How it compares
IronFX review
Where IronFX wins and loses against the rest of the field, spec by spec.
Last checked
IronFX loses more of these comparisons than it wins, and it is worth seeing which, because a broker that is behind on cost and ahead on protection may still be the right pick for you. Regulated by BVI FSC (SIBA/L/24/1175); ASIC (AFSL 417482); FSCA South Africa (FSP 45276), offering MetaTrader 4, MT4 WebTrader, IronFX mobile trading.
Our rating
One rating, identical across our sites - only the way it is shown changes. It averages six assessments: regulation, trading costs, platforms, markets, support and education.
What it costs to trade
8.5/10- Spread from
- 0.0 pips
- EUR/USD spread
- Approx. 1.2 pips, Standard Floating
- GBP/USD spread
- Approx. 1.2 pips, Standard Floating
- Commission
- Approx. $9 per side / $18 round turn, Raw ECN
- All-in cost, EUR/USD
- Approx. 1.8 pips, Raw ECN
- Spread type
- Fixed and variable, account-dependent
- Overnight swap
- Both: overnight swaps may be charged or credited; swap-free accounts available
- Inactivity fee
- $50 annually after 1 year inactivity
- Deposit fee
- None internally
- Withdrawal fee
- Generally none internally; bank/payment charges may apply
- Currency conversion
- Conversion at applicable exchange rate
Cost comparisons only hold when the account types are the same, so this compares like with like.
A quoted spread from 0.0 pips is a raw-spread figure, which almost always means a separate commission per lot. Compare the two together - a "zero spread" account with a high commission can cost more than a wider spread with none.
Quoted spreads are best-case figures on the most liquid pair, in normal conditions. What you actually pay widens around news and at the session open.
IronFX lists a minimum deposit of $100. Treat it as the cost of opening an account, not the cost of trading one - position sizing on a small balance is what tends to cause damage.
Markets and execution
8.2/10- Markets
- Forex, Metals, Indices, Commodities, Futures, Shares, Cryptocurrencies
- Currency pairs
- 80+
- Total instruments
- 500+
- Crypto CFDs
- Yes
- Maximum leverage
- 1:2000
- Execution model
- Hybrid instant execution / STP-ECN
- Execution speed
- Under 100ms
- Order types
- Market, limit, stop, stop-loss, take-profit, trailing stop
- Servers
- Global financial data-centre infrastructure
Leverage up to 1:2000 is available on this entity. High leverage does not increase your expected return - it increases position size for the same deposit, and shortens the move needed to close you out.
IronFX covers forex, metals, indices, commodities, futures, shares, cryptocurrencies. A wider range matters less than depth in the instruments you actually trade.
Funding options: credit/debit cards, bank wire, e-wallets and regional payment methods. Check withdrawal routes as well as deposit ones - they are often not the same, and the difference only becomes apparent when you try to take money out.
Platforms and tools
8.5/10- Platforms
- MetaTrader 4, MT4 WebTrader, IronFX mobile trading
- Own platform
- No
- Mobile app
- Third-party/mobile
- Browser trading
- Yes
- Automated trading
- Yes, MT4 Expert Advisors
- Copy trading
- Yes, TradeCopier
- Indicators
- 30+ built-in MT4 indicators plus custom indicators
- Third-party tools
- MetaTrader 4, VPS
- API access
- Yes, institutional/partner connectivity
MetaTrader 4 remains the most widely supported platform for expert advisors. If you rely on an existing EA, this is usually the deciding factor.
Regulation and safety
8.8/10- Regulated by
- BVI FSC (SIBA/L/24/1175); ASIC (AFSL 417482); FSCA South Africa (FSP 45276)
- Regulator tier
- Tier 1
- Register entry
- BVI FSC Investment Business Register, SIBA/L/24/1175
- Client money segregated
- Yes
- Held at
- Regulated banking institutions
- Negative balance protection
- Yes
- Compensation scheme
- No statutory investor compensation scheme for BVI clients
- Audited by
- Independent external auditors
- Not available to
- United States, Cuba, Sudan, Syria, North Korea; international website also not intended for Australian or Indian residents
This is the comparison where brokers separate most sharply, and it is rarely close.
IronFX holds a tier-one authorisation from ASIC. That matters more than any headline spread: it determines your leverage cap, whether losses can exceed your deposit, and what happens to your money if the firm fails.
It also operates an offshore entity (FSC). Which one you are onboarded to depends on where you live, and the two carry very different protections - worth confirming before you deposit.
ASIC caps retail leverage at 1:30, requires negative balance protection, and obliges the broker to hold client money in a separate trust account.
The FSCA licenses derivative providers in South Africa without a fixed retail leverage cap, so headline leverage is often higher than an FCA or ASIC entity may offer.
An FSC licence (Mauritius or Belize, depending on the entity) is an offshore authorisation with lighter reporting duties than a tier-one regulator.
Check the licence yourself: ASIC Connect, the FSCA list of regulated entities.
Accounts
- Minimum deposit
- $100
- Account types
- Standard Floating, Standard Fixed, Raw ECN, ECN VIP, Standard, Premium, VIP, Live Zero Fixed Spread, Absolute Zero, Islamic/Swap-Free, Demo
- Account currencies
- USD, EUR, GBP, JPY, AUD, CHF, CZK, PLN, ZAR, BTC, ETH
- Islamic account
- Yes
- Demo account
- Yes
- Professional account
- Yes, ECN VIP/high-volume configuration
- Minimum trade size
- 0.01 lots
- Time to open
- Typically a few minutes
Deposits and withdrawals
- Deposit methods
- Credit/debit cards, bank wire, e-wallets and regional payment methods
- Withdrawal methods
- Original funding method for deposited capital; bank wire for profits
- Deposit time
- Up to 24 hours for most methods; bank wire up to 3 working days
- Withdrawal time
- Typically processed within 24 hours; bank settlement may take several business days
- Minimum withdrawal
- $10
- Local payment methods
- Country-specific online banking and regional payment providers
Support and education
6.5/10- Support hours
- 24/5
- Contact channels
- Live chat, email, phone, support centre
- Languages
- Multilingual
- Telephone
- +44 203 282 7777
- support@ironfx.com
- Live chat response
- Typically under 2 minutes
- Education
- Extensive: IronFX Academy, webinars, seminars, podcasts, ebooks, videos, educational articles and platform tutorials
- Research
- Market analysis, technical/fundamental analysis, market news, trading insights and economic commentary
The company behind the brand
- Legal entity
- Notesco (BVI) Limited
- Company number
- 1921931
- Headquarters
- Road Town, Tortola, British Virgin Islands
- Founded
- 2010
- Publicly listed
- No
- Parent company
- Notesco Group
- Employees
- 200+
- Also trades as
- IronFX
Questions people ask about IronFX
How many instruments can I trade at IronFX?
IronFX lists 500+, across forex, metals, indices, commodities, futures, shares, cryptocurrencies. A long instrument list is worth little if the ones you actually trade are not on it, so the count matters less than the coverage.
Is IronFX a market maker or does it pass orders through?
IronFX runs a hybrid instant execution / STP-ECN model rather than making the market itself, so your order goes out to a liquidity provider. It usually shows up as a raw spread with a commission on top instead of a wider all-in price.