Eightcap | Pepperstone | |
---|---|---|
Overall Rating | 4.5 | 4.6 |
Trust | 4.2 | 4.6 |
Fees | 4.7 | 4.3 |
Platforms and Tools | 4.3 | 4.3 |
Tradable Instruments | 4.7 | 5.0 |
Customer Support | 4.3 | 4.8 |
Research | 5.0 | 4.8 |
Deposit and Withdrawal | 4.9 | 4.5 |
Account Types and Terms | 4.9 | 4.9 |
Education | 4.4 | 4.9 |
Regulators & Max Leverage | 1:30 (ASIC), 1:30 (FCA), 1:30 (CySEC), 1:200 (SCB) | 1:30 (FCA), 1:30 (BaFin), 1:30 (ASIC), 1:30 (DFSA), 1:2000 (CMA), 1:200 (SCB), 1:30 (CySEC) |
Foundation Year | 2009 | 2010 |
Fees Test | Low | Medium |
Tradable Instruments | 763 | 1181 |
Trading Platforms | MT5, MT4, WebTrader, TradingView | MT5, cTrader, MT4, TradingView |
Minimum Deposit | $100 | $0 |
Read Reviews |
Based on our comparative assessment, Eigthcap suits beginners seeking leading market research and advanced traders who prefer a large selection of cryptocurrency pairs. Pepperstone is suited for beginners seeking extensive educational materials and advanced traders who want access to third-party trading tools.
Eightcap Best for Beginners Research & Advanced Crypto Traders |
Pepperstone Best for Beginners Education & Advanced Trading Tools |
800+ instruments, 92 crypto pairs | 1,200+ instruments |
High-quality market research videos | Robust educational resources |
MT4 & MT5 | TradingView, MT4, MT5, cTrader platforms |
User-friendly TradingView platform | Low-spread Razor Account |
Raw spread trading account | Autochartist, Smart Trader Tools for MetaTrader |
AI economic calendar | VPS hosting |
Established in 2009 in Melbourne, Australia, Eigthcap is regulated by five financial authorities, including three Tier-1 regulators. The broker provides flexible account options, advanced trading platforms, insightful market research videos, and access to over 800 tradable instruments.
Eigthcap is well-suited for beginners looking for high-quality market research videos from expert analysts and those who prefer micro-lot trading accounts for managing smaller balances. It’s also an excellent choice for advanced crypto traders, offering access to over 92 crypto pairs.
Eightcap stands out as a globally regulated broker licensed by 3 Tier-1 regulators. It offers video commentary and market research from well-known industry experts and trading veterans, flexible account types to suit different traders, innovative trading tools such as its AI economic calendar, and a large selection of cryptocurrency pairs.
Recommended in 5 best broker guides: |
Forex | CFD | European Regulated | CySEC | Australia |
Established in 2010, Pepperstone was founded in Melbourne, Australia, with additional offices in London, Cyprus, Germany, Dubai and Kenya. Licensed by 7 financial authorities, including 4 Tier-1 regulators, Peppersone gives access to over 1,200 tradable instruments from the MT4, MT5, cTrader, and TradingView platforms with an extensive range of educational materials.
Pepperstone is a great choice for beginners looking to enhance their trading knowledge and skills, with access to comprehensive educational resources, including articles, video tutorials, courses, and live webinars. It also caters to advanced traders by offering four professional trading platforms (MT4, MT5, cTrader, TradingView) along with third-party research and analytical tools from Autochartist.
Pepperstone stands out as a well-regulated broker licensed by 7 financial authorities, including 4 Tier-1 regulators. It offers access to four state-of-the-art trading platforms, multiple third-party research tools, extensive educational materials, better-than-average customer support, and zero inactivity, deposit, or withdrawal fees.
Recommended in 5 best broker guides: |
CFD | Spread Betting | Regulated Brokers | TradingView | Professionals |
Trust Rank | 4.2 | 4.6 |
Regulators & Max Leverage | 1:30 (ASIC), 1:30 (FCA), 1:30 (CySEC), 1:200 (SCB) | 1:30 (FCA), 1:30 (BaFin), 1:30 (ASIC), 1:30 (DFSA), 1:2000 (CMA), 1:200 (SCB), 1:30 (CySEC) |
Foundation Year | 2009 | 2010 |
Publicly Traded |
Established in 2009, Eightcap operates through three entities regulated by Tier-1 authorities: CySEC (Cyprus), FCA (UK), and ASIC (Australia). Additionally, it has one entity licensed by the Tier-3 regulator SCB (Bahamas) and one unregulated entity based in the Seychelles. The Tier-1 regulated entities provide top-tier investor protection and transparency, as outlined in the broker’s Terms and Conditions document. Eightcap’s strong transparency and 16 years of operating history contributed to its high trust rating in our review.
Established in 2010, Pepperstone has four entities licensed by Tier-1 regulators: CySEC (Cyprus), FCA (UK), ASIC (Australia), BaFin (Germany); one entity licensed by Tier-2 regulator DFSA (Dubai) and three entities licensed by Tier-3 regulators CMA (Kenya) and the SCB (Bahamas). The broker’s terms and conditions outline a high level of transparency regarding trading fees and the safety of client capital.
Fees Rank | 4.7 | 4.3 |
Inactivity Fee |
In our live fee test with the Eightcap commission-free Standard CFD Account, the EUR/USD spread averaged 1.0 pips during both the London and US sessions, aligning with the industry average. Spreads on commodities, shares, indices, and cryptocurrencies were impressively tight. Swap fees are in line with industry standards, and the broker does not impose inactivity or account maintenance fees.
Using the Pepperstone commission-free Standard CFD Account, we found that the spread for EUR/USD averaged 1.0 pips during the London session and 1.1 pips during the US session, slightly above the industry average of 1.0 pips. However, more competitive pricing is available through Pepperstone’s Razor account. Additionally, there are no inactivity fees.
For more options, you can also check out our list of the best forex brokers with the lowest spreads.
Platform Rank | 4.3 | 4.3 |
Trading Platforms | MT5, MT4, WebTrader, TradingView | MT5, cTrader, MT4, TradingView |
Mobile Apps | Android, iOS | Android, iOS |
Eightcap provides a standard suite of MetaTrader 4 and MetaTrader 5 for desktop, web, and mobile, along with the intuitive TradingView platform, which is beginner-friendly. The MetaTrader web platform is also suited to beginner traders with a user-friendly interface, real-time quotes, watchlists, 31 technical indicators, 4 analytical objects, 9 timeframes, and 3 chart types. The TradingView platform is intuitive and suitable for beginners as well. Advanced traders may prefer the MetaTrader desktop platform as it offers more timeframes, indicators, and algorithmic trading capabilities. The mobile app is a streamlined option for trading on the go. Clients of Eightcap’s Australian entity can also access the Capitalize.ai tool for testing and automating strategies.
Pepperstone provides the MT4, MT5, cTrader, and TradingView platforms across desktop, web, and mobile. The TradingView platform, ideal for beginners, includes over 100 technical indicators, 11 chart types, and 11 timeframes. Advanced traders can use MT4, MT5, and cTrader, with cTrader specifically designed for high-frequency, short-term trading, offering features like one-click trading and depth of market. Additionally, Pepperstone supports actionable technical trade ideas with Autochartist.
Tradable Instruments Rank | 4.7 | 5.0 |
# Tradable Instruments | 763 | 1181 |
# Currency Pairs | 56 | 90 |
# Commodities | 14 | 31 |
# Crypto | 92 | 34 |
# Stocks | 585 | 1000 |
# Indices | 16 | 26 |
Eightcap provides access to over 800 financial CFD instruments covering global asset classes. The range of instruments is suited to all levels of traders but does cater well to crypto traders, with more than 92 cryptocurrency CFDs available.
Pepperstone offers over 1,200 financial CFD instruments across global asset classes. While the range is suitable for most traders, it is particularly appealing to stock traders, with over 900 stock CFDs available from markets in the UK, US, Australia, Germany, and Hong Kong.
Customer Support Rank | 4.3 | 4.8 |
Availability | Available 24/5 | Available 24/7 |
Live Chat |
Eightcap offers customer support from 9:00 AM to midnight (GMT + 2) via phone, live chat, and email, seven days a week. In our live test, the service quality varied. Chat support response times were slow, yet the agents proved to be helpful and knowledgeable. Emails received responses within one business day.
Pepperstone offers 24/7 customer support through phone, live chat, and email. In our tests, both the live chat and phone services were fast, connecting to an agent in less than a minute. Emails received responses within 24 hours. The agents were knowledgeable and helpful.
Research Rank | 5.0 | 4.8 |
News (Top-Tier Sources) | ||
Economic calendar | ||
Videos/Webinars | ||
Trading Central (Recognia) | ||
Autochartist |
Eightcap offers expert market research from its YouTube channel and dedicated analysts. The videos include a “Weekly Market Breakdown” covering the week’s news and market impact. The “In the Charts” series presents instrument picks from veteran analysts. These videos, averaging 15 minutes in length, cater to traders from beginner to advanced levels. Both news-based and fundamental traders might find the AI Economic Calendar particularly useful, as it covers 1,000 economic events from 55 countries, providing analysis of historical events as well as projections for future price ranges.
Pepperstone provides detailed and insightful market research in both written and video formats, produced by its team of in-house analysts. The broker’s chief market analyst delivers analyses of high-impact news events and provides market commentary. Although the material has a technical focus, it also offers actionable trading ideas. Additionally, Pepperstone provides the Autochartist research tool, which generates automated signals when specific technical analysis chart patterns emerge in major markets. These tools are well-suited for both beginner and advanced traders.
Deposit and Withdrawal Rank | 4.9 | 4.5 |
Deposit Options | PayPal, Wire Transfer, Skrill, Neteller, Credit Card, Bpay, Visa | Wire Transfer, Visa, Mastercard, PayPal |
Withdrawal Options | Wire Transfer, PayPal, Bpay, Skrill, Neteller, Visa | Wire Transfer, Visa, Mastercard, PayPal |
Withdrawal Fee |
Eightcap offers fee-free deposits and withdrawals via bank wire transfer (2 – 7 working days), Visa/Mastercard (instant), and Skrill (1 – 5 business days). There is a minimum withdrawal of 10 EUR / USD / GBP for Visa, Mastercard, and Skrill and a minimum of 30 EUR / USD / GBP for bank wires.
Pepperstone provides fee-free deposits and withdrawals via bank wire transfer (1 – 3 working days), Visa/Mastercard (instant), and PayPal (instant deposit, 1 – 3 working days for withdrawals).
Account Types and Terms | 4.9 | 4.9 |
# Base Currencies | 56 | 90 |
Islamic Account | ||
Demo Account | ||
Minimum Deposit | $100 | $0 |
Eightcap offers two account types. The Standard Account is suited to beginners as it offers commission-free trading and micro lot trading of 0.01 lots. The Raw Account is suited to advanced and short-term traders as it offers lower spreads than the Standard Account but charges a commission of $3.50 per lot which is around the industry average.
Pepperstone offers two account types: Standard and Razor. The Standard Account is suited to beginners as it features commission-free trading in micro-lots. In contrast, the Razor Account is tailored for advanced traders, offering lower spreads along with a commission that aligns with the industry average. Additionally, access to the TradingView platform is exclusive to the Razor Account.
Education Rank | 4.4 | 4.9 |
Videos | ||
Webinars |
Eightcap offers limited educational resources. While there are articles covering fundamentals and trading strategies, there are no platform video tutorials, webinars, or courses. The materials are suited to beginner traders seeking more general information.
Pepperstone offers an extensive range of educational resources. This includes articles, video tutorials, courses, and live trading webinars. The materials are well-written, informative, and tailored to all levels of traders. Regular webinars, hosted by a veteran trader and educator, cover various topics, including price action trading.
Since 2011, FX Empire has developed a detailed methodology for evaluating CFD brokers, involving over 250 variables across nine crucial categories. Our team of experts, with deep industry knowledge, conducts live testing and research by interacting with the brokers directly. We check regulations, open accounts, test spreads, account costs, platform functionality, instrument variety, customer support reliability, and the quality of research and educational content. This granular analysis helps us identify each broker’s strengths and weaknesses, keeping our comparisons current with market trends and ensuring our guides meet traders’ needs.
We strive to evaluate each broker objectively, considering how their offerings align with the diverse trading goals and preferences of our readers. Our focus is on providing a balanced overview of each broker’s strengths and weaknesses. This method ensures that our readers receive clear, insightful comparisons to aid in making well-informed trading decisions.
We employ a comprehensive rating system across nine key categories:
In each category, we conduct an in-depth analysis for both brokers, outlining features, advantages, and disadvantages and determining their suitability for different trader profiles. By blending insights from our extensive reviews with first-hand experiences and observations, we ensure each comparison is balanced, informative, and tailored to the trader’s unique needs. You can read more about our review process here.