Oanda vs competitors, alternatives

Oanda has been an active participant of the brokerage industry since the mid-1990s. They have grown globally and operate offices and entities throughout Europe, Asia, and North America.

Oanda is a well-known and established broker. In the list of all the 100 brokers reviewed by BrokerChooser based on overall scores, Oanda ranks in the top one-fifth echelon. Even though picking an alternative for Oanda is no easy task, based on your specific needs you may find providers that are a better choice for you in some very specific areas.

Comparing Oanda to all of the brokerages we reviewed globally is a long shot. In all likelihood, brokers that rank higher than Oanda may not be suitable for your needs or even available in your country.

So how could you possibly go about picking an alternative? We see 2 main avenues:

• Based on objective factors such as products offered, client profile, fee structure, and more. 

• The other, more individual and possibly more subjective selection is based on a mix of factors rooted in your specific needs. 

Table of contents

Oanda compared to other major players

Oanda vs FXCM | Oanda vs Hugo's Way | Oanda vs Forex.com | Oanda vs IG

Oanda compared to brokers based on objective factors

Oanda vs Pepperstone | Oanda vs Tickmill

Let's see in a bit more detail how Oanda’s alternatives compare to Oanda and each other:

The products they offer, meaning you can trade mostly the same things (i.e. stocks, CFDs, options, etc.)Why are these brokers considered good alternatives to Oanda? When we say a given online broker is a good alternative to Oanda, we mean these brokers are comparable in the following areas:

• The type of clients they target (i.e. beginners, experienced investors, or day traders). 

Oanda alternatives recommendations

Brokers cater to various types of clients. Still, each of them is suitable for a specific target audience. Here's how they compare overall:

• Oanda is recommended for forex traders who value a user-friendly platform and great research tools
• Pepperstone is recommended for forex traders looking for great account opening and customer service
• FXCM is recommended for forex traders looking for easy account opening, funding, and withdrawal
• Forex.com is recommended for forex traders looking for low fees and great research tools
• Tickmill is recommended for forex traders looking for low fees who are familiar with the MetaTrader 4 platform

Important factors in identifying Oanda alternatives

So far, BrokerChooser has reviewed around 100 online brokers in detail, which gives this comparison a solid starting point.

In addition, all of these brokers are reviewed using the same broker review methodology, which makes everything easily comparable. For each broker, we

• open a live account
• check over 100 criteria, with weighting based on readers' preferences
• refresh the data regularly

Whether Oanda or one of its alternatives is the best choice for you depends on the following five broker characteristics that are most crucial to traders:

Fees. There are different types of fees that your online brokerage may charge, and the number and the amount of these fees will vary significantly from broker to broker. It's safe to say that fees will greatly impact your returns and your overall experience. Oanda is one of the cheaper brokers, so if this is an important consideration for you, make sure you pick a similarly low-cost Oanda alternative.

Deposit/withdrawal. The number of ways that you can deposit or withdraw money to or from your account matters a lot. For example, while you can deposit with a credit card at Oanda, this might not be the case at its alternatives.

Web trading platform. While online brokers usually offer various platforms such as mobile apps, tablet apps, and desktop software, most people use them through their web platform in a browser. User-friendly trading platforms that offer many different resources can significantly increase your trading comfort.

Markets and products. A lot of people have specific products they would like to invest in. Knowing whether stocks, forex, mutual funds, or other products are available at the given Oanda alternative is a must.

Now let's dive into the details of how Oanda and its alternatives perform in the most important areas!
 

Oanda vs Pepperstone

Pepperstone is an Australian forex broker that also offers CFDs. It was established in 2010 and opened a London office in 2015 to better serve its European clients. After Brexit, new clients registering from the EU are served by Pepperstone's German and Cyprus entities.

Pepperstone is considered safe because it's regulated by three top-tier financial authorities: the UK's Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), Germany's BaFin, and the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC).

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.

Recommended for forex traders looking for great account opening and customer service

Benchmark fees include spreads, commissions, and the financing rate for opening a position, holding it for a week and closing. Position sizes: $2k for stocks and $20k for FX. 

Oanda vs Tickmill

Tickmill is a global forex and CFD broker established in 2014. The company is regulated by several financial authorities globally, including the top-tier Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) in the UK. As a result, Tickmill is considered a safe broker.

Disclaimer: CFDs are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. 71% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider. You should consider whether you understand how CFDs work and whether you can afford to take the high risk of losing your money.

Tickmill is recommended for forex traders looking for low fees who are familiar with the MetaTrader 4 platform

Verdict

Oanda is a great forex broker. It has user-friendly trading platforms that you will quickly learn to use confidently. It also provides powerful research tools, especially trading APIs. The account opening process is easy and quick.

Among some negatives aspects, Oanda's product selection is limited to forex and CFD products. It doesn't have a banking background and is not listed on any stock exchange, two typical factors that enhance transparency and regulatory scrutiny. Customer support, while helpful, is only available 24/5.

With all that in mind, feel free to try Oanda: it is regulated by top-tier authorities, there is no minimum deposit and the inactivity fee only kicks in after one year.

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