tier accounts or meet monthly commission minimums. FP Markets is rated 4.5/5 stars and ranks #11 out of 36 brokers for commissions and fees.
HFM’s pricing is decent, but it is a little above the industry average overall. Its standard account typically shows spreads around 1.2 pips, while the Zero account has an effective spread of about 0.7 pips after commission. HFM does not provide a date range for its average spread figures, which makes it harder to compare directly with brokers that do. HFM is rated 4/5 stars and ranks #30 out of 36 brokers for commissions and fees.
In simple terms, FP Markets is the lower-cost choice for most active traders, especially if you want tighter spreads and commission-based pricing. HFM can still work for traders who prefer its account setup, but its fee structure is less competitive overall. If keeping trading costs down is a priority, FP Markets has the edge.
| Feature |
FP Markets
|
HFM
|
|---|---|---|
| Minimum Deposit | $0 | $0 |
| Average spread (EUR/USD) - Spread-only account | 1.3 | 1.8 |
| All-in Cost EUR/USD - Raw spread account | 0.9 | 1.1 |
| Non-wire bank transfer (Deposit/Withdraw) | No | No |
| PayPal (Deposit/Withdraw) | Yes | No |
| Skrill (Deposit/Withdraw) | Yes | Yes |
| Bank Wire (Deposit/Withdraw) | Yes | Yes |
Dive deeper: Best Low Spread Forex Brokers.
When it comes to range of investments, FP Markets offers more choice than HFM. FP Markets lists around 10,000 tradeable symbols and 71 forex pairs, while HFM offers 344 symbols and 38 forex pairs. Both brokers support forex trading, copy trading, and crypto CFDs, but neither lets clients buy actual exchange-traded shares on U.S. or international markets, or purchase delivered cryptocurrency.
For traders who want a wider selection of markets, FP Markets has the edge. It is rated 4.5 out of 5 stars for range of investments and ranks #17 out of 36 brokers in this category on ForexBrokers.com. HFM is rated 4 out of 5 stars and ranks #30 out of 36, making it the smaller pick for investment variety between the two.
| Feature |
FP Markets
|
HFM
|
|---|---|---|
| Forex Trading (Spot or CFDs) | Yes | Yes |
| Tradeable Symbols (Total) | 10000 | 344 |
| Forex Pairs (Total) | 71 | 38 |
| U.S. Stocks (Shares) | No | No |
| Global Stocks (Non-U.S. Shares) | No | No |
| 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.
FP Markets and HFM both give traders a wide set of platform choices, making them closely matched in this area. Each broker offers a free demo account for paper trading, a proprietary platform, desktop software for Windows, and a web-based platform for browser access. They also both support popular MetaTrader 4 and MetaTrader 5, plus copy trading, so traders can choose between self-directed trading and following other strategies.
Both brokers also let you trade directly from a chart, which can make it easier to place orders while analyzing price moves. In ForexBrokers.com’s Trading Platforms and Tools category, both FP Markets and HFM are rated 4 out of 5 stars. However, FP Markets holds a stronger overall ranking at #22 out of 36 brokers, while HFM is ranked #36, giving FP Markets a slight edge in this category.
| Feature |
FP Markets
|
HFM
|
|---|---|---|
| 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) | 30 | 38 |
| Charting - Trade From Chart | Yes | Yes |
Dive deeper: Best MetaTrader 4 Brokers, Best MetaTrader 5 Brokers.
FP Markets and HFM both make it easy to trade on the go, with iPhone and Android apps, price alerts, trendline drawing, and auto-saving for chart drawings. Neither broker offers watchlist symbol syncing between the mobile app and the online account, so watchlists do not update across devices. Both mobile apps are rated 4 out of 5 stars, so in basic day-to-day use they are fairly evenly matched.
The main difference comes down to charting and overall ranking. FP Markets uses the MetaTrader app, which gives traders access to its standard charting tools, while HFM lists 5 technical studies in its mobile app. Even so, FP Markets comes out ahead overall in ForexBrokers.com’s Mobile Trading Apps category, ranking #20 out of 36 brokers, compared with HFM at #35 out of 36. For traders who want a slightly stronger mobile experience, FP Markets has the edge.
| Feature |
FP Markets
|
HFM
|
|---|---|---|
| Android App | Yes | Yes |
| Apple iOS App | Yes | Yes |
| Mobile Price Alerts | Yes | Yes |
| Mobile Watchlists - Syncing | No | No |
| Mobile Charting - Indicators / Studies | MetaTrader (Default) | 5 |
| Mobile Charting - Draw Trendlines | Yes | Yes |
| Mobile Charting - Trendlines Autosave | Yes | Yes |
Dive deeper: Best Forex Trading Apps.
FP Markets and HFM both offer a strong set of market research tools for traders who want help tracking price moves and news. Each broker provides daily market commentary, forex news from major sources like Bloomberg, Reuters, or Dow Jones, sentiment tools, Autochartist, and an economic calendar covering upcoming global events. Neither broker includes TipRanks research, so in this area they are evenly matched for most everyday research needs.
The main differences are in the extra tools each platform offers. FP Markets includes Trading Central, which HFM does not, while HFM offers Acuity Trading tools such as Signal Centre, which FP Markets does not. Both brokers are rated 4 out of 5 stars for Research, though HFM places slightly higher in ForexBrokers.com’s rankings, coming in at #18 out of 36 brokers versus FP Markets at #22.
| Feature |
FP Markets
|
HFM
|
|---|---|---|
| Daily Market Commentary (Articles) | Yes | Yes |
| Forex News (Top-Tier Sources) | Yes | Yes |
| Autochartist | Yes | Yes |
| Trading Central | Yes | No |
| Client sentiment data | Yes | Yes |
| TipRanks | No | No |
| Acuity Trading | No | Yes |
| Economic Calendar | Yes | Yes |
Dive deeper: Best Brokers for Forex Research.
When it comes to learning support for beginners, both FP Markets and HFM offer a wide range of forex and CFD education, including at least 10 educational pieces on these topics. Each broker also provides monthly online webinars, along with 10 or more beginner videos and 10 or more advanced videos, so new traders can start with the basics and move on to more detailed trading lessons over time. In simple terms, both brokers give beginners plenty of material to build their knowledge at their own pace.
That said, FP Markets has a slight edge in third-party education scoring. Both brokers are rated 4 out of 5 stars for Education, but ForexBrokers.com ranks FP Markets higher at #21 out of 36 brokers, compared with HFM at #31. For beginners looking for similar learning tools but with a stronger overall education ranking, FP Markets appears to have the better offering.
| Feature |
FP Markets
|
HFM
|
|---|---|---|
| Webinars | Yes | 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 FP Markets is better than HFM. FP Markets finished with an overall rank of #19, while HFM finished with an overall rank of #27.
FP Markets shines as a low-cost broker for trading forex and CFDs – as long as you use the MetaTrader platform. The Iress platform suite offers well over 10,000 tradeable symbols, but it’s mostly a share trading platform – and is generally a much pricier option.
| Feature |
FP Markets
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HFM
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|---|---|---|
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| Trust Score | 90 | 85 |
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FP Markets vs HFM: Neither broker supports buying actual (delivered) cryptocurrency, but both offer cryptocurrency CFD trading.
Comparing deposit and withdrawal methods, FP Markets and HFM both support bank wire transfers and Skrill and do not offer ACH or SEPA, but only FP Markets supports PayPal while HFM does not.
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 | FP Markets | HFM | |
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| Trust Score | 90 | 85 | |
| Winner | check_circle | ||
| Review | FP Markets Review | HFM Review |
| Broker Screenshots | FP Markets | HFM | |
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| Regulation | FP Markets | HFM | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Trust Score | 90 | 85 | |
| Year Founded | 2005 | 2010 | |
| Publicly Traded (Listed) | No | No | |
| Bank | No | No | |
| Regulated in one or more EU or EEA countries (MiFID). | Yes | Yes | |
| Tier-1 Licenses | 2 | 2 | |
| Tier-2 Licenses | 1 | 3 | |
| Tier-3 Licenses | 0 | 0 | |
| Tier-4 Licenses | 2 | 2 |
| Tier-1 Licenses (Highly Trusted) | FP Markets | HFM | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Australia (ASIC Authorised) | Yes | No | |
| Canada (CIRO Authorised) | No | No | |
| Hong Kong (SFC Authorised) | No | No | |
| Japan (FSA Authorised) | No | No | |
| Singapore (MAS Authorised) | No | No | |
| Switzerland (FINMA Authorised) | |||
| United Kingdom (U.K.) (FCA Authorised) | No | 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) | FP Markets | HFM | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kenya (CMA Authorised) | Yes | ||
| Israel (ISA Authorised) | No | No | |
| South Africa (FSCA Authorised) | Yes | Yes | |
| UAE (DFSA, FSRA, or CMA Authorised) | No | Yes | |
| India (SEBI Authorised) | No | No | |
| Jordan (JSC Authorised) |
| Investments | FP Markets | HFM | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Forex Trading (Spot or CFDs) | Yes | Yes | |
| Tradeable Symbols (Total) | 10000 | 344 | |
| Forex Pairs (Total) | 71 | 38 | |
| U.S. Stocks (Shares) | No | No | |
| Global Stocks (Non-U.S. Shares) | No | No | |
| 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 | FP Markets | HFM | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average spread (EUR/USD) - Spread-only account | 1.3 | 1.8 | |
| All-in Cost EUR/USD - Raw spread account | 0.9 | 1.1 | |
| Inactivity Fee | No | Yes | |
| Order execution: Agency | No | No | |
| Order execution: Market Maker | Yes | Yes |
| Funding | FP Markets | HFM | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Minimum Deposit | $0 | $0 | |
| PayPal (Deposit/Withdraw) | Yes | No | |
| Skrill (Deposit/Withdraw) | Yes | Yes | |
| Bank Wire (Deposit/Withdraw) | Yes | Yes | |
| Non-wire bank transfer (Deposit/Withdraw) | No | No |
| Trading Platforms | FP Markets | HFM | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 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 | Yes | No |
| Trading Tools | FP Markets | HFM | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Virtual Trading (Demo) | Yes | Yes | |
| Price Alerts | Yes | Yes | |
| Charting - Indicators / Studies (Total) | 30 | 38 | |
| Charting - Trade From Chart | Yes | Yes | |
| Charts can be saved | Yes | Yes |
| Mobile Trading | FP Markets | HFM | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Android App | Yes | Yes | |
| Apple iOS App | Yes | Yes | |
| Mobile Price Alerts | Yes | Yes | |
| Mobile Watchlists - Syncing | No | No | |
| Mobile Charting - Indicators / Studies | MetaTrader (Default) | 5 | |
| Mobile Charting - Draw Trendlines | Yes | Yes | |
| Mobile Charting - Trendlines Autosave | Yes | Yes | |
| Mobile Research - Economic Calendar | Yes | Yes |
| Research | FP Markets | HFM | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Daily Market Commentary (Articles) | Yes | Yes | |
| Forex News (Top-Tier Sources) | Yes | Yes | |
| Autochartist | Yes | Yes | |
| Trading Central | Yes | No | |
| TipRanks | No | No | |
| Client sentiment data | Yes | Yes | |
| Economic Calendar | Yes | Yes |
| Education | FP Markets | HFM | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Webinars | Yes | Yes | |
| Videos - Beginner Trading Videos | Yes | Yes | |
| Videos - Advanced Trading Videos | Yes | Yes |
| Major Forex Pairs | FP Markets | HFM | |
|---|---|---|---|
| EUR/USD | Yes | Yes | |
| Review | FP Markets Review | HFM Review |
| Overall | FP Markets | HFM | |
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| Trust Score | 90 | 85 | |
| Winner | check_circle | ||
| Review | FP Markets Review | HFM Review |
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