Forex trading in South Africa is popular considering that forex is the most actively traded asset globally. However, whereas you need a suitable forex broker to help you access the financial markets, it is essential to consider using a broker’s trading app, especially if you are a forex trader on the move. This guide lists the best forex trading apps in South Africa, so without further delay, let’s get into it.
In this guide
7 Best Forex Trading Apps in South Africa 2022
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Compare Best Forex Trading Apps in South Africa of 2022
- 1. AvaTrade – Overall Best Forex Trading App in South Africa
- 2. FxPro – Best Forex Trading App for Beginners in South Africa
- 3. FXCM – Best Forex Trading App for Low fees in South Africa
- 4. IG Markets – Safest Forex Trading App in South Africa
- 5. Pepperstone – Best CFD Forex Trading App in South Africa
- 6. Plus500 – Best Forex Trading App for iOS in South Africa
- 7. FXTM – Best Forex Trading App for Android in South Africa
- How to Choose the Best Forex Trading App in South Africa
- FAQs
- Verdict
How we test?
OnlineTrading aims to provide quality, simple, and proven information to its readers. Our team of financial experts carefully checks every detail to provide a unique and comprehensive guide to safe trading around the world.
Feedback from regular users is very important to us, so we try to consider the opinions of reviews and feedbacks from several trusted platforms. We spend about 100 – 250 hours analysing and collecting information on each trading platform to ensure our recommendations are reliable.
Naturally, we always remain impartial, honest and recommend only licensed and reliable brokers.
Compare Best Forex Trading Apps in South Africa of 2022
It is not easy to compare forex trading apps in South Africa and come up with the best recommendations. Our comparison procedure started with testing forex brokers’ trading apps. We considered the apps’ performances, account types, assets available, payment methods, demo accounts, customer service and more.
Of course, we also had to confirm the forex trading apps in South Africa credibility by ensuring whether or not their brokers hold licenses and are regulated by the world’s respected authorities. Simply put, all forex trading apps referenced in this guide are overseen by South Africa’s Financial Sector Conduct Authority (FSCA).
Additionally, we went through user comments or reviews on Google Play, App Store, and Trustpilot. We had to rank the forex trading apps in South Africa based on those comments and combine the overall ratings with our test results to recommend the best trading apps in South Africa.
Here is a table with a sample rating from our broker comparison tests and reviews.
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1. AvaTrade – Overall Best Forex Trading App in South Africa
AvaTrade has been in existence for almost two decades and continues to provide excellent services to traders globally. The app’s performance is no different from the web trading platform, providing access to over 1,200 financial markets.
AvaTrade’s forex trading app, also known as AvaTradeGO, is free to download and install on Windows, Android or iOS devices. Creating a trading account is also straightforward, and with only $100, you will gain access to the financial markets and trade forex.
There are over 60 currency pairs for forex trading. Research and educational resources are also adequate on this trading app. Additionally, AvaTradeGO has the AvaSocial feature that you can take advantage of and socialise with other forex traders globally. The AvaSocial platform will also allow you to mirror expert forex traders’ positions should they have a higher chance of making a profit.
- $100 minimum deposit requirement.
- Supports the MT4 and MT5 platforms.
- Over 60 currency pairs for forex trading.
- A $50 per quarter inactivity charge that you will incur after three months of inactivity.
2. FxPro – Best Forex Trading App for Beginners in South Africa
FxPro forex trading app is suitable for beginners because of its user-friendly features that ease the way you trade forex. Like the web platforms, this app executes trades fast, and you can rely on it anytime, anywhere. It is also customisable with an intuitive design for a better trading experience.
You will access more than 70 currency pairs on FXPro’s trading platforms, including cTrader, MT4, and MT5. What’s more, beginners forex traders can learn forex trading using the app’s learning resources, which are offered in plenty.
FxPro is a No Dealing Desk forex trading app, meaning that it allows direct access into the interbank markets. In addition, it is also a no-commission spread betting forex app.
Other trading charges are also low, with a minimum deposit requirement of $100. This makes it a low-cost forex trading app, which is recommended for newbies who are sceptical about risking a lot of money.
- Free transactions.
- Over 70 currency pairs.
- A minimum deposit requirement of $100.
- Research materials are limited.
3. FXCM – Best Forex Trading App for Low fees in South Africa
South African forex traders looking for a trading app with low trading fees should try FXCM. The forex trading app is user-friendly and has well-designed platforms for a better trading experience. It is also safe to trade with and hosts various trading instruments, including forex, shares, indices, commodities, and cryptocurrencies.
FXCM has a very straightforward account opening procedure, and you will have to make a deposit of at least $50 to start trading forex. Additionally, the forex trading app has one of the lowest trading charges in the industry. You will not be charged commission but spreads, which are also low.
Apart from its proprietary trading station platform, South African forex traders can benefit from the MT4 platform with more advanced trading features like expert advisors. In addition, all trading platforms offered by the FXCM trading app have excellent and top-quality research materials, including powerful analytics tools and technical indicators.
- Quality learning content.
- Free deposit and withdrawal using debit/credit cards.
- Limited product offering.
4. IG Markets – Safest Forex Trading App in South Africa
IG Markets is one of the pioneer and largest forex brokers in South Africa, let alone globally. The trading app of IG markets is impeccable, with well-designed features to keep you engaged for an extended period.
You can definitely trust IG Markets with your trading funds because of its long track record. The Financial Sector Conduct Authority (FSCA) also oversees its activities, proving its credibility even further.
IG Markets offers South African forex traders unlimited options to trade forex. This includes access to over 80 currency pairs across global markets. As a result, you can quickly diversify your currency trading portfolio and make good profits.
This forex trading app supports traders with outstanding forex research tools and learning content on its IG Academy platform. Professional traders will also enjoy trading with innovative and advanced tools on IG Markets’ third-party ProRealTime and MT4 platforms.
- Amazing educational content.
- +80 currency pairs.
- Regulated by the Financial Sector Conduct Authority (FSCA).
- $300 minimum deposit requirement.
- High forex trading charges.
5. Pepperstone – Best CFD Forex Trading App in South Africa
CFD trading requires a forex trading app that does not limit your options, and Pepperstone excels in this category. Being locally regulated in the South African market, you can trust this broker with your funds.
Pepperstone forex trading app executes trades fast. It also charges a low commission and raw spreads on all its CFD trading instruments. Note that this forex trading app is free to download, and with a $200 minimum deposit, you will gain access to diverse CFD markets. This includes more than 800 CFD instruments on shares, commodities, indices, and ETFs.
Pepperstone has excellent features to improve your trading experience. It hosts superior learning materials, including a demo account for practising forex trading. Additionally, all transactions are free of charge, and there are no inactivity charges. The app also has reliable customer service that you can reach five days a week through either phone, email, or live chat.
- Zero transaction costs.
- Over 800 CFD instruments for trading.
- Round-the-clock customer service.
- High minimum deposit requirement.
- Poor quality research materials.
6. Plus500 – Best Forex Trading App for iOS in South Africa
Plus500 is an excellent trading app with impeccable features that excites many global forex traders, including South Africans. This has made it earn excellent ratings from users on the App store as the best forex trading app.
Plus500 forex trading app has a single proprietary platform that is easy for South African forex traders to use. You will be required to deposit at least $100 to start trading forex on its platform. Additionally, there are over 60 currency pairs hosted by Plus500.
Interestingly, Plus500 is a commission-free forex broker, meaning that it is also recommended to low-budget forex traders. The only way it earns profits is through spreads, which are also low. It is also one of the few forex brokers in South Africa with 24/7 customer service.
- No charges on deposits and withdrawals.
- +60 currency pairs.
- Unique learning content.
- Charges inactivity fee after three months of no account’s activity.
7. FXTM – Best Forex Trading App for Android in South Africa
Many Google Play users with experience on forex trading apps have rated FXTM as the best in South Africa. This forex trading app executes trades fast and has an easily navigable platform on Android devices. With only a $10 minimum deposit, the app allows access to over 33 currency pairs.
If you are an experienced forex trader in South Africa, FXTM may be a perfect fit for you. Not only does it host advanced research resources, but you get to use these tools on the advanced MT4 and MT5 platforms.
When it comes to this forex trading app’s performance, it executes trades fast, allowing frequent traders to benefit from volatile markets. The trading charges are also low, with zero spreads on major forex pairs.
- Low minimum deposit requirement.
- Excellent learning resources and research tools.
- ECN platform that executes trades fast.
- Customer service is only available on weekdays.
How to Choose the Best Forex Trading App in South Africa
With plenty of trading apps for forex trading in South Africa, you need to be keen on your choices to ensure that you pick the best for your trading needs. If you are a newbie with no experience trading forex in South Africa, or an experienced trader looking for ways to choose a trading app, you may want to consider the factors below.
We always advise our readers to trade safely, mainly because many unscrupulous forex brokers are waiting to scam you of your trading capital. Trading with a licensed and regulated forex app in South Africa is also the only legal way to trade forex. Therefore, ensure that the forex trading app you have is from a broker that is regulated by the FSCA (Financial Sector Conduct Authority). This financial regulator is the leading authority in South Africa.
The forex trading app in South Africa should have a trading platform that is not only user-friendly and customisable but should also execute trades fast. This helps you take advantage of frequent market movements and make quick profits, especially when trading CFDs.
Additionally, the forex trading app should be loaded with adequate learning and research resources to boost your skills and increase your chances of making profits.
Choosing a forex trading app in South Africa with trading charges or fees you can afford is essential. However, should you go for a trading app with costly fees or charges, your trading activities will be limited because of the lack of enough trading funds.
For this reason, confirm the spread and commission on a trading app before signing up for a forex trading account. This also includes the minimum deposit requirement, transaction costs, financing costs, inactivity fees, and more.
Choose a forex trading app with a payment method that will ease your overall trading activities and avoid the hassle of currency exchange that consumes time and money. You see, there are various modes of payment that forex apps tend to use in South Africa, including credit/debit cards, e-wallet, and bank transfers.
Since most of your forex trading activities will be conducted using a mobile device, you need reliable and very responsive customer service. This is so that in case of any trading issues, you can easily handle the situation and resume your forex trading activities. Also, ensure that the customer service’s availability matches your trading schedule.
It will suit your forex trading interest if you test a forex trading app in South Africa before committing with a live trading account. Therefore, create a demo account and use it to practice trading with a mobile device. Learn as much as you can before creating the live trading account.
FAQs
No. Forex trading in South Africa is legal. However, you need to trade with a forex broker that is regulated by the Financial Sector Conduct Authority (FSCA).
You need a forex broker to trade forex in South Africa. Forex brokers give you access to diverse markets for trading. There are many best brokers for forex trading listed in this guide. All you have to do is choose one based on your trading requirements.
Forex brokers can make an average profit of $100 per day with the right strategy. The choice of a forex broker is also important in improving your potential to succeed.
Yes. There are many forex brokers with low minimum deposit requirements, making it possible for you to start forex trading with $10. An example of such brokers is the FXTM, with a minimum deposit requirement of $10.
Beginner forex traders should start forex trading by learning how it works. Afterwards, you can identify the best broker, test it on its demo account and create the live account. You will then access various currencies across different markets to trade with.
Verdict
The best forex trading apps in South Africa are listed in our mini-reviews above. Therefore, before you select one, ensure that its services or offerings align with your trading needs. This includes being regulated in South Africa and having fast trade execution speed. Ultimately, trading apps allow you to stay abreast with the latest news on the financial markets and take advantage of arising opportunities to make profits.