Pre-market and after-hours brokers offer equity traders the ability to trade before the official markets open and after they close.
This is designed to help you to make an informed decision about whether to participate in pre-market and after-hours trading, or to stick to regular market hours.
- FXTM, Best all-around broker with high floating leverage and fast execution.
- AvaTrade, Highly regulated, choice of fixed or floating spreads.
- FP Markets, ECN trading with leverage up to 1:500.
- Eightcap, Competitive pricing + excellent daily videos.
- BlackBull Markets, Best ECN trading environment, with scalping and hedging.
Best Pre-market and after-hours Brokers Comparison
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Regulators | CMA, FCA, FSC Mauritius, FSCA | ASIC, BVI, Central Bank of Ireland, FFAJ, FSCA, KNF, MiFID | ASIC, CMA, CySEC, FSCA | ASIC, CySEC, FCA, SCB | FMA, FSA |
Year Established | 2011 | 2006 | 2005 | 2009 | 2014 |
Execution Type(s) | ECN/STP, Market Maker | Market Maker | ECN/STP | ECN/STP, Market Maker | ECN/STP, No Dealing Desk |
Minimum Deposit | |||||
Average Trading Cost EUR/USD | 0.1 pips | 0.9 pips | 1.2 pips | 1.0 pips | 1.3 pips |
Average Trading Cost GBP/USD | 0.2 pips | 1.5 pips | 1.4 pips | 1.2 pips | 2.0 pips |
Average Trading Cost Gold | $0.18 | $0.29 | $0.16 | $0.12 | $0.90 |
Trading Platform(s) | MetaTrader 4, MetaTrader 5, Proprietary platform | Other, MetaTrader 4, MetaTrader 5, Proprietary platform, Web-based+ | MetaTrader 4, MetaTrader 5, cTrader, Proprietary platform, Web-based | MetaTrader 4, MetaTrader 5, Trading View | MetaTrader 4, MetaTrader 5, cTrader, Trading View |
Islamic Account | |||||
Negative Balance Protection | N/A | ||||
| Visit Website | Visit Website | Visit Website | Visit Website | Visit Website |
FXTM
In Summary Best all-around broker with high floating leverage and fast executionFXTM is among the pre-market and after-hours brokers with the lowest fees. For a minimum deposit of only $500, the FXTM Advantage account offers raw spreads of 0.0 pips for a commission of $0.80 and $4.00 per 1.0 standard round lot. The cutting-edge trading infrastructure includes a high-quality price improvement technology that decreases trading fees by an average of $3.00 per round lot. It makes FXTM ideal for scalpers and algorithmic traders.
Traders get MT4/MT5, and FXTM upgrades MT4 with its Pivot Point Strategy plugin. The user-friendly mobile app FXTM Trader and FXTM Invest cater to mobile and copy traders.
Pros & Cons
- Excellent commission-based Forex pricing environment and transparency
- Upgraded MT4/MT5 trading platforms plus proprietary mobile trading app
- Quality market research and educational content for beginner traders
- A highly regulated broker with a tier-1 license
- Limited choice of commodities
AvaTrade
In Summary Highly regulated, choice of fixed or floating spreadsAvaTrade presents the most trading platform choices within our pre-market and after-hours brokers listing. Traders can use the proprietary WebTrader and the mobile app AvaTradeGO, which come with embedded Trading Central services. They may also opt for the specialized Ava Option and Ava Social alternatives. Algorithmic trades get MT4/MT5, and VPS hosting ensures 24/5 low-latency market access. Third-party copy trading provider DupliTrade is also available.
Beginners benefit from the MT4 Guardian Angel plugin and the fee-based Ava Protect insurance policy. Passive income seekers will benefit from the high-paying affiliate program with 145,000 registered partners and $300,000,000+ in commission payouts.
Pros & Cons
- High quality educational offering via AvaAcademy
- Excellent choice of trading platforms catering to various trading needs
- Broad asset selection and cross-asset diversification opportunities
- Well-regulated and trusted broker with oversight from a central bank
- Trading costs competitive but nothing special
FP Markets
In Summary ECN trading with leverage up to 1:500FP Markets maintains the most passive trading services from our pre-market and after-hours brokers analysis. Copy traders may use embedded MT4/MT5/cTrader copy trading services, the proprietary FP Markets alternative, the well-known Myfxbook Autotrade service, or fee-based Signal Start. MAM/PAMM accounts for licensed account managers provide traditional account management services.
Quality education and research exist for beginner traders, and FP Markets features a well-balanced asset selection with competitive, commission-based trading fees. A 12-plugin upgrade package plus Trading Central and Autochartist services upgrade the out-of-the-box MT4/MT5. FP Markets also shines with its high-paying affiliate program and fast payment processing times.
Pros & Cons
- Choice of trading platforms and auxiliary trading tools
- Very competitive cost structure and excellent asset selection
- Low minimum deposit requirement and leverage of up to 1:500
- Well-regulated and trustworthy
- Availability of Iress geographically restricted
Eightcap
In Summary Competitive pricing + excellent daily videosEightcap has the most cutting-edge trading tools within our pre-market and after-hours brokers lisdting. Capitalise AI for MT4 is the most exceptional one. It supports algorithmic trading in a code-free environment, granting a notable competitive edge. MT5 traders get the FlashTrader plugin, and the dedicated cryptocurrency solution Crypto Crusher assists cryptocurrency traders.
The AI-powered economic calendar helps news traders. Eightcap connects social traders to the active TradingView community, where 50M+ traders share ideas. Copy traders can rely on the trusted embedded MT4/MT5 copy trading services. A highly rated affiliate program offers passive income opportunities with good payment processor choices.
Pros & Cons
- Low minimum deposit and high leverage of up to 1:500
- Competitive cost structure
- Excellent technology infrastructure and seasoned management team
- Daily research and quality educational content
- Limited leverage in some areas
BlackBull Markets
In Summary Best ECN trading environment, with scalping and hedgingBlackBull Markets provides the best asset selection and liquidity from our pre-market and after-hours brokers list. Traders can diversify portfolios with 26,000+ assets, including physical investments. BlackBull Markets features superb data feeds from 66+ third-party providers and access to deep liquidity pools, making it an ideal choice for scalpers and algorithmic traders.
Traders benefit from competitively priced, commission-free, or commission-based ECN accounts and cutting-edge trading infrastructure. Embedded MT4/MT5 copy trading services, the proprietary BlackBull Markets alternative, ZuluTrade, and Myfxbook Autotrade cater to copy traders. BlackBull Markets also connects clients to TradingView, where they may engage with 50M+ traders.
Pros & Cons
- ECN/NDD execution model with deep liquidity
- Institution-grade pricing for retail traders via proprietary price aggregation
- ZuluTrade and Myfxbook for social trading
- Leverage of up to 1:500
- Limited deposit options
What is Pre and After-hours Trading?
Pre-market trading refers to trading before the official opening bell of equity markets, and after-hours trading refers to trading after the official closing bell. Pre-market and after-hours brokers allow traders access to all the available trading hours. Most activity in pre-market and after-hours trading occurs by institutional and professional traders.
Since Forex, commodities, and indices trade 24/5 and cryptocurrencies 24/7, pre-market and after-hours trading applies to equity trading and ETFs that are unavailable 24/5.
How Does Pre-Market Trading Work?
Pre-market trading works identically to regular market trading. Traders must analyze assets, determine if they wish to buy and sell, and how much they want to trade.
Here are the core differences between pre-market and regular market trading:
- There is less liquidity, therefore, wider spreads resulting in higher fees and lower profit potential.
- Traders must accept more volatility.
- Some pre-market and after-hours brokers charge higher fees for pre-market trading.
- Algorithmic trading solutions deployed by institutional and professional traders handle most pre-market trading volumes.
What Time Is Pre-Market and After-Hours Trading?
It depends on the equity markets and the pre-market and after-hours brokers. For example, the opening bell is at 09:30 and 16:00 Eastern Standard Time in the US. The pre-market hours are from 08:00 to 09:30, but some markets may start as early as 04:00. After-hours trading is available from 16:00 to 20:00. Not all pre-market and after-hours brokers allow pre-market trading from 04:00.
How Pre-Market and After-Hours Trading Can Affect Market Hours Trading
Pre-market trading can set trends and result in breakouts/breakdowns or trading gaps at the open, as official market prices catch up with pre-market trading action. After-hours trading can set the tone for the next trading session, especially following earnings releases. Pre-market and after-hours brokers allow traders to take advantage of early and late trends, but traders must understand the pros and cons of being active in either market.
Pros And Cons of Brokers with Pre-Market Trading
Traders should consider the pros and cons of pre-market trading before choosing their preferred pre-market and after-hours brokers.
The pros of pre-market trading are:
- Earlier start to capture trends.
- Ability to trade more hours and take advantage of more opportunities.
- Quick reaction times to news, especially core economic releases.
- Low-latency algorithmic trading.
The cons of pre-market trading are:
- Less liquidity due to fewer market participants.
- More volatility related to low liquidity.
- Unreliable pricing.
- Trading against algorithms deployed by institutional and professional traders.
- Potentially higher trading fees, either via wider spreads or additional broker commissions.
Bottom Line
Pre-market and after-hours brokers offer traders access to pre-market and after-hours trading, which can define regular market trading and set up price action for the next trading session. While it opens up several lucrative opportunities for traders, they should also consider the downsides.
More brokers offer pre-market and after-hours trading to meet growing demand. The low-liquidity, high-volatility trading environment, where retail trades often face off against algorithmic trading solutions deployed by institutional and professional traders, comes with its set of trading rules that are not welcoming to retail traders who often fail to comprehend how price action differs from regular trading.
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