Eightcap Review 2021

Eightcap has low forex and CFD fees, especially if you choose the Raw account. There are also no inactivity or withdrawal fees you have to pay.

How we ranked fees

We ranked Eightcap's fee levels as low, average or high based on how they compare to those of all reviewed brokers.

First, let's go over some basic terms related to broker fees. What you need to keep an eye on are trading fees and non-trading fees.

• Trading fees occur when you trade. These can be commissions, spreads, financing rates and conversion fees.
• Non-trading fees include charges not directly related to trading, like withdrawal fees or inactivity fees.

In the sections below, you will find the most relevant fees of Eightcap for each asset class. For example, in the case of forex and stock index trading the most important fees are spreads, commissions and financing rates.

We also compared Eightcap's fees with those of two similar brokers we selected, TMGM and Fusion Markets. This selection is based on objective factors such as products offered, client profile, fee structure, etc. See a more detailed rundown of Eightcap alternatives.

To have a clear overview of Eightcap, let's start with the trading fees.

Eightcap trading fees

Eightcap trading fees are low. There are only two account types, with different cost structures. We tested the Raw account, as it is more popular among traders. A Raw account charges a $3.5 commission per lot, but spreads can be as low as 0 pip.

We know it's hard to compare trading fees for forex brokers. So how did we approach the problem of making their fees clear and comparable? We compare brokers by calculating all the fees of a typical trade for selected products.

We chose popular instruments in each asset class usually provided by forex brokers:

• Forex: EURUSD, GBPUSD, AUDUSD, EURCHF and EURGBP
• Stock index CFDs: SPX and EUSTX50

A typical trade means buying a leveraged product, holding it for one week and then selling. For the volume, we chose a $20,000 position for forex and a $2,000 position for stock index and stock CFD transactions. The leverage we used was:

• 30:1 for forex
• 20:1 for stock index CFDs

These catch-all benchmark fees include spreads, commissions and financing costs for all brokers. Let's see the verdict for Eightcap fees.

Forex fees

Eightcap's forex fees are low, mostly in line with similar competitors.  

CFD fees

Eightcap has generally low CFD trading fees.

Non-trading fees

Eightcap has low non-trading fees. There are no inactivity, deposit or account fees.

For international wire transfers, your bank may charge you a receiving fee that will be passed onto you (it could be $20 or higher).

Opening an account at Eightcap is seamless and fast. The whole process is fully digital and your account should be approved within one day.

Can you open an account?

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As a global broker, Eightcap accepts clients from almost every country. Exceptions include countries like Iran, North Korea and the Republic of the Congo. 

What is the minimum deposit at Eightcap?

The required Eightcap minimum deposit is $100. This is considered low compared to other brokers.

Account types

You can choose between a Raw and a Standard account – the latter has higher spreads but no commission.

Typical spreads for the most common currencies are as follows:

How to open your account

The whole process at Eightcap is as easy as it gets. The online application takes roughly 10 minutes and verification takes a day at most.

The three steps of opening an account at Eightcap:

1. Enter your contact information, like your name and email address. Verify your email address by clicking on a link Eightcap sends to you.
2. Fill out your personal information, like your date of birth and address.
3. Choose an account type (Raw/Standard, Individual/Corporate) and base currency. 
4. Verify your identity and residency by uploading a copy of your passport or ID, and a bank statement or utility bill. 

After your account is verified, you can start trading by depositing the required minimum deposit.

At Eightcap deposits are free, as are most withdrawal methods, with e-wallet options also available. The selection of account base currencies is limited however to major currencies.

Account base currencies

At Eightcap, you can choose from 7 base currencies. These are the following: AUD, USD, EUR, GBP, NZD, CAD, SGD.

Why does this matter? For two reasons. If you fund your trading account in the same currency as your bank account or you trade assets in the same currency as your trading account base currency, you don't have to pay a conversion fee.

A convenient way to save on currency conversion fees is by opening a multi-currency bank account at a digital bank. These usually offer bank accounts in several currencies with great currency exchange rates, as well as free or cheap international bank transfers. Opening an account only takes a few minutes on your phone.

Compare digital banks

Deposit fees and options

Eightcap charges no deposit fees. Other than bank transfers and credit/debit card deposits, you can also use the following electronic wallets: 

• POLi Payment
• Fasapay
• BPAY
• China UnionPay
• Skrill
• Neteller
• Paypal

A bank transfer can take several business days, while payment with a credit/debit card is instant.

You can only deposit money from accounts that are in your name. Eightcap users can also transfer money between their trading accounts as needed via their client dashboard.

Eightcap withdrawal fees and options

Eightcap charges no withdrawal fees.

You can see all the withdrawals options in the table below. You can choose between two types of wire transfer: Austrialian and international. For our account, only Skrill was available out of the e-wallet options.

How long does it take to withdraw money from Eightcap? We tested the credit card/bank transfer withdrawal and it took 1 business day.

You can only withdraw money to accounts in your name.

How do you withdraw money from Eightcap?

• Log in to your client dashboard.
• Click on 'Deposit/Withdraw' in the menu on the left.
• Click on the 'Withdraw' button.
• Select the account to withdraw to (or add a 'New Bank Account').
• Enter the amount, then click 'Request withdrawal'.

Compare to other brokers

Eightcap gives access to MetaTrader 5 web trading platform, but not for MetaTrader 4. The MT5 platform is similar to MT4 - it is customizable, but has more order types. However, price alerts are still not available, and there's no two-factor authentication.

Eightcap only provides a web trader platform if you choose to open an MT5 account. MT4 accounts can only trade in MT4 mobile and MT4 desktop. 

MetaTrader 5 is practically the same as MT4, with a few exceptions. It is also available in an exceptionally large number of languages, like MT4.

On the desktop version of MT5, the following languages are also available: Bengali, Georgian, Hausa, Marathi, Javanese, Punjabi, Swahili, Tamil, Telugu and Urdu.

Look and feel

As with all MetaTrader platforms, MetaTrader 5 on the web is highly customizable. You can easily reposition the windows and tabs to fit your needs.

Despite the few adjustments from MT4, MT5's platform feels outdated and some features are quite hidden. For example, adding a new asset to the watchlist is not very straightforward.

Login and security

Eightcap provides only a one-step login. A two-step authentication would be more secure.

Search functions

The search functions are good. You can find the assets listed by category. You can type in the assets' names manually.

Placing orders

The main difference between an MT4 and MT5 platform is the available order types. Apart from Market and Limit, there are a few extra ones available. Here's the comprehensive list:

• Market
• Limit
• Stop
• Stop limit
• Stop loss
• Take profit

To get a better understanding of these terms, read our overview of order types.

There are also order time limits you can use:

• Good 'til canceled (GTC)
• Good 'til time (GTT)

These are the same order time limits that are available on MT4.

Alerts and notifications

You can't set alerts and notifications on the MetaTrader web trading platform available at Eightcap. This feature is available only on the desktop trading platform.

Portfolio and fee reports

Eightcap has clear portfolio and fee reports available on the MetaTrader 5 web trading platform. You can easily see your profit-loss balance and the commissions you paid. These reports can be found under the 'History' tab, but we didn't find a way to download them on the web version. If you use MT5 desktop platform, you can download these reports.

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Eightcap's mobile platform is provided by MetaTrader 4. It is well-designed and user-friendly, but lacks a more secure, two-step login.

Eightcap provides MetaTrader 4 and MetaTrader 5 as its mobile trading platform. Both are available for iOS and Android, depending on your account type. We tested it on iOS, with Dark mode on (hence the dark background in the screenshots).

First, you have to download MetaTrader 4 from the App Store. It is a general trading platform - after launching it, search for the server Eightcap-Real. It should be easy to find, just start to type Eightcap in the search bar.

You can choose from many languages on the mobile trading platform. Just go to 'Settings' within the app, and under 'Interface' you can switch between languages at any time. 

Look and feel

Eightcap has a great mobile trading platform, we really liked its design and user-friendliness. It is easy to find every feature.

Login and security

Similarly to the web trading platform, Eightcap only provides a one-step login. A two-step login process would be much safer.

You can't use fingerprint or Face ID authentication. Providing this feature would make the login process more convenient.

Search functions

The search functions are good. You can search by typing the name of the product or by navigating the category folders.

Placing orders

You can use the following order types:

• Market
• Limit
• Stop

There are also order time limits you can use:

• Good 'til canceled (GTC)
• Good 'til time (GTT).

Alerts and notifications

You can set up alerts and notifications for your mobile, although you can do it only on the desktop trading platform. It would be much more convenient if you could set these notifications on the mobile trading platform itself.

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Eightcap's MetaTrader 4 desktop platform is easily customizable, but has a poor, outdated design. You can set price alerts, but there is no safer, two-step login option.

Eightcap offers MetaTrader 4 and MetaTrader 5 as a desktop trading platform. In this review, we went with MetaTrader 4.

It is available in an exceptionally large number of languages.

Look and feel

Eightcap's desktop platform is highly customizable. You can easily change the size and the position of your tabs.

On the negative side, the platform feels outdated and some features are hard to find. For example, it took us a while to figure out how to add an asset to the watchlist. On the other hand, Eightcap provides some articles about how you can use the MT4 platform.

Login and security

Eightcap provides only a one-step login. Two-step authentication would be more secure.

Search functions

The platform's search functions are OK. You can find assets grouped into categories. At the same time, we missed the usual search function where you can type in an asset's name manually.

Placing orders

Only the most basic order types are available. You will not find more sophisticated ones such as 'one-cancels-the-other'. The following order types are available:

• Market
• Limit
• Stop
• Trailing Stop

If you are not familiar with order types, read this overview.

There are also order time limits you can use:

• Good 'til canceled (GTC)
• Good 'til time (GTT)

Alerts and notifications

You can set alerts and notifications on the desktop trading platform, in the form of mobile push and email notifications. To set these notifications, you need to add your email address and mobile MetaQuotes ID (which you can find in the MT4 app's settings). You can add them by going to 'Tools' and then 'Options'.

Portfolio and fee reports

Eightcap has clear portfolio and fee reports. You can easily view your profit/loss balance and the commissions you have paid. These reports can be found under the 'Account History' tab: right click on one position, then choose 'Save as Detailed Report'.

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Eightcap's product selection covers only forex and CFDs for MT4 users. MT5 users can also access CFD cryptos but overall, popular asset types like real stocks and ETFs are not available.

Eightcap is primarily a forex broker, but it also has some CFDs in its selection. Recently, Eightcap added 50 US shares. To learn more about CFDs please read our CFD trading tips.

Disclaimer: CFDs are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. 74-89% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs. You should consider whether you understand how CFDs work and whether you can afford to take the high risk of losing your money.

Eightcap's product selection is modest within all the available categories, generally coming in below its featured competitors.

You can change leverage levels, which is great. Eightcap provides a leverage level up to 30.1 for Australian retail clients, and 1:500 for Australian wholesale clients. To qualify as a wholesale client, you need to satisfy one of the following criteria such as

• Have net assets of AUD 2.5 million
• Your income was more than AUD 250,000 for each of the last two years.

 Non-Australian clients can use a leverage up to 1:500.

Changing the leverage is a very useful feature when you want to lower the risk of your trade. Be careful with forex and CFD trading, as the preset leverage levels are high.

Eightcap's research tools are fairly limited. There are no trading ideas, quality news or fundamental data provided. As a plus, there are good tools for technical analysis, like a strategy tester or Capitalise.ai's automating tools.

We tested the research tools available on the MetaTrader platform.

Trading ideas

There are no trading ideas in the MetaTrader platform available at Eightcap.

Fundamental data

There are no fundamental data in the MetaTrader platform available at Eightcap.

Charting

Eightcap has OK charting tools. You can use 31 technical indicators and other tools, such as trendlines, Fibonacci retracements and channels.

News feed

There is no news feed within MetaTrader 4. However, Eightcap has its own 'Learn' page, where you can read quality market updates. These include daily technical and fundamental analyses (also on Twitter).  Sadly though a good chunk of this content are updated less frequently.

Other research tools you may enjoy

You can use a great tool for testing your strategy with relation to automated trading. It is called Strategy Tester and you can find it by clicking on 'View' and selecting 'Strategy Tester'.

We also liked the tools provided by Capitalise.ai. You can build your automated codes without knowing any programming knowledge. For example, you can just create strategy by pulling words together, like 'buy' - 'EURUSD' - 'if price rises more than...'. It's also great that you can backtest this trading startegy. You can access Capitalise.ai by clicking on 'Tools' within the client portal. Unfortunately, this tool is available only for MetaTrader 4 accounts, but not for MT5. 

Compare research pros and cons

Eightcap's customer service is great via email and live chat in multiple languages. However, we couldn't connect to their phone support.

You can contact Eightcap via:

• live chat
• phone
• email

Every option is available in these languages: 

Eightcap's live chat is great. It was fast and we received fully relevant answers. 

We also had a great experience with email support. We received replies to our questions within a day.

Also, we couldn't reach Eightcap's phone support. We tried numerous times, but after choosing English, the line disconnected after a few minutes. This is a shame, as we had a great experience otherwise talking with Eightcap operators: after we opened our second account, a customer support rep called us on the phone immediately, who was very helpful and friendly, and activated our account within minutes. 

We liked the 24/7 availability.

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Eightcap doesn't have a wide range of educational tools, such as videos. On the other hand, there is a demo account as well as some quality articles to read, and it provides webinars on third-party websites.

At Eightcap, the following tools are available to support your learning:

• Demo account
• Quality educational articles
• External webinars

Having a demo account is a great way to get to know a broker's services. You can open a demo account within the desktop platform, for example.

The education section on Eightcap's site covers multiple areas, although new articles are published only on a weekly basis rather than daily.

Additional education tools

Eightcap sends newsletters about webinars with its partners, like BKForex. These webinars are useful tools, helping out both amatour investors with basic knowledge, and more experienced ones with advanced trading ideas. In addition, Eightcap sends information about Trading Battle, a live-streamed trading battle between professionals.

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Eightcap is regulated by two financial authorities, including the top-tier ASIC, which however does not provide any investor protection, only negative balance protection. There is also no public information on the broker's financials available.

Eightcap is based in Australia and was founded in 2009.

Is Eightcap regulated?

Yes, it is regulated by the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) and the Vanuatu Financial Services Commission (VFSC).

To be certain if a brokerage is safe, we highly advise that you check two facts:

• how you are protected if something goes wrong
• what the background of the broker is

How you are protected

Depending on your country of residency, your account will be regulated by one of the two financial authorities below.

Eightcap provides negative balance protection.

Background

Eightcap was established in 2009. The longer track record a broker has, the more proof we have that it has successfully survived previous financial crises.

Find your safe broker

We recommend Eightcap for users looking for a MetaTrader 4-5 broker with low forex fees and fast and easy account opening. It is also great that deposits and withdrawals are free of charge on the broker's end, with a user-friendly process.

On the other hand, available products are limited to CFDs, forex and cryptos (for MT5 clients). The research and educational tools are also limited.

Feel free to try Eightcap if you'd like to have a verified broker account with low forex fees within a day.

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Below you can find links to all aspects of Eightcap in this comprehensive collection.

Lower fees, lower costs?

We detailed this in our Eightcap fees article.

What about the minimum deposit?

Our ultimate guide to the Eightcap minimum deposit is updated regularly.

How to start your Eightcap account?

Look no further than our evaluation of the Eightcap account opening.

How's their trading app?

Here's our expert view after checking the Eightcap trading app.

Is the quality of customer service satisfactory?

All you need to know about the Eightcap customer service.

Legit or scam?

Is Eightcap legit features all the key aspects you need to look at to see if a broker is safe and legit.

Free or premium? Or both?

A glance at actual costs and whether Eightcap is really free.

Is this broker good for beginners?

We checked it in Is Eightcap good for beginners.

Should you buy your silver bullets on Eightcap?

Research for silver bugs in the Silver buy on Eightcap guide

I want to trade options, are they available at Eightcap?

We explored the topic in Can you trade options on Eightcap?