Tickmill versus IC Markets

Tickmill and IC Markets maintain highly competitive trading conditions for high-frequency, high volume-traders with many similarities between their core offerings. Tickmill upgrades MT4/MT5 with its 13-plugin Advanced Trader Toolkit, but IC Markets trumps it with its 20-plugin MT4 Advanced Trading Tools upgrade. While Tickmill also features the Autochartist plugin, IC Markets has the cTrader trading platform as an alternative.

Traders will benefit from low trading costs, high leverage, and fast order execution at both brokers. Tickmill and IC Markets support algorithmic trading, where IC Markets remains the industry leader. Social traders get services by Myfxbook AutoTrade at both brokers, but Tickmill also offers the lesser-known Pelican Trading.

I have conducted an in-depth review of Tickmill and IC Markets to determine which one presents the better overall choice and which traders will benefit the most at either broker.

• Features and Platforms
• Available Markets
• Typical Spreads and Fees
• Security and Trust
• Tickmill versus IC Markets - Verdict

Headquarters	Australia	Seychelles
Regulators	ASIC, CySEC, FSA	CySEC, FCA, FSA, FSCA
Tier 1 Regulator(s)?
Owned by Public Company?
Year Established	2010	2014
Execution Type(s)	ECN/STP	ECN/STP, Market Maker
Minimum Deposit	$200	€100
Trading Platform(s)	MetaTrader 4, MetaTrader 5, cTrader	MetaTrader 4, MetaTrader 5, Web-based
Average Trading Cost EUR/USD	0.0 pips ($0.00)	0.1 pips ($1.00)
Average Trading Cost GBP/USD	0.0 pips ($0.00)	0.3 pips ($3.00)
Average Trading Cost WTI Crude Oil	$0.03	$0.04
Average Trading Cost Gold	$0.05	$0.09
Islamic Account
Signals
US Persons Accepted?
Managed Accounts
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Features and Platforms

MT4
MT5
cTrader
Proprietary Platform
Automated Trading
DOM?
Guaranteed Stop Loss
Scalping
Hedging
One-Click Trading
OCO Orders
Interest on Margin
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Noteworthy:

Instead of an inactivity fee, Tickmill closes dormant accounts with a balance below $10 to donate proceeds to charity. IC Markets supports asset managers with MAM/PAMM accounts and offers high-quality education and research versus Tickmill.

Available Markets

Currency Pairs		N/A
Cryptocurrencies		N/A
Commodities
Crude Oil
Gold
Metals
Equity Indices
Stocks (non-CFDs)
Bonds		N/A
ETFs
Futures
Synthetics
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Tickmill maintains broad-based sector coverage but low-quantity assets, except for its 62 currency pairs. Therefore, it suits as an introduction to financial markets and serves focused trading strategies. IC Markets takes the overall lead with its excellent, well-balanced asset selection, where the bulk consists of 1,650+ equity CFDs and 61 currency pairs.

Typical Spreads and Fees

Average Trading Cost EUR/USD	0.0 pips ($0.00)	0.1 pips ($1.00)
Average Trading Cost GBP/USD	0.0 pips ($0.00)	0.3 pips ($3.00)
Average Trading Cost WTI Crude Oil	$0.03	$0.04
Average Trading Cost Gold	$0.05	$0.09
Average Trading Cost Bitcoin	$12.47	$24.90
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Competitive costs exist at both Tickmill and IC Markets, where the former has lower commissions, but average trading fees are similar. IC markets has notably lower commission-free costs, priced at $0.04 per share for US equities.

Security and Trust

Country of the Regulator	Australia, The Bahamas, Cyprus, Seychelles	United Arab Emirates, Cyprus, Seychelles, United Kingdom, South Africa, Labuan
Name of the Regulator	ASIC, CySEC, FSA	CySEC, FCA, FSA, FSCA
Regulatory License Number	335692, SD018, SIA-F214, 362/18	717270, 278/15, F007663, 49464, SD008, MB/18/0028
Regulatory Tier	1, 4, 4, 1	1, 1, 2, 2, 4, 5
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Traders get an equally secure and trustworthy trading environment at both brokers. Tickmill and IC Markets provide negative balance protection, segregate client deposits from corporate funds, and both have exemplary regulatory track records, placing them among the most reliable brokers.

IC Markets vs Tickmill – Verdict

IC Markets

Pros	Cons
Excellent choice of trading platforms consisting of MT4/MT5, and cTrader	Minimum deposit slightly higher but within a reasonable range
Market-leading MT4 upgrade package, MAM/PAMM accounts, and VPS hosting
Social trading support via Myfxbook, MetaTrader Signals, and ZuluTrade
Leverage of up to 1:500, deep liquidity, and superb trade execution

Tickmill

Pros	Cons
Outstanding trading costs and volume-based rebate program	Limited asset selection
Upgraded MT4/MT5 trading platforms plus Autochartist
High-quality educational tools and daily research
High leverage and choice of third-party social trading providers

Traders will benefit from cutting-edge trading environments at Tickmill and IC Markets, featuring a similar core product and services portfolio. IC Markets maintains an overall higher quality portfolio, with superior MT4 upgrades, more trading platform choices, and notably more trading instruments, supporting all types of trading strategies and allowing proper cross-asset diversification. IC Markets also established itself as a leading algorithmic broker.

You might also be interested in reviewing the below broker comparisons:

• Tickmill vs EuropaFX
• Tickmill vs Pepperstone
• Tickmill vs OctaFX
• IC Markets vs Oanda
• IC Markets vs ActivTrades
• IC Markets vs FXCM

Read full IC Markets Review

Read full Tickmill Review