Home
Brokers

Kraken vs ActivTrades

Kraken or ActivTrades – which is better for UK traders 2026? Compare Kraken and ActivTrades in this detailed breakdown of their platforms, features and fees.

Kraken vs ActivTrades Comparison Table 2026
Kraken	ActivTrades

3.9	4
Kraken is ranked #33 among crypto brokers.	ActivTrades is ranked #21 among CFD brokers.
Review	Review
Kraken is a top cryptocurrency exchange featuring a specialised trading platform and over 220 cryptocurrency tokens. Traders can access up to 1:5 leverage for spot trading with consistent rollover fees, and up to 1:50 for futures trading. The platform additionally offers crypto staking and hosts an engaging NFT marketplace.	ActivTrades, a UK-based CFD and forex broker since 2001, is renowned for its award-winning services. It holds licences from esteemed regulators, including the UK’s FCA. The firm offers trading on more than 1,000 instruments across seven asset classes, with an impressive 93.60% of trades executed at the desired price.
Pros
An impressive selection of over 220 well-established cryptocurrencies. Excellent trading platform and mobile app. Kraken Pro offers competitive trading fees. 50x leverage on futures trading Minimum deposit requirement is only $10. 3D secure is necessary. Mobile investing Crypto staking	ActivTrades provides competitive spreads, especially for forex trading, starting at 0.5 pips on major currency pairs without extra commissions. Additionally, the €/£10 inactivity fee is only applied after 52 weeks, benefiting active traders. While cTrader isn't supported, MT4, MT5, TradingView, and the broker's ActivTrader platform accommodate various trading requirements. The firm's web-based platform has proven user-friendly and visually appealing for novices during testing. ActivTrades is a reputable firm with over 20 years in the financial sector. It holds authorizations from three top-tier regulatory bodies, according to DayTrading.com's Regulation & Trust Rating. For UK traders, it offers enhanced protection with £1 million in investor compensation, surpassing the £85,000 provided by the FSCS, should the firm face insolvency. Based on our tests, ActivTrades offers swift and reliable support via live chat, email, and phone in multiple languages. This makes it an excellent choice for both traders and newcomers seeking quality assistance. With execution speeds averaging 4ms and an order completion rate of 93.6%, ActivTrades provides an outstanding platform for traders. It supports rapid strategies without imposing limits on short-term approaches.
Cons
Insider data breach and extortion event impacting customer information in April 2026. Delayed verification for Pro accounts. Limited support for newer altcoins. Minimal leverage in spot trading. Does not accept deposits in traditional currency. Slow processing times	The platform lacks features for copy or social trading, which is a disadvantage for traders interested in passive investing or replicating the trades of seasoned traders. This is particularly evident when compared to eToro and Vantage. The selection of over 1,000 markets includes forex, commodities, indices, and ETFs. However, the overall choice of asset classes is limited, with no stocks available outside the US, UK, and Europe. In comparison, BlackBull provides access to more than 26,000 markets. Its research tools are decent, although somewhat lacking. The expanding 'Analysis' hub is useful, but the absence of Trading Central or Autochartist means advanced technical insights are missing. This limitation may hinder traders seeking to spot opportunities in volatile markets. ActivTrades needs improvement in educational resources to compete with firms like XTB and CMC Markets. While it offers well-presented and informative webinars, the selection of courses and quizzes remains limited, hindering a more comprehensive and engaging learning experience for traders.
Awards
	Safest Global Broker 2023 - International Investor Magazine Best Online Trading Services 2023 - ADVFN International Financial Awards Best Forex Broker Europe 2022 - Forex-Awards.com Most Trusted Global FX Broker 2022 - International Investor Magazine Best CFD Broker 2021 - Rankia Safest Global Broker 2021 - International Investor Award Winners Best FX Broker 2021 - Le Fonti Award
FCA Regulated
No List of FCA Regulated Brokers	Yes
Instruments
Cryptos	CFDs, Forex, Stocks, Indices, Commodities, Bonds, ETFs, Futures, Cryptos (location dependent)
Demo Account
Yes	Yes
Minimum Deposit
$10	$0
Payment Methods
Etana Wire Transfer	AstroPay Credit Card Debit Card Mastercard Neteller PayPal Skrill Sofort Visa Wire Transfer
Minimum Trade
Variable	0.01 Lots
Regulator
FINTRAC, AUSTRAC, FSA	FCA, CMVM, CSSF, SCB
Mobile Apps
Yes	iOS & Android
Trading App
	ActivTrades offers mobile apps for iOS and Android, including its own ActivTrader app, MT4, MT5, and TradingView. These provide real-time data, advanced charting, and customisable features. All apps enable intuitive trading and account management, but ActivTrader excels with its seamless experience, fast execution, and robust research tools.
iOS App Rating
4.7	4.9
Android App Rating
4.2	3.8
Margin Trading
Yes	Yes
MetaTrader 4
No	Yes
MetaTrader 5
No	Yes
cTrader
No	No
AlgoTrader
Yes	No
OmniTrader
No	No
TradingView
No	Yes
Autochartist
No	No
eSignal
No	No
Trading Central
No	No
STP Account
No	Yes
ECN Account
No	No
DMA Account
No	No
MAM Account
No	No
PAMM Account
No	No
LAMM Account
No	No
Demat Account
No	No
AI / Machine Learning
No	No
Robo Advisor
No	No
Negative Balance Protection
No	Yes
Market Maker
No	Yes
P2P Trading
No	No
Spot Trading
Yes	Yes
Auto Trading
Kraken Futures is integrated in other platforms which have bots: Bookmap, Caspian, FMZ Quant, Gunbot, HaasOnline, Hyndor, Margin	Yes (APIs), Expert Advisors (EAs) on MetaTrader
Copy Trading
No	No
Social Trading
No	No
Trade Signals
	Yes
VPS Hosting
No	No
Tournaments
No	No
Demo Competitions
No	No
Ethical Investing
No	No
Custodial Account
No	No
Guaranteed Stop Loss
No	No
Inactivity Fee
	€/£10
Islamic Account
No	Yes
Account Currencies
USD EUR GBP CAD AUD JPY CHF	USD EUR GBP CHF
Commodities
	Gold Oil Natural Gas Wheat Copper Cocoa Coffee Corn Orange Juice Palladium Platinum Silver Soybeans Sugar
CFD
	ActivTrades specialises in CFD trading, providing access to over 1,000 instruments, including currencies, shares, indices, and commodities. Renowned for its award-winning trading environment, the broker ensures swift and dependable order execution, coupled with clear margin requirements for traders.
Leverage
	1:30 (UK and EU), 1:400 (Global & Pro)
FTSE Spread
	0.6
GBPUSD Spread<
	0.8
Oil Spread
	0.03
Stocks Spread
	Variable
Forex
	ActivTrades provides competitive fees in forex, offering excellent spreads on major pairs like EUR/USD starting from 0.5 pips, with no commission charges. The enhanced ActivTrades platform, along with the renowned MetaTrader 4, equips traders with essential tools to navigate the FX market with confidence.
Assets
	50+
GBPUSD Spread
	0.8
EURUSD Spread
	0.5
EURGBP Spread
	0.8
Currency Indices
	USD
Cryptocurrency
Kraken is a dedicated crypto exchange offering over 220 cryptocurrencies, including major tokens like Bitcoin and various altcoins. Traders can engage in spot markets with leverage of up to 5:1, or in futures markets with leverage up to 50:1. The platform provides low fees and is highly user-friendly.	Trade over 15 popular cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin and Ethereum. Engage in trading these digital assets 24/7, with transparent fees. Access up to 1:10 leverage on leading tokens like BTC.
Spread
0-0.26% average	Variable
Coins
AAVE ALGO ANT REP REPV2 BAT BAL XBT BCH ADA LINK COMP ATOM CRV DAI DASH MANA XDG EWT EOS ETH ETC FIL FLOW GNO ICX KAVA KEEP KSM KNC LSK LTC MLN XMR NANO OCEAN OMG OXT PAXG DOT QTUM XRP SC XLM STORJ SNX TBTC USDT XTZ GRT TRX UNI USDC WAVES YFI ZEC BNB	BTC ETH LTC BCH DOT EOS LINK XLM NEO ADA SOL XRP BNB XMR AVAX DOGE
Crypto Lending
No	No
Crypto Mining
No	No
Crypto Staking
Yes	No
Auto Market Maker
No	No

Kraken	ActivTrades
Review	Review
More Comparisons
Kraken vs	ActivTrades vs