Selecting from the possible trading platforms impacts the interface, various valuable indicators, automation and fast execution speeds. We compare the best software trading and the recommended brokers for the most popular trading platforms.
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Our favourite trading software in 2024 is:
| Broker | Our Rating | Regulation | Standard EUR/USD Spread |
Standard GBP/USD Spread |
Standard AUD/USD Spread |
Raw EUR/USD Spread |
Raw GBP/USD Spread |
Raw AUD/USD Spread |
Commissions (USD Base) |
MetaTrader 4 | MetaTrader 5 | cTrader | Execution Speed | Minimum Deposit | Currency Pairs | Crypto CFDs | Retail Leverage | Prof. Leverage | Read Full Review |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Read review ›
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81 |
FCA, CIRO, ASIC FSC-BVI, NFA, CFTC MAS, JFSA, KNF |
1.4 | 2 | 1.4 | - | - | - | - |
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120ms | $0 | 69+ | - | 50:1 | - |
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Read review ›
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80 |
ASIC,CySEC FSCA,FSA-S,FSC-M |
1.1 | 1.3 | 1.3 | 0.10 | 0.20 | 0.20 | $3.00 |
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225ms | $100 | 70+ | 10+ | 30:1 | 500:1 |
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Read review ›
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61 | CIRO, FCA, NFA, CFTC, MAS, JFSA, CIMA | 1.2 | 1.5 | 1.4 | - | - | - | $7.00 |
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30 ms (May 2023) | $100 | 80+ | - | 33:1 | 33:1 |
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Read review ›
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52 |
CIRO NFA/CFTC,ASIC,FCA,MAS |
- | - | - | - | 0.08%-0.2% |
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120ms | $0 | 100+ | - | 30:1 |
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Read review ›
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64 |
CIRO, FSCA ADGM, CBI |
0.90 | 1.5 | 1.1 | - | - | - | - |
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160ms | $100 | 37+ | - | 33:1 | 33:1 |
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Read review ›
|
69 |
ASIC, FCA MAS, CIRO |
1.12 | 1.30 | 1.64 | 0.5 | 0.9 | 0.6 | $2.50 |
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|
138ms | $0 | 339+ | - | 30:1 | 500:1 |
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Read review ›
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70 |
FMA, VFSC ASIC |
1.0 | 1.32 | 1.11 | 0.10 | 0.42 | 0.21 | $3.50 |
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94ms | $100 | 60+ | 12+ | 30:1 | 200:1 |
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Read review ›
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75 |
FCA,ASIC, CySEC,SCB |
1.0 | 1.0 | 1.2 | 0.06 | 0.73 | 0.27 | $3.50 |
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143ms | $100 | 40+ | 250+ | 30:1 | 500:1 |
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Read review ›
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82 | ASIC, VFSA, FSA-S | 0.93 | 1.08 | 0.92 | 0.13 | 0.21 | 0.12 | $2.25 |
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79ms | $0 | 90+ | 10+ | 500:1 | 500:1 |
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MetaTrader 4 is the most widely used forex trading platform, but there are many other great platforms to consider. All platform has its own strengths and weaknesses and suit and suit the needs of different types of traders. This review compares forex trading platforms and the brokers that offer them to Canadian clients.
OANDA has a trading platform for every trading type
OANDA offers 3 trading platforms to account for all trading styles. OANDA Trade is a good choice for you if you are after a simplified trading experience but also want extra charting and analysis functions like AutoChartist. MetaTrader 4 is excellent if you want to program custom indicators or Expert Advisors to automate your trading. Or you can use TradingView, a powerful charting package with over 110+ indicators for you to use.
The variety of trading platforms offered, paired with OANDA’s additional technical trading plugins to enhance the platforms, makes OANDA an easy choice for us to recommend.
Key Strengths:
Top Trading Platforms
Getting started with any of the following trading platforms is easy. We got access to them as soon as we opened a trading account with OANDA, which we did without funding the account.
OANDA offers a Free Premium Upgrade with MetaTrader 4 Platform
The MT4 platform is the best forex trading platform available for most forex traders. We think OANDA works best with the MetaTrader 4 platform thanks to its customizable features and OANDA’s premium MT4 plugin. For instance, my favourite tool available with OANDA is the Open Order Indicator for the MT4 platform.
We like this because it gives you aggregate open orders and position data on your MetaTrader 4 platform. Some brokers try to emulate this tool, but the reason why you should use it with this broker is that OANDA is one of the largest brokers in the world.
This means the open order data you see will more likely represent market sentiment. You can use this to see the likelihood of support and resistance levels developing and then choose how to trade based on the open-order data.
TradingView offers you the Most Extensive Choice of Technical Indicators for Free
If you are looking for more advanced features, OANDA integrates with TradingView. We find that one of the impressive qualities of TradingView is that it is built for the web yet packs in so many advanced features. For example, over 110+ technical indicators are available for free, and you can personalize your charts.
Some brokers’ platforms won’t even let you customize your charts. You should try the TradingView platform if you are a technical analysis enthusiast because you can also tap into TradingView’s community with 50 million other traders who share their charts.
OANDA Trade is the Simplest and Most Intuitive Trading Platform for Beginners
OANDA has its own proprietary trading platform, which you can access through its website or mobile app. What we liked about this platform is that it’s a very simple platform to work with and has all of the key functions available on one screen. This makes executing trades and finding trade ideas easy without any distractions.
The platform also has direct access to the AutoChartist software, which generates fx trading ideas based on price action. These are delivered directly on the platform in its own tab. You would choose the OANDA Trade platform if you want quicker access to the AutoChartist software. It’s one click away on the trading platform.
OANDA’s Standard Account has No Commission on Trades
The spreads for the Standard Account are relatively low as they can start from 0.6 pips spread on the EURUSD. So if you like to focus on the EURUSD, you’ll pay one of the lowest spreads on OANDA.
What we like with Standard Accounts is that you do not pay any commissions on your trades. Everything is priced into the spread, so looking at your PnL on your MetaTrader 4 platform shows your true profit or loss. This is helpful when deciding whether to cut your losses or take your profits.
The Standard Account comes with all the features you would need from a forex broker. However, OANDA does have a service that is available to high-volume traders, which is called the Elite Trader Program. You can join the Elite Trader Program if your monthly trading volume is $10M+. If you join the program, you can save up to 34% in trading costs through trading rebates.
OANDA has a Great Selection of Trading Products
If you like to focus on forex and commodities, then OANDA will be a great choice for you. There are 69 forex pairs and 37 total commodities available to trade with low spreads. You can even trade gold and silver with different currency pairs, e.g. you can trade XAU/CAD or XAU/JPY. You have a choice of 21 different gold and silver crosses. So if you like to look for correlated trading forex opportunities or hedge the markets, then OANDA can offer that to you.
Our Verdict on OANDA
When we used OANDA to test out the trading platforms available, we found that they excelled in delivering the fundamentals and improved the platforms with additional currency trading tools. With low spreads, a wide selection of currency pairs to trade forex from, and bespoke improvements to the MT4 platform make OANDA an ideal broker. That is why we confidently recommend OANDA as the best forex broker overall.
FP Markets empowers you to create your ideal trading environment with integrations
Key Strengths:
FP Markets Has Excellent Copy and Social Trading Resources
If you’re interested in copy and social trading, but not ready to commit to a specialist brokerage like eToro, FP Markets represents a happy medium. Trade with familiar platforms like MetaTrader 4 and MetaTrader 5 while also benefiting from third-party integrations designed to optimise your copy and social trading outcomes.
If you’re a copy trader, FP Markets allows you to mimic the decisions of experienced traders and market movers with MyFxBook. Even better, you have the option to automate your copytrading with this integration. Note, however, that you’ll need to trade via the MetaTrader 4 or MetaTrader 5 platforms to take advantage.
Having said that, FP Markets’ own proprietary trading app for mobile includes social trading tools. Mimic the trading patterns of experienced and professional traders, or copy them directly, depending on your preference.
Connect Your FP Markets Account to Alternative Platforms
In the event that you can’t come up with a combination of tools and integrations to suit your needs, FP Markets allows you to connect your account to a third-party platform via its API. Alternatively, you can use FP Market’s API to integrate additional tools and resources into your MetaTrader setup.
If you’re exploring automated trading, you can’t underestimate the value of this feature. By allowing native integrations via an API, FP Markets empowers you to take full advantage of the universe of algorithmic trading robots. That is, you’re not limited solely to the bots available on the MetaQuotes marketplace.
FP Markets’ MetaTrader 5 Offering Includes Powerful Tools
Even if your trading needs don’t extend to features like multi-account management and VPS hosting, FP Markets provides extensive resources for the MetaTrader collection of platforms.
Use Autochartist market scanner tool to feed continuous analysis to your MT5 account, or take advantage of additional chart analytics, including consecutive candles, Fibonacci patterns and support and resistance levels.
FP Markets Offers Competitive Spreads
Whether you opt to trade via FP Markets’ Standard or RAW account, you’ll benefit from low spreads and competitive trading costs. While the minimum spread of the Standard account does sit on the higher end at 1.1 pips, it’s important to remember that a minimum spread is just that – the minimum possible in a given broker’s spread-only pricing model. Consistency matters as much – if not more – than the race to the bottom.
Think of it this way, what good is a posted minimum spread of 0.0 pips if the actual average is closer to 2.0? Wouldn’t you prefer a broker that stays consistently close to 1.0 or 1.1?
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Standard Account Spreads
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|---|---|---|---|---|---|
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1.10 | 1.20 | 1.30 | 1.30 | 1.30 |
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1.20 | 0.90 | 1.50 | 1.80 | 1.80 |
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1.20 | 1.40 | 1.50 | 1.60 | 1.50 |
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1.10 | 1.20 | 1.40 | 1.50 | 1.20 |
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1.20 | 1.30 | 1.20 | 1.30 | 1.10 |
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1.70 | 1.60 | 1.70 | 2.00 | 1.60 |
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1.20 | 1.80 | 1.90 | 1.90 | 1.60 |
Avg. spreads are taken from each broker's website and updated monthly. Last update on 04/01/2024
A quick look at the actual average spreads for major currency pairs demonstrates why FP Markets makes good financial sense if you’re a trader on a budget. The average spread for the EUR/USD pair is 1.1 pips, identical to the posted minimum for the Standard account. Likewise, the EUR/GBP and USD/JPY pairs deviate by only 0.2 pips.
If, on the other hand, your trading strategy relies on those ultra tight spreads, you can opt for the RAW account, which goes as low as 0.0 pips. You will pay a commission of CAD 7.00 on every round-turn trade, however.
In either case, you’ll benefit from ECN-like pricing, which means access to deep liquidity. This broker also doesn’t require a minimum deposit or charge for withdrawals, which means your indirect trading costs stay low.
Finally, you’ll also benefit from extended leverage. An offshore broker, FP Markets allows Canadian traders to access margins of up to 500:1.
Our Verdict on FP Markets
If you’re looking to design a custom trading environment from the ground up, FP Markets offers a winning combination of tried and tested platforms and extensive integrations designed to support almost any trading strategy.
FOREX.com provides an Advanced Proprietary Platform and TradingView
TradingView is only available to a limited numbers of brokers worldwide. Of those, FOREX.com provides the lowest spreads with no commissions. You get TradingView’s excellent charting tools with low spreads. If you focus on technical analysis, you would benefit from using TradingView with FOREX.com.
Key Strengths:
FOREX.com allows you to Trade with TradingView
We like TradingView’s intuitive interface and constant improvements that introduce new features for free. With a great range of drawing tools and over 110+ trading indicators available, it’s a great fit if you trade forex using technical analysis.
If you are an advanced technical analyst and you use chart patterns to find trading opportunities, then the advanced drawing tools would appeal to you. TradingView gives you access to 28 drawing tools that help you analyse prices. These tools plot various methods, from Fibonacci retracement to ABCD patterns. Ideal for helping you speed up your analysis with accuracy.
A forex market screener is a helpful tool to identify if a currency pair meets your trading criteria. For example, you can use it to find forex pairs based on candlestick patterns that have formed. Speeding up the process of finding trading ideas.
FOREX.com has Low Spreads on TradingView
FOREX.com has two accounts you can choose from. The standard account bundles all trading costs into low spreads from 1.2 pips on EURUSD with no commission. This clear pricing model is ideal for new forex traders.
The RAW Pricing account provides direct liquidity access and ECN-like execution with tighter spreads from 0.0 pips on EURUSD. However, it charges a commission, which is $14 per one-lot round turn.
Trade a wide range of currency pairs with FOREX.com
Forex.com specializes in CFD trading and offers over 3,000 trading products. The main market that stands out is its comprehensive currency market, with over 80+ currency pairs to trade. What sets them apart is that they have over 20+ exotic pairs, which allows you to trade with more volatility if you want to.
Our Verdict on FOREX.com
We recommend FOREX.com if you want to use advanced charting platforms like TradingView. With a range of indicators, advanced drawing tools, and a forex CFD screener to recognize patterns for you. TradingView, combined with the competitive spreads from Forex.com, gives you everything you need to analyse the markets and trade effectively.
Interactive Brokers has High-Quality Trading Analysis Tools with their Platform
Interactive Brokers’ proprietary platform offers institutional-grade tools covering all asset classes. They offer advanced research and analysis tools that can be overwhelming for beginners but excellent for experienced traders. You should choose this platform if you are an experienced forex trader who wants institutional-grade research and analysis tools that cover the breadth of the markets.
Key Strengths:
Interactive Brokers offers a Wide Range of Professional-Grade Trading Platforms
Interactive Broker provides multiple trading platforms that include good analysis tools.
You can analyze the markets with over 100 customizable technical indicators and pattern recognition tools. TWS also provides an excellent range of market scanners that allows you to find potential FX trading opportunities based on your criteria – a bit like TradingView’s scanner, but more advanced. Then, there is embedded news, data, and research from top-tier research houses like Morningstar and Zacks.
Our Verdict on Interactive Brokers
Interactive Brokers is our top choice if you are an experienced trader who wants a full-featured trading platform with flexible tools for all trading products. With the TWS platform, you can access professional-grade tools to help you capitalise on trading multiple markets.
5. The Top Forex Broker for Fastest Execution on MT4TMGM Provides Execution Speeds Under 100ms in our Tests
With TMGM, you get fast execution speeds on the MetaTrader 4 platform through their ECN model. You should choose to trade the MT4 software if you are a scalper. The faster execution speeds help reduce slippage, meaning you get the price you execute for. However, this benefits all forex traders. That is why we recommend TMGM as the top broker for MT4.
Key Strengths:
Top Trading Tools for the MetaTrader 4
You can customise your MT4 platform by adjusting the colours of the chart and by overlaying technical indicators to the charts. MetaTrader 4 is available on desktop, iOS/Android devices, and the web. However, the desktop has the most features.
We like MT4 because it is one of the few platforms that lets you overlay unlimited indicators on a single chart. Others, like TradingView, limit the indicators on a chart (to three on the free plan). This can restrict your trading if you use multiple indicators.
One-click trading forex from the chart is also good. You can pre-configure trade tickets with position size and execute with buy/sell buttons. It is much faster than manually creating tickets each time.
With unlimited indicators and one-click trading, MT4 is ideal for scalpers. You can apply all your indicators without limits and act fast on signals.
If you want more chart types and built-in indicators, TMGM also offers MT5.
TMGM has the Fastest Execution Speeds for a CIRO-Regulated Broker
Our Chief Technology Researcher, Ross Collins, tested 20 brokers for their execution speeds on the MT4 platform. We found that TMGM was the fastest CIRO-regulated forex broker with an average execution speed of 94ms.
TMGM gets fast speeds on MT4 through Equinix data centers in New York and Tokyo. Some brokers only have one data centre, which could impact your execution time. They also partner with top-tier liquidity providers, so your orders are routed directly to them when you execute a trade.
A Choice of Low-Fee Trading Accounts
You have two account options connected to MetaTrader 4. The Classic account has spreads from one pip without commissions. Making it beginner-friendly since trading costs are built into the spreads you pay.
The Edge account spreads start from 0.0 pips but charges a CAD $9 round-turn commission per standard lot. This works out slightly cheaper, especially if you trade often.
Our Verdict on TMGM
We like that TMGM understands the importance of execution speeds, so they have provided access to two global Equinix data centres. Our testing reflected this, with TMGM being the fastest CIRO-regulated forex CFD broker. With a choice of low-cost trading accounts and trading platforms, you should choose this broker if you are a scalper to enjoy these benefits.
CMC Markets ‘Next Generation’ Platform has over 100 Technical Indicators
CMC Market is another broker with their own platform. The Next Generation platform is user-friendly and has many advanced features that you would benefit from. The Next Generation platform is an excellent choice if you use trading indicators because they have an extensive library of over 100+ technical indicators for you to use.
Key Strengths:
Trading Platforms
CMC Markets provides you with all the tools needed for price action and chart pattern analysis. You can access over 110+ trading indicators and drawing tools to plot your analysis on the charts. The interface of the platform is clean and very easy to use.
One of the features we like is they offer a pattern recognition scanner. Unlike the other scanners, this one is more advanced in finding patterns ranging from chart formations to harmonic patterns. This searches for different chart patterns such as the head and shoulders, channels, and wedges every 15 minutes. If it finds potential emerging patterns, it will plot them automatically on your charts. As a day trader, this can make your job easier to find emerging patterns to trade.
Our Verdict on CMC Markets
CMC Market has over 110+ customizable technical studies and the most advanced pattern recognition scanners available for free. You can use these to analyze and identify patterns for trade setups quickly. In addition, the tight spreads from 0.7 pips and wide range of trading products make CMC our top choice foreign exchange broker for technical indicators.
Eightcap has Great Crypto Trading with MetaTrader 5
The Crypto markets can provide exciting opportunities for you, but they are unavailable to CIRO-regulated brokers. Eightcap, on the other hand, is not regulated by CIRO, and they accept Canadian traders, so you can use Eightcap to trade Cryptocurrencies. They provide over 80+ cryptocurrencies on their MetaTrader 5 (MT5) platform. You should choose the MT5 platform if you want to trade the crypto markets.
Key Strengths:
Trade Over 80+ Cryptocurrencies on MetaTrader 5 with Eightcap
MetaTrader 5 is an excellent choice if you like to trade multiple assets. Compared to MetaTrader 4, MT5 can access different assets such as stocks and crypto. With Eightcap, you can take advantage of this by trading any of the 80+ cryptocurrencies available.
You may wonder why you would choose MT5 over MT4. While both allow chart customization, MT5 has some key improvements.
For example, MT5 now has activated real-data Depth of Market trading, which is ideal if you want to scalp the markets.
Eightcap has Low Trading Costs on MT5
You have a choice of two accounts on the MT5. The standard account bundles cost into the spreads starting from one-pip, but you do not pay a commission. Suitable for beginners seeking simplicity.
Then there is the RAW account with spreads from 0.0 pips and a CAD $7 commission per standard lot. This account is ideal for scalpers who want to enter the markets with the tightest spreads available on Eightcap.
Our Verdict on Eightcap
Eightcap offers an impressive range of over 80 cryptocurrencies that you can use on the MetaTrader 5 platform. MT5 gives you greater market transparency and the tools to make your trading easier. For these reasons, we recommend Eightcap as an excellent broker to use MT5 with.
Fusion Markets offers the Lowest Commissions on MetaTrader4
MetaTrader 4 is a popular trading platform, so we included it multiple times because it pairs up nicely with two brokers. Fusion Markets is our lowest-cost forex broker that accepts Canadian traders. So, if you want a low-cost broker that pairs up with MetaTrader 4, you should choose Fusion Markets.
Key Strengths:
Fusion Markets is our Lowest-Commission Broker for MetaTrader 4
We tested 15 foreign exchange brokers worldwide to find the lowest commission forex broker based on a one-lot trade. We rated Fusion Markets first place out of the 15 brokers tested due to their low commissions. They were charging CAD $6 round-turn per one lot traded, which is much cheaper than some of its competitors. For example, Friedberg Direct, powered by FXCM charges $14. So not only did it place first out of all of the Canadian brokers, but also worldwide.
Fusion Markets offers copy trading services using the MetaTrader 4 platform through DupliTrade. By linking your Fusion MT4 account, you can automatically copy any trading strategy from DipliTrade’s traders. Fusion Markets is our top choice if you are looking for a broker that allows copy trading with the lowest commissions on MT4.
Our Verdict on Fusion Markets
Fusion Markets is our top broker for the lowest commissions after reviewing based on our tests, beating 15 other brokers. You can access copy trading features, which are ideal for traders who lack time to monitor the markets. You get a winning combo when you pair this with the lowest MT4 commissions.
Friedberg Direct has the tightest Fixed Spreads on MetaTrader 4 in Canada
An alternative to Fusion Markets, if you don’t want to pay commission, is Friedberg Direct powered by AvaTrade. You can use the MetaTrader 4 platform with fixed spreads and no commissions. If you like to trade during volatile times, you would choose this broker with the MT4 platform.
Key Strengths:
Friedberg Direct Allows you to Trade Tight Fixed Spreads with MetaTrader 4
Friedberg Direct (powered by AvaTrade) is one of the only CIRO-regulated brokers to offer fixed spreads on MetaTrader 4.
What we like about Friedberg Direct is how tight they offer their spreads, which are from 0.6 pips on the EURUSD, so they are very competitive. Especially when compared to other brokers in Canada that offer spreads from one pip, such as TMGM.
Fixed spreads are ideal for beginners, so you don’t have to worry about the spreads widening during volatile times.
Our Verdict on Friedberg Direct
Friedberg Direct provides a range of trading products through the MetaTrader 4 platform. With tight-fixed spreads, you can take advantage of the market’s volatility without being punished by variable spreads. If you want to know your trading costs consistently, we recommend trading the MT4 with Friedberg Direct because of the fixed spreads from 0.6 pips and no commission.
There are a lot of choices out there when it comes to trading platforms in Canada and, indeed, internationally. Forex trading is still the most popular way to trade globally, so choosing the best brokers with the best trading platforms is essential.
MT4 continues to be the most popular trading platform worldwide and is designed for both beginners and traders with experience, but there are many others. Some brokers offer their own proprietary trading platforms with specific features for their customers.
Along with trading platforms, there are a number of other considerations we have made, including:
We made sure to look CIRO regulated brokers such as FXCM, Oanda, ForTrade and CMC Markets, who are good choices for Canadian traders. But also considered brokers outside Canada, such as eToro and HFM, who are not CIRO regulated but accept most traders across the globe. Ultimately, only the 7 top brokers were chosen.
It’s essential to consider a country’s regulatory environment before choosing a broker, especially in the Foreign Exchange market.
There is no single global body governing the forex market. Instead, several governmental and independent bodies (FCA, ASIC, CySEC, etc.) supervise trading globally. These supervisory bodies regulate forex by setting standards for all brokers under their jurisdictions.
E.g. The top regulatory bodies in Canada are the Canadian Investment Regulatory Organization (CIRO) and The Canadian Securities Administrators (CSA).
All brokers on this list are regulated, but you should always check the broker’s website to ensure it is a regulated broker before you open an account with them. There may also be certain provinces, states or regions that have their own financial regulator, as some brokers may have different regulatory requirements for specific regions. In Canada, two examples include Ontario and Alberta, which both have additional regulatory requirements from the broker before they can offer services in these regions.
There are also certain NFP and other corporations that offer additional protection for retail investors against bankruptcy. In Canada, The Canadian Investor Protection Fund (CIPF) safeguards client accounts held by CIRO-regulated investment intermediaries within certain limits.
Lastly, the regulator (CIRO or offshore) also impacts high-risk trading factors such as maximum leverage available. This information can all be found on the broker’s website, and you can view all our tables on the homepage of the forex broker comparison page.
