Currency Trading for Beginners: Top Ten Forex Brokers

by Dave Woodhouse Active Trader

Top Ten Forex Brokers List

The top ten forex brokers list is made up of all relevant information from the website for each broker listed. Typical spread values are shown as opposed to minimum spread as this is a more accurate representation of what the typical trader will have to pay. All spread values are variable and based on recent trade activity for each broker. Typical spread has differing values depending on which currency pair or financial product is being traded so numbers given are based on major currency pairs or "majors" if not specified otherwise. The majors are EUR/USD, USD/JPY, GBP/USD, AUD/USD, USD/CHF, and USD/CAD. It is important to note when looking at maximum leverage amounts that USA only allows up to 50:1 leverage and Japan up to 25:1 leverage. To learn more about forex brokers, go to www.thesmartforex.com.

1. Forex.com

Office Locations: United States, United Kingdom, Australia, Hong Kong, Japan, and South Korea
Spread: 1.2 - 2 pips on majors, 35 on gold(XAU/USD) and 3.6 on silver(XAG/USD)
Commission: No
Minimum Deposit Required: Resident of USA $500, CA $1000, AU $300, UK 250(GBP)
Minimum Trade: 1,000 units(micro lot), 1 unit(oz) of gold, 50 units(oz) of silver
Maximum Leverage: 50:1 on major currency pairs, 20:1 on minor pairs, and 1:1 on metals
Number of Pairs Traded: 49 currency pairs with gold and silver
Trading Platform: MT4, ForexTrader Pro (50 pairs with gold and silver, Minimum trade 10,000 units(mini lot))
Mobile Trading Platform: ForexTrader Pro Mobile
Regulated By: C.F.T.C., N.F.A., U.S.S.E.C., I.I.R.O.C., F.S.A., S.F.C., F.C.A., and A.S.I.C.

2. Alpari UK

HQ Location: United Kingdom
Spread: 1.6 - 3.7 pips on majors (Forex trading in India is +0.2 pips, US +0.4, Middle East +0.5, and China +1.0), $0.40(USD) on gold and $0.04(USD) on silver
Commission: No
Minimum Deposit: $200(USD) for Micro MT4 or $500(USD) for Classic MT4
Minimum Trade: 1,000 units(micro lot), 1 unit(oz) of gold and 50 units(oz) of silver with MT4 Micro. 10,000 units(mini lot), 10 units(oz) of gold and 500 units(oz) of silver with MT4 Classic
Maximum Leverage: 500:1 on currency pairs, 200:1 on gold and silver
Number of Pairs Traded: 37 pairs with gold and silver
Trading Platform: MT4 Micro and Classic (Micro has a limit of 2 standard lot open positions), MT5 (minimum spread is 0.8 - 1.6 pips on major currency pairs, maximum leverage is 50:1 on gold and silver)
Mobile Trading Platform: MT4 and MT5 for iOS and Android
Regulated By: F.C.A.

3. Oanda

HQ Location: New York, USA
Spread: 1.3 - 2.4 pips on majors
Commission: No
Minimum Deposit: No minimum deposit
Minimum Trade: 1,000 units(micro lot)
Maximum Leverage: 50:1
Number of Pairs Traded: 62 pairs with gold and silver
Trading Platform: MT4, fxTrade
Mobile Platform: Forex Trading for iPhone, iPad, and Android
Regulated By: C.F.T.C., N.F.A., Monetary Authority of Singapore, I.I.R.O.C., F.C.A., and F.S.A.

4. FXCM

HQ Location: New York, USA
Spread: 1.4 - 1.7 pips on majors
Commission: Yes. Commission charged to accounts that qualify to trade with the lowest spreads available on FXCM
Minimum Deposit: 50(GBP) - can also fund account with EUR, USD, CAD, NZD, AUD, or Yen
Minimum Trade: 1,000 units(micro lot)
Maximum Leverage: 200:1
Number of Pairs Traded: 56 currency pairs
Trading Platform: MT4, Trading Station
Mobile Trading Platform: Trading Station Mobile
Regulated By: C.F.T.C., N.F.A., F.S.A., A.S.I.C. and S.F.C.

5. IronFX

HQ Location: United Kingdom
Spread: 0.9 - 1.5 pips on majors, $0.50(USD) on gold, $0.04(USD) on silver
Commission: No
Minimum Deposit: $500(USD) or equivalent value in EUR, GBP, AUD, JPY, CHF, PLN or HUF
Minimum Trade: 1,000 units(micro lot) on currency pairs, 50 units(oz) on silver, 1 unit(oz) on gold
Maximum Leverage: 500:1 on currency pairs, 100:1 on gold and silver
Number of Pairs Traded: 68 currency pairs with gold and silver
Trading Platform: MT4, MT5, WebTrader, Personal Multi-Account Manager, MultiTerminal
Mobile Trading Platform: BlackBerry Trader, MT4(iPhone, iPad, Android), MT5(iPhone, iPad, Android), MT4 Mobile Trader, MT4 Smartphone Trader
Regulated By: F.C.A., A.S.I.C., F.S.P., C.R.F.I.N., Cy.S.E.C., and M.i.F.I.D.

6. FXPro

HQ Location: United Kingdom
Spread: 1.5 - 2.7 pips on majors, $0.50(USD) per ounce on gold and $.04(USD) per ounce on silver, 0.80(EUR) per ounce on EUR/Gold and,0.06(EUR) per ounce on EUR/Silver
Commission: No
Minimum Deposit: $500(USD) or equivalent in EUR, GBP, CHF, or JPY(credit/debit deposits subject to 1.6% processing fee)
Minimum Trade: 10,000 units(mini lot) or 1,000 units(micro lot) with use of the Expert Advisors, 10 units(oz) of gold, 500 units(oz) of silver
Maximum Leverage: 500:1
Number of Pairs Traded: 72 pairs with gold and silver
Trading Platform: MT4, cTrader
Mobile Trading Platform: MT4 Mobile, cTrader Mobile Web
Regulated By: F.C.A. and Cy.S.E.C.

7. IBFX

HQ Location: United States
Spread: 1.88 - 2.69 pips on majors
Commission: No
Minimum Deposit: No minimum deposit
Minimum Trade: 100 units(nano lot) with MT4 Mini, 1,000 units(micro lot) with MT4 Standard
Maximum leverage: 50:1
Number of Pairs Traded: 24 currency pairs
Trading Platform: MT4 Mini and Standard, Tradestation
Mobile Trading Platform: Metaquotes MT4
Regulated By: C.F.T.C. and N.F.A.

8. AVA Trade

HQ Location: Ireland
Spread: 1.6 - 3.1 pips on majors with FX floating account available with MT4, $0.47(USD) per oz on gold, $0.04(USD) per oz on silver, $0.04(USD) per barrel on oil
Commission: No
Minimum Deposit: $100(USD) / 100(EUR) / 100(GBP) / $100 (Au) / 100,000(YEN)
Minimum Trade: 1,000 units(micro lot) on currency pairs, 1 unit(oz) of gold, 100 units(oz) of silver, 10 units(barrel) of oil
Maximum Leverage: 400:1 on currency pairs, 200:1 on gold, 50:1 on silver, 100:1 on oil
Number of Pairs Traded: 49 currency pairs with gold, silver and oil
Trading Platform: MT4, AVA Trader (FX fixed account for spreads of 3 - 4 pips on major currency pairs, 200:1 maximum leverage), AVA Options, Web Trading
Mobile Trading Platform: MT4 Mobile, AVA Mobile
Regulated By: F.S.A., A.S.I.C., Central Bank of Ireland, and British Virgin Islands Financial Services Commission

9. Swissquote / ac-markets.com

HQ Location: Switzerland
Spread: Minimum 2.5 - 4 pips on majors. Typical spread values not found
Commission: No
Minimum Deposit: $1,000(USD)
Minimum Trade: 1,000 units(micro lot) on currency pairs, 1 unit(oz) of gold, 1 unit(oz) of silver, 1 unit(barrel) of oil
Maximum leverage: 100:1
Number of Pairs Traded: 71 currency pairs with gold, silver and oil
Trading Platform: MT4, Web Trader 2, Advanced Trader
Mobile Trading Platform: Mobile Trader
Regulated By: F.I.N.M.A.

10. Markets.com

HQ Location: Cyprus
Spread: 3 - 4 pips on majors
Commission: No
Minimum Deposit: $100(USD) / 100(EUR) / 100(GBP) with Classic account, $2500(USD) / 2500(EUR) / 2500(GBP) with Standard account
Minimum Trade: 1,000 units(micro lot)
Maximum Leverage: 200:1
Number of Pairs Traded: 51 currency pairs
Trading Platform: MT4
Mobile Trading Platform: Market Mobile Trader
Regulated By: Cy.S.E.C., F.C.A., EU Regulators as follows: B.d.F.(France), C.O.N.S.O.B.(Italy), C.N.M.V.(Spain), A.F.M.(Netherlands), BaFin(Germany), F.I.(Sweden), Danish FSA, P.S.Z.A.F.(Hungary), N.B.S.(Slovakia), C.N.B.(Czech Republic), and South African FSB