Written by ForexBrokers.com
In this head to head comparison of FP Markets vs Octa, 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.
FP Markets, founded in 2005, stands out with its solid reputation and trustworthiness in the online brokerage space. It holds two Tier-1 licenses and one Tier-2 license, which are significant indicators of reliability and safety for its clients. As per ForexBrokers.com, FP Markets boasts a Trust Score of 89, categorizing it as a trusted broker. It's important to note that FP Markets is not publicly traded and does not operate as a bank, but it has built a strong presence over the years, catering to the needs of traders globally.
Octa, which entered the market in 2011, is another player in the world of online brokerage. It carries one Tier-1 license and one Tier-2 license, reflecting its moderate standing in terms of regulatory trust. With a Trust Score of 72 according to ForexBrokers.com, Octa is seen as an average risk broker. Like FP Markets, Octa is neither publicly traded nor a bank, but it serves its clientele with a variety of trading options and services.
| Feature |
FP Markets
|
Octa
|
|---|---|---|
| Year Founded | 2005 | 2011 |
| Publicly Traded (Listed) | No | No |
| Bank | No | No |
| Tier-1 Licenses | 2 | 1 |
| Tier-2 Licenses | 1 | 1 |
| Tier-3 Licenses | 0 | 0 |
| Tier-4 Licenses | 1 | 1 |
In the competitive world of online trading, FP Markets stands out as a cost-effective choice, particularly with its commission-based ECN account options on MetaTrader and cTrader platforms. The broker is recognized for its attractive pricing structure, earning the accolade of Best in Class for Commissions and Fees in the 2024 Annual Awards. With a five-star rating from ForexBrokers.com, FP Markets ranks 6th out of 63 brokers for its competitive pricing. Traders can opt for the Raw ECN account with spreads averaging 0.1 pips or choose the Standard account if willing to trade at higher spreads of 1.1 pips on EUR/USD as of October 2023. The Iress ViewPoint account caters to high-balance active traders, requiring significant trading volume to avoid fees, but offers DMA for those looking for a sophisticated trading experience.
In contrast, Octa has made significant strides in offering competitive pricing and includes beneficial features like no slippage in 97.5% of executed orders and no overnight carry costs. Rated four stars, Octa claims the 29th spot out of 63 brokers in the Commissions and Fees ranking. The broker offers spreads as low as 0.5 pips under its EU regulation for the EUR/USD pair, although this claim lacks a specified timeframe for comparison. European clients are limited to an MT5 account, while international traders have access to both MT4 and MT5, thanks to the broker's varied regulatory entities. While Octa has improved its positioning among MetaTrader brokers, the absence of a dated spread reference somewhat diminishes the impact of its listed pricing benefits.
Summarily, FP Markets provides a stellar option for those seeking low-cost trading with advanced direct market access via its Iress platform, although it's more suitable for traders with higher balances. Meanwhile, Octa has sharpened its pricing edge, making it a viable contender in the low-cost bracket among MetaTrader brokers. Despite some limitations, both brokers manifest distinct strengths that cater to different trader profiles and priorities.
| Feature |
FP Markets
|
Octa
|
|---|---|---|
| Minimum Deposit | $100 AUD | $25 |
| Average Spread EUR/USD - Standard | 1.2 | 0.9 |
| All-in Cost EUR/USD - Active | 0.7 | N/A |
| Active Trader or VIP Discounts | Yes | No |
| 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.
FP Markets and Octa both provide a diverse array of trading options, yet their offerings vary considerably. FP Markets distinguishes itself with a massive selection of 10,000 tradeable symbols and 71 forex pairs. In contrast, Octa supports 300 tradeable symbols and 35 forex pairs. Both brokers offer forex trading through CFDs or spot contracts, and they also provide cryptocurrency derivatives. However, neither platform allows the purchase of actual cryptocurrencies. Importantly, both FP Markets and Octa offer copy trading services, appealing to those interested in mirroring the strategies of seasoned traders.
When it comes to traditional exchange-traded securities, Octa has an edge as it permits trading on international exchanges, unlike FP Markets, which doesn't offer exchange-traded securities on U.S. or international exchanges. Evaluating the overall range of investment offerings, FP Markets earns a higher rating of 4.5 stars compared to Octa's 3.5 stars. This rating is reflected in their rankings by ForexBrokers.com, where FP Markets is positioned at #18, while Octa stands at #52 out of 63 brokers in the Range of Investments category. These rankings highlight FP Markets' more extensive investment options for traders who prioritize a wider selection of tradeable instruments.
| Feature |
FP Markets
|
Octa
|
|---|---|---|
| Forex Trading (Spot or CFDs) | Yes | Yes |
| Tradeable Symbols (Total) | 10000 | 300 |
| Forex Pairs (Total) | 71 | 35 |
| U.S. Stock Trading (Non CFD) | No | No |
| Int'l Stock Trading (Non CFD) | No | Yes |
| 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.
FP Markets and Octa both offer traders a variety of tools and platforms to enhance their trading experience. Both brokers provide a simulated trading environment with virtual demo accounts, suitable for beginners aiming to practice without financial risks. They feature proprietary platforms developed in-house and provide popular options like MetaTrader 4 and MetaTrader 5, along with a Windows-based desktop download and web-based platform. While neither broker offers integration with DupliTrade or ZuluTrade, they both support copy trading functionalities. Additionally, traders with FP Markets or Octa can execute trades directly from stock charts.
In terms of charting tools, FP Markets provides 17 drawing tools, edging out Octa, which offers 15. Both brokers allow seven columns for organizing watch lists. Despite having identical overall ratings of four stars for their trading platforms and tools, FP Markets is ranked higher at #23 by ForexBrokers.com compared to Octa's #37. This indicates a slight edge for FP Markets in terms of platform offerings and overall user satisfaction, though both brokers present solid options for trading-related needs.
| Feature |
FP Markets
|
Octa
|
|---|---|---|
| Virtual Trading (Demo) | Yes | Yes |
| Proprietary 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 | No | No |
| ZuluTrade | No | No |
| Charting - Indicators / Studies (Total) | 30 | 30 |
| Charting - Drawing Tools (Total) | 17 | 15 |
| Charting - Trade From Chart | Yes | Yes |
| Watchlists - Total Fields | 7 | 7 |
Dive deeper: Best MetaTrader 4 Brokers, Best MetaTrader 5 Brokers.
When it comes to mobile trading apps, both FP Markets and Octa offer convenient options for traders using either iOS or Android devices. Each platform provides key features such as the ability to set stock and forex price alerts and draw trendlines on charts. Both apps also enable viewing of multiple time frames, and they come with the auto-save feature for chart drawings. Moreover, you can create a watchlist with real-time quotes on both platforms, enhancing your trading experience. However, neither FP Markets nor Octa supports watchlist symbol syncing, which means any changes made in the app will not automatically update across other devices or platforms.
In terms of technical studies for charting, FP Markets relies on the capabilities of MetaTrader, while Octa offers a specific suite of 30 technical studies. Despite these similarities and differences, both platforms have earned the same user rating of 4 stars for their mobile apps. However, FP Markets offers a slightly better ranking, positioned at #18 out of 63 brokers, compared to Octa's #36 ranking, according to ForexBrokers.com. This suggests that users find FP Markets' mobile trading app slightly more appealing overall.
| Feature |
FP Markets
|
Octa
|
|---|---|---|
| Android App | Yes | Yes |
| Apple iOS App | Yes | Yes |
| Mobile Alerts - Basic Fields | Yes | Yes |
| Watchlist Syncing | No | No |
| Mobile Charting - Indicators / Studies | MetaTrader (Default) | 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 FP Markets and Octa provide daily market commentary and offer forex news from leading sources such as Bloomberg and Reuters. They both include Autochartist for technical and fundamental research tools, making them well-equipped for traders who value insightful research. However, FP Markets stands out by offering tools from Trading Central, adding an extra layer of technical analytics that Octa lacks. Additionally, FP Markets provides a sentiment-based trading tool that offers insights into market position ratios, a feature absent in Octa.
While neither platform offers market research from TipRanks or tools from Acuity Trading like Signal Centre, they each provide an economic calendar to keep traders informed on global news events. Both received a 4-star rating for research. In terms of ranking, FP Markets holds the 25th spot out of 63 brokers according to ForexBrokers.com, slightly ahead of Octa, which is ranked 27th. This minor difference highlights FP Markets' slight edge in providing research tools and resources that potentially offer more for informed decision-making in trading activities.
| Feature |
FP Markets
|
Octa
|
|---|---|---|
| Daily Market Commentary | Yes | Yes |
| Forex News (Top-Tier Sources) | Yes | Yes |
| Autochartist | Yes | Yes |
| Trading Central (Recognia) | Yes | No |
| 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.
FP Markets and Octa both offer a substantial range of educational resources tailored for those new to trading forex and CFDs. Each broker provides over ten educational pieces, including articles, videos, and archived webinars, aimed specifically at these subjects. Both FP Markets and Octa also host at least one online educational webinar per month and maintain a searchable archive of their previously recorded sessions. In addition, they offer more than ten videos each that are crafted for beginner traders, ensuring newcomers can access a solid foundation of trading knowledge.
For those seeking more advanced insights, FP Markets and Octa also deliver over ten educational videos catering to experienced traders. They further support their educational offerings with an investor dictionary, boasting definitions of over 50 investing terms to assist in demystifying market jargon. In terms of educational quality, both brokers receive a commendable four-star rating. However, FP Markets edges ahead with a higher ranking in the Education category by ForexBrokers.com, placing 23rd out of 63 brokers, compared to Octa's rank of 42nd place.
| Feature |
FP Markets
|
Octa
|
|---|---|---|
| Education (Forex or CFDs) | Yes | Yes |
| Client Webinars | Yes | Yes |
| Client Webinars (Archived) | Yes | Yes |
| Videos - Beginner Trading Videos | Yes | Yes |
| Videos - Advanced Trading Videos | Yes | Yes |
| 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 FP Markets is better than Octa. FP Markets finished with an overall rank of #19, while Octa finished with an overall rank of #47.
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 9,000 tradeable symbols, but it’s mostly a share trading platform – and is generally a much pricier option.
| Feature |
FP Markets
|
Octa
|
|---|---|---|
| Overall Rating |
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| Trust Score | 89 | 72 |
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Both FP Markets and Octa provide the option to trade cryptocurrency derivatives, but neither offers the ability to purchase actual, delivered cryptocurrency.
While both FP Markets and Octa offer Visa, Mastercard, Skrill, and bank wire transfer options for deposits and withdrawals, FP Markets distinguishes itself by also supporting PayPal, whereas neither broker 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 | FP Markets | Octa | |
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| Trust Score | 89 | 72 | |
| Winner | check_circle | ||
| Review | FP Markets Review | Octa Review |
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| Regulation | FP Markets | Octa | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Trust Score | 89 | 72 | |
| Year Founded | 2005 | 2011 | |
| Publicly Traded (Listed) | No | No | |
| Bank | No | No | |
| Regulated in one or more EU or EEA countries (MiFID). | Yes | Yes | |
| Tier-1 Licenses | 2 | 1 | |
| Tier-2 Licenses | 1 | 1 | |
| Tier-3 Licenses | 0 | 0 | |
| Tier-4 Licenses | 1 | 1 |
| Tier-1 Licenses (Highly Trusted) | FP Markets | Octa | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Australia (ASIC Authorised) | Yes | No | |
| 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) | No | No | |
| 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 | Octa | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kenya (CMA Authorised) | No | No | |
| Israel (ISA Authorised) | No | No | |
| South Africa (FSCA Authorised) | Yes | Yes | |
| UAE (DFSA/Central Bank Authorised) | No | No | |
| India (SEBI Authorised) | No | No | |
| Jordan (JSC Authorised) | No | No |
| Investments | FP Markets | Octa | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Forex Trading (Spot or CFDs) | Yes | Yes | |
| Tradeable Symbols (Total) | 10000 | 300 | |
| Forex Pairs (Total) | 71 | 35 | |
| U.S. Stock Trading (Non CFD) | No | No | |
| Int'l Stock Trading (Non CFD) | No | Yes | |
| 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 | FP Markets | Octa | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average Spread EUR/USD - Standard | 1.2 | 0.9 | |
| All-in Cost EUR/USD - Active | 0.7 | N/A | |
| Active Trader or VIP Discounts | Yes | No | |
| Inactivity Fee | No | No | |
| Execution: Agency Broker | No | Yes | |
| Execution: Market Maker | Yes | Yes |
| Funding | FP Markets | Octa | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Minimum Deposit | $100 AUD | $25 | |
| 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 | FP Markets | Octa | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Proprietary 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 | Yes | No | |
| DupliTrade | No | No | |
| ZuluTrade | No | No |
| Trading Tools | FP Markets | Octa | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 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) | 17 | 15 | |
| Charting - Trade From Chart | Yes | Yes | |
| Charts can be saved | Yes | Yes |
| Mobile Trading | FP Markets | Octa | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Android App | Yes | Yes | |
| Apple iOS App | Yes | Yes | |
| Mobile Alerts - Basic Fields | Yes | Yes | |
| Mobile Watchlist | Yes | Yes | |
| Watchlist Syncing | No | No | |
| Mobile Charting - Indicators / Studies | MetaTrader (Default) | 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 | FP Markets | Octa | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Daily Market Commentary | Yes | Yes | |
| Forex News (Top-Tier Sources) | Yes | Yes | |
| Autochartist | Yes | Yes | |
| Trading Central (Recognia) | Yes | No | |
| TipRanks | No | No | |
| Social Sentiment - Currency Pairs | Yes | No | |
| Economic Calendar | Yes | Yes |
| Education | FP Markets | Octa | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Education (Forex or CFDs) | Yes | Yes | |
| Client Webinars | Yes | Yes | |
| Client Webinars (Archived) | Yes | Yes | |
| Videos - Beginner Trading Videos | Yes | Yes | |
| Videos - Advanced Trading Videos | Yes | Yes | |
| Investor Dictionary (Glossary) | Yes | Yes |
| Major Forex Pairs | FP Markets | Octa | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 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 | FP Markets Review | Octa Review |
| Overall | FP Markets | Octa | |
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| Trust Score | 89 | 72 | |
| Winner | check_circle | ||
| Review | FP Markets Review | Octa Review |
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