A MetaApi alternative. One flat price per account.
MetaApi is a cloud API for MetaTrader 4 and 5, billed by the hour each account runs. Pipsocket hosts one MT5 terminal per account for a flat $15 a month, with REST, WebSocket, TradingView webhooks and MCP on every account. Here is how they compare, using MetaApi's own published prices.
MetaApi prices checked on metaapi.cloud on 10 Nov 2026. Pipsocket is not affiliated with MetaApi.
- Flat or by the hour
- Pipsocket is $15 per account, per month. MetaApi charges each account for the hours it is deployed, plus one-off fees.
- MT4 today
- MetaApi supports MT4 and MT5. Pipsocket is MT5 today, with MT4 next.
- Four ways in
- Every Pipsocket account takes REST calls, a WebSocket stream, TradingView alerts and MCP from an AI app.
- More than trading calls
- MetaApi also sells copy trading (CopyFactory), MetaStats and a Manager API for brokers.
MetaApi pricing, from MetaApi's own page.
| Cloud g2 | Cloud g1 | |
|---|---|---|
| A deployed (running) account | US$0.012 per account per hour | US$0.039376 per account per hour |
| Deploying an account | US$0.072 per trading account | US$0.23625 per trading account |
| Adding an account to MetaApi | US$2.1 per unique account | US$2.1 per unique account |
| An undeployed (stopped) account | US$0.00105 per account per hour | US$0.00105 per account per hour |
| CopyFactory API | US$0.001575 per account per hour | US$0.1575 per account per hour |
| MetaApi API | Free | Free |
- Rates for the London region on high reliability, the tier MetaApi recommends for production, excluding VAT/GST. Regular reliability costs less; MetaApi says it is usually used for test workloads.
- The subscription is pay as you go with no monthly plan fee shown, and MetaApi lists volume discounts. A Manager API for brokers is US$125 per MT server per month.
- The rates load in the browser. Before they do, the page says "API access pricing is temporarily unavailable" and lists older $30 and $100 monthly plans; the figures above are what it shows once loaded.
What 1, 5 and 20 accounts cost a month.
| MetaApi cloud g2 | MetaApi cloud g1 | Pipsocket | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 account | US$8.64 | US$28.35 | $15 |
| 5 accounts | US$43.20 | US$141.75 | $75 |
| 20 accounts | US$172.80 | US$567.01 | $300 |
- Assumes every account is deployed for a 30-day month (720 hours) at the rates above, using the MetaApi API only. It leaves out MetaApi's one-off fees (US$2.1 to add an account, plus its deployment fee), any volume discount, and tax on either side.
- On hosting alone, MetaApi's cloud g2 rate costs less per account than Pipsocket, and cloud g1 costs more. If you stop accounts when you are not trading, MetaApi bills fewer hours, though a stopped account still costs US$0.00105 an hour, each deployment has its fee, and adding the same account again in another month can be charged again. Pipsocket keeps every terminal on for the same $15.
What each one includes.
| MetaApi | Pipsocket | |
|---|---|---|
| Platforms | MT4 and MT5, with any MetaTrader broker | MT5 today, any MT5 broker. MT4 is next. |
| Billing | By the hour per deployed account, plus one-off and add-on fees | $15 per account, per month. No per-trade fees. |
| APIs | REST and websocket trading API, historical market data, CopyFactory copy trading, MetaStats, risk management | REST API, raw WebSocket stream, TradingView webhooks, hosted MCP server, kill switch |
| SDKs | Browser JavaScript, Node.js, Python and Java | Python and TypeScript, open source |
| AI agents and TradingView | Not listed on MetaApi's home page, which carries its pricing, or its SDK page | MCP with OAuth for Claude, ChatGPT and other MCP apps; webhooks for TradingView alerts |
| Brokers' own servers | A Manager API for brokers with MT manager access | Not offered. Pipsocket trades the accounts you log in to. |
When MetaApi is the better fit.
Choose MetaApi if
- You trade MT4 accounts today
- You want hosted copy trading through CopyFactory
- You need historical market data or MetaStats
- Your code already uses MetaApi's SDKs, or you work in Java
- You run accounts part-time, or many on cloud g2, and want the lowest hourly cost
- You are a broker that needs the Manager API
Choose Pipsocket if
- You want one flat price per account, with no hours to count
- You want TradingView alerts and AI agents on the same accounts as your code
- You want a kill switch from the app, the API, a webhook or MCP
- Your brokers' trade servers are in London or New York
- You want your own server and IP, at $15 per account with 5 minimum
MetaApi alternative questions
Prices on this page are MetaApi's own, as published on metaapi.cloud on 10 Nov 2026. Check their page before you decide.
- How much does MetaApi cost?
- MetaApi bills each account by the hour it is deployed. On 10 Nov 2026 its pricing page showed US$0.012 per account per hour on cloud g2 and US$0.039376 on cloud g1, for London on high reliability, plus a deployment fee and US$2.1 per unique account added, excluding VAT/GST.
- Is Pipsocket cheaper than MetaApi?
- Not always. An account deployed all month works out at about US$8.64 on MetaApi's cloud g2 rate, under Pipsocket's $15, and about US$28.35 on cloud g1, over it. Pipsocket's $15 is flat and includes REST, WebSocket, TradingView webhooks, MCP and the kill switch.
- Does Pipsocket support MT4 like MetaApi?
- Not yet. MT5 is live today and MT4 is next. If you need MT4 accounts now, MetaApi supports both MT4 and MT5.
- Does Pipsocket have SDKs?
- Yes, for Python and TypeScript: pip install pipsocket or npm install pipsocket. Any other language can call the REST API and WebSocket directly.
- How do I move an account from MetaApi to Pipsocket?
- Connect the same MT5 login to Pipsocket with its server, login and password, then point your code at the Pipsocket API. The two APIs differ, so your calls need rewriting, not just a new base URL.