I’ve been trying to do an apples-to-apples comparison between Exness and a few other brokers I’m considering, but the numbers are confusing me. Everyone quotes spreads differently, and then rebates add another layer to the calculation. I want to actually understand my real cost.
Looking at the marketing, Exness seems competitive, but I’ve also heard good things about IC Markets, FP Markets, and Tickmill. All of them mention rebates through GlobeGain. I just need to know which broker gives me the best real cost for my actual trading style.
Here’s what I’m trying to figure out:
- What’s the real cost breakdown for Exness compared to IC Markets, FP Markets, and Tickmill?
- How much does the rebate actually reduce your cost on each broker?
- Does one broker stand out as genuinely cheaper, or are they mostly similar once everything is factored in?
- Does the comparison change depending on your lot size or trading frequency?
- Is there a broker that gives you the best combination of cost and reliability?
I’m not looking for marketing hype. I want actual numbers or real trading experiences. What have you found when you actually compare these brokers side by side?
Exness and IC Markets similar cost. Tickmill cheaper but slower.
Let me break down real costs for EUR/USD at 1 lot per trade:
Exness standard: 0.9 pip spread. With 0.3 pip rebate, effective cost 0.6 pip per lot.
IC Markets: 0.7 pip spread. With 0.25 pip rebate, effective cost 0.45 pip per lot.
FP Markets: 0.8 pip spread. With 0.3 pip rebate, effective cost 0.5 pip per lot.
Tickmill: 0.5 pip spread. With 0.2 pip rebate, effective cost 0.3 pip per lot.
Once rebates are factored in, IC Markets and FP Markets edge out Exness by about 0.1-0.15 pip per round trip. Tickmill is genuinely the cheapest.
But here’s the nuance: execution quality varies. If IC Markets slips you 0.1 pip on average when Exness doesn’t, the spread difference disappears. I’ve tested this. Exness execution is tighter than the others in most conditions.
For your trading frequency and lot size, calculate this: your average round trip volume times the per-lot cost difference times your monthly trades. For most traders under 20 lots per day, the cost difference between Exness and IC Markets is maybe $20-30 per month. That’s noise compared to slippage or a single bad trade.
My recommendation: Choose based on platform reliability and execution quality, not the pennies you’ll save. Exness is fine. IC Markets is fine. You won’t go broke either way.
I compared Exness and IC Markets side by side for two months using the same strategy. My real costs came out almost identical once everything was factored in.
Exness had slightly wider spreads, but rebates were better. IC Markets had tighter spreads but lower rebates. They basically evened out.
FP Markets was similar. Tickmill was noticeably cheaper on spreads, but I didn’t like the platform interface as much and the support response was slower.
For me, the decision came down to which platform I preferred to use every day. That mattered more than shaving a few cents off my trading costs.
Exness and IC Markets are pretty similar cost-wise. Tickmill cheaper but less popular.
I’ve been meticulous about tracking actual trading costs across three brokers for the past six months. Here’s what I found:
Exness: average 1.15 pips round trip cost on EUR/USD including rebate.
IC Markets: average 1.08 pips round trip cost on EUR/USD including rebate.
FP Markets: average 1.12 pips round trip cost on EUR/USD including rebate.
The differences are small. What I noticed is that Exness doesn’t slip on execution, so the cost is predictable. IC Markets sometimes gets me better fills but occasionally slips. FP Markets is in between.
For someone making 20-30 round trips per month, the total cost difference between them is under $50. That’s not a deciding factor.
What actually mattered to me: Exness platform stability and withdrawal speed. That’s why I chose it. If you’re deciding between similar brokers, don’t get lost in the cost math. Choose the one with the best platform experience for your trading style.
All similar cost. Pick by platform preference not spreads.
What helped me was actually calculating my cost for my specific trading volume and pair selection. The generic numbers you see online don’t always apply to your exact situation.
Take EUR/USD, GPB/USD, and whatever pairs you actually trade. Calculate the cost for each broker at your lot size. That gives you the real cost picture for you, not a generic comparison.
Cost differences between Exness and IC Markets are small. Either works fine.
In practice, I stopped obsessing over the cost differences because they became meaningless once I started making consistent trades. A bad entry decision costs more than any spread difference. A market move against me costs infinitely more than whether I saved a quarter pip on spreads.
Choose a reliable broker like Exness or IC Markets and focus your energy on trading well. That’s where the money is.