When searching through automated trading platforms anywhere in the world, you will likely come up against the same type of obstacles and challenges.
Whilst there are some differences in the best automated trading platforms UK, Australia, South Africa, and globally, the main one is linked to regulation, and ensuring that you are registering with a platform that is appropriate for your Country of residence.
The big picture is that the best automated trading platforms are likely to be user friendly, multi-asset, properly regulated, trustworthy, cost efficient, and with a decent chance of success.
We are going to explore some of the best in the World below, broken out slightly by Country (based on regulation), but many of those on this list are actually International, and able to onboard users from a large range of Countries.
If you are stuck, feel free to reach out for clarification, otherwise, good luck finding the best automated trading platform for you!
The best automated trading platforms UK, Australia, South Africa, and globally!
eToro – the best automated platform UK
MINIMUM DEPOSIT – £50
REGULATION – FCA, CySEC, ASIC, FinCEN
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eToro is an online social trading and investment platform that allows users to trade a variety of assets, including stocks, ETFs, commodities, indices, and cryptocurrencies. The platform is designed for both experienced and novice investors, and offers a wide range of features and tools that can be used to trade the markets.
One of the unique features of eToro is the CopyTrader tool, which allows users to automatically copy the trades of other successful traders on the platform. TheCopyTrader tool is a great way for new investors to get started with trading, as it takes away the need to manually select and monitor trades.
eToro were the pioneer of copy trading, and as such have one of the largest pools of traders that you can follow on the market. This means that you can find a range of traders to copy that fit your investment goals and style, and the interface of the platform makes it easy to monitor the trades of your chosen traders.
AvaTrade – the best automated trading platform Australia; great EA integration on MT4
MINIMUM DEPOSIT – £100
REGULATION – CBI, CySEC, ASIC
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AvaTrade is a forex trading platform that offers a wide range of features and tools for traders of all instruments. The platform is designed for both experienced and novice investors, and offers a variety of features that can be used to trade the markets either manually or automatically.
One of the main features of AvaTrade is the ability to integrate with a range of third-party trading software, including MetaTrader 4 (MT4). This means that you can use a wide range of Expert Advisors (EAs) to automate your trading, from a variety of different providers.
Not all brokers will support the use of EAs on their platform, but AvaTrade is one that embraces multiple forms of automated trading systems, including offering their own social trading platform.
As a long standing ASIC regulated broker, AvaTrade has demonstrated a level of service to the Australian market that continues to grow and innovate. With a demo account for practice trading with virtual money before risking any real capital, AvaTrade maintains its’ place as the best automated trading platform Australia for another year.
FXCM – the best automated forex trading platform for backtesting
MINIMUM DEPOSIT – £50
REGULATION – FCA, FSCA, ASIC
FXCM is a forex trading platform that offers a wide range of features and tools for traders. The platform is designed for both experienced and novice investors, and offers a variety of features that can be used to trade the markets.
One of the main features of FXCM is the ability to backtest your trading strategies. This means that you can test out your trading ideas on historical data to see how they would have performed.
Backtesting is a great way to improve your trading strategy, and can be used to find market trends that you may not have been able to identify using other methods.
FXCM also offers a demo account so that new investors can practice trading with virtual money before risking any real capital. The demo account is a great way to learn about the features of the platform and to test out your trading strategies.
FXTM Invest – the best automated trading software South Africa
MINIMUM DEPOSIT – £50
REGULATION – FSCA, FSC
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FXTM Invest is a social trading and investment platform that allows users to trade a variety of assets, including stocks, ETFs, commodities, indices, and cryptocurrencies. The platform is designed for both experienced and novice investors, and offers a wide range of features and tools that can be used to trade the markets.
One of the unique features of FXTM Invest is the ability to copy the trades of other successful traders on the platform. The fact that FXTM is regulated as a forex broker by FSCA, puts it firmly in the list of best automated trading software South Africa has to offer. A great track record of safety, and an easy to use CopyTrader tool is a great way for new investors to get started with trading, as it takes away the need to manually select and monitor trades.
Admiral Markets – best automated trading systems globally
MINIMUM DEPOSIT – £100
REGULATION – FCA, CySEC, ASIC, FSCA, IIROC
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Admirals (previously branded Admiral Markets) have gone from strength to strength in recent years, and have continued to expand into new territories, in acquiring new regulation. With regulation from ASIC, FCA, CySEC, and now more recently IIROC, JSC, and FSCA; it can be said that Admiral Markets is one of the best automated forex trading platforms available around the globe.
The Admiral Markets automated trading systems are largely made up of a recently added Copytrading functionaility, alongside an asset management system that allows reputed asset managers to operate a version of Admirals automated trading platform and on-board users.
Having these ecosystems set up within the regulatory framework of a brand like Admiral Markets is a big plus in the trust column, and is reassuring when you are coming to do due diligence.
As a broker that offers a range of trading platforms including MT4, and MT5, there is also the ability to integrate EAs within your trading account and set up multiple levels of automated trading should you so wish.
How do I choose an automated trading platform?
There are a few things that you should consider when choosing an automated trading platform. The first is whether or not you want to pay for the software. There are some free options available, but they may not have all of the features that you need.
The second thing to consider is what kind of features you need. Some platforms will be very basic, while others will offer a lot of bells and whistles. It is important to find a platform that has the features you need, but that is also easy to use.
The third thing to consider is how much support you need. Some platforms will offer more support than others. If you are new to trading, then you may want to choose a platform that offers more support so that you can learn how to properly use the software.
Finally, determine the type of automated trading platform you require. There are some significant differences between a robo advisor, automated software that allows algorithmic trading, and copy or social trading platforms for example. Understanding the differences, and deciding on which method is right for you will be critical in getting that choice right.
What are some popular automated forex trading platforms (software)?
There are many automated trading software systems that can be put into use, depending on the level of complexity that you need, and the list is growing.
Some of the most popular automated forex trading platforms for configuration include MetaTrader 4, cTrader, and TradeStation. Each of the 3 is up there amongst the most popular trading platforms in general, so it is no surprise that the ability to build and leverage onto these with automated forex trading algorithms, and systems.
If someone is looking to effectively bring an automated trading system to the market, and they would like as many people as possible to use (see: buy) it, then building it on top of a trading platform that is ubiquitous in trading circles makes a lot of sense.
MetaTrader 4 is a very popular platform, the most popular off the shelf forex trading platform on the mark, and one that is used by many Forex brokers. It offers a lot of features and is relatively easy to use. Adding EAs to MT4 is relatively straight forward, and there a whole host of options that are already out there on the market.
cTrader is another popular platform that is used by many brokers. It also offers a lot of features and is easy to use. The language used to build in cTrader is different from MT4, but this is a trading platform that has a very loyal following, and remains popular in forex trading communities.
TradeStation is a platform that is designed for more advanced traders. It offers a lot of different features and tools that are designed to help you make better trade decisions. Whether or not this is true in your case will largely be dictated by what is fed into it. The quality of the decisions will not be determined by the automated forex platform you decide to use, but by the systems loading into them, and the way you use those trading systems.