2024 Annual Award Winners - Overall
Results for the ForexBrokers.com 2024 Annual Awards are unbiased and determined by our own independent research; Broker Awards are bestowed based on demonstrated excellence in categories considered important to investors, forex traders, and consumers.
After gathering and validating thousands of data points across 100+ important variables, poring over our collected quantitative data, and factoring in the qualitative observations and qualified opinions of our expert researchers, we are proud to announce the top three forex brokers of 2024:
Winner: IG
| Company |
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Minimum Deposit |
Average Spread EUR/USD - Standard |
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 IG
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£250.00 |
0.98 info |
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Regulated and trusted across the globe, IG offers traders the ultimate package of excellent forex trading platforms, research tools, industry-leading education, comprehensive market research, and an extensive list of tradeable products. This fantastic all-round experience makes IG the best overall broker in 2024.
- Trust: Founded in 1974, IG is publicly traded (LON: IGG) and regulated in eight Tier-1 jurisdictions, making it a Highly Trusted broker for forex and CFDs trading. All jurisdictions considered, we ranked IG as the most trusted forex and CFDs broker for our 2024 Annual Awards.
- Commissions: IG uses its size to provide consistent pricing for forex trades across the board — regardless of the product you trade — and shines for its active trader pricing available through its Forex Direct accounts.
- Forex trading platforms: While IG also offers MetaTrader and premium MT4 add-ons from FX Blue, only 76 tradeable instruments are available. There's no question; IG's flagship platform is the better choice between the two, and offers an extensive range of tradeable markets.
Runner-Up: Interactive Brokers
Interactive Brokers is a highly trusted multi-asset broker with an extensive offering of tradeable global markets. It delivers competitive fees and high-quality research and education, as well as a modern, institutional-grade trading platform suite.
- Trust: Founded in 1977, Interactive Brokers is publicly traded (NASDAQ: IBKR) and regulated in nine Tier-1 jurisdictions. Interactive Brokers is well-capitalized with USD 373.8 billion of ending client equity and USD 10.01 billion of equity capital.
- Commissions: Interactive Brokers offers competitive pricing, aggregating prices from 17 of the world's largest interbank forex dealers. Instead of marking up spreads, Interactive Brokers charges a commission for all forex trades, which ranges from $16 to $40 per million round turn ($8 to $20 per side).
- Forex trading platforms: Interactive Brokers stands out for its trading platforms, which include its flagship desktop software – Trader Workstation (TWS) – and mobile trading app – IBKR Mobile – both of which provide access to advanced trading tools and global financial markets (including forex and CFDs).
Podium Finisher: Saxo
| Company |
Overall Rating |
Minimum Deposit |
Average Spread EUR/USD - Standard |
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 Saxo
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$0 |
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Saxo has recently lowered the minimum deposit requirement for its entry-level Classic account to $0, making it easier for a wider range of traders to access its excellent forex trading platforms, phenomenal research, and 70,000+ tradeable instruments.
- Trust: Founded in 1992, Saxo operates multiple regulated banks and is licensed in seven Tier-1 jurisdictions, making it a safe broker (low-risk) for CFDs and forex trades.
- Commissions: Saxo provides traders with excellent all-around pricing. For active traders (and those with large forex account balances), Saxo offers competitive pricing in its Platinum and VIP accounts, which require a $200,000 and $1 million balance, respectively.
- Forex trading platforms: The entire Saxo client experience is absolutely brilliant. Alongside access to 70,000 tradeable instruments, Saxo's flagship SaxoTraderGo platform is terrific and includes everything traders require to navigate the market. Saxo also offers third-party trading platforms such as TradingView, the globally popular platform with advanced forex charting capabilities. Learn more by checking out our TradingView guide.
Best Forex Trading Platforms
We've conducted thorough testing of the best trading platforms offered by dozens of the top forex brokers in the industry. Of the 60+ brokers that we've evaluated, we've selected our top picks for brokers that provide the best trading platform experience and listed them below (click on the broker's name if you want to read our full-length broker review):
What does a forex broker do?
A forex broker is a company that is licensed (or considered exempt) by a national regulator to grant you — as a retail or professional client — the ability to place forex trades (buy or sell foreign currencies), by way of an online trading platform or over the phone (known in the industry as voice broking). An online broker may offer you the underlying currency, or a non-deliverable spot contract or derivative such as a contract for difference (CFD) depending on any relevant country-specific regulatory restrictions. It's important to only use brokers that are properly regulated to reduce your risk of being scammed.
Do I need a broker for forex?
Yes, to trade forex you'll need to use a forex broker. You'll need to open a forex account with an online broker and deposit enough collateral (margin) to enable you to place orders with your broker.
The forex broker's job is to execute your orders — either internally by acting as the principal to your trade (market maker execution) or by sending your orders to another market, thus acting as your agent (agency execution).
Your broker should be regulated and properly licensed in your country of residence (or in a major financial center). We’ve included a few important questions that are worth asking to help determine if your forex broker is trustworthy:
- Does the broker have adequate financial operating capital?
- How long has the broker been in operation?
- Does the online broker hold proper regulatory licenses in the countries where it operates, and is it in compliance with local laws?
securityFind a trustworthy broker:
ForexBroker.com’s proprietary Trust Score ranks forex brokers based on their reliability and overall trust. We evaluate and track dozens international regulatory agencies; click here to learn more about Trust Score.
How much money do you need to start trading forex?
The specific amount of money you’ll need for online forex trading will depend on multiple factors, such as your personal financial situation, your trading goals, and your tolerance (or appetite) for risk.
Beginner forex traders might start trading forex with as little as $100, while it’s not uncommon for professional day traders to have six or even seven-figure trading accounts. If you are a beginner, you’ll first need to determine if online forex trading is suitable for you. Check out our guide to trading forex for beginners here.
The next step will be deciding on your trading budget. This is especially important given the risks involved in trading forex from a margin account with leverage. Forex brokers typically offer a range of contract sizes so you can fine-tune the size of your forex trade – which will determine how much risk you are taking for a given profit target.
A micro account with a low margin requirement would make it possible to place forex trades and test a trading strategy with as little as $100 of risk capital. In this case, your potential risk will be limited – but so will your potential rewards. Trading forex with a small amount of risk capital can let you test a new investment methodology, or allow beginner traders who are new to forex trading to learn by trial and error without “breaking the bank.”
Regardless of your trading budget, you'll need to choose a dependable method for depositing and withdrawing funds for your forex account. PayPal has grown in popularity as a way to fund forex trading accounts, due to its extensive international presence and wide range of supported currencies. Head over to our guide to the best PayPal forex brokers to learn more about using PayPal to fund your account, and to see our list of the best forex brokers that accept PayPal.
percent Pro tip:
For most beginners, trading forex with an amount of capital that you can afford to lose can be a great way to learn with less risk, and can be of value if you focus on the percentage returns rather than their dollar value.
Which broker is the best for forex?
IG took first place for our 2024 Annual Awards as the best overall forex broker, with 100 available currency pairs and the ability to trade CFDs and forex options, traders have plenty of choices. IG holds nearly a dozen regulatory licenses (and holds the distinction of being the only forex broker regulated in both Switzerland and the U.S.); simply put, IG is one of the most trusted brokers in the industry.
Who is the biggest forex broker in the world?
IC Markets is the largest forex broker by trading volume, with over $774 billion in forex trading volume in the third quarter of 2021 alone, according to data compiled by Finance Magnates. IC Markets is also well-known as an excellent option for algo trading due to its great pricing and execution. Check out our full-length review of IC Markets, and algo traders (or traders who want to learn about HFT systems) can check out our popular guide to high-frequency trading.
expand What does it mean to be the biggest forex broker?
What can be considered the largest forex broker may vary depending on the time period used to measure size. Important factors to consider when gauging the size of a forex broker are the assets under management, number of clients, and market capitalization (valuation for public companies).
What are the top 10 forex brokers?
Here is a list of the top 10 brokers by forex and CFD trading volume according to data compiled by Finance Magnates during the third quarter of 2021 (data excludes Japan due to the abnormally high trading volumes known to come from Japanese brokers):
Which forex broker has the best trading platform?
CMC Market's Next Generation platform comes with a massive selection of nearly 10,000 tradeable instruments. It delivers a terrific user experience, as well as advanced tools, comprehensive market research, and an excellent mobile app. Hands down, the CMC Markets Next Generation trading platform is a market leader that will impress even the pickiest of traders. The new Dynamic Trading tool allows you to place multiple trades simultaneously, which was a nice innovation by CMC Markets this year.
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smartphone Mobile forex trading
If you're a fan of mobile platforms – or trading forex on the go – see our picks for best forex trading apps here.
Best forex brokers for different styles of trading
What do you value most in a forex broker? Maybe you want to trade forex on the go. You might be looking for the most cost-effective forex brokers. Or maybe you are a beginner forex trader who is just getting started.
With a wide range of forex brokers comes a wide variety of features, specialties, and forex trading platforms. To help you find the best forex broker for what you’re looking for, we’ve listed our top picks for some of the most sought-after features in the forex industry.
- menu_book Great for beginners - IG’s vast selection of educational materials (it even has a mobile app dedicated to trader education, called IG Academy) makes it our top choice for beginner traders. Check out our full guide on the best forex brokers for beginners here.
- smartphone Excellent trading app - Saxo’s SaxoTraderGO mobile app boasts an impressive, intelligent design, paired with an abundance of useful information that makes it easy for traders to make clear-headed decisions, making it our top trading app. Check out our full guide to the best forex trading apps here.
- groups Social copy trading - Interested in following the trades of expert forex traders? eToro deftly merges self-directed trading and copy trading into a sleek, unified trading experience. Copy traders can read our full social copy trading guide here.
- euro Low costs - Of Tickmill’s three accounts (Classic, Pro, and VIP), it was the competitive commission-based pricing for professionals available through its VIP and PRO accounts that helped Tickmill finish 1st overall for Commissions and Fees. Take a look at our full guide dedicated to low-cost and zero spread brokers here.
- app_shortcut MetaTrader - IC Markets’ MetaTrader offering includes an impressive range of third-party research and trading tool plugins, which helped IC Markets earn our pick for the best MetaTrader broker. Read our full MetaTrader guide, and learn more about the newest version of MetaTrader with our guide to the Best MetaTrader 5 Brokers.
- currency_bitcoin Crypto trading - eToro’s large number of available crypto assets helped make it our top broker for crypto trading for our 2024 Annual Awards. Check out my guide that covers crypto trading and the best bitcoin brokers here, or read my guide to the Best Bitcoin ETF brokers.
- laptop_mac Mac Compatible Brokers - Saxo - Streamlined designs and robust trading tools make Saxo’s desktop platform, SaxoTraderPRO, a winner. Mac users should take a look at our guide to the best forex trading platforms for Mac devices.
Which forex broker offers the most CFDs?
Saxo offers the most tradeable CFDs in the industry, with a staggering 60,000+ tradeable symbols available. CFDs, or "contracts for difference," enable traders to speculate whether the price of a stock, forex pair, market index, or commodity will go up or down without taking ownership of the underlying asset. If you’d like to learn more about how CFDs work (and to see our picks for the best CFD trading platforms), check out our full-length guide to the Best CFD Brokers and Trading Platforms.
Which forex broker offers the most currency pairs?
Alongside nearly 10,000 CFDs, CMC Markets offers the most tradeable currency pairs, with 158 pairs that can be quoted both ways (i.e. EUR/USD or USD/EUR), which comes to a total of 316 pairs.
Which forex broker is best for professionals?
As a highly-trusted and regulated global brand, Interactive Brokers (IBKR) provides everything professional traders might need, from advanced trading tools and platform features to competitive pricing across a wide variety of markets, as well as connectivity to over 130 global exchanges. In addition to competitive spreads and low commission-based pricing for forex, Interactive Brokers provides more third-party research than any other broker.
Interactive Brokers continues to innovate its forex trading platform offering with its Impact app for environmental, social, and governance (ESG) investing, alongside the related Impact dashboard available in its Trader Workstation (TWS) desktop and WebTrader platforms.
Professional client status: In today's highly regulated forex world, traders who want to maximize their margin leverage must apply and obtain ESMA's professional client status with their broker. Traders designated as Professionals in the EU do not receive negative balance protection and other consumer safety mechanisms such as eligibility for compensation schemes in the event of a broker's insolvency.
biotech Methodology:
To determine a list of the best forex brokers for professional traders, we broke down each broker's active trading program, and compared all available rebates, tiers, and all-in costs. Trading platforms were then tested for the quality and availability of advanced trading tools frequently used by professionals.
How do I choose a forex broker?
Here is a list of three of the most important factors to keep in mind when choosing an online broker for forex trading.
- First, make sure your broker is properly licensed and regulated. The safety of your deposit is always the top priority.
- Next, compare the account offerings, trading platforms, tools, and investment research provided by each broker.
- Finally, read detailed forex broker reviews to compare pricing and product offerings (e.g., number of forex pairs and CFDs available to trade) to find what is most important to your forex trading and investment needs.
compare_arrowsCompare and choose:
Not sure how to go about choosing a forex broker? Check out our Forex Broker Compare Tool to compare dozens of the biggest forex brokers in the industry and analyze their top tools and features. Our Compare Tool is fed by data gathered by our expert researchers for our forex broker reviews, so you can feel confident you have the most up-to-date information at your fingertips.
How do I know if my forex broker is regulated?
It’s important to make sure that your forex broker is well-trusted and properly regulated in order to avoid forex scams. To see an intuitive, comprehensive directory of highly regarded regulatory agencies, check out our Trust Score page. Also, be sure to check out our in-depth reviews of forex brokers – we detail the regulatory status of each individual forex broker across the international forex landscape.
We’ve also put together a step-by-step guide to help you determine if your forex broker is well-regulated:
- Find its license number: Identify the online broker’s registration number from the disclosure text at the bottom of the broker's homepage.
- Confirm the broker’s public profile: Look up the entity name (i.e. the legal company or brand name) on the regulator's website to validate the registration number.
- Confirm regulatory status: We track, rate, and rank forex brokers across over 20 international regulators, and you can find the official websites of the biggest, most important international regulators on our Trust Score page.
- Global availability: Confirm that the broker can accept clients in your country of residence. If the broker lacks regulation in your home country, it’s still worth checking to see if they can legally accept clients from your country (for example, if the broker is regulated in an alternate jurisdiction that is deemed acceptable).
- Verification: Call the phone number or contact the email address listed on the regulators’ forex broker directory if you have any doubts as to the legitimacy of a website or brand purporting to be regulated.
ForexBrokers.com 2024 Overall Rankings
Now that you've seen our picks for the best forex brokers, check out the ForexBrokers.com Overall Rankings. We've evaluated over 60 forex brokers and the top trading platforms using a testing methodology that's based on 100+ data-driven variables and thousands of data points. Check out our full-length, in-depth forex broker reviews.
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Methodology
At ForexBrokers.com, our evaluations of online brokers and their products and services are based on our collected quantitative data as well as the qualitative observations and qualified opinions of our expert researchers. Each year we publish tens of thousands of words of research on the online forex brokerage industry, and we evaluate dozens of international regulator agencies (click here to learn about how we calculate Trust Score).
Our research team, led by Steven Hatzakis, conducts thorough testing on a range of features, including each broker’s individual products, services, and tools (collecting and validating thousands of data points in the process). We test all available trading platforms for each broker – whether they are proprietary or come from third-party providers – and evaluate them based on a host of data-driven variables.
We also take an in-depth look at each broker’s commissions and fees, such as bid/ask spreads – including the average spread data for some of the most popular forex currency pairs. We research other trading costs, such as inactivity or custody fees, minimum deposit requirements, VIP rebates and/or discounts, and an exhaustive list of other important fee-based data points.
Some of the other important research categories that are factored into our testing include mobile trading accessibility and capability, availability of market research and educational content, and each broker’s overall Trust Score.
All websites and web-based platforms are tested using the latest version of the Google Chrome browser. Our Desktop PCs run Windows 11, and we use MacBook Pro laptops running macOS 12.5 to test trading on the go.
We also test on mobile devices; for Apple, we test using the iPhone XS running iOS 16, and for Android we use the Samsung Galaxy S9+ and Samsung Galaxy S20 Ultra devices running Android OS 13.
All content on ForexBrokers.com is handwritten by a writer, fact-checked by a member of our research team, and edited and published by an editor. Generative AI tools are not a part of our content creation or product testing processes. Our ratings, rankings, and opinions are entirely our own, and the result of our extensive research and decades of collective experience covering the forex industry. Read our Generative AI policy to learn more.
Ultimately, our rigorous data validation process yields an error rate of less than .1% each year, providing site visitors with quality data they can trust. For a full explanation and accounting of our research and testing process, please click here to learn more about how we test.
Forex Risk Disclaimer
There is a very high degree of risk involved in trading securities. With respect to margin-based foreign exchange trading, off-exchange derivatives, and cryptocurrencies, there is considerable exposure to risk, including but not limited to, leverage, creditworthiness, limited regulatory protection and market volatility that may substantially affect the price, or liquidity of a currency or related instrument. It should not be assumed that the methods, techniques, or indicators presented in these products will be profitable, or that they will not result in losses. Read more on forex trading risks.
About the Editorial Team
Steven Hatzakis
Steven Hatzakis is the Global Director of Research for ForexBrokers.com. Steven previously served as an Editor for Finance Magnates, where he authored over 1,000 published articles about the online finance industry. A forex industry expert and an active fintech and crypto researcher, Steven advises blockchain companies at the board level and holds a Series III license in the U.S. as a Commodity Trading Advisor (CTA).
John Bringans
John Bringans is the Senior Editor of ForexBrokers.com. An experienced media professional, John has close to a decade of editorial experience with a background that includes key leadership roles at global newsroom outlets. He holds a Bachelor’s Degree in English Literature from San Francisco State University, and conducts research on forex and the financial services industry while assisting in the production of content.
Joey Shadeck
Joey Shadeck is the Content Strategist and Research Analyst for ForexBrokers.com. He holds dual degrees in Finance and Marketing from Oakland University, and has been an active trader and investor for close to ten years. An industry veteran, Joey obtains and verifies data, conducts research, and analyzes and validates our content.
Blain Reinkensmeyer
Blain Reinkensmeyer has 20 years of trading experience with over 2,500 trades placed during that time. He heads research for all U.S.-based brokerages on StockBrokers.com and is respected by executives as the leading expert covering the online broker industry. Blain’s insights have been featured in the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Forbes, and the Chicago Tribune, among other media outlets.
IG
CMC Markets
FOREX.com
XTB
eToro
AvaTrade
Plus500
Tickmill
FP Markets
Swissquote
Capital.com
AvaTrade
Plus500
OANDA
FXCM
Admirals
Pepperstone
XM Group
FP Markets
FxPro
IC Markets
Markets.com
Tickmill
Fineco Bank
BlackBull Markets
Vantage
HYCM (Henyep Capital Markets)
HFM
ThinkMarkets
FlowBank
DooPrime
Trading 212
BDSwiss
Trade Nation
TMGM
Moneta Markets
Eightcap
MultiBank
ACY Securities
RoboForex (RoboMarkets)
VT Markets
easyMarkets
IronFX
Spreadex
IFC Markets
Trade360
Octa
Axi
TeleTrade
GKFX
Vestle
FXOpen
FXPrimus
Forex4you
GBE brokers
Alpari
TopFX
Libertex (Forex Club)
LegacyFX
FXGT.com
ATFX
Xtrade
