Introduction to macOS Forex Trading Platforms
Let’s face it, trading forex on a MacBook is a nightmare. If your laptop or desktop runs macOS, you know the trials and tribulations all too well. We all know Apple is one of the largest companies in the world. Heck, Apple could even be one of the instruments you are looking to trade when you find a suitable platform. Apple-Mac is no longer being considered a niche or a novelty. Yet, there is still a dramatic lack of forex trading platforms compatible with macOS.
The fact is that Apple only has a 10% share of the personal computer market. That’s approximately 100 million people, which is undoubtedly a lot of people. However, not everyone who uses a MacBook is interested in online trading. The lack of support for macOS compatible desktop trading platforms is not just because Apple macOS is a niche, but also that online trading is a niche made up of smaller niches. For example, forex trading is totally different from futures trading. Each of these investments is targeted to totally different demographics and are offered via different trading platforms.
Forex Trading Platforms for macOS
This topic recently started trending due to the macOS Catalina update, which stopped supporting 32-bit applications. This update meant that MetaTrader 4 was no longer compatible with macOS Apple MacBooks. The news of this update was quite significant, considering that MT4 is still the most popular forex trading platform.
This article will avoid stating the obvious and skip suggestions such as using a web-based trading platform or partition your laptop to install the Windows OS. We want to explore the current market for forex trading platforms compatible with macOS desktops. Let’s explore the available trading platform for Mac options.
MetaTrader 5 for macOS
MetaTrader 5 is a 64-bit application; therefore, it can still be supported by the most current macOS version. MetaQuotes has detailed documentation on its site that guides users on installing a platform called PlayOnMac, which is based on WINE, a popular compatibility layer for running Windows applications on Mac. Despite this not being a native macOS application, WINE is not an emulator or Windows partitioning software; therefore, we recommend it as a viable solution.
Oanda Trade Desktop for Mac
Oanda is a well-known global forex broker that is headquartered in New York. Oanda not only specializes in retail Forex trading, but it also offers corporate forex services. The company is technology-focused and made some major contributions to reshaping the online trading industry at the end of the previous century. Oanda is a global forex broker and accepts clients in the US and around the world. The company is regulated in the US, UK, Japan, Singapore and Australia.
The Oanda Trade Desktop application is available on Mac OS X 10.9+. According to the Oanda help portal, the desktop application is also supported on various Linux versions.
SaxoTraderPro for Mac OS
Saxo Bank is a well-known specialist in providing a wide range of online trading and investment products from a single trading platform, its own proprietary SaxoTrader platform. Saxo Bank is headquartered in Denmark with a worldwide presence and licenses in many jurisdictions. Despite the name, Saxo isn’t a typical bank. The company does have a banking license, but the real focus is on investing. With one trading account, you could have access to over 35,000 different instruments.
The SaxoTraderPro platform is available natively for Mac OS and supports Mac OS 10.11+. Saxo offers online trading services to clients worldwide, except for the US and a few other jurisdictions.
Interactive Brokers TWS for Mac OS
Interactive Brokers is the largest US online trading broker. The company offers a wide range of products such as stocks, options, futures, bonds and of course, forex. Interactive Brokers has a strong global presence with regulated entities in the US, Canada, Australia, UK, Luxembourg, Japan, Hong Kong and India. The Interactive Brokers TWS Platform is available for Mac OS devices.
ProTrader for Mac
While most of the options on this list are the proprietary platforms developed by brokers, ProTrader is a white label trading platform developed by PSOFT for brokers. Similar to other popular trading platforms like cTrader and MetaTrader 4, a forex broker can white label ProTrader and offer their brokerage services via their instance of ProTrader. There is a lack of brokers offering the ProTrader platform. To use ProTrader to trade forex, you will need to buy a license of the platform. The price starts at $10 per month, and there are discounts for longer-term commitments. With your ProTrader platform, you can trade with FXCM, LMAX and Oanda.
Thinkorswim for Mac
Thinkorswim is a trading platform available from TD Ameritrade, a large US investment broker. Like most big players in the US, this firm has a long history of name changes, acquisitions and other milestones. TD Ameritrade purchased the Thinkorswim platform in 2009. While TD Ameritrade offers many products, the company also offers forex trading via the Thinkorswim platform.
The Thinkorswim platform is available for Mac OS X 10.7.3 or later. The Thinkorswim platform is also compatible with various version of Linux.
Power E*TRADE Pro for Mac
E*TRADE is a US financial services provider. The company offers several different products, such as stock, futures and options trading, investment advisory and banking and savings accounts. Even though E*TRADE does have a native trading platform for Mac, the broker unfortunately only onboard US clients and doesn’t offer forex trading.
Best MacOS Trading Platform Conclusion
If you are a typical forex trader, who is used to having a free trading platform from a broker which allows hedging, low minimum deposits and high leverage, you may find that Saxo and Oanda are valid choices for trading forex on your MacBook. Subscribing to the ProTrader platform for just $10 per month could be a reasonable choice. With the ProTrade option, you could connect with FXCM, LMAX or Oanda (if you don’t like their OandaTrade platform).
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