Tickmill offers traders the 13-plugin Advanced Trader Toolkit, a competitive MT4/MT5 upgrade, resulting in a cutting-edge trading experience. It also has the Autochartist plugin, the Acuity Trading Tool, providing sentiment analysis from the Dow Jones news feed, and Myfxbook AutoTrade and Pelican Trading, third-party social trading providers.
The MT4/MT5 trading platforms also receive a much-needed upgrade at XM but to a lesser extent. It shines with its balanced asset selection, excellent order execution, low minimum deposits, generous bonuses, and low-cost commission-free pricing environment, as confirmed by 5M+ traders from 190 countries.
Both brokers offer quality education and market research, but XM presents a more mature product and services portfolio.
I have conducted an in-depth review of Tickmill and XM 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 XM - Verdict
 |  | |
Headquarters | Cyprus | Seychelles |
Regulators | ASIC, CySEC, DFSA, FSC Belize | CySEC, FCA, FSA, FSCA |
Tier 1 Regulator(s)? | ||
Owned by Public Company? | ||
Year Established | 2009 | 2014 |
Execution Type(s) | Market Maker | ECN/STP, Market Maker |
Minimum Deposit | $5 | €100 |
Trading Platform(s) | MetaTrader 4, MetaTrader 5, Proprietary platform | MetaTrader 4, MetaTrader 5, Web-based |
Average Trading Cost EUR/USD | 0.1 pips | 0.1 pips ($1.00) |
Average Trading Cost GBP/USD | 0.2 pips | 0.3 pips ($3.00) |
Average Trading Cost WTI Crude Oil | $0.05 | $0.04 |
Average Trading Cost Gold | $0.19 | $0.09 |
Islamic Account | ||
Signals | ||
US Persons Accepted? | ||
Managed Accounts | ||
| Visit Website | Visit Website |
Features and Platforms
Noteworthy:
High-frequency traders receive a better volume-based reward program at XM versus Tickmill. Instead of an inactivity fee, Tickmill closes dormant accounts with an account balance of less than $10 and donates the proceeds to charity.
Available Markets
| | |
MT4 | ||
MT5 | ||
cTrader | ||
Proprietary Platform | ||
Automated Trading | ||
DOM? | ||
Guaranteed Stop Loss | ||
Scalping | ||
Hedging | ||
One-Click Trading | ||
OCO Orders | ||
Interest on Margin | ||
| Visit Website | Visit Website |
Tickmill covers most sectors following its recent expansion. Rather than offering traders broad-based exposure, only a limited choice of assets is offered. This can suffice as a sector introduction for beginners and focused strategies. Forex traders get the best market breadth at XM, which takes the overall lead due to its balanced equity-focused asset selection.
Typical Spreads and Fees
| | |
Average Trading Cost EUR/USD | 0.1 pips | 0.1 pips ($1.00) |
Average Trading Cost GBP/USD | 0.2 pips | 0.3 pips ($3.00) |
Average Trading Cost WTI Crude Oil | $0.05 | $0.04 |
Average Trading Cost Gold | $0.19 | $0.09 |
Average Trading Cost Bitcoin | N/A | $24.90 |
| Visit Website | Visit Website |
Both brokers offer Forex traders competitive pricing environments, Tickmill with a commission-based cost structure and XM with commission-free trading. Equity trading remains commission-free at Tickmill, while XM charges the industry-standard 0.10%. Traders can achieve lower core trading costs at Tickmill, but high-volume, high-frequency traders lower overall fees at XM.
Security and Trust
| | |
Country of the Regulator | United Arab Emirates, Australia, The Bahamas, Belize, Cyprus, United Kingdom, United States | United Arab Emirates, Cyprus, Seychelles, United Kingdom, South Africa, Labuan |
Name of the Regulator | ASIC, CySEC, DFSA, FSC Belize | CySEC, FCA, FSA, FSCA |
Regulatory License Number | 705428, 120/10, 443670, 000261/397, F003484, SIA-F201, 0516820 | 717270, 278/15, F007663, 49464, SD008, MB/18/0028 |
Regulatory Tier | 1,1,1,4,2,4,1 | 1, 1, 2, 2, 4, 5 |
| Visit Website | Visit Website |
From a security and trust perspective, both brokers remain flawless and exemplary. Tickmill and XM segregate client deposits from corporate funds and offer negative balance protection with clean track records across multiple jurisdictions. Both rank among the most trusted Forex brokers.
XM vs Tickmill – Verdict
XM
Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| Well balanced overall asset selection | Limited cryptocurrency selection |
| Upgraded MT4/MT5 trading accounts with excellent order execution statistics | |
| Low minimum deposit of $5 and maximum leverage of 1:888 | |
| Competitive commission-free trading costs from $6.00 per 1.0 standard lot |
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 |
While Tickmill and XM offer traders a quality trading environment, XM offers an overall advantage to most traders. Tickmill has better MT4/MT5 upgrades and low trading costs, but the XM reward program creates cost savings for high-volume, high-frequency traders. XM also presents a notably broader choice of trading instruments, supporting more trading strategies than Tickmill, which remains a Forex broker at the core. XM also shines with higher-quality education and research.
You might also be interested in reviewing the below broker comparisons:
- Tickmill vs FP Markets
- Tickmill vs Eightcap
- Tickmill vs Libertex
- XM vs FXCM
- XM vs IC Markets
- XM vs LegacyFX
FAQs
Is Tickmill a legit broker?
Tickmill maintains five regulatory licenses with a clean track record, making it a legit broker.
Which is the most reliable Forex broker?
The list grows continuously, but Tickmill and XM rank high on it.
How long does it take to withdraw from Tickmill?
While Tickmill processes withdrawal requests within 24 hours, it can take up to eight business days, depending upon the payment processor.