Best Forex Brokers UK 2021 List

Markets.com Offers The Best Trading Tools

Markets.com is an FCA regulated broker that provides an excellent range of unique trading tools and CFDs. As a market maker broker, Markets.com offers commission-free trading on spreads as low as 0.6 pips (EURUSD). The online broker’s full CFD product range includes:

• 67 Forex Pairs
• 27 Commodities
• 41 Indices
• 2031 Shares
• 60 ETFs
• 23 Blends

You can use four different trading platforms to access Markets.com tight no commission spreads. Two proprietary platforms are available, Marketsx and Marketsi, as well as the ever-popular mainstream platforms, MetaTrader 4 (MT4) and MetaTrader 5 (MT5).

Depending on the financial markets you want to access and your style of trading, the broker has a suitable trading platform for you:

• Marketsx – a CFD trading platform that offers advanced tools for fundamental and technical analysis, suits all levels of experience.
• Marketsi – ideal for share trading or if you are looking at medium or long-term investments.
• MetaTrader 4 – a forex trading platform, popular among algorithmic traders.
• MetaTrader 5 – a multi-asset trading platform where you can fully automate traders, ideal for scalping and day trading.

Marketsx

The broker’s proprietary CFD trading platform, Marketsx, provides exclusive trading tools that will help you manage the high risk of trading while developing sophisticated trading strategies.

Sentiment Tools: provides data showing whether the majority of traders are buying or selling. Many brokers offer basic sentiment data, but Marketsx comes with a range of different sentiment trading tools.

I.e. Trends in Trading, Signals, News Trading Sentiment, News Alerts, Trading Analyst Recommendations, Bloggers Opinions and Insider Trades.

Technical Analysis: Marketsx offers an inbuilt charting package that comes with advanced technical analysis tools. The platform also has a Related Instruments feature that calculates the correlation between different financial markets.

Fundamental Analysis: helps you assess micro and macro-economic events that affect asset prices, making it easier to keep up to date with real-time financial news.

I.e Advanced Alerts, Financial Commentary, Dow Jones News and Thomson Reuters Stock Reports.

Marketsi

While Marketsx is geared toward short-term forex and CFD trading, the broker’s other proprietary platform, Marketsi, focuses on share trading.

You can still trade Markets.com full CFD product range, but instead of analysis tools, Marketsi comes with inbuilt features to help you develop diversified share portfolios:

• Investment Strategy Builder: a tool that allows you to filter and search stock markets by sector, index, average daily volume and market cap. The trading tools make it easier to develop diversified portfolios that take into account your risk tolerance and objectives.
• Strategy Template: pre-designed portfolios that suit your risk profile, ranging from conservative to high risk. Markets.com experts create the strategies, ensuring the portfolios are fully diversified across regions, sectors, and asset classes.

Spread Betting

The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) permits UK brokers to offer spread betting services to retail traders based in the UK or Ireland. An alternative to CFD trading, spread betting can provide significant tax benefits as profits are not subject to Capital Gains Tax (CGT).

• CFD Trading in the UK: Profits are subject to CGT but exempt from stamp duty.
• Spread betting in the UK: Exempt from both CGT and stamp duty.

Along with FCA oversight, Markets.com is a public company listed on the London Stock Exchange and part of the FTSE 250 index.

Which UK Forex Trader Should Use Markets.com?

Markets.com is an FCA regulated broker that suits all styles of trading and levels of experience. The online broker offers four different trading platforms, each offering a collection of unique trading tools.

To access Markets.com full CFD product range of over 2,200 financial instruments, along with exclusive sentiment, technical and fundamental trading tools, the broker’s proprietary platform, Marketsx, is a great option for CFD trading. If you want to develop longer-term investments and focus on share trading, Marketsi provides access to proprietary diversification tools.

View Markets.com Review >>Visit Markets.com >>

IG Broker UK Has A Good Trading Platform Range

IG provides a range of retail CFD accounts that are targeted towards retail investors who are wanting to trade forex. The retail investor accounts are available on a range of forex platforms including:

• L2 Dealer
• ProRealTime
• MT4
• IG’s proprietary platform

Each of the forex platforms shown above also come with IG broker UK mobile solutions including a trading app. This allows you to trade forex on-the-go with the core functions needed for a smaller screen. IG also offers spread betting that can have tax benefits for UK residences. You can view the best UK forex trading platform page for more comparisons of brokers based on their forex platform and other features.

IG broker UK is only of the oldest brokers with 45 years of experience. They offer a variety of CFD trading and even interest rates and have VIP accounts for high volume traders. Their FCA company number is 04008957.

What Type Of UK Forex Trader Best Suits IG?

Individuals who want to trade with the largest foreign exchange broker and have the choice of forex platform with the ability to switch should consider IG.

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FxPro Has The Best Forex Broker UK Customer Support

FxPro is a top UK forex broker where clients’ can trade over 70 currency pairs with ultra-tight spreads in addition to Shares, Spot Metals, Spot Energies, Spot Indices, Shares and Futures.

FxPro clients gain access to institutional-grade pricing due to the brokers’ top-tier liquidity providers with No Dealing Desk (NDD) intervention. With NDD Execution and Equinix Data centres in Amsterdam and London, latency is low with the execution time averaging less than 11.06 ms.

FxPro Edge: A Forex Platform designed for Spread Betting

Designed specifically for spread betting, the FxPro Edge platform offers clients’ access to a range of financial instruments within 6 six asset classes. As well as the spread betting platform offering advanced customisation, there are no commission fees and tight spreads.

Alternatively, FxPro clients’ can place traditional orders’ via MetaTrader 4, MetaTrader 5 and cTrader, yet trading conditions may vary with higher spreads and commission fees.

Customer Support

Customer service is considered one of FxPro’s main advantages. The forex and CFD broker provides multilingual support with customer support agents available to help in over 17 languages 24 hours, 5 days a week.

Multilingual Customer Service:

FxPro offers clients’ extensive educational resources to assist with any trading or broker queries’ they may have. On the FxPro website, a library of videos is freely available with ‘How To’ instructions covering topics such as opening and funding an account as well as downloading fx platforms.

For those wanting to reach customer support agents directly, traders’ can request a call back when it suits them, or get instant assistance from FxPro representatives via Live Chat. Free call numbers are available for a range of countries, with clients also able to contact the broker via email. For those wanting to gain advice and information face-to-face, FxPro has offices in the UK, Cyprus, Monaco and the United Arab Emirates.

What Type Of UK Forex Trader Best Suits FxPro?

Traders who are looking for the most awarded broker (70+ UK and international awards) should choose FxPro with core strengths in their customer support, no dealing desk spreads and execution speeds.

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CMC Markets Has The Best Spread Betting Broker

For traders’ wanting to partake in spread betting, CMC Markets offers a wide product range, tight spreads and automated execution. CMC clients’ can go long or short in trades within Forex, Index, Treasury and Commodity markets. Pricing is favourable as gains are subject to fewer taxes than other financial instruments, plus no commission fees as the broker is compensated through the spread.

Tax-efficient Investments

Many UK residents prefer a spread betting broker as profits are tax-free. Profits made from spread betting platform trades are not subject to capital gains tax (CGT) in the United Kingdom, although traders should determine whether profits are subject to other taxes prior to entering high-risk positions. As well as avoiding CGT, spread betting investors’ are not required to pay stamp duty as they do not own the underlying asset. As spread betting is a tax-efficient investment, many traders’ prefer spread betting to buying and selling physical assets.

Risk Management Tools

CMC Markets offer clients’ engaging in spread betting various risk management tools to maximise profits from leveraged positions.

Different order types include:

• Guaranteed stop-loss orders (GSLOs)
• Market orders
• Partially close trades
• Limit and stop entry orders
• Take-profit orders
• Stop-loss orders
• Trailing stop-loss orders
• Boundary orders

It is worth noting that spread betting is only currently available for CMC Markets clients’ who are residing in Ireland or the United Kingdom. CMC Group offers CFD and Spread Betting and is London Stock Exchange-listed with 30 years of experience.

What Type Of UK Forex Trader Best Suits CMC Markets?

Traders who want to try Spread Betting due to the unique tax benefits for UK residents should choose CMC Markets with a trading platform for this type of trading, training guides and the best trade execution speeds.

View CMC Markets Review >>Visit CMC Markets>>

ThinkMarkets Has Forex Broker UK Trader Protection

All the brokers on this page are FCA regulated which means:

• Clients funds are held in a segregated account
• £85,000 cover in the case of an insolvency
• Limited negative balance protection

For the past 5 years, ThinkMarkets offer additional protection up to £1,000,000 insurance ontop of FCA regulation with Lloyds.

It should be noted that retail investor accounts have more FCA protection by default as trading CFDs are complex instruments to those new to trading. Professional traders though have limited protection which is why this extra level would appeal to higher volume experienced foreign exchange traders. ThinkMarkets has two online trading accounts including the standard account and ecn broker ‘Thinkzero’ account with EUR/USD spreads from 0.1 pips.

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Plus500 Has The Top Mobile Forex Trading Platform

Plus500 is a fixed spread forex broker that offers intuitive trading platforms with a range of tools to maximise profits. Various asset classes can be traded, including Forex, Indices, Options, Shares, ETFs and Commodities. The broker is compensated through the spreads, charging no additional flat rate commission fee with low non-trading fees. Plus500 is seen as a trustworthy company as the broker is regulated by FCA (Financial Conduct Authority, UK) as well as other top-tier financial authorities around the globe including ASIC (Australia), FSCA (South Africa), FMA (NZ), MAS (Singapore) and CySEC (Cyprus).

In regards to the UK brokers platforms, Plus500 offers a proprietary webtrader platform as well as apps compatible with iPhone, iPad, smartwatches, Android and Windows devices. The mobile app offers a fully-functional trading environment where users can conduct in-depth analysis, manage accounts and execute trades on over 2000 financial instruments.

The mobile apps design is user-friendly and offers similar features to the Plus500 webtrader app. The mobile app is an easy introduction to forex and CFD trading, with risk management tools available to protect capital when starting out.

Risk Management Tools

Guaranteed Stop:

Ensures a limit on any potential losses by closing positions when price movements are unfavourable.

Trailing Stop:

Positions remain open if prices move in favourable directions yet automatically closes the position if prices move in the opposite direction by a certain amount of pips.

Stop Limit and Stop Loss Price Levels:

Can be added to new, pending or open positions to minimise losses. Traders can set particular rates where positions will automatically close.

Traders Sentiment:

Plus500’s traders’ sentiment feature allows clients’ to easily view traders sentiment for major currency pairs and financial instruments. This tool is helpful to those new to UK forex trading, as traders can gauge the portion of participants buying or selling in a specific market.

Price Alerts:

As well as different order types and sentiment features, Plus500 offers clients excellent alert tools. Price alerts will inform traders when financial instruments reach certain bid or ask prices, while the Change % alert notifies clients’ when a currency pair or a CFD experience an absolute price change reaching a pre-set level.

The Plus500 mobile app is highly regarded among forex traders based on broker reviews. On Google Play, the Plus500 mobile app has over 80,000 reviews with the app receiving a 4.2/5 rating, while the Apple app store also sees the mobile app receiving high praise at 4.2/5 stars from over 2000 reviews.

Plus500 offers an unlimited demo account, that unlike many forex brokers trial accounts, has no time restrictions. A balance of virtual funds is provided to practise strategies, with full functionality of the mobile app available under a demo account.

What Type Of UK Forex Trader Best Suits Plus500?

Individuals on-the-go that don’t have regular access to a computer should consider Plus500 who focuses on mobile trading with apps across platforms and devices.

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Etoro Is The Top UK CFD Broker For Social Trading

eToro UK Ltd is FCA regulated and unique to the other forex brokers in the UK with a focus on:

1. Social Trading
2. Stockbroking
3. CFD Trading

1) Social Trading

eToro created CopyTrader which allows individuals to copy the best traders in the United Kingdom and around the world. When you choose a broker their traders get copied and inserted into your account. This can be then managed in a transparent and simple way. Below shows an example of the social investor’s section of the site. You can allocate a set proportion of your existing funds to copy his or her portfolio. The person you have copied also receives a small incentive from eToro for the more followers they receive.

It should be noted that copy trading is the most popular feature of eToro. They have over 3,000,000+ active traders worldwide providing a plethora of choice when it comes to copying a portfolio. This is assisted through filters based on returns, number of copiers and what markets they like to trade. Another option shown below is market portfolios, trader portfolios and partner portfolios which combines traders, top performance assets or specific strategies.

2) Stockbroking

eToro offers UK residences with a zero commission stockbroking service. This means there are no commissions on shares in markets across the world from the UK, Hong Kong to the USA. There are no limits on the amount traded and free stock analysis from a team of experts.

While there are no commissions, there are fees when it comes to trading shares with eToro. These include conversion fees for most UK residences as the eToro platform uses USD. This means transferring your GBP to eToro for share trading has some currency conversion charges. Additionally, there is a withdrawal fee which is $25 USD. Again, this should be factored into the cost when comparing the top UK broker with other share trading services.

3) CFD Trading

If you’re more familiar with traditional CFD products you can start trading with eToro across shares, commodities, currencies, indices and EFTs. Leverage for retail UK traders is up to 30:1 which is the maximum set by the FCA and the broker sets limits on margin calls. If you qualify for a professional account this can be increased by up to 400:1 leading to a high-risk environment. If trading with either a retail or professional account trying the free demo account first before a high-risk live account is recommended.

What Type Of UK Forex Trader Best Suits eToro?

Individuals who want to copy the trades of selected forex traders and like being part of a social trading community should choose eToro. Just note the broker has higher brokerage in some categories with unique charges such as withdrawal fees. They are regulated by the FCA, MiFID, ASIC and CySEC.

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City Index Is The Best Forex Broker For Beginners In UK

City Index is the best UK forex broker for beginner forex traders based on their low spread only account. Below compares City Index to comparable spread only CFD brokers that don’t charge a commission on trades. Not only does City Index have the lowest spreads but they also require a low initial deposit of £100 to open a trading account.

The broker offers forex traders comprehensive forex training resources, suited to all levels of experience from beginner to advanced traders. This starts with an introduction to CFD markets and moves to advanced trading strategies. There are also webinars and videos to further enhance traders knowledge of forex markets.

City Index has the Financial Conduct Authority Licence 113942 and the parent company is Gain Capital which is regulated in 8 jurisdictions. They have an online forex platform that’s ideal to use for beginner forex traders with the option of micro accounts with an initial deposit requirement of $0.

What Type Of UK Forex Trader Best Suits City Index?

City Index is designed for those new to currency trading with an easy to use forex platform, risk management tools and training. With low spreads, the broker is a good starting point to forex markets.

City Index Review >>Visit City Index >>

XTB Has The Most Advanced Demo Account

XTB is a forex and CFD exchange-listed form that is regulated by the FCA and accepts UK residents. The broker provides comprehensive market access to a range of asset classes, including Forex, Indices, Stocks and ETFs.

Demo Account

For those wanting to explore forex and CFD trading, or test sophisticated trading instruments and strategies, XTB’s free demo account is an excellent educational resource. Demo account users’ are given 4 weeks to practise trading and a virtual balance of ￡100,000.

Demo users’ gain access to an environment very similar to trading with real money without the high risk of losing capital. Over 1500 financial instruments are available to practise with, including Forex, Index, Commodity and Share CFDs.

Trading strategies can be tested on XTB’s proprietary platform xStation or MetaTrader 4, depending on a demo account users’ trading needs and preferences. Both MT4 and xStation offer mobile apps, allowing traders to explore financial markets on the go.

Educational Resources

As well as the benefits of a demo account for both beginner and advanced traders’, XTB offers a range of educational resources to gain confidence. The XTB website provides videos explaining trading strategies, trading instruments and forex platforms as well as live webinars. Educational resources are separated into experience levels, ensuring there is useful information for all levels of experience by providing Basic, Intermediate, Expert and Premium content.

Once demo account users’ feel confident buying and selling financial instruments with real money, traders’ can choose between Standard, Pro and Islamic Account structures depending on preferences surrounding commission fees, minimum deposits, leverage, and swap fees.

What Type Of UK Forex Trader Best Suits XTB?

If you are unfamiliar with forex and CFD markets or looking to trial different trading strategies in a risk-free environment then XTB is recommended with an unlimited demo account available across a number of advanced platforms.

XTB Review >>Visit XTB >>

FXCM Offers The Most Currency Pairs

With over 80 currency pairs and a range of CFDs, FXCM is an excellent option for UK investors’ wanting to start trading CFDs as well as major, minor and exotic currency pairs. In addition to an extensive selection of financial instruments covering Index, Share, Commodity, and currency asset classes, FXCM offers a Direct Market Access (DMA) account type where spreads are similar to an ECN environment.

Account Types and Platforms

FXCM Account

Designed for the brokers proprietary fx platforms, an FXCM account type offers all-inclusive spreads and a choice of platforms. Depending on a traders’ preferences and needs, orders can be placed through an advanced platform, web platform or mobile platform. All options allow for multiple order types, comprehensive technical analysis and a range of trading tools.

MetaTrader Account

A MetaTrader account is aimed towards traders wanting to use the gold standard of trading platforms, MetaTrader 4 (MT4). MT4 users’ also trade all-inclusive spreads, with all commission fees included in the spread.

Benefits of a MetaTrader account include:

• Automated trading functionality including Expert Advisors
• Android, iPad and iPhone specific MT4 apps
• Tools such as Autochartist, Reuters news and in-house research

DMA Account

FXCM’s DMA Account means clients’ can trade at institutional-grade pricing with spreads as low as 0.1 pips on major forex pairs due to the brokers’ top-tier liquidity providers. When using a DMA Account type, customers pay a fixed commission fee yet lower spreads then the brokers’ all-inclusive account types. Although trades can be made at ECN-like pricing, there are certain restrictions with a DMA Account. Users’ can only trade forex financial instruments, and execute trades on the brokers proprietary platform.

Benefits of a DMA account include:

• Priority customer support
• A dedicated Market Strategist to assist with trading strategy development and risk management
• Reduced account costs such as waivered fees on wire transfers

What Type Of UK Forex Trader Best Suits FXCM

Those looking to trade not just forex majors but also exotic currency pairs and rare Contracts for Difference should choose Forex.com based on the large range of forex and CFDs available with the online broker.

View FXCM Review >>Visit FXCM