IQ Option Broker Review

Is IQ Option safe?

A company incorporated in Antigua and Barbuda, IQ Option is essentially unregulated. As such, any claims it makes regarding the safety of client funds cannot be verified.Founded in 2013, IQ Option is managed and owned by SKY LADDER LLC, a financial services provider registered in Antigua and Barbuda. See below for company registration details:

• SKY LADDER LLC is registered in Antigua and Barbuda, registration No. ILLC 004.

South Africans will be trading under the subsidiary, SKY LADDER LLC, registered in Antigua and Barbuda.

For all intents and purposes, the Antigua and Barbuda  is not considered a forex broker regulator and applies no supervision of any CFD trading-related activities. Clients must rely solely on the reputation of IQ Option, as no additional measures exist to ensure client protection. However, in a show of good faith offers negative balance protection to all its clients.

One concern traders may have is that IQ Option does not offer independent audits or confirmation of its performance claims.  Additionally, IQ Option offers high leverage to its clients – up to 1000:1. It also has a low minimum deposit requirement, which means for traders who deposit small amounts, it will be difficult to hold a substantial trading position without getting stopped out and losing the money in their trading account.

Additionally, traders should proceed cautiously should they decide to trade binary options.   Many global regulators have clamped down on allowing binary options trading because of the risk involved in this type of trading.   

Considering the lack of regulation and oversight, IQ Option cannot be regarded as a safe broker. Additionally, traders should be aware of the high leverage and low minimum deposit requirements, which could see their trading accounts wiped out. 

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Trading Fees

IQ Option has some of the most competitive trading costs in the industry.

Unlike other brokers that offer a range of accounts with higher minimum deposits linked to tighter spreads, IQ Option offers one live account on its proprietary platform (click here for more on IQ Option’s platform).  

IQ Option has a simple account structure with trading costs that are significantly lower than the industry average. However, although IQ Option states that its revenue is derived from the spread, it is not transparent about how the spreads are derived, and it does not publish the average spreads on its site.

IQ Option’s account was assessed to compare the costs to those of other brokers. The costs were evaluated based on the trading fees on one lot (100 000 USD) on the EUR/USD, including the spread and commission:

Spread x Trade Size + Commission = Total Trading Cost (USD):

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As you can see from the table above, IQ Option offers one commission-free account with trading costs included in its variable spreads.  This means that the spread will fluctuate and get wider or tighter depending on trading volume and market volatility.  However, at 7 USD per lot traded, IQ Option’s trading costs are significantly lower than the industry average. The trading costs on the EUR/USD at other good brokers tend to be around 9 USD per lot traded.

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Broker

Trading Conditions

Base Currencies

EURUSD (Standard)

Trading Cost (Standard)

EURUSD (Best)

GBPUSD (Best)

USDJPY (Best)

Commission

IQ Option

3/ 5

EUR, GBP, USD

0.80 pips

USD 8

0.80 pips

1.30 pips

0.90 pips

USD 0

AvaTrade

4.5/ 5

USD, GBP, EUR, AUD, ZAR, CHF

0.90 pips

USD 9

0.90 pips

1.60 pips

1.10 pips

USD 0

Pepperstone

4.5/ 5

EUR, GBP, USD, AUD, NZD, JPY, CHF, SGD, HKD, CAD

1.00 pips

USD 10

0.10 pips

0.40 pips

0.30 pips

USD 0

Swap Fees

Another important cost to consider is the swap rate charged on positions held overnight.   Interest is paid (or received) for each night a position is held. When trading a currency, you are borrowing one currency to purchase another. The swap interest fee is calculated based on the difference between the two interest rates of the traded currencies.

IQ Option charges a swap fee of 0.01% – 0.5% and during times of extreme volatility, up to 1.7% of the face value of the position for keeping a position open overnight.   This is in addition to the interbank interest rates charged by the bank.  

Overall, IQ Option’s trading fees are some of the lowest for a market maker in the industry.

Non-trading Fees

IQ Option’s non-trading fees are higher than other similar brokers.

Some of the most overlooked trading costs are the non-trading fees that are charged by brokers.  These fees can significantly affect your profitability and so should be carefully scrutinised.

IQ Option does not charge account fees, but it charges high inactivity and withdrawal fees.  For example, a fee of 2% of the withdrawal amount is charged for each withdrawal on all payment methods.  IQ Option also charges a flat fee of 31 USD or equivalent in local currency for bank wire withdrawals (click here for more on IQ Option’s deposits and withdrawals).

Additionally, IQ Option charges an inactivity fee of 10 EUR (or equivalent) per month after a period of 90 days of account dormancy.  

Overall, IQ Option’s non-trading fees are extremely high. 

Opening an Account at IQ Option

The account opening process at IQ Option is user-friendly, fully digital and accounts are ready for trading immediately.

All South African residents are eligible to open an account at IQ Option but have to meet the minimum deposit requirement of 10 USD.  

Creating an account is straightforward, the process is fully digital, and accounts are usually ready immediately.  

1. New traders will have to click on the “Sign Up” button at the top of the page where they will be directed to register an account.    

2. Traders will automatically be directed to a demo account with a balance of 10,000 USD.

3. In order to open a real account, IQ Option, in line with regulatory requirements, requires at least two documents to accept you as an individual client:

   1. Proof of Identification – IQ Option accepts all government-issued identification documents such as Passport, national ID card, driving license, or other government-issued ID. 

After the application is approved, traders can login and fund their accounts.  We suggest you read IQ Option’s risk disclosure, customer agreement, and terms of business before you start trading.

Overall, IQ Option’s account-opening process is fully digital and hassle-free and accounts are generally ready for trading once all documentation has been approved.

IQ Option’s Trading Account

IQ Option offers only one trading account, which is limited compared to other brokers, but its account is suitable for both beginners and more experienced traders.  

A market maker, IQ Option offers trading on multiple assets, including Forex, cryptocurrencies, commodities, ETFs, and shares (click here for more on IQ Option’s tradable assets). 

IQ Option offers a single live commission-free account for Forex and CFD trading. With a single registration, IQ Option clients can open both a real and a demo account, but trading is only offered on IQ Option’s proprietary platform. 

IQ Option’s account is suited both beginners and more experienced traders. We define beginner traders as inexperienced traders who have never traded before or have been trading for less than a year. Beginners often do not want to risk trading large sums of money, and will generally not be able to trade full-time during the workweek. IQ Option’s account has a low minimum deposit requirement of 10 USD, putting it within the reach of beginner traders.

Experienced traders often prefer higher minimum deposits and tighter spreads, in exchange for a commission per lot, which is unavailable at IQ Option.  However, the tight spreads on its account makes it appealing to experienced traders too.

Again, it should be emphasised that because IQ Option has a low minimum deposit requirement and offers leverage of up to 1000:1, it means that it will be difficult for traders to hold a substantial trading position without getting stopped out and losing the money in their trading account.

IQ Option prohibits hedging and scalping and does not support copy trading on its proprietary platform, but it offers Islamic Swap-Free accounts. 

Real Account

Ideal for beginner traders, this account requires only a 10 USD minimum deposit and offers trading on 300+ trading assets. The maximum leverage offered on this account is 1000:1, and spreads are much tighter than other market makers, at 0.80 pips pips on the EUR/USD. While IQ Option does not allow hedging, scalping, or copy trading, it offers Islamic Swap-Free accounts.

VIP Account

Unlike other brokers that offer tighter spreads on higher deposit accounts, the spread on the EUR/USD remains at 0.7 pips, but VIP account-holders receive additional trading benefits, such as free participation in trading promotions, 3% in returns, and the service of a personal manager. 

Demo Account

Those afraid to risk real money on trading will be glad to learn that IQ Option has an unlimited, free demo account. Upon opening the account, it is loaded with $10,000 in virtual dollars for trading on 300+ assets.

Overall, IQ Option’s account is more suited to beginners than experienced traders, and trading costs are significantly lower than other market makers.  However, traders should be aware of trading with high leverage and low initial deposits, as this may cause an account wipeout. 

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Deposit & Withdrawal

IQ Options processes payments within three business days.

Growth in the African markets has led IQ Option to expand its reach in that region. As a result, bank transfers are now possible from a wide range of banks in this area.  South African banks include FNB, ABSA, Standard Bank, Nedbank, and Investec.  It also offers other payment methods, such as credit cards/debit cards, and e-wallets such as Skrill and Neteller.  Accounts are denominated in ZAR, EUR, GBP, RUB, and USD.  Traders have one free withdrawal per calendar month. See below for withdrawal and deposit methods:

Note:  Regardless of the amount withdrawn, IQ Option charges a flat fee of 31 USD or equivalent in local currency for bank wire withdrawals.

Overall, while IQ Option offers a wide variety of funding and deposit methods, and while deposits are free, withdrawals are expensive and processing times are slow.  

Base Currencies

IQ Option has a limited number of base currencies compared to other brokers.

Trading accounts can only be denominated in five base currencies – ZAR, EUR, USD, RUB, and GBP.

While this is limited compared to most other international brokers, it is good for South Africans who will likely have bank accounts denominated in ZAR and will have the option of avoiding conversion fees. Conversion fees can make trading expensive, and are usually not presented on the fee report, but affect your profitability.

However, it should be noted that for traders that trade in large volumes (more than 10 lots a month), it is better to open an account denominated in USD, especially for trading on assets such as the EUR/USD. This is because when trading a USD quoted currency pair with a ZAR account, there will be a small conversion fee for every trade made.

Overall, IQ Option offers fewer trading account currencies than most other large international brokers, but it offers accounts denominated in ZAR.

Trading Platforms

Unlike most CFD providers, IQ Option only provides its own trading platform, which cannot be customised and does not allow for algorithmic trading.

Unlike most CFD providers, IQ Option only offers its proprietary trading platform. This could be a concern as most similar providers also offer MetaTrader 4 or 5 in conjunction with any first-party software. 

IQ Option’s proprietary social trading platform is very popular among new traders.  The platform looks fantastic, is very easy to use, and has a solid reputation in the trading community.  It features a large chart which is a great help for traders who wish to monitor the market conditions. Margin trading is also available for certain instruments.

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Broker

Platform Choice

Copy Trading

Platforms

IQ Option

4/ 5

No

IQ option

AvaTrade

4.5/ 5

Yes

MT4

MT5

Avatrade Social

AvaOptions

Pepperstone

5/ 5

Yes

MT4

MT5

cTrader

TradingView

In addition, the platform comes with a wide selection of trading tools that are typically not found on other binary trading platforms, including Moving averages, Bollinger Bands, MACD, and RSI.  It also allows traders to establish alerts based on more than 100 technical indicators and an economic calendar.  

Traders can also participate in weekly contests, where the top traders of the week are displayed on leader boards.  

However, unlike platforms such as MT4 and MT5, IQ Option’s platform is not customisable, and traders who are used to setting up their own charts over a bespoke workspace will be disappointed.  In addition, the platform does not offer the execution speeds of the Metatrader platforms, nor does it offer algorithmic trading.  

Another disadvantage of using the IQ Option’s platform versus third-party platforms is that none of the trading tools available on the Metatrader can be integrated directly into the platform.  Additionally, traders who use third-party platforms such as the Metatrader suite can take their own customised version of the platform with them should they choose to migrate to another broker.

Overall, IQ Options’ platform is a good choice for beginner traders because of its simple and intuitive interface, but compared to third-party platforms such as MT4 and MT5, it lacks the execution speeds and doesn’t allow for automated trading via expert advisors or other trading algorithms.

Mobile Apps

IQ Option’s mobile trading platform is average compared to other brokerages.

For traders that are unable to remain at their trading terminal for any prolonged period of time, IQ Option offers a free mobile trading app, available on Android and iOS. The mobile trading app has been designed specifically for smartphones and mobile devices, allowing traders to check their account status.  Mobile functionality is most of the indicators and tools available on the desktop version. 

Trading Tools

IQ Option offers a limited range of trading tools compared to other similar brokers.

IQ Option’s trading tools include various charting tools and technical indicators.  However, unlike other similar Forex brokers, it does not offer any additional sentiment indicators or analytics services such Autochartist or Trading Central, and the proprietary platform also does not integrate with any third-party tools. 

The online trading platform offers a great variety of charting tools. These help traders predict future market movements and include candles, hollow candles, bars, areas, and lines.

IQ Option also has 13 different indicators that users can access through the charting interface. The indicators help traders discover trends and find trades with good profit potential.  Indicators include:

• Moving Averages

• Bollinger Bands

• Moving Average Convergence Divergence (MACD)

• Awesome Oscillator

• Volume Indicators

• Parabolic SAR

• Relative Strength Index (RSI)

• Stoch or Stochastic Oscillator indicators 

• Average True Range (ATR)

• Average Directional Movement Index (ADX)

• Fractals 

• Commodity Channel Index (CCI)

Overall, IQ Option’s trading tools are limited compared to other brokers, but its technical indicators and charting tools are excellent. 

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Broker

Economic Calendar

Autochartist

Trading Central

Trading View

Free VPS

IQ Option

Yes

No

No

No

No

AvaTrade

Yes

No

Yes

No

Yes

Pepperstone

Yes

Yes

No

Yes

Yes

IQ Option’s Financial Instruments 

IQ Option offers a limited range of tradable assets compared to other similar brokers.  

IQ Option offers CFD trading on Forex, shares, commodities, cryptocurrencies, ETFs, and digital options (click here for more on CFD trading).  IQ Options also offers binary options trading.

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Forex – Limited compared to most other brokers, IQ Option offers trading on 33 Forex pairs, including majors and minors.  The maximum leverage is up to 1000:1 on Forex pairs.  

Stocks – IQ Option offers trading on stock CFDs from more than 192 different companies. Some of them are listed on NASDAQ or NYSE, such as eBay, Slack, and Amazon.  The maximum leverage on stock CFDs is up to 1:20.

ETFs – ETF trading works by tracking commodities, indices, and baskets of various assets. ETFs are in many ways like mutual funds. Users can trade up to 23 ETFs on this platform, which is around the average offered by most other brokers.  Maximum leverage is up to 1:20 on ETFs.

Cryptocurrencies – IQ Option offers its users 12 different CFDs on cryptocurrencies, a wire range than is typically found at other brokers. These include Bitcoin, Ethereum, Ethereum Lite, Ripple, Litecoin, Monero, Zcash, Omisego, EOS, Tron, Dash, and Qtum.  The maximum leverage is up to 1:5on cryptocurrencies.  

Options – IQ Option is a good online broker for those who want to trade options. Users can trade with over 55 different options, a broader range than is found at other brokers.  Options are quick turnaround trades that expire within one minute.

Commodities: IQ Option only offers trading on three commodities, which is limited compared to other brokers.  These include gold and oil.  The maximum leverage is up to 50:1 on commodities.    

Digital options – Some people find digital options more convenient. Digital options allow traders to speculate on the price movement of a tradable asset. Traders can only lose as much as they have invested, and they can exit the market if they feel that the losses are too big. Trade position expiry time is between 1 to 5 minutes and the payout can be as high as 1000%.

Traders should note that trading on binary options is very risky and should proceed with caution.

Overall, IQ Option offers a limited range of tradable instruments, which may leave more experienced traders dissatisfied.

IQ Option for Beginners

IQ Options offers a limited selection of educational and market analysis materials compared to other similar brokers.    

Educational Materials

IQ Option’s educational materials are limited compared to other similar brokers. 

IQ Option provides an extensive video library for education purposes. Since the core client-base at IQ Option is the younger, less experienced traders who are attracted by the unique social trading platform, the short videos cater well to these traders.  

While most of the videos cover market news issues, there are a set of videos covering the basics about the IQ Option platform and an introduction to CFD trading.  Furthermore, a large portion of the material is focused on cryptocurrencies.  

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Broker

Beginner Course

Advanced Course

Well Structured Education

Education Quality

Webinars

IQ Option

No

No

No

Medium

No

AvaTrade

Yes

Yes

Yes

High

Yes

Pepperstone

Yes

Yes

Yes

Medium

Yes

Analysis Material

IQ Option offers very few research materials, and most of these are curated by third-party providers.  

A Facebook-style news feed of 3rd party economic news is freely available to all visitors to the IQ Option website, along with a small section on expected high volatility news events. The rest of the analysis comes in the form of tools that are built into the platform.  

Customer Support

IQ Option’s customer support is available 24/7, but we found that the customer service team were unable to assist with basic trading queries.

IQ Option has a 24/7 telephone and live chat customer support service. Most countries have a toll-free phone option while others are charged at local rates, however, this is not available in South Africa.   Customer service is available in 16 languages.  Additionally, the live chat service is only available once traders register an account.   

For this review, we found the customer support responsive and polite but uninformed.  They were unable to answer questions on the average spreads and leverage on various instruments.

Evaluation Method

We value transparency and openness in the way we review the partners. To bring transparency to the forefront, we have published our review process that includes a detailed breakdown of the IQ Option offering. Central to that process is the evaluation of the reliability of the broker, the platform offering of the broker and the trading conditions offered to clients, which are summarised in this review. Each one of these is graded, and an overall score is calculated and assigned to the broker.

IQ Option Risk Statement

General Risk Warning: The financial products offered by the company carry a high level of risk and can result in the loss of all your funds. You should never invest money that you cannot afford to lose

Overview

A global binary options and Forex broker, IQ Option offers a unique financial trading platform, but it is unregulated in most of the world. It also provides a limited number of tradable assets compared to most other brokers and charges high non-trading fees, including high withdrawal and inactivity fees. IQ Option offers a single live account with low trading costs, including spreads of 0.80 pips on the EUR/USD in exchange for a minimum deposit of only 10 USD.  However, although IQ Option caters to more inexperienced traders, its educational and market analysis materials are limited, forcing traders to self-educate elsewhere.  

Editorial Team

 

Chris Cammack
Head of Content

Chris joined the company in 2019 after ten years experience in research, editorial and design for political and financial publications. His background has given him a deep knowledge of international financial markets and the geopolitics that affects them. Chris has a keen eye for editing and a voracious appetite for financial and political current affairs. He ensures that our content across all sites meets the standards of quality and transparency that our readers expect.

 

Alison Heyerdahl
Senior Financial Writer

Alison joined the team as a writer in 2021. She is the Senior Editor for FXScouts.  She has a medical degree with a focus on physiotherapy and a bachelor’s in psychology. However, her interest in forex trading and her love for writing led her to switch careers. She has a passion for Forex trading and over a decade of editorial experience researching Forex and the financial services industry, producing high-quality content. She hosts a weekly podcast, “Let’s Talk Forex,” alongside her colleague, Chris, and has produced over 100 Forex educational videos for the FXScouts YouTube channel. She also writes weekly technical analyses and has tested and reviewed over 100 Forex brokers.

 

Ida Hermansen
Financial Writer

Ida joined our team as a financial writer in 2023. She has a degree in Digital Marketing and a background in content writing and SEO. In addition to her marketing and writing skills, Ida also has an interest in cryptocurrencies and blockchain networks. Her interest in crypto trading led to a wider fascination with Forex technical analysis and price movement. She continues to develop her skills and knowledge in Forex trading and keeps a close eye on which Forex brokers offer the best trading environments for new traders.