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IC Markets vs HFM 2024

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Written by ForexBrokers.com

August 29, 2023

Is IC Markets better than HFM? In our analysis of 23 international regulators across 62 of the best forex brokers, IC Markets is considered Trusted, with an overall Trust Score of 84 out of 99. HotForex is considered Trusted, with an overall Trust Score of 86 out of 99. Learn more about Trust Score.

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Compare

0 of 5
Overall Rating IC Markets HFM
Overall Rating info 4.5/5 Stars 4/5 Stars
Commissions & Fees 5/5 Stars 4/5 Stars
Offering of Investments 4.5/5 Stars 4/5 Stars
Platform & Tools 4/5 Stars 4/5 Stars
Mobile Trading 4/5 Stars 4/5 Stars
Research 4/5 Stars 4/5 Stars
Education 4/5 Stars 3.5/5 Stars
Trust Score info 84 86
Winner check_circle
Review IC Markets Review HFM Review
Broker Screenshots IC Markets HFM
Trading Platforms Gallery (click to expand) info
Mobile Trading Gallery (click to expand) info
Research Gallery (click to expand) info
Education Gallery (click to expand) info
Regulation IC Markets HFM
Trust Score info 84 86
Year Founded info 2007 2010
Publicly Traded (Listed) info No No
Bank info No No
Regulated in one or more EU or EEA countries (MiFID). info Yes info Yes info
Tier-1 Licenses info 2 2
Tier-2 Licenses info 0 3
Tier-3 Licenses info 0 0
Tier-4 Licenses info 3 2
Tier-1 Licenses (Highly Trusted) IC Markets HFM
Australia (ASIC Authorised) info Yes No
Canada (CIRO Authorised) info No No
Hong Kong (SFC Authorised) info No No
Japan (SFC Authorised) info No No
Singapore (MAS Authorised) info No No
Switzerland (FINMA Authorised) info No No
United Kingdom (U.K.) (FCA Authorised) info No Yes
USA (CFTC Authorized) info No No
New Zealand (FMA Authorised) info No No
Regulated in one or more EU or EEA countries (MiFID). info Yes info Yes info
Tier-2 Licenses (Trusted) IC Markets HFM
Kenya (CMA Authorised) info No Yes
Israel (ISA Authorised) info No No
South Africa (FSCA Authorised) info No Yes
UAE (DFSA/Central Bank Authorised) info No Yes
India (SEBI Authorised) info No No
Jordan (JSC Authorised) info No No
Investments IC Markets HFM
Forex Trading (Spot or CFDs) info Yes Yes
Tradeable Symbols (Total) info 3583 3500
Forex Pairs (Total) info 61 102
U.S. Stock Trading (Non CFD) info No No
Int'l Stock Trading (Non CFD) info Yes No
Social Trading / Copy Trading info Yes Yes
Cryptocurrency (Physical) info No No
Cryptocurrency (Derivative) info 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 IC Markets HFM
Average Spread EUR/USD - Standard info 0.62 info 1.2 info
All-in Cost EUR/USD - Active info 0.62 info 0.7 info
Active Trader or VIP Discounts info Yes No
Inactivity Fee info No Yes
Execution: Agency Broker info Yes No
Execution: Market Maker info Yes Yes
Funding IC Markets HFM
Minimum Deposit info $200 $0
PayPal (Deposit/Withdraw) info Yes No
Skrill (Deposit/Withdraw) info Yes Yes
Visa/Mastercard (Credit/Debit) info Yes Yes
Bank Wire (Deposit/Withdraw) info Yes Yes
Trading Platforms IC Markets HFM
Proprietary Platform info No Yes
Desktop Platform (Windows) info Yes Yes
Web Platform info Yes Yes
Social Trading / Copy Trading info Yes Yes
MetaTrader 4 (MT4) info Yes Yes
MetaTrader 5 (MT5) info Yes Yes
cTrader info Yes No
DupliTrade info No No
ZuluTrade info Yes No
Trading Tools IC Markets HFM
Virtual Trading (Demo) info Yes Yes
Alerts - Basic Fields info Yes Yes
Watchlists - Total Fields info 7 7
Charting - Indicators / Studies (Total) info 30 15
Charting - Drawing Tools (Total) info 15 30
Charting - Trade From Chart info Yes Yes
Charts can be saved info Yes Yes
Mobile Trading IC Markets HFM
Android App info Yes Yes
Apple iOS App info Yes Yes
Mobile Alerts - Basic Fields info Yes Yes
Mobile Watchlist info Yes Yes
Watchlist Syncing info No No
Mobile Charting - Indicators / Studies info 30 30
Mobile Charting - Draw Trendlines info Yes Yes
Mobile Charting - Multiple Time Frames info Yes Yes
Mobile Charting - Drawings Autosave info Yes Yes
Mobile Economic Calendar info Yes Yes
Research IC Markets HFM
Daily Market Commentary info Yes Yes
Forex News (Top-Tier Sources) info Yes Yes
Autochartist info Yes Yes
Trading Central (Recognia) info Yes No
TipRanks info No No
Social Sentiment - Currency Pairs info Yes Yes
Economic Calendar info Yes Yes
Education IC Markets HFM
Education (Forex or CFDs) info Yes Yes
Client Webinars info Yes Yes
Client Webinars (Archived) info Yes Yes
Videos - Beginner Trading Videos info Yes Yes
Videos - Advanced Trading Videos info Yes Yes
Investor Dictionary (Glossary) info Yes Yes
Major Forex Pairs IC Markets HFM
GBP/USD info Yes Yes
USD/JPY info Yes Yes
EUR/USD info Yes Yes
USD/CHF info Yes Yes
USD/CAD info Yes Yes
NZD/USD info Yes Yes
AUD/USD info Yes Yes
Review IC Markets Review HFM Review
Overall IC Markets HFM
Overall Rating info 4.5/5 Stars 4/5 Stars
Commissions & Fees 5/5 Stars 4/5 Stars
Offering of Investments 4.5/5 Stars 4/5 Stars
Platform & Tools 4/5 Stars 4/5 Stars
Mobile Trading 4/5 Stars 4/5 Stars
Research 4/5 Stars 4/5 Stars
Education 4/5 Stars 3.5/5 Stars
Trust Score info 84 86
Winner check_circle
Review IC Markets Review HFM Review
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IC Markets vs HFM Comparison

Weโ€™ve made it easy to compare the best forex brokers, side-by-side. Our editorial team has collected thousands of data points, written hundreds of thousands of words of research, and tested over 60 brokers to help you find the best forex brokers in the industry. Our research is unbiased and independent; learn more about how we test. That same research and data powers our broker comparisons. Let's compare IC Markets vs HFM.

Can I trust IC Markets?

IC Markets is not publicly traded and does not operate a bank. IC Markets is authorised by two Tier-1 regulators (Highly Trusted), zero Tier-2 regulators (Trusted), zero Tier-3 regulators (Average Risk), and two Tier-4 regulators (High Risk). IC Markets is authorised by the following tier-1 regulators: Australian Securities & Investment Commission (ASIC) and regulated in the European Union via the MiFID passporting system.

Can I trust HFM?

HotForex is not publicly traded and does not operate a bank. HotForex is authorised by two Tier-1 regulators (Highly Trusted), Three tier-2 regulators (Trusted), zero Tier-3 regulators (Average Risk), and one Tier-4 regulator (High Risk). HotForex is authorised by the following Tier-1 regulator: Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) and regulated in the European Union via the MiFID passporting system.

Is IC Markets good?

IC Marketsโ€™ competitive pricing and scalable execution make it an excellent option for algorithmic traders. Though it supports an impressive range of third-party tools and plugins, IC Marketsโ€™ research and education offerings are not as impressive as those offered by industry leaders.

Is HFM good?

Alongside its enhanced MetaTrader offering and quality research, HFM (HF Markets), previously known as HotForex, offers a proprietary copy trading platform, HFcopy, a proprietary HF mobile app, and a decent selection of over 1,000 CFDs and 47 forex pairs. Still, trading costs at HFM are slightly above the industry average.

What is the minimum deposit requirement for opening an account with IC Markets?

To open a trading account with IC Markets, you'll need to make an initial minimum deposit of $200.

What is the minimum deposit requirement for opening an account with HFM?

HFM requires a minimum deposit of $0 before you can open an account and start trading.

What funding options does each broker offer?

It's important to make sure that your forex broker accepts the funding options and deposit methods that work best for you. IC Markets offers Visa/Mastercard (Credit/Debit), Bank Wire (Deposit/Withdraw), PayPal (Deposit/Withdraw), Skrill (Deposit/Withdraw) and Neteller (Deposit/Withdraw) for banking, whereas HFM provides Visa/Mastercard (Credit/Debit), Bank Wire (Deposit/Withdraw), Skrill (Deposit/Withdraw) and Neteller (Deposit/Withdraw)

Does IC Markets or HFM offer lower pricing?

Comparing the trading costs of forex and CFDs is not easy. Not every broker publishes average spread data, and pricing structures vary. Based on our thorough, data-driven testing of each broker's commissions and fees, we found that IC Markets offers better pricing overall for traders.

Methodology: When testing each broker's commissions, fees, and pricing, we analyze multiple trade scenarios and award points based on the expansiveness (or inexpensiveness) of the broker's spreads. We then run multiple scenarios for different investor types, incorporating any miscellaneous fees, to determine an "all-in" cost per trade. Learn more about how we test.

Is IC Markets or HFM safer for forex and CFDs trading?

At ForexBrokers.com, we track over 110 international regulatory agencies and sort them by tiers (Tier-1, Tier-2, Tier-3, Tier-4, and Tier-5) to help you choose well-regulated, highly trusted forex brokers. Learn more about our proprietary Trust Score rating system. Based on our research on the regulatory status of over 60 brokers, we've found that Both IC Markets and HFM hold 2 global Tier-1 licenses. HFM holds 3 global Tier-2 licenses, while IC Markets holds 0.

After evaluating each broker based on their number of held licenses, years in business, and a range of other data-driven variables, we've determined that HFM (86) earned a higher Trust Score than IC Markets (84).

Which trading platform is better: IC Markets or HFM?

To compare the trading platforms of both IC Markets and HFM, we tested each broker's trading tools, research capabilities, and mobile apps. For trading tools, IC Markets offers a better experience. With research, HFM offers superior market research. Finally, we found IC Markets to provide better mobile trading apps.

Hereโ€™s what trading platforms are available at IC Markets:

  • Proprietary Platform - No
  • Web Platform - Yes
  • cTrader - Yes
  • DupliTrade - No
  • MT4 - Yes
  • MT5 - Yes
  • ZuluTrade - Yes
  • TradingView - Yes

Hereโ€™s what trading platforms are available at HFM:

  • Proprietary Platform - Yes
  • Web Platform - Yes
  • cTrader - No
  • DupliTrade - No
  • MT4 - Yes
  • MT5 - Yes
  • ZuluTrade - No
  • TradingView - No

What about MetaTrader? How about copy trading?

The MetaTrader trading platform suite is wildly popular among forex and CFD traders across the globe. Both IC Markets and HFM offer MetaTrader 4 (MT4). Forex traders also appreciate the ability to engage in social copy trading. IC Markets and HFM both offer copy trading.

What can I trade with each broker?

HFM provides traders 102 currency pairs (e.g., EUR/USD) compared to IC Markets's 61 available pairs. If you are interested in trading CFDs, IC Markets offers traders access to 3583 CFDs, while HFM offers access to 3500 CFDs; so IC Markets offers 83 more CFDs than HFM.

We found in our testing that IC Markets offers a more diverse selection of investment options than HFM, allowing you to trade Forex Trading (Spot or CFDs), U.S. Stocks (CFD), Int'l Stock Trading (Non CFD), Cryptocurrency (Derivative) and Social Trading / Copy Trading. Neither have Cryptocurrency (Physical) and Spread Betting.

Overall winner: IC Markets

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announcementPlease note:

We review each brokerโ€™s overall global offering โ€“ a โ€œYesโ€ 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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