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XM vs FP Markets
Both XM and FP Markets are properly regulated and have been around for years, so this isn't a safety question. It's about how much broker you need on day one. XM is cheaper to start and teaches you more. FP Markets is cheaper to trade and gives you professional-grade tools to grow into. This guide sorts out which fits you.
The easy way to pick a broker is to rule out the dodgy one. That trick doesn’t work with XM and FP Markets, because both are regulated by serious authorities and both have long track records. Neither is the risky choice. So the decision moves to a harder question: how much broker do you actually need when you’re just starting?
XM is built to get a beginner trading quickly and cheaply, with a lot of teaching along the way. FP Markets is built for traders who want tight pricing and professional tools, including something most retail brokers don’t offer, real direct access to share markets. One is easier to start on. The other gives you more room to grow. Which matters more depends on how far you plan to take this.
Regulation and Safety
XM runs regulated entities under CySEC, ASIC, and the FSCA, among others. FP Markets holds dual Tier-1 licenses with ASIC in Australia and CySEC in Cyprus, plus offshore entities for other regions, and it has operated since 2005. Both keep client funds separate from company money and offer negative balance protection.
In plain terms, your money is about as well looked after at one as the other. This is not the deciding factor here, which already sets this comparison apart from the offshore brokers people often line XM up against. Neither holds an FCA license, so UK traders miss out at both.
Comparison Table
| XM | FP Markets | |
|---|---|---|
| Founded | 2009 (Cyprus) | 2005 (Sydney) |
| Minimum deposit | $5 | $100 ($1,000 for IRESS) |
| Accounts | Standard, Micro, Ultra Low, Zero, Shares | Standard, Raw, IRESS, Pro |
| Standard spread | From 1.6 pips | From 1.0 pip |
| Raw account | Zero: 0.0 pips, about $3.50 per side | Raw: 0.0 pips, about $3 per side |
| Platforms | MT4, MT5, XM app | MT4, MT5, cTrader, IRESS, TradingView |
| Instruments | 1,400+ | 10,000+ |
| Direct share trading | Via Shares account | Via IRESS (Level 2 market access) |
| Education | Strong | Decent, not the focus |
| Welcome/no-deposit bonus | Yes, some regions | None (regulator restrictions) |
| Idle account fee | $15 after 90 days, then $10/month | None |
| Max leverage | Up to 1:1000 | Up to 1:500 |
A couple of figures to confirm on FP Markets’ own site: its Raw commission is quoted as both $3 and $3.50 per side across review sites, and its minimum deposit shows as $50 or $100 depending on region. Spreads shift through the day, so read these as normal-hours numbers.
Trading Costs
On the Standard account, FP Markets starts near 1.0 pip against XM’s 1.6, so day to day it’s the tighter of the two. On the raw side both drop to 0.0 pips, and FP Markets’ commission of around $3 a side edges XM’s $3.50 on the Zero account. The difference is small on any single trade, but it leans FP Markets’ way, and it adds up if you trade often.
There’s also the idle fee. XM charges $15 after 90 days of no activity, then $10 a month. FP Markets charges nothing for leaving your account alone. If you trade in bursts, that’s a point for FP Markets.
Where XM claws cost back is the start. You can open an account with $5 against FP Markets’ $100, and XM runs no-deposit and deposit bonuses in some regions that FP Markets can’t offer because its regulators don’t allow them. For a beginner funding an account with very little, that entry gap is real.
Platforms
This is FP Markets’ strongest hand. It gives you five platforms: MT4, MT5, cTrader, TradingView charting, and IRESS. That last one matters. IRESS is a direct-market-access platform with Level 2 order books covering thousands of real share CFDs across major global exchanges, the kind of tool usually reserved for institutional accounts. If you think you’ll grow into share trading or want cTrader for automated strategies, FP Markets has depth XM can’t match, with over 10,000 instruments to XM’s 1,400.
XM keeps things simpler: MT4, MT5, and its own app. For a forex beginner that’s plenty, and the smaller menu is arguably less overwhelming early on. But if your ambitions run past forex into serious multi-asset trading, you may outgrow it.
Education and Support
XM wins here without much argument. Its education runs deep, with webinars, tutorials, and market analysis aimed squarely at people who are still learning, plus that no-deposit bonus that lets you trade live before risking your own money. FP Markets has solid resources and a decent blog, but teaching beginners isn’t what it’s known for. If you want your broker to double as a classroom, XM is the better pick.
Which One Should You Choose?
Go with XM if you’re new, working with a small amount, and you want to learn as you trade. The $5 entry, the education, and the bonuses make it the friendlier place to take your first steps, and its regulation is strong enough that you’re not trading safety for that comfort.
Go with FP Markets if you’re a bit more serious already, or you can see yourself getting there. Tighter spreads, five platforms, real share-market access through IRESS, and no idle fee make it a broker you can grow into rather than out of. The $100 entry is the price of that extra depth.
Honestly, both are good, which isn’t something you can say about every XM matchup. It really does come down to that first question: do you want the easiest start, or the most room to grow?
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