IC Markets Review 2025

Pros

• You can trade more than 2,250 CFDs in various markets, such as forex, commodities, indices, stocks, bonds, and cryptocurrencies. This range enables varied trading strategies.
• IC Markets, a well-regulated and respected broker, emphasizes client security and transparency for a trustworthy global trading experience.
• IC Markets provides reliable 24/5 support, especially for account and funding matters, based on direct experience.
• IC Markets provides some of the smallest spreads in the industry, offering 0.0-pip spreads on major currency pairs. This makes trading particularly cost-efficient for traders.
• IC Markets won DayTrading.com's 'Best MT4/MT5 Broker' in 2025 for its top-notch MetaTrader integration, perfected over years to enhance the platform experience.

Cons

• Interest is not earned on unused funds, a feature commonly available at other platforms such as Interactive Brokers.
• Some withdrawal methods require fees such as a $20 wire charge. This can reduce profits, particularly for traders who withdraw frequently.
• The range and quality of educational materials, such as tutorials and webinars, require improvement. This lag falls behind competitors like CMC Markets and reduces its suitability for novice traders.
• Despite having four top-tier third-party platforms, there is no in-house software or trading app specifically designed for new traders.
• IC Markets have a selection of metals and cryptos for trading through CFDs, but their range is not as wide as brokers such as eToro. This may limit options for traders who are interested in these asset types.

Regulation & Trust

IC Markets has strong regulatory oversight. It has been authorized by the Australian Securities & Investments Commission (ASIC) since 2009 and the Cyprus Securities & Exchange Commission (CySEC) since 2018.

Knowing these regulators enforce strict client protection standards can give you peace of mind.

IC Markets also has flexibility through its registration with the Seychelles Financial Services Authority (FSA), which allows for high leverage up to 1:500.

Understand this comes with fewer legal protections. Still, for experienced traders, it can be a helpful tool.

IC Markets isn’t publicly listed and doesn’t disclose as much financial information as companies like Plus500, IG, or Swissquote.

The 2024 lawsuit about client assessments caught our attention, but IC Markets vehemently denied the allegations, and we’ve noticed similar claims have been made against other brokers, too.

Accounts & Banking

Trading Accounts

IC Markets makes it easy to find the right fit with two account options: Standard and Raw Spread.

Both offer competitive spreads, but if you’re into scalping, the Raw Spread account stands out with even tighter spreads.

When I was starting, I found the 30-day demo account incredibly helpful. It allowed me to practice in actual market conditions with virtual funds—no pressure, just learning.

Opening my account was surprisingly quick and straightforward; the whole process is digital and only takes a few minutes.

While approval can take up to 24 hours, depending on time zones, I could set up multiple live and demo accounts almost instantly.

I also appreciate the flexibility of using different platforms depending on my strategy.

Whether you’re manually trading or trying copy trading, there’s a platform that will fit your needs.

In 2023, IC Markets introduced Raw Trader Plus for high-volume traders, and I’ve noticed the benefits—like rebates, VPS hosting, and priority support—help streamline the trading experience.

The combination of simplicity, flexibility, and advanced tools makes IC Markets a solid choice.

Deposits & Withdrawals

IC Markets is a solid choice for fast, convenient, low-cost funding.

There is a variety of deposit options they offer in 10 different currencies, like AUD, USD, and EUR.

When your bank and trading accounts use the same currency, you can avoid conversion fees, which is a nice bonus.

I usually stick to debit cards or digital wallets like PayPal and Skrill, and my deposits are processed almost instantly, regardless of the currency or method used. It’s convenient when I want to jump into the market quickly.

Withdrawals are slower, though. IC Markets only sends funds to accounts in your name, using the original deposit method until you’ve withdrawn the initial deposit.

Debit card and e-wallet withdrawals are usually processed on the same day, and I’ve never been charged a fee. The money typically lands in my account within three to five business days.

On the other hand, bank transfers take longer and come with a $20 fee—so I try to avoid them whenever possible.

IC Markets makes moving money in and out of trading accounts pretty smooth, which helps you stay focused on trading.

Assets & Markets

IC Markets stands out in forex and CFD trading, especially for short-term traders.

It doesn’t offer real stocks or ETFs, unlike eToro, which might be a downside for long-term investors, but I’m more focused on shorter-term opportunities, so this isn’t a big issue for me.

I appreciate the variety IC Markets provides—over 2,250 instruments to trade. You can choose from 75 currency pairs, 25 indices, more than 2,100 stocks, 28 commodities, four ETFs, nine bonds, and 13 cryptocurrencies.

It keeps things interesting and gives you many options to explore different markets.

What’s also great is the flexibility with trade sizes. I started with more minor positions since the minimum lot size was just 0.01, which made me feel more comfortable while learning. I can go up to 100 lots when I’m confident in a trade.

Leverage is another helpful feature. If you’re not based in Europe or Australia, you can access high leverage up to 1:500, which gives you more trading power.

Those regions are capped at 1:30 due to regulations, but the higher leverage has been a helpful tool when used carefully.

Fees & Costs

IC Markets has some of the tightest spreads and lowest trading fees based on our assessment.

For major forex pairs like EUR/USD, I’ve seen spreads start from 0.0 pips in the Raw Spread account, with a $3.50 commission per standard lot.

On average, the EUR/USD spread hovers around 0.1 pips, which helps you maximize profits, especially when trading frequently.

It’s not just forex that stands out, though. IC Markets offers competitive pricing across stocks, indices, and commodities, often matching or beating other brokers we’ve tested.

I also like that overnight fees are relatively low, and there’s no inactivity fee, which is ideal if you take a break from trading now and then.

Of course, there are a few downsides. Unlike some platforms like eToro, IC Markets doesn’t pay interest on uninvested cash.

And while deposits are always free, withdrawal fees can add up—especially with international bank wires, which can cost around $20.

Still, the low spreads and reliable pricing make IC Markets a top choice.

Platforms & Tools

I’ve been impressed with how well IC Markets handles trade executions and its overall service.

It supports all the leading third-party platforms, including MetaTrader 4 (MT4), MetaTrader 5 (MT5), cTrader, and TradingView, which gives you plenty of flexibility.

While it doesn’t have a proprietary platform like IG does, these third-party options more than make up for it.

I’ve always liked MetaTrader’s customization options, advanced charting tools, and back-testing features. Although the interface is outdated, it’s still a solid choice.

On the other hand, cTrader stands out with its intuitive design, seamless Autochartist and Trading Central integration, and support for copy trading, which makes it super user-friendly.

IC Markets supports cTrader, along with other popular platforms

TradingView is another favorite of mine because of its clean, customizable interface and the social community where I can share insights and get tips from other traders.

The best part is I can access all these platforms via mobile apps or the Web, so I can trade from just about any device, whether at my desk or on the go.

It’s all about making trading seamless, and IC Markets delivers on that.

Research

IC Markets does a great job of delivering trading ideas based on technical analysis.

The news updates it offers really help you stay on top of things. However, its research offerings don’t compare to industry leaders IG and Interactive Brokers.

The daily articles on its blog are pretty helpful—they cover technical and fundamental forecasts.

They’re insightful, but they don’t go as deep as what some of the top competitors like Swissquote provide, which can be key to finding new opportunities and improving the overall trading experience.

Its YouTube channel is also helpful for more in-depth market analysis, and the ‘Forex Glossary‘ can help beginners better understand trading jargon.

IC Markets’ research videos provide valuable insights and analysis

One feature I appreciate, though, is the technical analysis and trading insights from third parties such as Autochartist and Trading Central.

These third-party tools help you visualize trade setups and make it super easy to execute trades using platforms like cTrader.

I also like the ‘Market Buzz’ news feed, which is packed with analytics and sentiment indicators from Trading Central. You can filter news by asset by entering a symbol or name, which is perfect for tracking a specific index or currency pair.

Overall, IC Markets shines with its tools and trading ideas. However, its research offerings can be improved to compete more directly with industry leaders.

Education

IC Markets’ educational resources are helpful for understanding the basics of trading, risk management, and market analysis.

Its tutorials and webinars should give beginners a solid foundation, and I still check in occasionally when I want to brush up on specific topics.

IC Markets could improve in this area because the educational content is limited compared to CMC Markets or XTB.

IC Markets’ educational content is helpful but could benefit from structured learning

Plus, everything is tucked away on its blog rather than being easily accessible from the account dashboard. I remember missing these resources entirely when I first signed up because they weren’t prominently displayed.

IC Markets could improve its education with structured courses, progress tracking, and interactive quizzes. Learning would also be more convenient if accessible directly from the trading platform.

Education is crucial to trading success, and it would be great to see the company invest more in it.

Customer Support

IC Markets has reliable customer support based on our hands-on experience. Whenever I needed help, I can reach out through live chat, email, or even the global phone hotline.

The multilingual assistance available 24/5 gives me peace of mind, especially when dealing with account or banking questions.

The support team are efficient and responsive. Most of the minor issues I’ve run into have been quickly sorted out through live chat, and if I reach out by email, I usually get a helpful response within a few hours.

I’ve never actually needed to call the broker, which shows how accessible and effective the other support channels are. The lack of a call-back option could be frustrating if I did need to, though.

On a slight downside, the live chat agents sometimes lack in-depth technical knowledge. A couple of times, I had to follow up with the tech support team via email for more complex questions.

Still, having someone to talk to in real-time while trading helps you feel more confident about the broker and the overall experience.

Should You Trade With IC Markets?

IC Markets is a great choice thanks to its tight spreads, fast execution, and straightforward banking options.

It also allows me to use my favorite charting tools and algorithms, which helps when I want to fine-tune my strategies.

If you’re looking for a cost-effective, well-regulated forex and CFD broker with excellent support, IC Markets is worth trying. It’s been a reliable partner in my trading journey for years.

Article Sources

• IC Markets Website
• IC Markets Blog
• IC Markets YouTube Channel
• IC Markets Forex Glossary
• International Capital Markets Pty – ASIC License
• IC Markets (EU) Ltd – CySEC License
• Raw Trading Ltd – FSA License

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