Automated trading platforms offering social-copy and/or algorithmic trading features allow you to save time and effort for CFD and forex trading. Read on to discover the various ways you can automate trading strategies in 2023.
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Top 8 Automated Trading Platform UK List
Our September 2023 best algorithmic trading software UK list 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 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
9.33 |
FCA, ASIC CySEC, DFSA |
1.12 | 1.69 | 1.22 | 0.1 | 0.6 | 0.3 | $3.50 |
|
|
|
77ms | $0 | 62+ | 12+ | 30:1 | 500:1 |
|
|
8.50 |
FCA,ASIC, CySEC,SCB |
1.0 | 1.0 | 1.2 | 0.06 | 0.73 | 0.27 | $3.50 |
|
|
|
143ms | $100 | 40+ | 250+ | 30:1 | 500:1 |
|
|
8.17 |
NFA, CFTC, CBI ASIC, FCA, MAS CIRO, JFSA |
- | - | - | - | 0.08%-0.2% |
|
|
|
110ms | $0 | 100+ | - | 30:1 | 500:1 |
|
||
|
7.17 |
ASIC, CySEC, MFSA FCA, FSA, FINRA GFSC |
1.0 | 2.0 | 1.0 | - | - | - | - |
|
|
|
130ms | $200 (Australia), $50-$100 (EU) | 49+ | 46+ | 30:1 | 400:1 |
|
|
7.93 |
ASIC, FSCA FCA, CIRO BaFin, ISA, CySEC |
1.3 | 1.4 | 1.7 | 0.30 | 0.90 | 0.40 | $3.00 |
|
|
|
150ms | $300 | 42+ | 7+ | 30:1 | 500:1 |
|
|
6.67 |
ASIC, FCA, BaFin FINMA, NFA/CFTC, MAS CySEC, DFSA, FMA JFSA, BMA, FSCA |
1.13 | 1.66 | 1.01 | 0.16 | 0.59 | 0.29 | $6.00 |
|
|
|
174ms | $450 | 100+ | 12+ | 30:1 | 200:1 |
|
Our team created a list of the best UK forex brokers to help UK traders choose the best provider. That said, UK traders who primarily implement automated strategies rely more on some factors, including execution speed, spreads, and trading platform features. We revised the list for this subset of traders based on the new weightings.
MetaTrader 4
MetaTrader 4 is the most popular trading platform worldwide because its advanced algorithmic trading tools allow full automation. Trading algorithms (trading robots) are known as Expert Advisors (EAs) on MT4.
Expert Advisors On MT4
Expert Advisors (EAs) can be developed on MT4 to monitor financial markets and enter automatically and exit trades according to your preset parameters. When writing EAs on MT4, you use MetaQuotes Programming Language 4 (MQL4), which is comparable to the C programming language.
MetaTrader Marketplace
While writing custom EAs is ideal for experienced traders, those new to forex trading may find it too complex. As a beginner trader, an excellent place to start using EAs is the MetaTrader Marketplace. Due to MT4’s popularity, the platform boasts a large marketplace where you can download over 1,700 EAs along with 2,100 technical indicators.
Backtesting
After developing EAs, you can test and optimise the algorithm against historical data using the platform’s backtesting tools, Strategy Tester. A downside to MT4’s Strategy Tester is that you can only test a single financial instrument simultaneously. It also uses 32-bit memory and a single server that may not handle intensive programs.
Although the platform’s backtesting features are sufficient for most traders, MetaQuotes’ newer trading platform, MetaTrader 5, provides more sophisticated backtesting tools with multi-asset capabilities.
Benefits Of Expert Advisors
MT4 Trading Tools
In addition to algorithmic trading, MT4 is many retail trader’s platform of choice thanks to the following:
Please note that MetaQuotes has ceased offering technical or customer support for MT4 users. The software developers also recently announced they would no longer be selling MT4 licences to brokers.
Pepperstone – Best MT4 Broker For Expert Advisors
Pepperstone is one of the most popular forex brokers for those wanting access to MT4 and Expert Advisors. Key features offered by the Australian-based broker include:
Pepperstone’s Forex Spreads
Pepperstone has an excellent track record of ultra-tight spreads and competitive trading conditions. There are two pricing structures to choose from when using MT4, a Razor account and a Standard account type.
Standard Account
The standard account provides access to commission-free forex spreads starting from 1.0 pips. This account type is a great option for beginner traders because you can avoid calculating commission costs as you trade. As shown below, Pepperstone’s commission-free pricing is ultra-tight, with most brokers promoting spreads nearly twice as wide.
|
Standard Account Spreads
|
|||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
1.10 | 1.20 | 1.40 | 1.40 | 1.40 |
|
1.13 | 1.01 | 1.71 | 1.66 | 1.12 |
|
1.20 | 0.90 | 1.50 | 1.80 | 1.80 |
|
1.20 | 1.40 | 1.50 | 1.60 | 1.50 |
|
1.10 | 1.20 | 1.40 | 1.50 | 1.20 |
|
1.10 | 1.30 | 1.30 | 1.30 | 1.30 |
|
1.20 | 1.80 | 1.90 | 1.90 | 1.60 |
|
1.32 | 1.95 | 1.37 | 1.70 | 1.40 |
Avg. spreads are taken from each broker's website and updated monthly. Last update on 01/09/2023
Compare Lowest No Commission Spreads
Razor Account
Pepperstone’s most popular account for MT4 is its Razor Account with ECN-like pricing. The broker does not mark up the spreads, which start as low as 0.0 pips. As you are trading institutional-grade spreads, you pay a commission fee of $3.50 per side per 100k traded.
The table below compares Pepperstone’s average spreads to other top brokers offering ECN-style accounts. Few brokers match the Razor Accounts’ tight spreads, with the average spread for the EUR/USD staying close to Pepperstone’s minimum spread of 0.0 pips.
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ECN Broker Spreads
|
|||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
|
0.20 | 0.30 | 0.10 | 0.30 | 0.20 |
|
|
0.47 | 0.50 | 0.12 | 0.40 | 0.22 |
|
0.20 | 0.30 | 0.20 | 0.40 | 0.20 |
|
0.30 | N/A | 0.30 | 0.50 | 0.40 |
|
|
0.24 | N/A | 0.17 | 0.54 | 0.30 |
|
0.30 | 0.70 | 0.20 | 0.50 | 0.40 |
|
0.30 | 1.10 | 0.10 | 0.60 | 0.50 |
|
0.77 | 1.41 | 0.44 | 1.13 | 1.23 |
Avg. spreads are taken from each broker's website and updated monthly. Last update on 01/09/2023
Other Ways Automate Trading With Pepperstone
You are not just limited to Expert Advisors for automation with Pepperstone. The broker also offers other platforms where you can utilise algorithmic trading, primarily:
cTrader Automate (formerly cAlgo) is an algorithmic trading platform that integrates with cTrader. It allows you to build automated trading robots and custom indicators in the popular C# language. It uses the highly functional cTrader API and backtesting and optimising trading strategies.
Alternatively, Capitalise.ai is a platform where you can automate your trading code-free (I.E., you don’t need any coding expertise). You can also trade manually with the platform.
Similarly, TradingView lets you use scripts which are trading indicators and strategies built by other traders using TradingView’s Pine Script programming language.
Various social trading tools are also available to automate your trading by mirroring or copying other traders. Software available includes Trading Signals for the MT4 trading platform, Duplitrade if you are outside the UK, and Pelican if you are in the UK.
Lastly, you can utilise Application Programming Interface (API) trading if you already use another trading automation system or have your own customer-built system to connect it to Pepperstone’s trading infrastructure.
Pepperstone also offers the best spread betting platform for UK traders.
View Pepperstone ReviewVisit Pepperstone
MetaTrader 5
MetaTrader 5 (MT5) was released by MetaQuotes in 2010 to cater to those wanting to trade a more comprehensive range of financial instruments. A key difference between MT4 and MT5 is market access. Unlike MT4, MT5 offers trading products from centralised and decentralised exchanges. In addition to CFDs derived from forex, indices, and commodities, you can trade physical stocks from global markets with certain brokers.
While MT5 was not necessarily created to replace MT4, the platform offers additional trading tools and upgrades. Among them are extra indicators and drawing tools, more timeframes, and 2 new pending orders. As the below table highlights, MT5 excels in every way compared to MT4.
MT5 Expert Advisors
Like MT4, MetaTrader 5 offers advanced algorithmic trading via Expert Advisors. Certain features like the programming language and backtesting are improved from its predecessor. Yet, due to MT4’s continuing popularity, the community and marketplace are smaller.
Programming Language: Similar to its predecessor, you can use Expert Advisors to automate trading on MT5. To develop your own EAs, you use the MQL5 programming language based on C++, which many traders consider easier to learn than MQL4. Unfortunately, the languages aren’t interchangeable, meaning if you have an EA written in MQL4, you can’t use it on MT5 (although converters exist online).
Marketplace: Although MetaQuotes has made it easier to access the Marketplace by adding a built-in tab to the platform, the marketplace size is smaller than MT4’s. Yet, with MetaQuotes ceasing customer support or license sales for MT4, MT5’s popularity will continue to grow, and so will the marketplace.
Backtesting: One major upgrade in MT5 is better-quality backtesting tools. MT5 Strategy Tester uses 64-bit memory and 4 servers, allowing for more efficient processing of high volumes of data. MT5 backtesting is also multi-threaded, meaning you can simultaneously test and optimise your EA with multiple currency pairs or instruments.
MT5 Trading Tools
Along with improvements to backtesting and the software’s programming language, MT5 offers the following tools to enhance your CFD and forex trading experience:
Eightcap – Top MT5 Broker With Expert Advisors
Eightcap is a top MT5 broker thanks to ultra-tight spreads, a wide range of CFDs, and good trading conditions for EA strategies.
Major advantages of Eightcap include:
Trading Spreads and Commissions
Eightcap has low spreads and competitive commissions via the broker’s Standard and Raw accounts.
Eightcap’s Standard account is for you if you want commission-free trading. With minimum spreads starting at 1 pip, this account is suited for beginners who’d like to track their costs, especially while experimenting with automated trading.
The broker’s Raw account has the lowest costs overall with minimum spreads as low as 0 pips and commissions of GBP 4.50, round turn.
Products available with Eightcap are limited, but the broker does offer 400 stocks and 46 Forex pairs and the biggest commodities and indices markets. You’ll need to use MT5 to access the full range of products.
Trading Platforms
Eightcap has several great trading platforms, all capable of algorithmic trading.
There are multiple ways to use automation with both MT4 and MT5, particularly MT5. From trading robots to a built-in strategy tester, MT5 has automation covered. Of particular note, you can use the platform’s programming language, MLQ5, to develop EAs (Expert Advisers) to automate trading processes. You can also implement your own trading strategies.
In addition, Fx Blue Labs, a MetaTrader plugin, allows you to use the market-data app. There is also Figaro to build content and automate common actions using powerful scripting. Another Fx Blue Labs tool for automation is MT Integration Suite, which provides a WebSocket and HTTP API around MT4 and MT5.
Then there is Capitalise.ai, which is covered later, that allows you to automate your trading ‘code-free’.
TradeStation
TradeStation is an FCA-regulated option for UK traders requiring automated trading systems, especially those wanting an English-like programming language. In partnership with Interactive Brokers, the platform allows for automated CFD trading and traditional futures, options, and stock trading.
To start trading, you can apply for a TradeStation Global account type, a collaboration between TradeStation and Interactive Brokers. With a TradeStation Global account, you open a trading account with Interactive Brokers Universal that provides access to the TradeStation platform and 135 financial markets, including 23 currency pairs. A minimum deposit of $1,000 is required.
Along with the premium TradeStation platform, a TradeStation Global account type gives you access to Interactive Brokers Trader Workstation (TWS), IBKR WebTrader, and the IBKR mobile apps for Android and Apple devices.
Pricing For Forex And CFD Trading
When trading forex CFDs, commission fees are calculated as 0.6 basis points x trade value, with a minimum fee of $2.00 USD (or equivalent).
If you are trading on the stock market for US Share CFDs, you’ll pay USD 0.007 per share, while US 500 Index CFDs commission fees are 0.0075% per trade fee. The brokerage fee for UK and Euro share CFDs is 0.075% per trade fee, 0.015% for Euro 50 Index CFDs, and 0.0075% per trade fee for UK 100 Index CFDs.
Automated Trading Strategies
You use EasyLanguage, TradeStation’s proprietary programing language, to write custom automated trading systems. The programming language uses common English-like statements and is considered user-friendly for those wanting to write custom indicators and trading strategies.
You can design order management, market analysis, and scanning tools using thousands of inbuilt functions, properties, and keywords. As with other algo trading software, you can test and optimise your trading strategies against historical market data using the platform’s backtesting tools.
On top of automated online trading, the TradeStation software provides the following inbuilt trading tools and features:
To use TradeStation, you’ll need to open an account with Interactive Brokers, which only has one account for retail investors: their IBKR Lite Account.
This account offers a tight spread of 0.1 pips for Forex and a minimum commission of USD $2 per order (USD $4 on both sides), which is competitive. Commission costs, however, can vary based on the trade value and base currency of your account (at 0.6 basis points x trade value), so be mindful when calculating your overall trading costs.
A broad and diverse array of products are available with Interactive Brokers, including over 100 Forex pairs, stocks on over 90 global exchanges, and an unsurpassed range of bonds. The broker also offers unique trading alternatives, including complex derivatives such as options and mutual funds, setting Interactive Brokers apart from other brokers.
View Interactive Brokers ReviewVisit Interactive Brokers Markets
eToro
eToro is a broker that hosts one of the world’s largest social-copy trading communities with millions of traders. Through its proprietary
trading platform, the broker offers a range of online trading activities, including copy trading, CFD trading, stock trading, and portfolio investing.
You can trade and copy trade strategies with diverse asset classes on the platform, with 2,000+ stocks, ETFs, indices, commodities and cryptocurrencies.
Please note that if you want to trade cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin and Bitcoin Cash, you must sign up for an eToro subsidiary outside the UK. The Financial Conduct Authority in the UK recently banned retail investor accounts from trading crypto. If your focus is cryptocurrencies, the broker is overseen by various top-tier regulators, and most UK traders can sign up for ASIC (Australia) or CySEC (Europe) branches.
CopyTrader
The platform’s social-copy trading feature, CopyTrader, can be handy whether you are an experienced trader looking to save time or a beginner trader learning the basics. Rather than develop and execute your own trading strategies, you can copy top-performing Popular Investors.
To find Popular Investors to follow and copy, you can filter trading statistics, risk scores, and more to find trading strategies that match your preferred asset classes and objectives.
In addition to copying other traders, you can communicate with other members of the social trading community with an inbuilt newsfeed and the ability to chat with one another and share ideas and knowledge.
SmartPortfolios (formerly CopyPortfolios)
For a longer-term investment option, eToro offers SmartPortfolios, where your portfolio is automatically managed and rebalanced as needed by eToro’s in-house experts. A higher minimum deposit of $5,000 is required to invest in SmartPortfolios.
eToro Trading Tools
In addition to CopyTrader and SmartPortfolios, the software comes with a range of trading tools to supplement automation:
To start trading, eToro only gives you one account option: it’s a Standard account.
This account has industry-average fees for a standard account, including no commissions and a minimum spread of 1 pip for Forex currency pairs. There are no funding costs and a minimum deposit of $50 to open an account with eToro.
An additional Islamic (or swap-free) account is available for those traders who abide by Sharia law. You’ll need $1000 to get started with this account.
Capitalise.ai
Capitalise.ai is a third-party automated trading software that can be integrated into different platforms. To save you time, Capitalise.ai’s software will monitor the trading environment and market data in real-time 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
Examples of automated systems you can build include:
The software allows you to achieve code-free automation with custom technical indicators and trading strategies. It opens up automation to beginner traders as it is user-friendly and uses free-style text commands to write trading signals.
To help you create and manage automated trading strategies, Capitalise.ai provides a range of trading tools and features:
FXCM and Capitalise.ai
To start using Capitalise.ai, you can sign up to FXCM and link the software to MetaTrader 4 or Trading Station. When trading forex and CFDs with the online broker, retail investor accounts gain the benefits of:
Other than Capitalise.ai, additional trading platforms available with FXCM include MetaTrader, Trading Station, Ninja Trader, TradingView, and a whole range of specialty trading platforms, all of which have algorithmic capabilities.
MetaTrader4 is suited for forex trading. Trading Station is FXCM’s excellent proprietary platform. Ninja Trader is a tremendous algorithmic (and manual) trading platform, and TradingView is one of the world’s leading charting platforms. Lastly, ZuluTrade is a popular copy trading platform to copy successful trading strategies.
ProRealTime
ProRealTime is a trading software that can be integrated into other platforms and is designed for automation and technical analysis. With the advanced functionality, the trading software is suited to experienced traders requiring a greater range of analysis tools.
ProOrder Automation
ProOrder is ProRealTime’s automation and backtesting tool. There are three approaches to adopting automation via ProOrder – you can code your own trading systems, use the software’s code-free Wizard or search the ProRealTime Marketplace online. If you are writing your own algorithms, the ProBuilder programming language is used and comparable to Visual Basic.
IG Markets And ProRealTime
IG Markets is a global broker offering ProRealTime that the UK’s FCA regulates, among others. Retail traders can integrate ProRealTime into their IG trading platform and gain access to a professional traders’ work environment. The IG platform enables you to trade the broker’s entire product range with 16,000 financial markets.
As an IG trader, there is no cost for the first month. However, if you don’t make at least four monthly transactions, you will be charged a monthly fee of $40.
IG Market’s Trading Accounts
IG Markets has two account options when you sign up: a CFD or DMA account. The key differences between accounts lie in costs (commissions + spreads) and the range of markets available to trade.
The broker’s CFD account only charges commissions of up to 0.18% for share CFDs, with spreads of 0.6 pips for major forex pairs. This is competitive for similar account types.
However, fees for the DMA account depend on the market you’re trading. FX commissions vary based on your trading volume. The more you trade, the cheaper your commissions are. For share CFDs, commissions are capped at 0.1%, slightly cheaper than the CFD account.
There are funding costs with both accounts of 1% for Visa credit cards (or PayPal) and 0.5% for Mastercard credit cards.
As mentioned above, IG Markets has a massive range of tradeable markets, including a whopping 13,000 stocks, 2246 ETFs, 100 Forex pairs and over 80 indices. IG Markets also offers over 13,000 options, which are complex derivatives, as another trading alternative. As a UK trader, spread betting is also available to you.
IG Market’s Trading Platforms
In addition to ProRealTime, IG Markets has several trading platforms, including their own proprietary platform, for web, mobile or tablet, as well as L2 Dealer and MT4.
IG Market’s in-house trading platform is user-friendly, with lots of great features. These include charting (30 technical indicators, 20 drawing tools, and 16 selectable time frames), alerts, sentiment readings and excellent market research.
L2 Dealer is great for shares trading because it gives you DMA (direct market access), while MT4 is the most popular forex trading platform.
cTrader
cTrader is the third-most-popular mainstream trading platform worldwide after MetaTrader 4 and MetaTrader 5. The predominantly forex trading platform is popular among retail investor accounts wanting an ECN environment thanks to the depth of market pricing, advanced charting tools, and ultra-fast execution speeds.
Like MetaQuotes Software, cTrader Automate allows you to develop advanced trading robots (algorithms), known as cBots, rather than Expert Advisors.
cTrader Automate And cBots
To fully automate CFD and forex trading, cBots can be written or downloaded from the cTrader Marketplace online. As cTrader Automate is less popular than Expert Advisors, the online community and marketplace are smaller, with fewer cBots available to download.
If you are writing your own cBots, the C# programming language is used in the visual studio or inbuilt code editor. Once built or downloaded, cBots can be tested and optimised against historical data using the software’s backtesting features or in live conditions via demo accounts.
Pepperstone – Top Broker For cTrader Automate And cBots
For cTrader Automate and cBots, Pepperstone is the best broker overall thanks to Razor account spreads from 0.0 pips + commission, ultra-fast order execution speeds, and a wide range of asset classes and CFDs. To explore cTrader and Pepperstone’s Razor trading account before risking real money, you can sign up for a free demo account with the broker.
MetaTrader Signals
Trading Signals is a MetaQuotes social-copy trading feature available on MetaTrader 4 (MT4) and MetaTrader 5 (MT5). Traders within the MT4 and MT5 communities can create signals that other community members can copy.
On MT4, trading signals are developed in the MQL4 programming language, while MT5 hosts MQL5 signals. There are over 3,200 free and paid trading signals to choose from and duplicate.
While many features are similar across MT4 and MT5 when social-copy trading, a major difference is how you can access Signals. MT5 has an inbuilt Signals tab that lets you easily search for and employ trading signals without leaving the platform. MT4 users are required to find signals online.
Another difference is that MT5’s trading community is not as huge due to the popularity of MT4. Therefore, there are fewer signals available to copy. Yet, the library of MQL5 signals will continue to grow as MetaQuotes slowly phases out support and licenses for MT4.
As MT4 has a large community and a range of Signals to duplicate, Pepperstone is a top broker for MQL4 MetaTrader Signals. If you prefer MQL5 Signals, IC Markets is one of the best brokers with MT5.
Another way to automate trading is with social and copy trading. Social trading lets you see other traders’ investments. This, in turn, leads to ‘copy trading’, which enables traders to emulate (or copy) the actions of another trader. There are many social and copy trading platforms out there, including:
Pelican
Pelican is a UK-specific platform that combines a social and copy trading platform. You can chat and trade on the same platform, getting the benefit of asking expert traders, learning from their trades, and then making your move. Pelican also lets you connect your account from a select list of top brokers, including Pepperstone, AvaTrade, and IC Markets.
DupliTrade
DupliTrade offers copy trading using automated trading solutions across various financial instruments. It enables users to automatically duplicate the trades of strategy providers in their own brokerage accounts. As well as the ability to create your portfolio, you can access many risk management tools to monitor your trading closely.
ZuluTrade
Lastly, ZuluTrade has been a favoured and trusted copy trading platform since 2008. One of the leading copy trading platforms on the market, the primary benefit of ZuluTrade is the transparency in copy trading statistics. In the 2021/2022 financial year, 62% of ZuluTrade’s copy trading was successful (i.e. turned a profit).
Yes, eToro is licenced and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority in the United Kingdom. The social-copy broker provides strong investor protections to traders in the UK in line with FCA requirements, such as negative balance protection and leverage caps.
It is legal to use trading robots (bots) in the UK to automate trading. The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) permits retail traders to execute both algorithmic and social-copy trading strategies.
Trading robots, aka bots or Expert Advisors, still risk losing money as traditional CFD trading does. Yet, algorithmic trading strategies come with certain benefits that may reduce the risk, such as eliminating human emotion and the ability to process large amounts of data at the same time.
With advanced algorithmic trading abilities, an established trading community, and Marketplace, MetaTrader 4 is the best automated trading platform overall. Top brokers like Pepperstone offer mainstream software and extensive trading tools to help you develop automated strategies.
Ask an Expert
What are good brokers that allow me to use capitalise.ai?
Eightcap is your best choice but other brokes include FXCM and Intereactive Brokers