IC Markets Review
IC Markets charges no minimum deposit and no inactivity fee. Raw Spread accounts start at 0.0 pips with 7 USD per lot round turn on MT4 and MT5, or 6 USD on cTrader; the Standard account is commission free from 0.8 pips. Sign-ups from this page open with Raw Trading Ltd, licensed in Seychelles under FSA number SD018.
Seychelles FSA Regulated
Execution Under 40ms
Raw Spreads from 0.0 pips
Commission per Lot
Trading Platforms
Trustpilot 4.8 / 5
Segregated Client Funds
2250 Instruments on MetaTrader
$0 Minimum Deposit
Leverage up to 1:5000
IC Markets at a Glance: Key Facts and Figures
Who Is IC Markets and Who Owns It?
Quick answer: IC Markets is a true ECN forex and CFD broker founded in Sydney in 2007 and regulated by ASIC and CySEC. It offers raw spreads from 0.0 pips, fast execution and 2,250+ instruments across MT4, MT5, cTrader and TradingView, making it a benchmark for low-cost, high-speed trading.
Is IC Markets Regulated? Licences and Client Protection
IC Markets Trustpilot Rating and What Traders Say
What Can You Trade with IC Markets?
IC Markets Account Types and Spreads Compared
Raw Spread Account (MT4 and MT5)
Raw Spread Account (cTrader)
Standard Account
Scalping, EAs and Strategy Restrictions
Best IC Markets Alternatives
Pepperstone
BlackBull Markets
FP Markets
Eightcap
Other ASIC-regulated brokers we have reviewed include FXTrading.com, Global Prime and Blueberry Markets.
IC Markets Trading Platforms
MetaTrader 4 and MetaTrader 5
cTrader
TradingView Integration
Execution Infrastructure and Latency
IC Markets Fees and Commissions: What You Actually Pay
Spreads and Commissions by Account
IC Markets Leverage Limits by Entity
IC Markets Deposits: Methods, Times and Fees
Restricted Countries: Who IC Markets Will Not Accept
Full List of Excluded Jurisdictions
Video Reviews from Independent Traders
Feature Summary and Final Recommendation
Which Account Suits Your Trading Volume?
To help you decide, here is a quick breakdown of how these accounts compare side-by-side in the current 2026 market:
| Feature | Raw Spread Account | Standard Account |
|---|---|---|
| Minimum Spread | From 0.0 pips | From 0.6 pips |
| Commission | $3.50 / lot (per side) | $0.00 |
| Execution Type | ECN / STP | ECN / STP |
| Ideal For | Scalpers & EAs | Long-term & Manual Traders |
Which One Should You Choose?
In 2026, the Raw Spread Account remains the most cost-effective option for active traders. While paying a commission might seem like an extra step, the savings you gain from 0.0 pip spreads often far outweigh the commission costs compared to the Standard account's markup. However, if you prefer a clean "zero-commission" interface and don't trade frequently, the Standard Account provides a hassle-free experience.
IC Markets Islamic Account: Swap-Free Trading Explained
Aligning Institutional Trading with Sharia Principles
For traders who follow the Islamic faith, IC Markets offers a specialized Islamic (Swap-Free) Account. This option is designed to ensure compliance with Sharia law, which prohibits the earning or paying of interest (Riba). Below are the key features and operational details of this account type as of 2026.
Islamic Accounts: No Swap or Interest Charges
No Riba (Interest)
You will neither pay nor earn interest on any currency, metal, or index positions held overnight.
Sharia Compliance
This allows Muslim traders to engage in long-term trading strategies without violating religious principles.
Islamic Accounts: Which Account Types Support It
Raw Spread Islamic
Benefit from 0.0 pip spreads while remaining swap-free.
Standard Islamic
Enjoy commission-free trading with the same swap-free benefits.
Platform Support
📈 Available across MetaTrader 4, 📈 MetaTrader 5, 📈 and cTrader.
Islamic Accounts: Administration Fees Explained
Flat Administration Fees
Swap-free does not mean cost-free. In place of swaps IC applies an overnight holding fee that varies by instrument — for example $10 per lot on EUR/USD and $41.85 per lot on BTC/USD. The grace period is not uniform: new positions may get up to five grace days, but on XNGUSD, XTIUSD and XBRUSD holding fees apply from day one with no grace period at all, and on USD/JPY and GBP/JPY they apply from day three after a two-day grace. For energies and indices, Friday is the triple-swap night, so a position held through that rollover consumes three grace days at once. Swap-free covers over 90 instruments. Verified against IC’s own swap-free account page, 17 September 2026.
Standard Commissions Still Apply
The standard commissions ($3.50 per side on Raw Spread) and spreads still apply, ensuring that the trading environment remains institutional-grade.
Islamic Accounts: Which Instruments Are Swap-Free
Forex
Over 60+ currency pairs.
Commodities
• Gold, • Silver, • and Crude Oil.
Indices
Global markets like the S&P 500 and FTSE 100.
How to Open an IC Markets Islamic Account
Steps to Request Islamic Account Status
To activate the swap-free option, you must first register for a live account. Once your identity is verified, you can submit a request to the support team to convert your account to "Islamic" status. IC Markets may require a brief justification or documentation to confirm the necessity of the swap-free status.
IC Markets Pros and Cons
IC Markets Pricing and Account Plans
IC Markets prices its raw accounts through commission rather than the spread. What the broker calls “True ECN” is its own branding, not an independently verified execution model. The figures below were read from IC’s own account comparison table on 17 September 2026.
| Account | Spread | Commission | Min deposit | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Raw (MT4/MT5) ★ | from 0.0 | $7 round turn | $0 | Open Account |
| Raw (cTrader) | from 0.0 | $6 round turn | $0 | Open Account |
| Standard | 0.8 | None | $0 | Open Account |
Two things worth knowing. There is no minimum deposit on the Raw Spread, cTrader or Standard accounts. Any review still quoting a minimum deposit for these three is out of date. And IC lists maximum leverage of 1:5000 on MetaTrader and 1:1000 on cTrader — those are the Seychelles entity’s figures. An EU client under CySEC is capped at 30:1, so the leverage you actually get depends on which entity signs you up.
On cost per round turn the cTrader Raw account at $6.00 is cheaper than Raw Spread at $7.00, but it runs from a London server with 121 tradable instruments against 2,250 on MetaTrader in New York. IC also lists two higher tiers the rest of this page does not cover: Raw Pro ($3.00 round turn, $5,000 minimum) and Raw Pro + ($2.00 round turn, $100,000 minimum), both marked early access.
IC Markets vs Pepperstone vs BlackBull
How does IC Markets compare with two other top ECN brokers?
| Feature | IC Markets | Pepperstone | BlackBull |
|---|---|---|---|
| Raw EURUSD spread | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
| Commission | $6–7 | $7 | $6 |
| Min deposit | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| Regulation | ASIC·CySEC·FSA | ASIC·FCA·CySEC·DFSA | FMA NZ |
| Platforms | MT4·MT5·cTrader·TV | MT4·MT5·cTrader | MT4·MT5·cTrader·TV |
| Trustpilot | 4.8/5 | 4.6/5 | 4.7/5 |
Verdict: IC Markets leads on Trustpilot volume and execution tech, with the cheapest cTrader commission. Pepperstone and BlackBull match it closely and offer a $0 minimum — all three are excellent ECN choices.
Our Verdict: Who Should Use IC Markets?
IC Markets is one of the world’s largest True ECN forex and CFD brokers, founded in Sydney in 2007 and regulated by ASIC, CySEC (with ICF cover) and the Seychelles FSA. It’s the benchmark for low-cost, high-speed trading, with raw spreads from 0.0 pips and institutional-grade execution on Equinix servers.
What stands out: raw spreads from 0.0 with a ~$7 (MT4/MT5) or $6 (cTrader) round-turn commission, four platforms (MT4, MT5, cTrader, TradingView), 2,250+ instruments, no restrictions on scalping, hedging or EAs, and an exceptional 4.8/5 Trustpilot score across 52,000+ reviews.
What to weigh: there is no minimum deposit on the three retail accounts, but the headline leverage applies only to the offshore Seychelles entity (ASIC/CySEC clients get 1:30), and there’s no proprietary platform. US clients aren’t accepted.
Bottom line: IC Markets is a top-tier, well-regulated ECN broker and an outstanding choice for active traders, scalpers and algo traders who want the tightest pricing and fastest execution.
IC Markets FAQs
Key questions about IC Markets — regulation, raw-spread pricing, platforms, leverage and instruments.