Fact checked by Arsam Javed

AvaTrade

AvaTrade was founded in 2006 and is regulated on 5 continents. AvaTrade currently has 250,000 registered traders worldwide who place more than 2 million trades each month. AvaTrade offers up to 24 languages. Ava Trade EU Ltd. is regulated by the CBI (Central Bank of Ireland).

70% of retail investor accounts lose money trading CFDs with this provider.

Visit AvaTrade

AvaTrade was founded in 2006 and has grown into a global broker. The unified account and fee structure as well as the wide range of learning materials make AvaTrade ideal for beginners. Cryptotraders are also in good hands with AvaTrade due to 24/7 trading. However, since AvaTrade does not offer an ECN or STP account and the selection is somewhat limited when it comes to 700 trading instruments, advanced traders should rather prefer other brokers.

All in all, our AvaTrade experience was rather positive.

AvaTrade rating

4.3

Overall rating
70% of retail CFD accounts lose money.

Pros and Cons of AvaTrade

What we like about AvaTrade

AvaTrade has a unique trading feature for CFD brokers – 24/7 crypto trading. All cryptocurrencies (currently 8), can thus be traded at any time, minimizing possible gaps in the volatile crypto market and reliably triggering stoplosses. Avatrade offers many helpful webinars and lessons for curious traders. With 29% successful traders, Ava clients are above the market average. Spreads are below average for stock CFD’s. As a new feature, AvaTrade, has introduced AvaProtect. With AvaProtect, traders can hedge their positions for a relatively low commission.

Pros of AvaTrade
  • 8 cryptocurrencies

  • 24/7 Crypto Trading

  • Several regulations

  • AvaProtect

What we dislike about AvaTrade

AvaTrade’s biggest problem is the slightly above-average spread and swap fees for commodities, forex and indices. Also, no ECN or STP account is currently offered, which is the preferred account structure for many successful forex traders. So AvaTrade is a 100% market maker here.

Cons of AvaTrade
  • Slightly above-average fees

  • No ECN / STP account available

  • Limited choice of CFD futures

  • No US traders allowed

Tradable Instruments at AvaTrade

AvaTrade offers a wide range of trading instruments. In particular, the 24/7 crypto trading is worth highlighting.
AvaTrade currently offers over 700 trading instruments, including:

  • +55 forex/currency pairs
  • +23 indices
  • +5 metals
  • +6 energies
  • +7 agricultural products
  • +14 Cryptocurrencies
  • +600 Shares
  • +19 ETF
  • +2 Bonds
  • +50 FX options

Trading fees at AvaTrade

AvaTrade offers competitive trading fees and spreads across various financial instruments. Here’s an overview of the key aspects of AvaTrade’s fee structure:

Trading Fees

Spreads

AvaTrade provides commission-free trading, with costs built into the spreads:

  • Forex: Low spreads starting from 0.9 pips for major pairs like EUR/USD
  • CFDs: Average spreads for indices (e.g., 0.5 points for S&P 500 during peak hours)
  • Commodities and Cryptocurrencies: Varying spreads depending on the instrument

Overnight Fees

Also known as swap rates, these apply to positions held overnight:

  • Charged at 22:00 GMT
  • Three-day ‘swap’ charge for positions held over weekends (applied on Wednesdays)

Currency Conversion Fees

May apply when trading instruments in a currency different from your account’s base currency

Non-Trading Fees

Inactivity Fee

  • $50/€50/£50 per quarter after 3 months of inactivity
  • Additional $100/€100/£100 annual administration fee after 12 consecutive months of non-use

Deposit and Withdrawal Fees

  • No deposit fees charged by AvaTrade
  • Basic withdrawal fee is $0, though some transactions may incur costs

Account Types and Minimums

  • Minimum deposit: $100 for credit cards and e-payments, $500 for wire transfers
  • Professional accounts available with tighter spreads for eligible traders

AvaTrade offers a transparent fee structure with competitive spreads and no commissions. However, traders should be aware of the relatively high inactivity fees and consider their trading frequency when choosing this broker.

Detailed Review AvaTrade

AvaTrade offers a simple account structure – a demo account and a real money account. Avatrade’s fees are slightly above average. Currently on offer are 250 – 700 trading instruments, including 14 cryptocurrencies. For MetaTrader 4 traders, only around 250 trading instruments would be available. AvaTrade even offers 24/7 cryptocurrency trading, which is unique for CFD brokers. The software offered consists of the all-rounder Metatrader 4 & 5 as well as AvaOptions and AvaTradeGO a mobile / web trader. Learning materials and webinars are also available free of charge. AvaTrade does not offer an ECN or STP account.

Regulation & Safety at AvaTrade

AvaTrade is a reputable broker, as can be seen from the large number of regulations. The central regulation for Germany would be the CBI (Central Bank of Ireland) for AVA Trade EU Ltd. – Further regulations include:

  • AVA Trade EU Ltd. is regulated by the Central Bank of Ireland (No.C53877).
  • AVA Trade Ltd is regulated by the B.V.I Financial Services Commission (No. SIBA/L/13/1049).
  • Ava Capital Markets Australia Pty Ltd is regulated by ASIC (No.406684).
  • Ava Capital Markets Pty is regulated by the South African Financial Sector Conduct Authority (FSCA No.45984).
  • Ava Trade Japan K.K. is licensed and regulated in Japan by the Financial Services Agency (License No.: 1662) and the Financial Futures Association of Japan (License No.: 1574).
  • AVA Trade Middle East Ltd is regulated by the Abu Dhabi Global Market Financial Services Regulatory Authority (No.190018).

Depending on the regulation, different trading conditions may apply. We primarily only discuss the CBI regulation here.

Your account at AvaTrade

To be fair, AvaTrade does not offer different accounts, unlike many brokers that stagger by deposit. So AvaTrade has only one account if you leave out the Islamic account, which AvaTrade the almost all brokers also offers. However, AvaTrade has different regulation and depending on the regulation there can be small differences.

How can I open an account with AvaTrade

By regulation, every new client must go through some basic compliance checks to ensure that you understand the risks of trading and are admitted to trading. When you open an account, you will probably be asked for the following items, so it is good to have them handy: A scanned colour copy of your passport or national ID A utility bill or bank statement from the last six months with your address You will also need to answer a few basic compliance questions to confirm how much trading experience you have. It is therefore best to take at least 10 minutes to complete the account opening process. Although you can explore the demo account immediately, it is important to note that you cannot make any real trading transactions until you have passed compliance, which can take up to several days depending on your situation.

How To Close Your AvaTrade account?

The best way to close your account is to send an e-mail to AvaTrade with the e-mail that you signed up with. Make sure that you have withdrawn all of your funds before the closure.

Account Types available at AvaTrade

Account TypeAvailable
Standard accountYes
Demo accountYes
Islamic accountYes
VIP accountYes

Trading platforms available at AvaTrade

AvaTrade offers a wide range of trading platforms. On offer are: MetaTrader 4, MetaTrader 5, AvaOptions, AvaTradeGO as well as its own webtrader platform.

Depending on the platform, different trading instruments are tradable. For example, FX options are only tradable via AvaOptions. Most stocks, on the other hand, are tradable on the web or via MetaTrader 5 (MT5).

What is AvaOptions?

AvaOptions looks a bit confusing and is not suitable for the absolute trading novice. Here you can trade FX options. You can use a historical chart and confidence intervals to estimate the direction in which the market might move. At the same time you can see the risks and opportunities on the profit/loss diagram.

In the picture on the right, you can also see the implied volatility. From this, among other things, the option prices are calculated. But it can also be used to draw conclusions for normal Forex trading. A high implied volatility would for example warn the trader of larger movements.

As with real options, up to 13 option strategies can be implemented with AvaOptions, from straddle, strangle to butterfly or condor. If you do not have an options broker, you can also trade these options directly via AvaTrade. However, we would like to point out that options are very complex and are probably too difficult for trading beginners.

AvaTradeGO and AvaProtect

The proprietary trading platform AvaTradeGO has some additional features that MT4 or MT5 do not have. For example, you can use the AvaProtect function, which protects the trader from possible losses. As compensation, a commission is due here.

What is AvaProtect?

With AvaProtect you protect your positions in advance, before you enter the trade. So if you are afraid that the trade will go into the red, you can pay a fee (depending on the position size) to minimize this risk. Once the protection ends and you have an open position that incurs losses, AvaTrader simply refunds the amount to your account. Thus, the only cost is the AvaProtect fees. Comparable to AvaProtect is dealCancellation from easymarkets.

How does AvaProtect work?

AvaProtect can be offered by AvaTrade, as they act as a market maker and process all orders in-house. Thus, orders do not have to be forwarded directly to the exchange first.

So especially trading beginners should have positive experiences with the offered platforms with AvaTrade.

Trading PlatformAvailable
IOS appYes
Android appYes
Desktop windowsNo
Desktop MACNo
Web platformYes
Propriety platformYes
MetaTrade 4 (MT4)Yes
MetaTrade 5 (MT5)Yes

Deposits and withdrawals at AvaTrade

AvaTrade offers several deposit and withdrawal options. The minimum deposit is €100 for credit cards and €500 via bank transfer. People in the EU can deposit or withdraw money via the following payment methods:

  • Bank transfer
  • Credit cards
  • Skrill
  • Neteller
  • Webmoney

Unfortunately, PayPal is not currently offered. As a rule, withdrawals are processed within two business days.

AvaTrade charges an administration fee or inactivity fee after 3 consecutive months of non-use (“inactivity period”). Here, each subsequent Inactivity Period will have an Inactivity Fee* deducted from the customer’s trading account balance. The inactivity fee is 50€. After 12 months this increases to 100€.

How is the customer support at AvaTrade

AvaTrade is a truly global broker and offers over 35 service hotlines for different countries. There is also a dedicated number for Germany (+(49)8006644879), Switzerland (+(41)225510054) and Austria (+(43)720022655). AvaTrade’s service is always available from Sunday 23:00 to Friday 23:00 (German time).

The following contact options are available:

  • E-mail
  • Telephone
  • LiveChat

As a further service AvaTrade offers a wide range of free learning materials. This includes trading tools but also online seminars / videos.

Frequently asked questions about AvaTrade

  • Is AvaTrade a good broker?

    AvaTrade maintains a competitive trading environment and offers additional services such as AvaProtect, AvaOptions or AvaSocial.

  • Is AvaTrade regulated and trustworthy?

    AvaTrade remains fully compliant with FSA rules and regulations. Traders should view it as a safe and trusted broker.

  • Is AvaTrade a scam broker?

    AvaTrade is regulated in 9 countries and has a broad global corporate presence. No fraud alerts have been issued on the public websites of the authorities.

  • What is the minimum deposit at AvaTrade?

    The minimum deposit at AvaTrade to open a live account is $100.

  • Which trading platform is available at AvaTrade?

    AvaTrade offers MetaTrader 4 (MT4), MetaTrader 5 (MT5) and proprietary AvaTrade trading platform as well as its own WebTrader.

  • Does AvaTrade offer a free demo account?

    Yes. AvaTrade offers an unlimited demo account for trading beginners or testing purposes.