The Best Forex Trading Brokers – Reviews of Certified FX Brokers

[hide-show-rev txt = ‘Forex trading brokers are licensed companies offering brokerage services to investors who want to trade currencies. In order to become a forex broker, these firms have to follow stringent regulations regarding capital requirement, technology infrastructure, risk management systems, etc. Thereafter, they are regulated by various international bodies including Financial Services Authority (FSA), International Organization of Securities Commissions (IOSCO), European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) and National Futures Association (NFA).
Before we provide a more detailed insight into our review methodology and broker evaluation guidelines, let us offer you a peek at the companies that made it into our coveted best forex brokers list. They are known for their top-quality FX services, great reliability, and customer-centric approach. These characteristics make them the most desirable brokers for all kinds of FX and CFD products. We will also provide a brief reasoning as to why these companies made the cut, along with some of their advantages and drawbacks. Without much further ado, here are the best online forex brokers as chosen by our expert reviewers.’]
[home_list title=”Top 10 Forex Brokers in the World for current_year” title_id=”top-forex-brokers”]

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[brands_intro_list brands=”xm,avatrade,fxtm,ig,etoro,xtb,interactive-brokers,hycm,octafx,forex-com”]

Other Top Forex Brokers That Nipped at the Winners’ Heels

Many similar types of forex brokers narrowly missed out on making it into our best forex brokers list. Some of them offer excellent products and failed to enter our rankings by the narrowest of margins, so we thought it only fair to give them an honorable mention.

[brands_intro_list brands=”plus500,alpari,cmc-markets,saxo,fp-markets,markets-com”]

Methodology We Use to Rank Companies in Our Best Forex Brokers Reviews

As promised in the beginning, here is the section with a brief outline of the methodology we use to compile the best forex brokers reviews on our website. We pay special attention to understanding the intrinsic features of the different brokers and use several parameters to rank them according to their real-world performance. We have developed an unbiased formula to draw the best forex broker comparisons, and it allows us to construct a more realistic picture of how a company performs under live trading conditions.

Of course, we are critical in our approach to producing the best forex brokers reviews, and we update our best forex broker comparison guidelines from time to time to offer top-quality content to our readers. Here is a brief description of the parameters we use to compile the best forex trading brokers reviews for the different types of forex brokers that we deal with.

Types of Online Forex Trading Accounts

The first consideration when drafting a best forex broker review is the choice of accounts on offer. We look at the types of accounts, the ease of registration, the time taken to verify user identity, and the availability of dealing desk protocols such as ECN/NDD or DMA. Our best forex broker comparison strategy also involves examining the benefits and features of different accounts to better understand which account category best suits individual trader preferences. We also spend time evaluating the pros and cons of each broker to provide an unbiased opinion as to whether it is indeed a good option for our readers.

Choice of Online Forex Trading Platforms and Mobile App Support

The choice of platforms is another pillar of our best forex trading brokers review framework, primarily because the efficiency and performance characteristics of a forex platform can have a tremendous impact on trade outcomes. Several third-party platforms, such as MetaTrader and cTrader, are popular within the trading community. However, brokers may also develop a proprietary app to offer something new to their clients. We have come across several proprietary apps that boast ground-breaking features, but in some cases, professional traders may prefer conventional platforms such as MetaTrader to use its API, custom tools, and EA options.

Our reviews also cover the mobile platform options offered by brokers, such as the availability of Android and iOS apps and their real-time performance stats for smartphones and tablets. We even look into whether a company’s web browser-based app works well on a mobile browser.

Forex Bonuses, Promotions, and Offers Provided by the Broker

It is no secret that traders always look for the minutest of advantages when operating in the highly risky and volatile forex and CFD market. Even a slight edge can make the difference between winning and losing. Retail traders understand that the lowest-risk means of increasing their trading capital are bonuses and free trading credits. Until recently, most brokers used to provide attractive bonus programs and extravagant promotions to lure retail traders. However, several misperceptions regarding bonus T&C have led to major broker-trader conflicts, which forced regulators to intervene and ban free money promotions.

Nevertheless, a handful of the best online forex brokers still make available offers and bonuses in certain cases, and we provide in-depth information on these promotions in our best forex trading brokers reviews.

Spreads, Commissions, SWAPs, and Other Costs in FX Trading

Costs are another primary concern when choosing a forex broker, especially for high-frequency and high-volume traders. Spreads alone can eat up a significant chunk of the profits, not to mention other costs, such as SWAP fees and commissions. Commissions are charged only for ECN accounts and as a fixed percentage of the lots traded in exchange for tighter spreads. Although ECN accounts are known for their tight spreads, not all ECN brokers offer competitive pricing for their forex and CFD instruments.

In our quest to find the best brokers for forex trading, we have come across a few remarkable market maker brokers that offer spreads comparable to ECN brokers, while some renowned ECN brokers quote insanely high spreads that in no way align with the true market pricing. However, SWAP is applicable for both market maker and direct market access accounts, where traders are charged a certain amount of money for overnight positions. We analyze all the charges levied by a broker for its entire range of services, and our reviews provide a detailed assessment.

Ease of Payments – Depositing and Withdrawing Funds

Traders must be able to deposit and withdraw funds freely. Brokers offer the best deposit options to their clients, but not all of them facilitate the withdrawal process. In our reviews, we always make it a point to open a live broker account, deposit money into it, trade the markets, and withdraw funds. By replicating the experience of a trader, we can check whether the broker treats deposits and withdrawals equally. Our expert reviews also offer details about the different payment methods along with detailed information on the safety and encryption protocols installed for the payment gateways.

Safety of Funds – Primary Regulatory and Licensing Information

The quality and safety of a broker are determined not only by its overall trading conditions but also the mechanisms put in place to safeguard clients’ investments. The safety of funds is a key factor in choosing a broker, and we only recommend companies with a proven track record of processing client withdrawals on time. We consider several factors related to a broker’s safety, among them regulatory compliance, licensing details, segregation of funds from operating capital, insolvency policies, auditing standards, trader insurance, and overall attitude to customers.

We also pay close attention to how the broker maintains its reputation online and how it responds to customer queries. Finally, we evaluate the broker through our own withdrawal experience, which is indeed the best part of our best forex broker reviews.

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[faq title=”FAQ” title_id=”faq” questions=”What is forex trading and how does it work?;Is Forex Legit?;Which Is the Better Option, ECN or Market-Maker/Dealing-Desk Protocol?;How Will I Know If My Broker Is Regulated?;What Are the Risks of Forex Trading?;How Do I Calculate My Forex Costs?;How Do I Choose the Right FX Broker?;Which Platform Should I Choose?;How Can I Access the Markets on My Mobile?” answers=”

Forex (foreign exchange) or FX trading is a global market where traders can exchange different national currencies. They are always traded in pairs and in each currency pair one is a ‘base currency’ and the other one is a ‘quote currency’.

Example: USD/EUR 0.94 – The US dollar is the base currency and the euro is the quote currency. That means $1 equals €0.94 if you wanted to buy at that moment.

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YES – You can make real money through forex trading.

However you can also lose a lot of money if you don’t know what you are doing. There are lots of forex scams, so you need to be careful and most importantly, well informed.

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It is difficult to label either one as the best option for forex and CFD trading because traders have varied requirements for their strategies and investment goals. ECN/DMA/NDD accounts are perfect if you want tight spreads, direct market access, and zero interference from the broker. On the flip side, ECN accounts will charge a commission for trading, and there will be instances of partial order fills, requotes, and slippages. Market maker protocols using an automated dealing desk help minimize the risk of these occurrences, but the spreads will be higher, and there is a conflict of interest since the broker acts as the counterparty to its clients’ orders. Ultimately, it depends on which protocol satisfies your trading requirements.

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Our best forex brokers reviews contain detailed information about the regulatory licenses, international branches, and contact details of all the brokers we review. We also look at the company’s different brand names, history, market experience, and sister concerns to provide you with a finely detailed picture of its reputation in the market.

In addition, brokers are legally required to publish regulatory information on their websites, which traders can verify by visiting the regulator’s official portal and searching for the license number. Regulated companies are always willing to share such information, while non-regulated ones may be reluctant to provide it. In general, it should be relatively easy to determine if your broker is regulated or not.

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Forex trading is the most volatile financial market in the world, and unlike conventional stocks, FX pairs are active around the clock 5 days a week. With more than $6.6 trillion in notional daily volumes, the forex market is in constant flux, which can be a double-edged sword. On the one hand, the increased volatility offers attractive trading opportunities, but on the other, dramatic market swings can move against a trader’s position and result in a margin call. The risks are magnified by the use of leverage since brokers are known to offer anywhere from 1:30 to 1:3000 leverage.

News events, macro-economic data, and other factors can affect the pricing of currency pairs, adding to the risk. The top forex brokers always warn their traders about the potential risks of forex and CFD products, while the best regulated forex brokers minimize the leverage offered to their clients.

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There are several types of costs associated with the FX market. These include the spreads of currency pairs, the commissions for ECN trading, SWAP fees for holding positions overnight, deposit/withdrawal charges, performance fees for copy trading, subscription costs for educational materials, trading signal premiums, and account maintenance fees.

The best FX brokers are always transparent about their costs and will usually provide a dedicated cost calculator on their website. These calculators can help traders compute their expenses for trading certain currency pairs, while ancillary fees such as deposit/withdrawal fees, subscription costs, and copy trader commissions are displayed prominently on the website.

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We make it easy for our readers to choose the best forex brokers by offering them the most professional reviews of all types of forex brokers currently operating in the market. Our expert reviewers work hard to collect all essential information about a broker and compile a comprehensive review by subjecting the company to a rigorous review process. Our unbiased ranking methodology and the subsequent results of our best forex broker comparisons have helped us develop the most complete best forex brokers list out there. Make sure to read our best forex trading brokers review before choosing a company for online forex trading.

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There are different platforms in the market, and the choice depends entirely on your personal preferences. Professional traders may feel more at ease with third-party terminals such as MetaTrader and cTrader, which grant them the freedom to add indicators, custom tools, and EAs to their platforms. On the other hand, institutional traders may develop their own terminals for managing their large funds, which can be expensive but justified given their needs. Some leading brokers also build proprietary platforms that offer innovative trading tools, providing several unique features for retail traders.

Ultimately, you can try out different platforms by opening a demo broker account and trading the markets using a simulated balance. This will help you find the right platform for you without risking real money.

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Third-party apps such as MetaTrader and cTrader are also offered as standalone mobile apps for Android and iOS devices. Brokers that support these platforms provide unfettered market access to all smartphone and tablet users. In contrast, proprietary forex broker apps for iOS and Android are only offered by a handful of brokers due to the complexities and resources required to develop and maintain these apps.

In our broker reviews, we evaluate mobile app options and assess the real-time performance of these apps under live market conditions. In case brokers do not have a proprietary mobile app, traders will have to access their accounts through the browser-based platform.

These web applications may not be as smooth or dependable as a dedicated app, but they do offer a great opportunity to trade the markets while on the move.

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