How do XM and OctaFX stack up against each other?

The Radar Chart below highlights how the brokers stack up against each other across various metrics. The highest score a broker can receive in each area is 5.

At Forex Malaysia, we help traders find the broker that suits their trading needs. In many cases, the best way to achieve this is to compare brokers side-by-side.

To compare XM and OctaFX, we used the same factors we use when reviewing brokers: The trust and regulation of the broker, the trading platform, the costs and trading conditions, and the level of education and market analysis available at the broker.

Does XM or OctaFX have a better trust and regulation rating?

Trust and regulation are some of the most important factors to consider when choosing a Forex broker. Trust in the Forex trading business is almost entirely founded upon regulation. We spend many hours evaluating the safety of each broker by delving into their fine print and confirming each one of their regulatory licences on the online registers. The more top-tier authorities a broker is regulated by, the higher its trust rating.

In our comparison, we found that XM holds two Tier 1 and one Tier 2 licences, and OctaFX holds no Tier 1 and no Tier 2 licences.

 

Can I trust XM?

Yes as XM was founded in 2009 and is regulated by ASIC, CySEC, FCA and IFSC.

 

Can I trust OctaFX?

No as OctaFX is not adequately regulated.

 

Based on these findings, XM earned a higher trust rating than OctaFX.

Does XM or OctaFX have lower costs?

Another important aspect we consider when comparing brokers is the cost of trading. When evaluating trading costs, we always consider the minimum deposit required to open an account and the ongoing trading costs, including the spreads and commissions. When calculating trading costs, we measure the cost to trade one lot of EUR/USD using the broker’s account with the lowest minimum deposit. The cost includes both the spread and any commission charged. 

Not all brokers publish their trading costs, so we often open accounts and trade on their platforms to verify the spreads and commissions. Based on our reviews, we found that OctaFX has overall lower trading costs than XM. 

 

Does XM or OctaFX offer a better choice of trading platforms?

Traders want Forex brokers to offer them a choice of trading platforms, so we give brokers who offer multiple platforms higher ratings. Trading platforms we consider include MetaTrader4, MetaTrader5, cTrader and proprietary mobile and web-based platforms. 

In this case, XM offers support for MT4 and MT5 and OctaFX offers support for MT4 and MT5. 

Do the brokers offer copy trading?

Copy trading is a great option for beginner traders who can’t trade full-time or lack experience with Forex trading. In this case both OctaFX and XM offer copy trading.

 

Which broker offers a better choice of trading instruments?

A variety of CFD instruments – and a large range of CFDs for each instrument category allow traders more opportunities for profitable trading. The best brokers will have thousands of CFDs to trade, covering all these instrument categories. We found that XM offers a greater range and depth of instruments to trade than OctaFX. XM offers 57 Forex pairs to trade and OctaFX offers 35 Forex pairs to trade.

And what about Cryptocurrencies?

In this case, XM offers 31 cryptocurrencies while OctaFX offers 30 cryptocurrencies. So if you want to trade cryptocurrencies, we advise trading with XM.

Which broker offers better deposit and withdrawal processes?

Although brokers may have reasonable trading fees, many traders are caught out by the high non-trading fees charged by some brokers, including deposits and withdrawals. Traders want to be able to deposit and withdraw funds quickly and cheaply. Most brokers have multiple funding methods with zero fees for making deposits, but some brokers make it more expensive and take longer to process withdrawals. 

We rate brokers more highly that process withdrawals within 24 hours by multiple withdrawal methods and without charging processing fees. We found that neither OctaFX nor XM charges a withdrawal fee. Overall, OctaFX has better deposit and withdrawal processes than XM. 

Which broker offers better educational support?

We often find that brokers offer very little in the way of educational materials, forcing traders to use other third-party sites or self-educate elsewhere. Beginner traders need well-structured, well-presented materials in multiple formats to get a good start at trading. More experienced traders also benefit from webinars led by experts in the field and advanced trading strategy sections with new trading ideas. 

XM has better educational support than OctaFX. Both OctaFX and XM offer educational support for more experienced traders.

 

Which broker offers better market analysis materials?

To successfully predict the price movements of an instrument, traders will need access to frequent market research and analysis. We find that research and market analysis are always better when they are produced in-house and updated frequently. Third-party resources don’t show the same expertise in trading ideas, so we place a strong emphasis on frequent in-house updates. Some brokers also often offer interactive webinars where traders can learn from experts in the field. 

We found that XM offers better research analysis than OctaFX and that both OctaFX and XM offer frequent webinars.

 

Our overall Verdict on XM

A popular global broker with a large customer base and a good reputation, XM is a good option for most Malaysian traders. It has some of the lowest fees in the industry, provides excellent research and education, and has a beginner-friendly trading app. It also has an outstanding range of trading tools and offers traders generous bonuses and incentives. Malaysian traders will also be pleased to note that XM offers Islamic swap-free accounts.

The main drawback is that XM’s Malaysian clients will be trading through XM’s company in Belize, which has poor regulatory oversight.  

 

Our overall Verdict on OctaFX

OctaFX will be a difficult choice for many Malaysian traders. On the one hand, it has very low trading costs, charges no fees for deposits and withdrawals, and has a great copy trading service.

On the other hand, OctaFX is essentially unregulated in Malaysia and the range of instruments available to trade is slightly limited compared to other brokers, with 35 Forex pairs, 5 commodities, 10 indices, 150 equities, and 30 cryptocurrencies.

If you can look past these issues, you will find a low-cost broker with a fairly standard setup: Two accounts with minimum deposits of 25 USD, a slick mobile app, and a good range of trading tools. OctaFX also heavily promotes its wide range of bonuses, and it can offer leverage of 1:500 on Forex pairs.

Finally, the website is fully translated into Bahasa Melayu, and OctaFX always runs competitions and promotions for Malaysian clients.

Which broker has the highest overall rating?

XM has an overall rating of 4.35 and OctaFX has an overall rating of 4.27. For more detail please read our reviews of XM and OctaFX.