ActivTrades and Skilling are Forex and CFD brokers offering online trading services to traders and investors worldwide. Both brokers are regulated by top-tier regulatory authorities. ActivTrades is regulated by 5 regulatory authorities , including the FCA, SCB, CMVM, BACEN, and FSC. On the other hand, Skilling is regulated by 3 regulatory authorities, including CySEC, FSA, and FCA (recently deregistered from FCA). These two brokers offer almost similar services. However, each broker has its strengths and weaknesses.
In this article, we will compare ActivTrades with Skilling regarding trading platforms, regulations, tradable assets, fees, customer support, and overall trading experience score. We will also explore if ActivTrades is better than Skilling. This comparison lets you understand which broker is better for your trading style and preferences.
ActivTrades vs Skilling: In a Nutshell
ActivTrades
ActivTrades is an online forex and CFD broker that offers MT4, MT5, and the ActivTrader proprietary web and mobile trading platforms. Alex Pusco founded ActivTrades as a stock brokerage in Switzerland in 2001. Later he moved to London in 2005. The broker added MetaTrader 4 in 2007. It also added CFDs on indices and commodities to its offer in 2008. ActivTrades offers over 45 currency pairs, Indexes, ETFs, as well as Commodities and Shares CFDs for your personal investment and trading options.
ActivTrade At a Glance
- Founded In: 2001
- Founder: Alex Pusco
- Headquarters: London, UK
- Minimum Deposit: No Minimum Deposit. However Chinese and Brazilian traders require a $500 Minimum Deposit.
- Maximum Leverage: 1:200 for retails traders, and 1:400 for Pro traders
- Regulations:FCA, SCB, CMVM, BACEN and CVM
- Trading platform: MT4, MT5, ActivTrader and Tradingview
- Account Types: Professional Account, Retail Account
- Payment Options: Bank Wire (BankTransfer/SWIFT), VISA, MasterCard, Maestro, Ngan Luong, PayPal, Skrill, SOFORT
- US Clients : Not Accepted
Skilling
Established in 2016 by Scandinavian entrepreneurs, Lennart Clausen, André Lavold, Henrik Ekdahl, and Mikael Harstad, Skilling is a regulated and innovative forex broker. It offers traders access to more than 900 forex and CFDs on its Skilling Trader, cTrader, and MT4 platforms. The broker’s Premium account features competitive spreads and low commissions, ideal for advanced traders. Skilling.com provides forex pairs, CFDs, commodities, shares, indices, gold, silver, oil, bitcoin, and other cryptocurrencies for your personal investment and trading options. Additionally, Skilling provides tools like TradingView, an economic calendar, market news, and detailed analysis to enhance trading decisions.
Skilling Overview
- Founded In: 2016
- Minimum Deposit: 25 € or equivalent
- Maximum Leverage: Up to 1:1000 for non-EU retail traders,1:30 for EU retail traders. 1:200 for professional traders
- Regulations:CySEC, FSA, and FCA (recently deregistered from FCA)
- Trading platform: MT4, MT5, cTrader, Skilling Trader, and Skilling Copy
- Account Types: Offers 3 account types: Standard, Premium, MT4
- Payment Options: Bank Wire (BankTransfer/SWIFT), VISA, MasterCard, CoinsPaid, Directa24, FasaPay, Klarna, Neteller, Ngan Luong, Pagsmile, PayPal, PayRetailers, PayTrust88, Skrill, Swish, Trustly, UnionPay, WebMoney
- US Traders: Not Accepted
ActivTrades vs: Skilling Features
ActivTrades
- Trading Instruments: 1000+Trading instruments including Forex ( Major, minor, exotics), shares, Indices, cryptocurrencies, ETFs, Commodities, Bonds, etc
- Maximum leverage: The maximum leverage is as high as 1:1000 for the Mauritius entity (FSC regulation). 1:30 for retail traders of UK and European branch, 1:400 for professional accounts, 1:200 for SCB
- Minimum Deposit: For the Chinese account, the 2nd account requires a $500 minimum deposit. For the Brazilian account, both the 1st and 2nd accounts require $250 each.
- Account Types: Two ( Professional, Retail)
- Trading Fees: ActiveTrades charges spread. The spread starts from as low as 0.5 pips. It does not charge any commission.
- MAM: Available
- PAMM: Not available
- Zulutrade: Available
- Scalping: Allowed
- News Trading: Allowed
- EA/ Robot Trading: Allowed
Skilling
- Trading Instruments: 800+ forex, CFDs, commodities, shares, indices, and cryptocurrencies
- Maximum leverage: up to 1:1000 for non-EU retail traders,1:30 for EU retail traders. 1:200 for professional traders
- Minimum Deposit: $25 for the Non-EU standard account, $100 for the EU standard account, and $5000 for the premium account.
- Account Types: Offers 3 account types: Standard, Premium MT4
- Fees: starting from 0.8 pips for a standard account,
- Social Copy Trading: Yes,
- Zulutrade: No
- Scalping: Allowed
- News Trading: Allowed
- EA/ Robot Trading: Allowed
ActivTrades vs Skilling: Pros and Cons
ActivTrades
- Regulated by FCA, SCB, CMVM, BACEN, and FSC
- For the Chinese account, the 2nd account requires a $500 minimum deposit. For the Brazilian account, both the 1st and 2nd accounts require $250 each.
- The maximum leverage is as high as 1:1000.
- Free deposit and withdrawal.
- Allows scalping, news trading, and EA trading.
- Has MT4, MT5, TradingView, and ActivTrades platforms.
- Offers 1000+ trading instruments.
- Spreads start from 0.5 pips.
- Provides fast order execution.
- Lloyds of London insurance up to $1,000,000.
- Offers 24-hour customer support in 14 languages.
- Supports a variety of bank accounts.
- Available to customers in more than 140 countries
- Not regulated by ASIC or CySEC.
- Only forex and CFDs are offered; no real tradable instruments are available.
- No passive investment programs like PAMM or MAM accounts.
- Mediocre customer support.
- Not authorized to trade real stocks.
- Offers 24/5 support.
- A bank wire withdrawal fee is applicable.
- Wide spreads in crypto pairs.
- An inactivity fee may be charged.
- The minimum deposit for Brazilian and Chinese traders is $500.
Skilling
- Regulated by CySEC, FSA, and FCA.
- The Maximum leverage is as high as 1:1000 for global entities, 1:30 for EU traders, and 1:200
- Fully Digital Account Opening ( Easy Sign and Verification Process)
- Demo Accounts are Available
- Low Trading fees starting from 0.8 pips for standard accounts, and 0.10 pips for premium accounts
- Offers both leverage and non-leverage cryptos of trading
- Educational resources with a new 'Trading Study Hub' for beginner investors to learn more about investing
- Offers a variety of trading platforms and tools including MT4, Ctrader, Skilling Social Copy Trading, and Skilling own trading platform
- Straightforward fees, no hidden charge
- No deposit and withdrawal fees
- Higher minimum deposit of $100 for Standard accounts, and $5000 for Premium accounts in the EU
- Degegistered from FCA regulations
- Service is not available in many countries including Canada and the US
- 1:2 leverage for cryptocurrencies
- Only Forex and CFDs are offered
ActivTrades vs Skilling: Side-by-Side Comparison
ActivTrades Vs Skilling: Our Scores and Ratings
We rated both brokers, ActivTrades and Skilling, on a scale of 1 to 10, with 0.1 increments. To achieve a comprehensive rating, we broadly grouped all services offered by brokers into 6 macro categories and assigned percentage weights to them. Each macro category is subdivided into several data points which contributes to the total score of 1.0-10.0 assigned to each macro category. Since all categories are not equally important, our weight percentage plays a significant role in assessing the broker accurately. For example, Regulation and Security contributes a total weight of 40% to the whole ratings because this is the most important rating category. To learn more, read our methodology.
ActivTrades :
Skilling:
Final Verdict :
ActivTrades and Skilling are regulated forex and CFD brokers in the industry. They offer similar trading services. Both brokers allow scalping, hedging, EA trading, and Copy trading. The minimum order size for both of them is 0.01.
However, there are a few areas where you may find some differences. For example, ActivTrades, the minimum deposit for the Chinese account, the 2nd account requires a $500 minimum deposit. For the Brazilian account, both the 1st and 2nd accounts require $250 each, whereas the minimum deposit for Skilling is 25 € or equivalent. Additionally, the maximum leverage for ActivTrades is Up to 1:30 (UK, Europe), 1:1000 Mauritius entity (FSC), 1:400 (Professional Accounts). In contrast, the maximum leverage for Skilling is up to 1:1000 for non-EU retail traders, 1:30 for EU retail traders. 1:200 for professional traders. ActivTrades offers passive investment programs like MAM, while Skilling does not have any passive investment programs.
Our score for ActivTrades is 9, and for Skilling, it is 8.8 So, if you are looking for the most trusted forex brokers with MAM and PAMM services, you may choose ActivTrades. However, if you prefer another forex brokers that offer similar services, you may choose Skilling.
