Forex trading is well-known for flexibility, liquidity, low costs, and trading at any time of the day. If you consider all these options, you will see that forex is the best way to invest and trade your financial resources. Given the high degree of volatility involved in trading currency pairs, an efficient support system enables additional stability. In this FXCM and Forex review, you will see the general analysis of the features and services offered by both brokers. With this information, it will be easier for you to make the final choice.
What FOREX.com Offers
Forex.com is an online broker that provides three powerful proprietary trading platforms for forex traders and investors. The major focus is set on performance, flexibility, and speed. The advanced desktop resource provides highly customized dashboards, featuring trade preferences, powerful charting instruments, over 80 technical indicators, extensive drawing instruments, and advanced analytic instruments. Moreover, you will be able to benefit from integrated trading strategies with lots of predefined templates.
The broker is represented by the advanced analysis mechanism enabled through its desktop platform of Autochartist, Faraday, and Recognia. FOREX.com’s web resource has trading instruments, advanced charting services, over 70 technical indicators, over 50 drawing instruments, and many more. The platform also offers market commentary and analysis options in order to facilitate seamless account management, funding, and withdrawals.
The mobile platform can be accessed on both iOS and Android phones. It provides full trading capabilities, offers integrated news, conducts market commentary and analysis, as well as enables real-time notifications. Also, Forex.com offers third-party trading and charting software such as NinjaTrader, Tradable, and TradingView.
Currently, there are several account types on Forex.com – Standard, Commissions, and Direct Market Access (DMA). The Standard account features no commissions, while the spreads are considerably much higher than the other two account types. When you trade with the Standard account, spreads may change depending on traded pairs.
The Commissions and DMA accounts are more attractive for high volume traders and investors. With the spreads as low as 0.2 and 0.1, you will be charged a commission. If you choose the Commissions account, you’ will have to pay $5 per 100 thousand base currency that you use for trading operations. Your commissions with a DMA account are based on a variable fee plan.
What FXCM Offers
FXCM is one of those brokers that offers numerous third-party trading platforms. Its flagship platform is the Trading Station Web 2.0 platform featuring an intuitive user interface and extensive new features. The Trading Station desktop platform provides you with the ability to customize your resource and integrate analytical and automated trading instruments, preloaded approaches, extensive functions, and detailed strategies.
The Trading Station mobile resource is available for both iOS and Android devices. You will provide live streaming rates, manage your orders, develop charts, and analyze available data. Similar to Forex.com, FXCM provides MetaTrader 4 and NinjaTrader. Apart from core platforms, FXCM also has a suite of specialty third-party sites that can be used along with FXCM. These third-party resources involve QuantConnect, MotiveWave, Sierra Chart, SeerTrading, NeuroShell Trader and StrategyQuant.
The spreads on FXCM are more or less similar to those offered by Forex.com. For instance, the average spread on EUR/USD can be estimated at 1.3. For Active Traders, FXCM decreases the spreads on every operated market. As an Active Trader, you have to pay $25 per one million base currency you manage. FXCM charges a 50 base currency commission annually if your account remains inactive.
Final Verdict
Forex.com and FXCM remain on equal footing on many services and qualities they have. Despite this, in terms of security, breadth of asset classes, characteristics, and customer-orientation, Forex.com is the absolute winner. Considering the fact that FXCM has to deal with a regulatory backlash and is not currently available to US customers, Forex.com is taking the leading position on the trading market.
If a wide range of Forex markets is significant to you, Forex.com should be your final choice. Generally, both brokerage companies provide competitive spreads and trading interfaces with a great number of analysis instruments. By trying to trade with a demo account on both platforms, you will get an authentic understanding of which broker would suit you best.
