IG Group vs. OANDA

Two very popular brokerage firms are IG Markets and OANDA. Both these brokerages have earned a reputation for themselves in financial markets by providing top-notch services to their clients. In this article, Benzinga reviews IG vs OANDA to help you choose which one is better suited for your trading goals.

Let's take a closer look at this matchup to reveal which one is the right fit for you.

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Disclosure: CFDs are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. 74% to 76% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider. You should consider whether you understand how CFDs work, and whether you can afford to take the high risk of losing your money. The products and services available to you at FOREX.com will depend on your location and on which of its regulated entities holds your account

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Who is IG for?

IG (tastyfx for US forex traders) is a long-standing, well-regulated forex broker that attracts forex traders who want the utmost in safety, product selection, trading tools and research. Whether you trade forex or contracts for difference (CFDs), IG has the resources to offer you the best trading environment at an affordable rate. IG’s headquarters are in London but it has a U.S. division. 

A broker’s longevity in this volatile industry is a credible statement. IG Markets was founded in 1974 making it a trusted broker with years of experience. Many countries have forex regulators that operate on a tier system. Forex brokers earn the privilege of tier-1 regulation by successfully obeying the rigid guidelines and regulations of each country it does business in. IG operates under the authority of  tier-1 regulators in Australia, Japan, Singapore, Switzerland, the U.K. and the U.S. IG adds to its credibility by being a regulated bank. 

IG offers over 17,000 tradable instruments and the largest amount of CFDs. IG attracts investors who intend to increase their success odds in forex and CFD trading and it serves global client centers in 17 countries. IG leads the world in providing contracts for difference and financial spread betting to traders all over the world.

You’ll find IG’s web-based platform easy to navigate if you’re a beginner. Many features make your trading go smoother, including:

• Charts: Speedy, flexible, web technology supports trading charts that have multiple timeframes. You can make trades right from the charts.
• News: News sources include IG Live, Reuters and Twitter feed. IG Live broadcasts market updates, trading analysis and expert opinions. Reuters supplies live stream news. 
• Trading alerts: Timely alerts come right from your platform.
• Trade executions and pricing: This platform makes fast, accurate trade executions.
• Copy Trading: IG offers copy trading abilities allowing you to analyze other traders in the forex market.

Advanced traders may prefer the MetaTrader 4 on IG’s dealer platform for share trading. This system features automatic trading. All platforms have real-time charting with advanced capabilities. 

Who is OANDA for?

OANDA attracts tech-savvy traders and beginners alike. This London-based forex trader ranks high among its rivals in safety trading platforms, tradable instruments and research but trails IG in every category.

Traders who value safety will like OANDA . The private forex broker has been in business for 24 years and must abide by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), one of the strictest worldwide financial regulators. Traders can consider Oanda a low-risk broker.

OANDA calls its trading system FX Trade. The platforms provide great selections for algorithmic trading, though it lags behind IG. OANDA offers 4 ways to trade:

• Web: This is its browser-based platform with technical analysis tools and performance analytics. AutoCharts is one of its key analysis tools.
• Desktop: This platform includes 1-click trading, technical drawing tools and unbiased technical analysis. It provides exceptional marketing analysis, news and some of the best stock charts. 
• Mobile and tablet app: This app features a customized interface, charting, market news and data analysis. 
• Meta Trader 4 (MT4): OANDA has developed a bridge to the most groundbreaking trade technology. MT4 gives you the ability to use automated trading tools. You can also backtest your trading strategies.

OANDA doesn’t offer options trading. Its major offerings are CFDs, forex currency pairs, stocks and commodities.

IG’s Fees and Commissions

IG manages to provide superior products and services within a low price range. A currency spread rate sheet is a good indicator of a forex broker’s fee structure. The spread is the broker’s commission on currency pairs.

This table lays out IG’s rates for currency spreads. It compares IG’s rates to the market average. The unit of measure is a pip, or point per percentage. A pip represents 1/100th of 1 cent for U.S.-based currency pairs. 

With a $250 minimum initial deposit, IG makes it easy to start trading on the forex market. Its rates are generally below the industry average. IG uses the economy of scale to keep prices low for traders. This means this broker uses its massive asset pool to buy huge blocks of shares at a discount price. IG passes on the savings to its traders.

IG offers even bigger savings for professional volume traders on its L2 Dealer platform. It provides a tier-based pricing scale adjusted by the customer’s trade volume from the preceding month. The commission-based offering, Forex Direct, is available on this platform. The minimum deposit for the L2 Dealer platform is $1,230. 

OANDA’s Fees and Commissions

OANDA doesn’t require a minimum initial deposit, but it makes up for it with its spread fees. Its rates are slightly below the industry average. OANDA’s fees are more in line with FOREX.com or FxPro. 

This chart gives a breakdown of OANDA’s currency spread rate compared to the industry average. Oanda offers the smallest micro lot. The minimum forex trading size is 1 micro lot, and Oanda reduced the minimum trade size to 0.001. 

IG’s Research Offerings

IG attempts to offer its clients premier market research so that only 68% of IG’s traders lose money. This failure rate is excellent compared to the Financial Conduct Authority’s (FCA’s) estimate of 82%. IG offers its clients premier market research. It uses in-house and outside sources to deliver the most up-to-date market information available. The standard research features are:

• Educational analysis: Customers can use IG’s trading platform to access Reuters, an economic calendar and streaming video content.
• Adjustable screener: IG offers an adjustable screener for CFDs on global stocks, cryptocurrencies and forex.
• Education and news: Daily FX is a daily dedicated blog. It supplies news, research information and educational material.
• Trading platform: Its trading platform, MetaTrader4, features AutoChartist and PIA First, which gives traders the ability to see trade patterns with automated pattern recognition. 

OANDA’s Research Offerings

OANDA provides easy access to research tools and materials on its website and mobile apps — 73.5% of OANDA's 23,000 customers lose money. OANDA isn’t far behind IG in the research department. It offers the following features:

• OANDA labs: OANDA engineers developed these tools based on popular technical analysis methods.
• Algorithm lab: This is a valuable tool for application programming interface (API) trading research. It comes in different language versions and you can code and launch your trading strategies.
• Market Pulse: Provides in-depth market analysis from IG’s in-house researchers. It offers an economic calendar with forecasts from 4CAST. It covers micro and macroeconomic topics, forex news and technical analysis developments. 
• News: Besides Market Pulse articles, it supplies Dow Jones news feeds and other reports from other financial media.
• Economic analysis: In-house economists analyze current economic conditions and events.

OANDA's charting tools use more than 70 technical indicators to provide responsive guidance. Current news is available from the trading platforms. 

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