Pocket Option vs IC Markets

Pocket Option or IC Markets – which is better for UK traders 2025? Compare Pocket Option and IC Markets in this detailed breakdown of their platforms, features and fees.

Pocket Option vs IC Markets Comparison Table 2025
Pocket Option IC Markets
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4.2
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4.8
Pocket Option is ranked #1 among binary options brokers. IC Markets is ranked #5 among CFD brokers.
Review
Review
Founded in 2017, Pocket Option is a binary options broker providing high/low contracts for forex, stocks, indices, commodities, and cryptocurrencies. Attracting more than 100,000 active users worldwide, the platform remains a favourite among emerging traders. IC Markets is an internationally acclaimed forex and CFD broker, admired for its competitive pricing, diverse trading instruments, and superior technology. Established in 2007 and based in Australia, the firm is under the regulation of ASIC, CySEC, and FSA. It has successfully drawn over 180,000 clients from more than 200 nations.
Pros
  • Pocket Option now offers an 'AI Trading' feature that evaluates signals, technical indicators, and trader insights to identify the best trade direction and expiration time. This provides a more automated trading experience.
  • Over the years, Pocket Option has won several annual awards from DayTrading.com, including the notable 'Best Binary Broker 2025' after enhancing its trading tools.
  • The web platform excels in its simple design and ease of use, attracting novice traders interested in speculating on leading markets with minimal effort.
  • The MetaTrader platforms provide robust analysis and technical summaries tailored for short-term traders.
  • The variety of payment options surpasses most competitors, offering traders in numerous countries swift, secure, and convenient deposit processes.
  • Traders with a deposit of over $1,000 may receive a 2% or higher payout increase, access to more assets, and enjoy exclusive benefits.
  • The sign-up process is swift and seamless, completing in under two minutes.
  • IC Markets provides some of the industry's narrowest spreads, offering 0.0-pip spreads on major currency pairs. This makes it an extremely cost-effective choice for traders.
  • As a well-regulated and reputable broker, IC Markets focuses on client safety and transparency to provide a dependable global trading experience.
  • In 2025, IC Markets earned DayTrading.com's accolade for 'Best MT4/MT5 Broker' due to its top-tier MetaTrader integration. This achievement highlights the broker's continuous refinement over the years to enhance the platform experience.
  • IC Markets provides reliable 24/5 support, especially for account and funding queries, drawing from direct experience.
  • Access over 2,250 CFDs across diverse markets like forex, commodities, indices, shares, bonds, and cryptocurrencies. This variety enables traders to employ diversified strategies.
Cons
  • The MISA provides limited oversight and inadequate investor protection for retail traders.
  • The 4-hour cap on binary contract durations limits long-term trading strategies. Options such as Videforex provide contracts with up to one-month terms, offering greater flexibility for traders.
  • Pocket Option presents a streamlined version of MT4 and MT5, lacking the comprehensive charting tools that experienced traders seek.
  • Although binary brokers such as IQCent provide returns reaching 98% based on evaluations, others typically offer competitive payouts up to 92%.
  • To gain access to over 250 assets, a deposit of $1000 is required. Without this deposit, traders will only have access to a selection of 130 assets.
  • IC Markets provides metals and cryptocurrencies for trading through CFDs, though the selection is narrower compared to brokers such as eToro. This limits opportunities for traders focused on these asset classes.
  • The tutorials, webinars, and educational resources require enhancement, lagging behind competitors such as CMC Markets, which diminishes their appeal to novice traders.
  • Certain withdrawal methods incur fees, including a $20 charge for wire transfers. These costs can reduce profits, particularly with frequent withdrawals.
  • Although there are four top-tier third-party platforms available, the absence of in-house software or a trading app tailored for novice traders is notable.
  • Interest is not paid on idle cash, a feature gaining popularity with alternatives such as Interactive Brokers.
Awards
  • Best Binary Broker 2025 - DayTrading.com
  • Best Binary Broker Runner Up 2023 - DayTrading.com
  • Best Binary Broker 2022 - DayTrading.com
  • Best MT4/MT5 Broker 2025 - DayTrading.com
  • Best MT4/MT5 Broker 2023 - DayTrading.com
  • Best Forex Broker 2022 - DayTrading.com
  • Best Overall Broker 2020 - DayTrading.com
  • Best Trading App 2020 - DayTrading.com
FCA Regulated
No

List of FCA Regulated Brokers

No

List of FCA Regulated Brokers

Instruments
Binary Options, Currencies, Commodities, Stocks, Indices, Cryptos CFDs, Forex, Stocks, Indices, Commodities, Bonds, Futures, Crypto
Bonus
50% Deposit Bonus
Demo Account
Yes Yes
Minimum Deposit
$50 $200
Payment Methods
Minimum Trade
$1 0.01 Lots
Regulator
MISA ASIC, CySEC, FSA, CMA
Mobile Apps
iOS & Android iOS & Android
Trading App

Pocket Option delivers an excellent mobile trading experience directly through mobile and tablet browsers, without needing a native app. You can easily customize charts using the settings at the top while placing trades in one click is a breeze using the ‘higher’ and ‘lower’ buttons at the bottom of the screen. The interface also adapts seamlessly to horizontal viewing, mirroring the desktop layout for a consistent user experience.

IC Markets deliver mobile apps for their cTrader, MT4, MT5 and TradingView  platforms. They have been developed on Android and iOS separately, taking full advantage of the functionality available on each. With raw pricing, and spreads from 0.0, the apps deliver an excellent trading tool for all levels of trader. Yet what really stands out is how they’ve managed to maintain the lightning-fast execution speed IC Markets is known for, right within the apps. It’s a seamless trading experience that feels both professional and highly responsive.
iOS App Rating
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4
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3.1
Android App Rating
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4.2
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4.2
Margin Trading
Yes Yes
MetaTrader 4
Yes Yes
MetaTrader 5
Yes Yes
cTrader
No Yes
AlgoTrader
No No
OmniTrader
No No
TradingView
No Yes
Autochartist
No No
eSignal
No No
Trading Central
No Yes
STP Account
No No
ECN Account
No Yes
DMA Account
No Yes
MAM Account
No Yes
PAMM Account
No Yes
LAMM Account
No No
Demat Account
No No
AI / Machine Learning
Yes No
Robo Advisor
No No
Negative Balance Protection
No Yes
Market Maker
No No
P2P Trading
No No
Spot Trading
Yes Yes
Auto Trading
Yes Expert Advisors (EAs) on MetaTrader, cBots on cTrader, Myfxbook AutoTrade
Copy Trading
Yes Yes
Copy Trading Platform
Pocket Option offers an intuitive social trading platform. Here, you can explore the 'Top Ranked Trades' leaderboard and more to discover traders to follow. This service is accessible around the clock and includes vibrant community chats. Advice: assess traders by analysing trade volume and profits over months, instead of a few days. Introduced in February 2023, the IC Social app provides an easy platform for learning, sharing, and replicating the trades of other traders with minimal effort. The app also includes risk management features and supports specialised trading groups. Alternatively, IC Markets offers access to Signal Start and popular third-party copy trading platforms like ZuluTrade and cTrader Copy.
Social Trading
Yes Yes
Trade Signals
Yes Signal Start
VPS Hosting
No Yes
Tournaments
Yes No
Demo Competitions
No No
Ethical Investing
No No
Custodial Account
No No
Guaranteed Stop Loss
No No
Inactivity Fee
$0 $0
Islamic Account
No Yes
Account Currencies
  • USD
  • USD
  • EUR
  • GBP
  • CAD
  • AUD
  • NZD
  • JPY
  • CHF
  • HKD
  • SGD
Commodities
  • Silver
  • Gold
  • Natural Gas
  • Oil
  • Palladium
  • Platinum
  • Gold
  • Oil
  • Silver
  • Orange Juice
  • Cocoa
  • Coffee
  • Corn
  • Soybeans
  • Sugar
  • Wheat
  • Natural Gas
CFD
Trade over 2,250 CFDs anytime from Monday to Friday across key markets, including forex, commodities, indices, stocks, and bonds. IC Markets leverages deep liquidity and cutting-edge bridge technology to offer ideal trading conditions for scalpers, hedgers, and algorithmic traders.
Leverage
1:30 (ASIC & CySEC), 1:500 (FSA), 1:1000 (Global)
FTSE Spread
1.0
GBPUSD Spread<
0.23
Oil Spread
0.03
Stocks Spread
0.02
Forex
You can trade binary and OTC options on over 40 currency pairs, or more than 55 pairs if you deposit £1,000 or more. Payouts typically reach a fair 81%, and with a minimum trade of just £1, this broker is ideal for novice traders. Additionally, the MT4 and MT5 platforms are available for those with more trading experience. IC Markets remains dedicated to offering tight 0.0-pip spreads on major currency pairs like EUR/USD, ensuring outstanding execution with an average speed of 35 milliseconds. Ideal for traders seeking high performance, those dealing in large volumes can also enjoy rebates of up to $2.50 per forex lot.
Assets
55+ 75
GBPUSD Spread
N/A 0.23
EURUSD Spread
N/A 0.02
EURGBP Spread
N/A 0.27
Cryptocurrency
Pocket Option provides a limited selection of cryptocurrencies, featuring over 10 digital coins like Bitcoin and more than 65 tokens for those depositing £1000. The platform's built-in analytics tool assists traders in identifying potential trades, and its daily signals service simplifies the process of seizing short-term crypto opportunities. IC Markets provides a range of over 20 cryptocurrencies for trading through CFDs, featuring less common tokens like Avalanche, Kusama, and Uniswap. Traders can enjoy commission-free transactions and experienced individuals can utilise high leverage up to 1:200 via the MetaTrader platforms.
Spread
N/A BTC 42.036
Coins
  • BTC
  • ETH
  • BCH
  • LINK
  • AAVE
  • ALGO
  • TLM
  • ALPP
  • ANT
  • AVAX
  • AXS
  • BNB
  • ADA
  • CHZ
  • COMP
  • ATOM
  • DASH
  • MANA
  • DGB
  • DOGE
  • ENJ
  • EOS
  • FIL
  • GLMR
  • ILV
  • ICP
  • KAVA
  • LTC
  • MKR
  • MASK
  • MIOTA
  • XMR
  • ALICE
  • NEAR
  • NEO
  • NULS
  • OMG
  • DOT
  • MATIC
  • QTUM
  • REEF
  • XRP
  • SANTOS
  • SC
  • SOL
  • STX
  • XLM
  • STORJ
  • DATA
  • SUN
  • XTZ
  • SAND
  • THETA
  • TRX
  • UNI
  • VET
  • WAVES
  • YFI
  • YGG
  • ZEC
  • BTC
  • BCH
  • DOT
  • DSH
  • EMC
  • EOS
  • ETH
  • LNK
  • LTC
  • NMC
  • PPC
  • XLM
  • XRP
  • ADA
  • BNB
  • DOG
  • UNI
  • XTZ
Crypto Lending
No No
Crypto Mining
No No
Crypto Staking
No No
Auto Market Maker
No No
Binary Options
Pocket Option provides ultra-short-term contracts, starting from just 5 seconds, on an intuitive platform ideal for novice traders. Payout rates exceed 90%, comparable with competitors, and the 'Double Up' and 'Rollover' functions enable additional earning possibilities. On the downside, its range of over 130 assets is less extensive than that of brokers such as Quotex, which offer more than 400 options.
Payout
92%
Expiration Times
5 seconds - 4 hours
Boundary Options
No No
Ladder Options
No No
Pocket Option IC Markets
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