The Best Forex Brokers for Beginners

 

If you’re searching for the best forex platform to start trading with, then you’re in the right place!

On this page about forex trading, you can see a list of trusted and regulated forex brokers.

Plus, they’re all suitable whether you’re a beginner or a more experienced trader.

From this list you can choose the best trading platform to trade with.

And because your security is important to us, all the best forex brokers for beginners listed here are fully regulated. 

So you have no need to worry whether the broker is a scam or not, they’re all legit platforms that are monitored by official regulation authorities.

Let’s take a look at their minimum deposit, demo account and leverage.

 

 ‘Forex&CFDs are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. Between 74-89% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading Forex&CFDs. You need to consider whether you understand how CFDs work and if you can afford to take the high risk of losing your money.’

 

eToro vs Plus500 vs IQ Option vs Trading 212

There are a wide range of account offers in the forex market, and whether you’re an expert trader or a novice, the most important thing is to find the top forex broker to achieve your goals!

One way to find the best offer for you is by comparing brokers.

For example, here we’ve made a comparison between:

• IQ Option vs Plus500
• IQ Option vs eToro
• eToro vs Plus500
• Trading 212 vs Plus500
• eToro vs Trading 212

With these comparison guides, we’ve looked at each broker in detail and how they weigh up against each other. So you need to read these if you’re a beginner in forex trading!

We’ve checked all the key features that a broker should have, so you can find the best trading platform that fits to your needs!

If you are from South Africa, please read our review of the best forex trading company in South Africa

One of the Best Trading Platform: Plus500

• Regulations: CySEC (no. 250/14) and FCA for UK (no.509909)

• Platforms: Self-developed platform available for desktop, online & as a trading app

• Leverage: up to 1:30 for UK & European traders, up to 1:300 elsewhere

• Minimum Deposit: $100

• Headquarters: Israel and registered offices in London, UK & Sydney, Australia

• Support: 24/7 via LiveChat, Email or WhatsApp

• Instruments Available: Forex, ETF’s, Shares, Options, Indices, Commodities, Crypto

Click here to open your first Plus500 trading account.

 

Best Forex Broker: eToro

• Regulations: CySEC (no. 109/10) and FCA for UK (no.583263)

• Platforms: Self developed platform and mobile trading app

• Leverage: Up to 1:30, up to 1:400 only for elective professional traders

• Minimum Deposit: $200
• Headquarters: Cyprus and registered office in London, UK

• Support: 24/5 via LiveChat or Ticket Opening. Automatic help centre available 24/7

• Instruments Available: Forex, ETF’s, Stocks, Indices, Commodities, Cryptocurrencies

Click here to open your first eToro trading account.

Open a Free eToro Account

*68% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider. You should consider whether you can afford to take the high risk of losing your money.

Best Forex Trading Platform: IQ Option

• Regulations: CySEC and the FSA
• Platforms: Self developed platform & trading app
• Leverage: Up to 1:30 for UK & Europeans traders, up to 1:400 elsewhere
• Minimum Deposit: $10
• Headquarters: Cyprus
• Support: Yes, available 24/7 via Phone and Email
• Instruments Available: 250+ assets- Cryptocurrencies, Forex, Indices, Shares, Commodities & Equities.

Click here to open your first IQ Option trading account.

Open Free IQ Option Account

*Risk warning: Your capital might be at risk

Best Trading Platform for Beginners: BDSwiss

 

• Regulations: CySEC and the FSC (no.C116016172)
• Platforms: MT4 & MT5 plus self-developed platform & trading app
• Leverage: Up to 1:30 for UK & European traders, up to 1:400 elsewhere  
• Minimum Deposit: $200
• Headquarters: Switzerland and Cyprus
• Support: Yes, available 24/5 via Telegram, WhatsApp, Phone, Live Chat & Email
• Instruments Available: 250+ assets- Cryptocurrencies, Forex, Indices, Shares, Commodities & Equities.

Click here to open your first BDSwiss trading account.

Open a Free BDSwiss Account

*Your capital might be at risk

Best Forex Broker: Pepperstone

• Regulations: FCA (no. 68431) and ASIC (no. 414530)
• Platforms: Mobile, Web, MT4, MT5, cTrader
• Leverage: up to 1:30 in Europe / 1:500 outside Europe
• Minimum Deposit: $200
• Headquarters: Melbourne, Australia and offices in London, UK
• Support: 24/5 via email, phone or live chat
• Instruments Available: 150+ (CFDs, Forex, ETFs, Indexes, Cryptocurrencies, Stocks & Commodities)

Open a Free Pepperstone Account

*Your capital might be at risk

 

Best Trading Platform for beginners: Avatrade

• Regulations: Central Bank of Ireland and more
• Platforms: Mobile, Web, MT4, MT5
• Leverage: up to 1:30 in Europe / 1:500 outside Europe
• Minimum Deposit: $100
• Headquarters: Ireland
• Support: 24/5 via email, phone or live chat
• Instruments Available: 1500+ (CFDs, Forex, ETFs, Indexes, Cryptocurrencies, Stocks & Commodities)

Best Forex Broker: XM

• Regulations: CySEC (no. 120/10), ASIC (no. 443670) & IFSC
• Platforms: Mobile, Web, XM MT4 or MT5
• Leverage: up to 1:30 in Europe / 1:888 outside Europe
• Minimum Deposit: $5
• Headquarters: Cyprus
• Support: 24/5 via email, phone or live chat
• Instruments Available: 1000+(CFDs, Forex, ETFs, Indexes, Cryptocurrencies, Stocks & Commodities)

Forex Brokers: Vantage FX

• Regulations: FCA (no. 590299), ASIC (no. 428901) & CIMA
• Platforms: Mobile, Web, MT4 & MT5
• Leverage: up to 1:30 in Europe / 1:500 outside Europe
• Minimum Deposit: $200
• Headquarters: Cayman Islands & offices in Sydney, Australia & London, UK
• Support: 24/5 via email, phone or live chat
• Instruments Available: 180+ (CFDs, Forex, ETFs, Indexes, Cryptocurrencies, Stocks & Commodities)

Open a Free Trading Account

*Your capital might be at risk

 

Best Forex Brokers: FXTM

• FXTM Minimum Deposit: $10
• Minimum Trade: 0,01 lots (micro lot)
• Leverage: up to 1:500 (1:30 for EU residents)
• Assets: 300+ (all CFDs)
• FXTM App: Yes
• FXTM Demo Account: Yes
• Platform: MT4, WebTrader, Mac Trading

What is the Best Forex Trading Platform?

Today there is a number of trading platforms and different brokers to choose from. We have explained this a bit more on the homepage.

But which one is the best forex broker for beginners? What should I look for?

In our opinion the best ones are:

• eToro
• Plus500
• BDswiss

There are a few features that you should look for before choosing your trading platform.

Here are the most important ones that every forex trader should check:

1. Availability in your Country
2. Regulation
3. Responsive Trading Platform
4. Support Service
5. Deposit and Withdrawal methods
6. Spread and Commissions

Let’s see what these points mean.

Try Forex Trading

*Your capital might be at risk

 

Trading Platform Availability

 

This is the most important step when deciding on a broker. In fact, a lot of them are based in Europe and just accept European clients.

Then some are just for American forex beginners and finally there are also the best forex brokers in Australia which accept only Australian clients.

This is based on different government rules. Every country sets their own regulation rules for online trading.

Even in continents like Asia, some countries accept trading, and others not. For example in China there is a lot of regulation. So a lot of platforms are not valid there.

That’s why you must check if a broker is accepting clients from your country.

There’s also a lot of regulation in the USA. So normally American forex traders can just trade with American forex institutes.

If a person from the United States opens a forex account with the wrong broker, nothing happens. The account will simply be frozen straight away. The user won’t even have the opportunity to make a deposit.

In case this happens, it’s very easy to open a new account with an American broker, for example Forex.com and to start trading with them.

Try Forex Trading

*Your capital might be at risk

 

Forex Platform Regulation

One of the most important things to look for is regulation!

Many people on the internet are asking if forex trading is a scam. This depends on the trading platform that the trader picks.

In fact, the big difference in this market is between regulated and non-regulated forex brokers.

Regulated brokers are monitored by an official authority. They check that financial rules are followed, these rules are put in place to protect you and traders from fraud.

So non-regulated brokers are not monitored and do not have a licence to operate. These are the ones you should avoid at all costs because they are illegal.

Each country has different regulation authorities. Let’s go through some now.

The FCA (Financial Conduct Authority) is the regulation for the best trading platform in UK, and is the official financial body in the United Kingdom. They are widely respected as an institution and if you see that a broker holds an FCA licence, you can be assured that they’re a legitimate service. 

The most important regulation in the USA is CFTC. (Commodity Futures Trading Commission). Many brokers that operate in the United States have to follow strict rules that are set by the CFTC and supported by FinCEN which is the (Financial Crimes Enforcement Network.)

In Canada the main authority is the Investment Industry Regulatory Organization of Canada- (IIROC).

This means that American and Canadian traders should register to brokers that are regulated by CFTC or IIROC.

For the rest of the world, if a broker has the CySEC regulation, they are fully regulated. CySEC is based in Cyprus and monitors many European platforms.

However, they can accept forex clients from everywhere except the USA. This means that even a trader from New Zealand can open an account with a CySEC regulated broker.

Remember to only choose a regulated broker which has got its licence from one or more international authorities.

For example, the most trusted brokers have the CySEC regulation, plus another one such as the FCA or ASIC.

There are also some other international financial authorities that are important to know.

Official Regulation Authorities

• Australia: Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC)
• Canada: Investment Industry Regulatory Organization of Canada (IIROC)
• Cyprus: Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (CySEC)
• Germany: Bundesanstalt fur Finanzdienstleistungsaufsicht (BaFin)
• Ireland: Central Bank of Ireland (CBI)
• New Zealand: Financial Markets Authority                                                                                     
• Seychelles: Seychelles Financial Services Advisory (FSA)
• Spain: Comisión Nacional del Mercado de Valores (CNMV)
• South Africa: Financial Sector Conduct Authority (FSCA)
• Sweden: Finansinspektionen (FI)
• Switzerland: (FINMA)
• UK: Financial Conduct Authority (FCA)
• USA: U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC)

Try Forex Trading

*Your capital might be at risk

What are the best Trading Platforms?

How would you feel trading with a slow platform, or with one that’s not available all the time?

This could be a problem!

Most of the brokers offer a tool called Metatrader 4 and 5 for users to trade, some others have their own self-developed platform. In both cases, the main things a platform should offer are: high speed and to be very responsive. 

In our opinion the best brokers offering the Metatrader platform are:

• BDswiss
• Avatrade
• FXTM
• Pepperstone
• Vantage FX

Try Forex Trading

*Your capital might be at risk

 

Forex Platform Support Service

This is a very important service that every trading platform must have.

In fact, the main way to communicate with the broker in case of questions is the support service.

Every trading platform has a support team behind it. They’re normally available 24/7 & ready to solve all your problems. However, some support teams work from Monday to Friday so will only be available 24/5. That’s why it’s worth checking the contact hours.

There are different ways to get in contact. Either by email, phone or with a live chat service. 

When contacted, most support teams are normally very responsive. The best ones we tested are:

• BDswiss
• eToro
• Plus500

Languages are also a very important point and many brokers offer a support service in multiple languages.

For example, if a customer lives in France, they’ll be able to speak to the support team in French.

Try Forex Trading

*Your capital might be at risk

Best Trading Platform for Deposit & Withdrawal

To start trading, an important step is to make a deposit.

The most secure and fastest brokers in terms of deposit and withdrawals are:

• BDSwiss
• Avatrade
• IQ Option

There are many ways to do a deposit: credit/debit cards are the most common method. 

Bank or wire transfer, is another option. It normally takes from 3-4 working days before the money shows in your trading account.

Other options that can be used to make deposits include using prepaid cards and ‘e-wallets‘.

The term e-wallets covers transactions that are made with online wallets. Popular e-wallets include PayPal accounts and Moneybookers such as Skrill and Neteller.

The same story is for withdrawals. To withdraw money from your account, you can usually receive the funds back to the original payment method you made the deposit with.

So withdrawals can be used to receive the money back to credit/debit cards, prepaid card, e-wallets or via bank/wire transfer. 

It’s normal to receive the money within 4 working days for most of the forex platforms. Some of them charge a very small commission for every withdrawal, but this depends on the trading platform you choose.

All regulated brokers will let you withdraw your money.

Try Forex Trading

*Your capital might be at risk

Best Forex Broker with lowest Spread & Fees

This is a very important point for every trader, because these represent the costs to pay for trading with a forex broker.

Each broker has different ways to charge its clients for their trading activity: spread or commissions.

The spread is the most common one. This represents the difference between the real price of an asset in the market and the price of the same asset in the trading platform. Spreads can either be fixed or variable.

You can find a broker with a zero spread in the market. So they make their profit by adding a commission to every trade.

The commission can usually be from a few cents up to some dollars. It all depends on how long a position is kept open for. The longer it is, the more expensive it gets.

The best brokers with the lowest spreads and commissions are:

• BDSwiss
• Avatrade
• Trading 212
• FXTM

Try Forex Trading

*Your capital might be at risk