Avatrade vs FP Markets

The ceiling. AvaTrade is a market maker with no raw account at all. Its 0.9 pips is as cheap as it will ever get. FP Markets’ raw account drops to almost nothing for $6 a round turn, so it gets cheaper as you trade more. AvaTrade cannot follow you there.

The idle fee. AvaTrade charges $50 every three months once you stop trading, plus about $100 a year after twelve months. FP Markets charges nothing.

Where you might go. FP Markets has IRESS, which gives direct access to thousands of real shares, if your country allows it. AvaTrade has vanilla options through AvaOptions, which FP Markets has no answer to.

Quick Answer

Comparison Table

Check these on each broker’s own site before you trust them. FP Markets lists its smallest deposit as both $50 and $100 depending where you look.

The Ceiling

This is the most important thing on the page and almost nobody explains it.

AvaTrade is a market maker. That means it sets its own prices and its entire cost sits inside the spread. There is no commission to work out, which is simple and pleasant. But it also means AvaTrade has no raw account, no ECN account, no cheaper tier of any kind. Its 0.9 pips is the floor.

FP Markets offers both. Start on its commission-free account at about 1.19 pips, and move to its raw account when your trading justifies it, where the gap drops to almost nothing for $3 a side.

So here is what happens over time. Today, trading a few times a month, AvaTrade costs you less. Its 0.9 beats FP Markets’ 1.19 and you notice nothing else.

Trade every day for a year, and FP Markets’ raw account becomes far cheaper than anything AvaTrade can offer, and AvaTrade has nowhere to move you. You would have to change broker.

That is the ceiling. It does not matter if you stay casual. It matters a lot if you improve.

Trading Costs

On the account you will start with, AvaTrade is cheaper: about 0.9 pips on EUR/USD against FP Markets’ 1.19.

AvaTrade also offers fixed spreads on some instruments. That means your cost stays the same even when news hits and other brokers widen sharply. For a nervous beginner, predictable pricing has real value, and FP Markets has no fixed-spread product.

Then the idle fee, which pulls hard the other way. AvaTrade charges $50 every three months once your account goes inactive, then roughly $100 a year in administration fees after twelve months. FP Markets charges nothing and gives you VPS hosting free.

Do the sums for a realistic beginner. Fund an account, trade for two months, get busy, come back after six. AvaTrade has taken $100 from you. Those savings on spread will take a long time to earn that back.

Which Broker Is Safer?

Both, and it is close to a draw.

AvaTrade holds licences across around nine jurisdictions, anchored by the Central Bank of Ireland and including ASIC in Australia and Japan’s FSA, which is notably strict. That breadth is uncommon in retail trading.

FP Markets holds ASIC and CySEC licences, both strict, and has run since 2005. Rating firms place it among the more trusted brokers in the business.

AvaTrade has more licences. FP Markets has a longer history and a strong reputation among serious traders. Neither is the risky choice, and neither is watched by Britain’s FCA.

The thing that matters more than either count: both run several entities, and the one covering your country decides your actual protection. A European or Australian arm protects you far better than an offshore one. Look that up before you deposit.

[Your own test: screenshot which company each broker signs you up to from your country. That single detail matters more than how many licences a broker advertises.]

What You Can Trade

FP Markets advertises over 10,000 markets. Read the catch first.

Nearly all of them live inside IRESS, its share-trading platform, which is restricted by country and needs about $1,000 to open. Without IRESS, FP Markets gives you around 144 markets on MetaTrader, which is well under AvaTrade’s 1,250.

So check whether IRESS is available where you live. If it is not, AvaTrade offers you more to trade, which reverses the headline entirely.

AvaTrade also has something FP Markets cannot match: vanilla options through AvaOptions. That lets you build defined-risk strategies that plain CFD brokers do not offer. It also has AvaProtect, a paid feature that refunds losses on a position within a set window.

FP Markets counters with cTrader, TradingView charts and free VPS hosting, none of which AvaTrade gives you.

Leverage

FP Markets caps at 1:500. AvaTrade caps at 1:400. Under European or Australian arms, both drop to 1:30.

These are two of the lowest caps you will find anywhere, and that is a compliment to both. Leverage grows your losses exactly as fast as your wins, and heavy leverage is the quickest way a beginner empties an account. Both cap low because strict regulators require it.

If you have been looking at brokers offering 1:2000 or 1:3000, notice they tend to be the ones nobody strict is watching.

Final Verdict

Take AvaTrade if you will trade steadily but occasionally, want simple pricing with no commission, value fixed spreads during news, or want options trading. Its 0.9 pips beats FP Markets on the account you will use, and around nine regulators watch it. Just be sure you will trade often enough to dodge that idle fee, because it targets exactly the casual trader AvaTrade otherwise suits.

Take FP Markets if you might trade seriously later, want cTrader or free VPS, want real share access through IRESS, or simply want a broker that does not bill you for taking a break. It costs slightly more today and gives you somewhere to grow, which AvaTrade cannot.

Same $100, both properly regulated. So this comes down to whether you plan to stay a casual trader or become a busy one. AvaTrade is better for the first. FP Markets is better for the second, and it is the safer bet if you are not sure.

FAQ

Which is cheaper, AvaTrade or FP Markets?

AvaTrade on the commission-free account, at about 0.9 pips against 1.19. FP Markets once you move to a raw account at $6 a round turn, which AvaTrade cannot match because it has no raw account.

Which is safer?

Both are properly regulated. AvaTrade holds more licences, around nine. FP Markets holds two strict ones and a long clean record. Call it a draw and check which arm covers your country.

Does AvaTrade charge a fee if I stop trading?

Yes: $50 every three months once idle, plus about $100 a year after twelve months. FP Markets charges nothing.

Can I get raw spreads at AvaTrade?

No. AvaTrade is a market maker with no raw account, so its spread is the floor. This is the main reason to consider FP Markets instead.

Do they really offer 10,000 markets at FP Markets?

Only through IRESS, which is restricted by country and needs about $1,000. Without it you get about 144 on MetaTrader, fewer than AvaTrade’s 1,250.

Which is better for a complete beginner?

AvaTrade if you will trade regularly and want simplicity. FP Markets if you are unsure how far you will take it, since it has no ceiling and no idle fee.

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