The United Kingdom has the largest number of forex traders globally. And the number keeps increasing due to trading friendly environment and supporting rules.
Many people in the UK start trading in currencies every day. However, selecting the right broker with so many options became difficult. But do not worry; your trading assistance, Market Investopedia, is there for you. Let us discuss the top brokers in the UK with pros and cons.
Best Forex Trading Platform UK
The UK is home to the best and the most reputed financial brokers. Our team has analyzed these platforms on different parameters and prepared a list of top picks:
IG Group
IG Group is a leading and most reputed platform for trading in forex and other related assets. The platform is suitable for trading in the UK as well as in any other country where forex trading is legal. With the UK’s financial authority FCA, the broker has a license from many Tier 1 and Tier 2 jurisdictions.
The broker is amongst the oldest, established in 1974. It has a client base of 3,60,00 traders globally. It offers a web trading platform, especially for UK traders. Traders can access economic calendars, news, webinars, educational courses, signals, and analytical tools on the platform.
Pros
- Negative balance protections
- Educational resources, real-time chart analysis tools and indicators.
- Spread betting profit is tax-free for UK citizens.
- Commission-free trading.
Cons
- High CFD trading fees.
- Customer service is not available 24/7.
SAXO Bank:
SAXO Bank has a license from the UK’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), the Australian Securities & Investment Commission (ASIC), the Securities Futures Commission (SFC), the Japanese Financial Services Authority (JFSA), the Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority (FINMA), and many others. The regulations from top-tier institutions make Saxo Bank the most secure option to trade with.
With over thirty years of experience providing financial services, SAXO Bank offers over 60,000 tradable instruments. The broker has apps like SaxoTraderPro, Saxo Rewards, SaxoStrats, etc. These apps are designed to understand different traders’ needs and provide all of them at a single destination. Traders can choose SAXO bank to trade in forex, cryptocurrencies, indices, futures, options, commodities, bonds, metals, and stocks.
Pros
- Wide range of forex accounts.
- Commission free trading
- Segregated clients’ accounts and guaranteed stop-loss feature.
Cons
- Minimum Deposit of $2000
- Most of the premium features are for VIP Accountholders
- Inactivity Fees
A quick glance
Is forex trading legal in the UK? Yes, forex trading is legal in the U.K. and controlled by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). The FCA mandates that brokers receive sufficient licensing and authorization in order to legally offer forex trading to clients.
With an average pay of £67,300 annually, a Fx Trader in the London area is expected to make £152, 163 year total. Based on wages gathered from our customers, these figures show the median—that is, the midpoint of the ranges using our proprietary Total Pay Estimate algorithm.
There are various crucial elements to consider when choosing an online broker, such as account kinds, available markets, costs and fees, trading hours, and more.
For instance, if the margin requirement is 20%, you would need to deposit £200 to open a position worth £1000 in shares; if the margin requirement is 5% for indices, you would need to deposit £50 to open a position at £1000; and if the margin requirement is 3% for forex, you would need to deposit £30 to open a position worth £1000.
The minimum initial deposit required is at least $100. However, we urge you deposit at least $2,500 to provide you greater freedom and better risk management when trading your account. For additional information, read our Funding FAQs. Was this answer helpful?
Forex.com:
Forex.com is popular as the best forex broker platform for beginners in the UK due to its exceptional educational resources. It’s an award-winning broker with tight spreads and low commissions. Traders can trade in forex, stock, indices, and commodities. With 20 years of experience, it has a global customer base of over 10,00,000 clients.
The broker is based in the USA and regulated by strict guidelines of the Nation. So, it is amongst the most trusted and secure platforms to trade. The fee structure is transparent, and traders can get all the information related to fees on the website.
Pros
- Real-time analysis, economic calendars, expert insights and educational tools.
- Over 200 indicators and 80 charting tools.
- Great customer support.
- Demo Account facility for 30 days.
Cons
- Inactivity fees.
- $100 Minimum Deposit
- Not for copytraders
Pepperstone:
Pepperstone is another leading option in the UK, with a community of over 6,00,000 traders. Tight spreads, fast order execution, premium educational resources, and local and international support are its key features. Traders can even find real-time market insights through blogs on the website. It will help them understand the dynamic financial markets and make informed trade decisions.
Pepperstone is the best forex broker in the UK for MetaTrader 4 users. The broker allows traders to use a range of Expert advisors, tools, indicators and backtesting software available on Meta Trader 4 (MT4). It even has trading view integration, so traders can use a range of charting software and indicators to analyze the market.
Pros
- Trading webinars and videos
- Multiple copy trading and algo trading are available
- No Minimum Deposit
Cons
- Only 1385 tradable instruments
- The demo account facility available for a limited days
Beirman Capital:
Beirman Capital is amongst the best forex brokers in the UK for MetaTrader 5 (MT5) users. Traders can trade CFD products, including forex, cryptocurrencies, indices, stocks, ETFs, and NDFs. They can get numerous forex trading account options, including demo, Islamic, standard and raw spreads. The platform offers great transaction speed, making it suitable for high-frequency strategies such as day trading or scalping.
Being a new broker, Beirman Capital offers numerous discounts and welcome bonuses to increase its customer base. Also, traders can get a leverage of upto 1:1000; however, complying with UK guidelines, the broker only offers a leverage of upto 1:30 to UK citizens.
Pros
- Low Cost Trading
- Demo Account Facility
- Round-the-clock customer support
Cons
- $100 USD Minimum Deposit
Oanda:
Oanda is a leading broker with a license from around seven top-tier financial jurisdictions. The platform was founded in 1996 and is headquartered in New York.
The best part about this broker is that it charges only in the form of spreads. Even the spreads of almost every currency pair are available on the website. So, traders do not need to pay any commission and can trade with transparent pricing.
Pros
- No minimum deposit requirement
- Prop trading facility
- API, research tools and indicators
Cons
- Only 3928 trading instruments are available
- Crypto CFD trading is not available for UK residents
- Withdrawal and inactivity fees
CMC Markets
CMC Markets is one of the oldest broker platforms, founded in 1989. Traders can trade in over 10,000 trading assets, including 158 currency pairs. They can get access to numerous fundamental and technical analysis tools.
The broker is among the most cost-competitive, with tight spreads, low commissions, and transparent trading fees. It offers numerous risk management and account protection tools, including guaranteed stop-loss, negative balance protection, segregated funds accounts and others.
Pros
- 24/5 customer support.
- Backtesting and automated trading tools.
- No minimum balance requirements.
Cons
- Withdrawal Fees.
- Lack of educational resources.
FX Pro:
FX Pro was founded in 2006. The broker serves over 173 countries and has a client base of around 1.8 million. It has a license from top-tier institutions, including FCA, Mifid in Europe, and two others. Traders can trade in over 2100 instruments, including forex, commodity, indices, and crypto.
Traders looking for highly advanced technologies and analytical tools can go for the platform. The broker offers around 56 indicators and numerous drawing tools for chart analysis. It also provides apps and software for copy traders. Overall, the broker is suitable for beginner, intermediate, and highly advanced traders who have diverse strategies.
Pro
- Blogs, webinars, video tutorials and education content
- Raw, Elite and Standard accounts
- Spread betting for traders in the UK
- News, market analysis and research material
Cons
- Comparatively high fees
- Inactivity fees
Interactive Brokers:
Interactive Broker is a New Zealand-based broker for trading stocks, forex, ETFs, futures, bonds, and options. The platform is quite popular for low-cost trading, and it has two plans: IBKR Pro and IBKR Lite. The IBKR Pro is for professional traders, and the IBKR Lite is for beginner or passive traders.
Interactive brokers offer robust charting tools, such as over 90 indicators and 80 drawing tools. It even provides an IBKR Desktop platform specially designed for professional traders. The IBKR desktop has mutltisort screener, exceptional customization features, advanced order types, trader workshop, tax optimizer and advisor platform.
Pros
- Best paper trading accounts
- Discount and bonus offers
- Negative balance protections
Cons
- Withdrawal fees
- Hectic account opening process
Tickmill:
With a license from the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), the European Union Organization, and MiFID, Tickmill is the best forex broker platform in the UK. The broker stands out in providing trading content in the form of videos, webinars, and courses. Also, the content is available in multiple languages so traders can learn the language they are comfortable with.
Tickmill can be most suitable for scalping, copy trading, and algo trading strategies. Traders can get a range of copy trading or algo trading tools and apps on it. The platform has even received awards such as Most Trusted Broker in Europe, Most Transparent Broker, and others, making it a reliable option to start trading. The broker offers high leverage, upto 1:500, to traders. However, due to UK region guidelines, the ratio is upto 1:30 for European traders.
Pros
- No inactivity and withdrawal fees.
- Wide range of technical analysis tools.
Cons
- Limited trading instruments.
- Minimum Deposit of $50,000 for VIP accounts.
- High Trading Fees
Factors to look at when selecting a broker in the UK:
We have discussed the best broker platforms in the UK and their pros and cons. The UK is the hub of financial institutions; traders can even go for options other than these top ones. However, for selecting the ideal broker, a trader needs to analyze the below-mentioned factors:
Regulations: Regulation is the most crucial factor when choosing a broker in the UK or any other country. There are numerous financial institutions with different trust scores globally. Brokers may have licenses from different institutions based on their country of origin.
The registered institutions throw light on the trustworthiness of a broker platform. A broker registered under the Financial Conduct Authority is considered the best to trade with for UK traders. Many brokers claim they are registered with FCA but are not.
To check FCA regulations, traders simply visit the FCA site and enter the broker register number. Traders can get broker register numbers from their official website, generally in the About Us section.
Also, apart from FCA, a broker registered under the European Union Organization, MIFID, or tier 1 financial institutions is good to go. UK traders can go for international and national brokers; just make sure the broker has a license from reputable financial authorities.
Leverage: There is a chance of losing your money when trading CFDs. And the probability of losing money rapidly due to leverage is high. Thus, to safeguard traders’ interests, the FCA only allows brokers to give a leverage of 1:30 to UK traders.
Traders may find numerous platforms claiming to be the best forex broker in the UK with high leverage. These platforms may provide leverage up to 1:500 or 1:1000, but in reality, they do not follow the guidelines of UK financial institutions. In case of any mishap, traders cannot even complaint about these brokers at the regional institutions. So check the leverage ratio when selecting a broker and avoid a broker with high leverage.
Fees and Commission: The forex trading platforms earn through spreads or commissions. The trading fee structure differs from broker to broker. Some brokers charge spreads, some only charge commission and some charge in combination and spreads. So analyze a broker fee structure properly before subscribing to its services.
The spreads differ from currency pair to pair, and the spread information is available on broker sites. Even the commission percentage is mentioned for trading different assets. Traders can visit broker sites and check, analyze and compare the fee structure. Apart from these, check the withdrawal fees, inactivity fees, swap charges or charges for using any tools or services.
Trading instruments: The number of currency pairs available is different on different platforms. Also, some forex brokers offer commodities, cryptocurrencies, stocks, indices, ETFs, NDFs, and many other instruments. So when choosing a broker, examine the asset classes available for trading. And check whether the assets you want to trade are available or not.
Account types: Generally, with Forex broker platforms, traders can find standard, raw, ECN, VIP, Islamic and Demo accounts. Each account has different features for different traders and uses varied strategies.
Ensure your broker provides a demo account facility for a significant period. It will help you analyze the broker platform, and its features and learn trading in the live market environment. In addition, mostly Muslim traders trade in Islamic accounts, so if you need such accounts, check their availability.
Account Protection Features: The most essential element in selecting a broker is client protection features. Forex trading involves a significant risk of losing money, and traders can even lose the amount more than their capital. According to UK financial authorities guidelines, a broker should provide a negative balance feature for serving its citizens.
With a negative balance, traders will not lose more money than their account balance. Also, segregated funds accounts and guaranteed stop loss are some features that brokers offer to safeguard clients. Go for a broker that provides these risk management tools to ensure the safety of the funds.
Education Materials and Analytical Tools: Novice traders look for educational content to enhance their knowledge. Reputed brokers provide trading courses, webinars, video tutorials, articles, blogs and many other resources. And they do not even charge any fees for such facilities.
In addition, traders even need tools to organize technical and fundamental analyses. These may include access to economic tools, market reports, live charts, indicators, and drawing tools. Also, to practice copy trading or algo trading, you may need to copy trading apps, expert advisors tools and backtesting software. So check whether your broker is offering these tools.
Bottom Line
The UK is the best place to get started on your forex trading journey. And the best place becomes great when you have the right broker. A broker acts as a bridge between the financial market and the trader. The stronger the bridge is, the better the journey will be.
Even the best broker trading platform in the UK will not be ideal for you if it does not match your requirements. So first, identify what you need from a broker and then analyze whether a platform serves your needs.
Also, scams in the name of forex trading platforms are at their peak these days. So when choosing a broker, check the regulations first and confirm the license with the financial authority.
Trading already involves the risk of losing money, and with the unregulated platforms, it further increases. A little awareness or analysis can save you from broker scams.
If you are still confused about which forex broker to go to, contact us. Our team watches the market 24/7 and can assist you in broker selection. Please select the most ideal broker for you with us.