Pepperstone vs FXCM

Pepperstone vs FXCM Comparison Table 2024
Pepperstone FXCM
4.8
3.5
United States Flag Traders from US not accepted
United States Flag Traders from US not accepted

Established in Australia in 2010, Pepperstone is a top-rated forex and CFD broker with over 400,000 clients worldwide. It offers access to 1,300+ instruments on leading platforms MT4, MT5, cTrader and TradingView, maintaining low, transparent fees. Pepperstone is also regulated by trusted authorities like the FCA, ASIC, and CySEC, ensuring a secure environment for day traders at all levels.

FXCM is a respected forex and CFD broker, established since 1999. The British-headquartered broker has won multiple awards and operates in various jurisdictions, including the UK and Australia. With zero commissions, over 400 assets, and a range of analysis tools, FXCM remains a popular choice for day traders. The broker is also regulated by top-tier authorities including the FCA and ASIC.

CFDs and FX are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. Between 74-89% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs.
Customer Reviews
3.8
Comment by Reviewer
"Pepperstone stands out as a top choice for day trading, offering razor-sharp spreads, ultra-fast execution, and advanced charting platforms for experienced traders. New traders are also welcomed with no minimum deposit, extensive educational resources, and exceptional 24/7 support." "FXCM maintains its position as a top pick for traders deploying automated trading strategies, with four powerful platforms, strategy backtesting and algo trading through APIs. The broker is also great for active traders, with discounted spreads and low to zero commissions on popular assets."
Pros
  • Pepperstone boasts impressive execution speeds, averaging around 30ms, facilitating fast order processing and execution that’s ideal for day trading.
  • There’s support for a range of industry-leading charting platforms including MT4, MT5, TradingView, and cTrader, catering to various short-term trading styles, including algo trading.
  • Pepperstone emerges as a low-cost broker, especially for serious day traders with spreads from 0.0 in the Razor account and rebates of 25%+ through the Active Trader program.
  • Award-winning customer support is available via telephone, email or live chat with response times of <5 minutes during testing.
  • Now offering spread betting through TradingView, Pepperstone provides a seamless, tax-efficient trading experience with advanced analysis tools.
  • Alongside the 4 charting platforms, FXCM also offers a market-leading range of specialist software for experienced investors, including QuantConnect, AgenaTrader and Sierra Chart
  • The proprietary Trading Station terminal is a good choice for day traders looking for an all-in-one solution for their short-term and automated trading strategies
  • Traders can utilize several top-tier trading tools including a market scanner, forex signals and third-party research site, eFXPlus
  • FXCM’s global reputation is impressive, with licenses from the FCA, ASIC, CySEC and FSCA and a 20-year business history
  • A range of funding methods are available including bank cards, Apply Pay and PayPal, with instant processing times
  • The broker offers spread discounts and other excellent perks for experienced traders in the Active Trader account
  • FXCM has expanded its range of trading opportunities with 24-hour stock CFDs through MetaTrader 4
Cons
  • There’s no simplified proprietary trading platform, nor are there any social trading features, which could be a disadvantage if you are new to day trading.
  • Pepperstone’s demo accounts are active for only 30 days, which may not be not long enough to familiarize yourself with the different platforms and test trading strategies.
  • Pepperstone does not support cTrader Copy, a popular copy trading feature built into the excellent cTrader platform and available at alternatives like IC Markets.
  • Despite enhancements to its range of markets, crypto offerings are relatively limited compared to other brokers such as eToro, with no option to invest in real coins.
  • Although FXCM continues to gear their services towards experienced traders, it’s a shame that there are no managed accounts on offer
  • There is no choice of retail accounts for traders, nor any Cent/Micro account options
  • The live chat support can be slow and unreliable compared to the top competitors
Awards
  • Best Forex Broker - DayTrading.com 2024
  • Best Overall Broker - DayTrading.com 2023
  • Best Trading App - DayTrading.com 2022
  • Best Forex Broker - DayTrading.com 2021
  • Best MT4 Broker - Good Money Guide 2023
  • #1 Overall Client Satisfaction - UK Investment Trends 2022
  • #1 Value for Money - UK Investment Trends 2022
  • #1 Quality of Trade Execution - UK Investment Trends 2022
  • #1 Ease of Platform Navigation - UK Investment Trends 2022
  • #1 Charting - UK Investment Trends 2022
  • Best Forex Broker Overall - Compareforexbrokers.com 2022
  • Best MT4 Broker - Good Money Guide Best MT4 Broker 2022
  • Top 5 MetaTrader brokers - Broker Chooser Top 5 MetaTrader Brokers 2022
Instruments
CFDs, Forex, Currency Indices, Stocks, Indices, Commodities, ETFs, Crypto, Spread Betting CFDs, Forex, Stocks, Cryptos, Commodities
Demo Account
Yes Yes
Minimum Deposit
$0 $50
Trading Platforms
  • MT4
  • MT5
  • cTrader
  • TradingView
  • AutoChartist
  • DupliTrade
  • Trading Station
  • MT4
  • TradingView
  • eSignal
Payment Methods
Minimum Trade
0.01 Lots Variable
Regulator
FCA, ASIC, CySEC, DFSA, CMA, BaFin, SCB FCA, CySEC, ASIC
Margin Trading
Yes Yes
STP Account
Yes No
ECN Account
Yes No
DMA Account
Yes No
MAM Account
Yes Yes
PAMM Account
Yes No
LAMM Account
No No
Demat Account
No No
AI / Machine Learning
Yes No
Robo Advisor
No No
Negative Balance Protection
Yes Yes
Market Maker
No Yes
P2P Trading
No No
Spot Trading
Yes No
Mobile Apps
iOS & Android iOS and Android
App Review

Pepperstone excels for its excellent integration with the MT4, MT5, cTrader, and TradingView apps, making it a standout option for day traders familiar with these leading third-party trading solutions. Despite the absence of a proprietary app, these platforms deliver a stable and reliable mobile trading experience, enhanced by Pepperstone’s almost unrivalled execution speeds and wide range of asset classes.

Android App Rating
4.1
iOS App Rating
4.4
Auto Trading
Expert Advisors (EAs) on MetaTrader
Copy Trading
Yes Yes
Copy Trading Platform
Pepperstone facilitates the replication of experienced traders' strategies through MetaTrader Signals and DupliTrade. However, it lacks support for cTrader Copy and does not offer a proprietary social trading network similar to those found on platforms like eToro or Vantage, which foster lively social trading communities for aspiring traders. FXCM offers social and copy trading on forex, CFDs and cryptos through the hugely popular ZuluTrade platform. The sign-up process is quick and you can track your performance in real-time.
Social Trading
No Yes
Trade Signals
Yes (Via Chartist Software)
VPS Hosting
Yes No
Tournaments
No No
Demo Competitions
No Yes
Ethical Investing
No No
Custodial Account
No No
Guaranteed Stop Loss
No No
Inactivity Fee
$0
Islamic Account
Yes No
Account Currencies
  • USD
  • EUR
  • GBP
  • CAD
  • AUD
  • NZD
  • JPY
  • CHF
  • HKD
  • SGD
  • USD
  • EUR
  • GBP
  • CAD
  • AUD
  • ZAR
  • CHF
Stock Exchanges
Commodities
CFD Trading
Pepperstone maintains its position as one of the fastest and most dependable CFD brokers during our latest round of testing. With execution speeds averaging around 30ms and an outstanding fill rate of 99.90%, the broker ensures a seamless trading experience without requotes or dealing desk interference. It also provides ample trading opportunities across over 1,300 assets. You can trade a range of CFD instruments across forex, shares, indices and commodities. There’s an excellent selection of platforms for day traders, including TradingView and MT4, plus additional tools for experienced algo traders including API solutions.
Leverage
1:30 (Retail), 1:500 (Pro) 1:30
FTSE Spread
1.0 1.18 pts var*
GBPUSD Spread
0.4 0.5 pips*
Oil Spread
2.5 0.05 (var)*
Stocks Spread
0.02 0.2% Var*
Forex Trading
Pepperstone offers ultra-competitive forex spreads averaging 0.12 pips on EUR/USD in the Razor account, accompanied by a diverse portfolio comprising 100+ currency pairs - an extensive selection surpassing most competitors. Additionally, Pepperstone distinguishes itself by offering three currency indices (USDX, EURX, JPYX), not commonly found among alternative platforms. Pepperstone has now won our annual 'Best Forex Broker' award twice. FXCM offers an average range of 40+ currency pairs, although there are no commissions and spreads are competitive from 0.78 pips for EUR/USD. The broker also offers 3 forex baskets covering USD, Yen and emerging markets benchmarks.
Forex App

Pepperstone deliver their MetaTrader 4, MetaTrader 5, cTrader and TradingView platforms across both Android and iOS. With faster processing times, the ability to hedge your positions, advanced pending orders and more tools and indicators to take your trading to the next level – they are a powerful addition for mobile traders.

GBPUSD Spread
0.4 0.5 pips var*
EURUSD Spread
0.1 0.2 pips var*
EURGBP Spread
0.4 0.5 pips var*
Assets
100+ 40
Currency Indices
  • USD
  • EUR
  • JPY
  • JPY
Cryptocurrency
Pepperstone continues to prove itself as one of the most trusted crypto brokers. Although its selection of digital tokens is average, you can trade popular cryptos like Bitcoin and altcoins like Ripple with up to 1:10 leverage, while its crypto indices provide a holistic view of the digital currency markets not found on most day trading platforms. You can trade some of world's most popular digital coins with zero commission and leverage up to 1:4. FXCM also stands out for its crypto major basket which offers exposure to Bitcoin, Ethereum, Litecoin and Bitcoin Cash in one trade.
Spread
BTC 30, ETH 0 Variable
Coins
  • BCH
  • BTC
  • ETH
  • LTC
  • DASH
  • ADA
  • LINK
  • DOGE
  • EOS
  • DOT
  • XRP
  • XLM
  • XTZ
  • UNI
  • BNB
  • BTC
  • ETH
  • LTC
  • BTC
Crypto Lending
No No
Crypto Mining
No No
Crypto Staking
No No
Auto Market Maker
No No
CFDs and FX are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. Between 74-89% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs.
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