MT5 vs cTrader vs DXtrade for a new broker: how each is sold, hosted and launched

Three platforms, three ways to buy them

The question sounds like a feature comparison, but for a new broker the first difference is commercial: who hosts the platform, who you sign with and what you own at the end. The three vendors' own pages, read on 6 November 2026, describe three different models.

MetaQuotes sells MetaTrader 5 as software you run. Its brokers page says a broker selects and purchases a licence type, that the Entry, Standard and Enterprise licences contain different numbers of real accounts and sets of system components, and that you independently deploy the software on your own hardware and maintain the server infrastructure; it adds that it does not offer SaaS or similar solutions. Spotware describes cTrader as platform-as-a-service: a cloud-based solution hosted in the Equinix London and New York data centres, with what it calls unlimited capacity and zero maintenance costs for brokers. Devexperts launched DXtrade on 27 May 2020 as a SaaS trading platform for the retail FX and CFD industry, fully maintained and hosted by Devexperts.

The models decide what a white label even means. An MT5 white label is a branded instance on a licence holder's server, so a second company stands between you and MetaQuotes. A cTrader white label is issued by a cTrader broker and, in Spotware's words, needs neither a trading server nor an administration platform to deliver. DXtrade is sold as a branded SaaS platform with Devexperts behind it in every case. The glossary keeps the short version of the difference.

MetaTrader 5: a licence you run, or a white label from someone who does

MetaQuotes' order page lists the three licences by capacity: Entry provides business capacity of 1,000 real accounts; Standard offers 25,000 default real accounts capacity reserve; Enterprise includes a complete set of all available system components with 200,000 default real accounts capacity reserve. The brokers page says a licence can be upgraded and components added later. The components it lists are the trade server, access points that shield it, role-based manager terminals and five APIs: Manager (administration tools and custom manager terminals), Server, Report, Gateway (connections to exchanges, liquidity providers and other MT5 brokers for hedging) and Web (websites and company services). Traders get desktop, web, iPhone, iPad and Android terminals, and the platform runs netting for exchange instruments and hedging for forex.

The pages read do not mention white labels. Two vendors explain the route: Match-Trade wrote on 30 June 2022 that MetaQuotes does not provide white labels to brokers and that brokers obtain them from technology providers, and B2BROKER's comparison of 5 January 2026 says tightened MetaQuotes policies now require most brokers to work through licensed providers. Finance Magnates reported on 9 September 2022 that white-label applicants must pass corporate verification: certificate of incorporation, register of directors and shareholders, proof of a physical address, a certified bank letter confirming an active account, proof of domain ownership in the company's name and a video identity check for key persons; Centroid's chief executive is quoted that the same requirements apply to a broker's own licence application.

On cost, the only figures found are Match-Trade's, published in June 2022 and vendor-stated: a full server had previously required a USD 100,000 fee and was now offered on a monthly flat fee from USD 5,000 to 20,000, against about USD 3,000 for a raw MT5 white label; a white label carries fewer trading groups than a server, with extra groups usually charged. Treat those as a 2022 snapshot and ask for current figures. What a white label does buy is operations: the provider handles technical maintenance, IT support and hosting, which is what a new broker without a platform engineer lacks on day one.

What MT5 brings that the other two do not claim is the installed base. B2BROKER says MetaTrader 5 dominates retail-heavy regions and that the MQL5 ecosystem offers thousands of pre-built expert advisors, scripts and trading signals; Finance Magnates' March 2026 round-up calls it the safest, most familiar choice for brokers that want brand familiarity among retail traders, and notes its established marketplace for EAs, indicators and copy-trading signals. The cost of that familiarity is that you run the server, or pay someone who does.

cTrader: hosted by Spotware, sold as platform-as-a-service

Spotware's brokers page positions cTrader as the Open Trading Platform and lists what the service includes: a cloud-based solution with unlimited capacity and zero maintenance costs for brokers, hosted in the Equinix London and New York data centres; a back office with flexible settings for trading accounts, users, symbols, access rights and risk management; and a set of APIs it names as Open API, FIX API for trading, FIX API for liquidity, Reporting, Manager's and WebServices. The page lists integrations with TradingView, oneZero, PrimeXM, FXBO and Trading Central, claims over 100 FX/CFD services integrated, an interface in 23 languages and 12 million-plus traders globally, and says migrating existing client accounts takes one day.

For traders it bundles what MT5 leaves to the marketplace: cTrader Copy, which Finance Magnates describes as a fully integrated social trading platform; cTrader Algo with cBots written in C#, with what Spotware calls 24/7 cloud execution and free algo hosting; and the three promises on the ctrader.com brokers page, no server-side manipulation, no price injection and built-in risk management tools. B2BROKER's comparison puts the platform's strength in execution-focused markets, with market depth at the core of the trading experience, and recommends it for ECN and STP brokerage models; it also notes a smaller community and fewer pre-integrated solutions than MQL5, and that crypto is typically limited to CFDs.

The white-label route is wide open by design. Spotware's reseller page says cTrader brokers can offer unlimited, fully functional and fully branded white labels across desktop, web, iOS and Android, that neither a trading server nor an administration platform is necessary to deliver one, that branded white labels can be delivered in a matter of days, and that this is sometimes more cost-effective than being a direct customer of Spotware. No price appears on any Spotware page read; the brokers page says there are no time-and-material charges and calls its total cost of ownership the most effective on the market. Finance Magnates' round-up adds the scale as of March 2026: 300-plus brokers and prop firms and 16 years in the industry.

DXtrade: SaaS from Devexperts, with the shortest launch claim

Devexperts' launch release of 27 May 2020 describes DXtrade as an off-the-shelf trading solution for forex and CFD brokers, fully maintained and hosted by Devexperts, with mobile and web interfaces, risk management and back-office applications, and broker-set limits, rebates, margins, spreads and execution at instrument, group or client level. The dx.trade site, read on 6 November 2026, now lists DXtrade CFD for FX, CFDs, spread bets and spot and margin crypto, DXtrade XT for stocks, options, futures, mutual funds and bonds, and a prop-trading product for CFDs and futures, and says the platform is only available through the official channels listed there.

Its headline is speed: the page says DXtrade gets you live in under two weeks, with a fuller integration into your brokerage infrastructure in several weeks. Finance Magnates' March 2026 round-up calls it Devexperts' flagship white-label multi-asset platform, notes support for internalisation and A-book and B-book models, open APIs and market data from dxFeed, and says it suits firms that prioritise multi-asset coverage, configurable risk tools and a modern trading experience. The dx.trade page lists add-on modules for an AI support agent, customer care and churn prediction, risk features including real-time margin, Reg T and options margin and CME SPAN for futures, and says the company has built trading software since 2002.

Two things the pages read do not describe: a trader-side scripting language or EA framework (they describe APIs for integrating DXtrade with your systems) and a built-in copy-trading product. If your clients run EAs or expect to copy strategies inside the platform, ask Devexperts to show how before you decide.

Side by side

Match-Trader belongs on a new broker's list too: Finance Magnates' round-up recommends it for newer or small-to-mid-sized brokers that prioritise speed of launch, and Match-Trade's own FAQ, read on 5 November 2026, says licensing can start from USD 5,000. It is left out of the table only because this guide compares the three platforms buyers name together; the provider guide covers Match-Trade with the other vendors.

Seven questions that decide it

1. 01
   Where your clients are and what they already use If your first clients come from retail-heavy markets where MT5 is already on their phones, the familiarity argument is real. If they are execution-focused traders who care about depth of market and a clean STP model, cTrader's own positioning fits. Multi-asset ambitions beyond CFDs point at DXtrade's XT edition or an MT5 Enterprise licence.
2. 02
   Who is on call at three in the morning MT5 on a licence means your engineers run the trade servers, access points, history and gateways. A white label or a hosted platform moves that to the vendor. Count the people you have before you count features.
3. 03
   What the money looks like A licence tier is a capacity step; platform-as-a-service and SaaS are recurring fees sized to your business. None of the three publishes a figure, so get each offer in writing with what is included, what a change request costs and what happens at the next tier.
4. 04
   Verification time An MT5 licence or white label needs the corporate documents listed above and a bank letter. Offshore entities without a bank account in their jurisdiction were the ones Finance Magnates reported struggling. Start the paperwork before you pick.
5. 05
   The automation and copy trading your clients expect EAs and MQL5 signals, cBots and cTrader Copy, or APIs. Ask each vendor to demonstrate the specific thing your clients do today, on the platform, not on a slide.
6. 06
   The exit How accounts, history and open positions leave the platform, how long it takes and who does it. Spotware advertises one-day migration in; ask every vendor about migration out.
7. 07
   The stack around it CRM and KYC, payments, operations, copy trading across servers, support and research are not in the platform licence. Decide them with the platform, because the connectors differ.

One platform or two?

B2BROKER's comparison argues that brokers serving several client segments or regions benefit from a dual-platform strategy, and established brokers do run MT5 beside cTrader. For a new broker it doubles every connector: the CRM, the payment flow, the copy-trading engine and the support desk each need to talk to both. Launch on one, choose it for the clients you have today, and add the second when the clients who need it are paying for it. Keep the business layer on software that is not tied to the platform, so the second platform is a connector, not a migration.

Where EntropyX Labs sits

EntropyX Labs does not license, host or resell any of the three platforms, does not provide liquidity or a bridge, and does not hold client funds. It builds the software around the platform: Brokerage CRM with the traders' room, KYC and IB tracking, EA Panel for the dealing desk, Social Copy for copy trading across servers, EntropyX PSP for USDT deposits and withdrawals, EntropyX Tickets for support and SignalDesk for research, each self-hostable and licensed separately.

Those products connect to MetaTrader 5 through its manager API today; the glossary describes what that interface does. If you choose cTrader or DXtrade, say so when you write: whether and how a product connects to it is scoped per engagement and is not claimed here. The brokers page shows what stays with you under every platform, and the provider guide covers the vendors that sell platforms, liquidity and white labels.

Sources and further reading

• MetaQuotes: MetaTrader 5 for brokers — Read 6 November 2026: licence tiers and upgrades, the components and five APIs, gateways, terminals, netting and hedging, deployment on your own hardware, no SaaS
• MetaQuotes: Order the MetaTrader 5 trading platform — Read 6 November 2026: Entry 1,000 real accounts, Standard 25,000 and Enterprise 200,000 default capacity reserve; a request form and no prices
• Spotware: cTrader for FX/CFD brokers — Read 6 November 2026: platform-as-a-service, Equinix London and New York, back office, the APIs, integrations, 23 languages, 12M+ traders, one-day migration, no time-and-material charges
• Spotware: Become a cTrader white label reseller — Read 6 November 2026: unlimited white labels from cTrader brokers, no server or administration platform needed, delivery in days, cost against a direct contract
• cTrader: Brokers for cTrader — Read 6 November 2026: no server-side manipulation, no price injection, built-in risk management tools; platform-as-a-service; 12M+ traders
• Devexperts: DXtrade — Read 6 November 2026: editions and asset classes, live in under two weeks, integration in several weeks, add-on modules, margin features, official channels only, company since 2002
• Devexperts: launch of DXtrade as a SaaS trading platform for FX/CFD brokers — Press release of 27 May 2020, read 6 November 2026: SaaS, fully maintained and hosted by Devexperts, broker-set limits, rebates, margins, spreads and execution
• Finance Magnates: Top trading platforms for brokers in 2026 — Published 2 March 2026, read 6 November 2026: platform profiles; cTrader's 300+ brokers and prop firms and 16 years; DXtrade's A-book and B-book models and dxFeed; MT5 as the familiar choice; Match-Trader for speed of launch
• B2BROKER: MT5 vs cTrader — Published 5 January 2026, read 6 November 2026: licensed providers for MT5, the MQL5 ecosystem, cBots in C#, market depth, retail-heavy versus execution-focused markets, dual-platform strategy, crypto coverage
• Match-Trade: MT5 white label or server licence — Published 30 June 2022, read 6 November 2026: white labels come from technology providers; server fee previously USD 100,000, monthly USD 5,000 to 20,000; raw white label about USD 3,000; group limits; provider-run maintenance and hosting
• Finance Magnates: Can new offshore brokers adapt as MetaQuotes tightens white label policy — Published 9 September 2022, read 6 November 2026: corporate verification documents, bank letter, domain ownership, video identity check; the same requirements for a broker's own licence
• EntropyX Labs: Technology for forex and CFD brokers — What each product supplies and what stays with the broker

This guide is engineering and product guidance from EntropyX Labs, a technology provider. It is not legal, regulatory or investment advice.