In this guide, we go over the best forex brokers in UK. We have analysed and evaluated 174 forex brokers in 8 different categories. We measured all aspects of their service including trading platforms, fees, mobile trading, deposits & withdrawals, assets, regulation, research & education and customer support.
Forex brokers that reached the highest scoring are considered in the following list:
Best Forex Brokers UK
- AVAtrade – Best forex broker overall with a high trust score
- Forex.com – Best trading tools and forex trading features
- XM – Best forex broker for beginner and intermediate traders
- Saxo Bank – Best forex broker for advanced users and research
- Interactive Brokers – Best forex broker for advanced users
- Pepperstone – Best forex broker with low trading fees and customer support
Best Forex Brokers for citizens in UK
| BROKER | GENERAL INFO | SCORE | BEST FOR | MIN. DEPOSIT | |
| #1 | AVAtrade | Best overall offer | 4.9/5 | Low spreads | $100 |
| #2 | Forex.com | Best features | 4.9/5 | Tools and features | $100 |
| #3 | XM | Best for forex trading | 4.8/5 | Different assets | $5 |
| #4 | Saxo Bank | Best for premium traders | 4.8/5 | Forex trading | $10,000 |
| #5 | Interactive Brokers | Best Overall Broker | 4.8/5 | Overall trading experience | $0 |
| #6 | Pepperstone | Lowest trading fees | 4.7/5 | Low fees | $0 |
Find below a breakdown of the best forex brokers in UK, beginning with the best – AVAtrade.
01. AVAtrade: Best Forex Broker Overall
AVAtrade takes the first place as the best forex broker for UK traders. They have a intuitive and sophisticated trading platform and mobile trading app that supports over 50 different forex currency pairs.
Deposits and withdrawals are free of charge. The minimum deposit is $100. Choose AVAtrade if you are a beginner or semi advanced forex trader, looking to trade major forex currency pairs as CFD’s with a authorised forex broker.
02. Forex.com: Best Forex Trading Platforms and Features
Forex.com finishes up on second place with the best forex trading platform. Their multi-asset, features-rich trading platform offers a wide range of proprietary platforms, advanced social trading features and great asset coverage. Forex.com offers trading on over 4500 different CFDs as stock, cryptos, currencies and access to 5500 tradable symbols overall.
Their overall great offer makes this forex and CFD broker a good choice for traders at all levels.
03. Saxo Bank: Best Selection Of Tradable Assets
Saxo Bank finishes up on third place as the forex brokers with the best asset coverage. They offer a superb trading platform offering all the industry leading trading features, tools and research materials. Their offer of over 40.000 tradable symbols and 30.000 securities makes them an industry leader in forex trading assets coverage.
If you can afford the minimum deposit of $10.000 for UK citizens, this is the go to forex broker for traders and investors at all levels.
UK based forex traders who want to trade in accordance to the Sharia Law can open up an islamic account. Saxo Bank also offers a great customer support in Arabic language via phone, email or in person in their local UK office.
04. XM.com: Best USA Forex Broker For Market Research and Education
XM finished on third place as the broker with the best selection of market research and educational materials. They are a MetaTrader-only forex broker offering auto-trading, fast order executions, multiple order types, and no hidden commissions. We recommend this brokers for beginner traders, because of their low entry level and great educational content.
This broker offers limited regulatory protection.
05. Interactive Brokers: Lowest Trading Fees
Interactive Brokers is a great overall pick for UK traders. It is a high trusted company with an industry leading trading platform, a competitive fee structure and great global market access. Their low entry level and the Global Trader platform, which is intuitive and easy to use trading station, make this broker s great choice for beginners and advanced forex traders living in UK.
06. Pepperstone: Best MetaTrader and cTrader Forex Broker
Pepperstone is a trusted Forex and CFD broker well know for its support of multiple copy trading platforms, great variety of tradable assets and a enormous research and education section. The combined offering of cTrader, MetaTrader and various social trading features makes this broker s great fit for copy traders and algorithmic traders.
Pepperstone is available through 24/5 phone and online chat support plus offers an extensive FAQ web section, and e-mail.
How To Choose a Regulated Forex Broker?
The main criteria to consider when choosing a regulated forex brokers in UK include: trading platforms, fees, mobile trading, deposits & withdrawals, assets, regulation, research & education and customer support.
Fees: Avoid brokerage accounts with high fees on trades, overnight fees and hidden fees.
Trading platforms: Look for intuitive, easy to use and fast executing forex trading platforms.
Mobile Trading: Mobile trading apps should offer the same trading tools and charts as their web versions.
Deposit & Withdrawal: Choose an broker that offers your preferred deposit and withdrawal option with low fees.
Assets: Look for the best coverage of asset classes and currency pairs. Forex broker who does not offer major currency pairs should be voided.
Regulation: Only choose tier one, DFSA regulated forex brokers.
Research & education: Beginner and average forex traders and investors should choose a broker with research and education tools including: weekly webinars, daily news updates, personal account manager, personal training and room access.
Customer support: Beginner forex traders should look out for responsive and professional customer support available in their language.
Islamic Accounts: All of the brokers from our list of the best forex brokers in UK offer an islamic account option. This gives the user to trade forex in compliance to the Sharia law.
Forex Trading in UK
Forex trading and spread betting are very popular in the UK. There are many online brokers and forex trading platforms available to UK residents. Tax regulation for traders and investors is ambiguous and comes with many benefits. Gains made with spread betting or CFD trading is not taxed. The first £1,000 yearly forex trading profits are tax-free, whilst the rest of your forex trading profits are taxed at a 10% capital gains tax if you are a basic-rate taxpayer or 20% if you are a higher-rate taxpayer.
The UK financial markets are regulated by the FCA and are easy to join as a beginner. Traders and investors are protected by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme. This scheme covers the back of UK traders and investors up to £20,000 in case of the broker going bankrupt. UK citizens can use offshore brokerage services to trade forex with higher leverage and trade financial instruments not offered by United Kingdom-based brokers like some digital coins and options.
Forex Trading Regulation in UK
The Financial Conduct Authority is the main financial regulatory body in UK. It protects consumers, keeps the industry stable, and prevents insider trading and other sorts of investment fraud. Founded in 2013 as an independent organisation it oversees the whole UK financial market. Brokers who offer trading and investment services to UK citizens have to apply for a license with them. Companies must comply with strict AML and ATF laws and pay a yearly membership fee to the FCA to obtain a license.
How to Check Authorisation
You can verify the validity of a forex broker license in the United Kingdom by going to the official website of the Financial Conduct Authority and checking the Financial Services Register for the name of the broker you want to trade or invest with. If its name doesn’t show up in the database, the broker or trading platform is unlicensed and we don’t recommend trading with them. You will be better off trading with one of the best forex brokers in UK mentioned in this guide.
Whenever a forex broker is based abroad, you can check the validity of their license by going to the official websites of international regulators including, but not limited to the ASIC, CySEC, BaFIN, and FCA, and checking their Registered Entities listings.
Summary
We have compared 174 forex brokers in 8 major categories including: trading platforms, fees, mobile trading, deposits & withdrawals, assets, regulation, research & education customer support and sharia law compliance.
According to our research, AVAtrade is the best forex broker for UK residents. Beside its great overall offer, it has a competitive fee structure , advanced trading tools, copy trading features and a responsive customer support in Arabic language.
Forex.com is the best UK forex broker for high volume traders based on their reliable trade execution, overall low fees and big variety of tradable assets.
FAQ
Is forex trading legal in UK?
Forex trading is legal in the UK. It is regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA).
Is forex trading taxable in UK?
Yes, the first £1,000 yearly forex trading profits are tax-free, whilst the rest of your forex trading profits are taxed at a 10% capital gains tax if you are a basic-rate taxpayer or 20% if you are a higher-rate taxpayer. There are no stamp duties on CFDs.
Where can I trade forex in UK?
You can trade forex in UK with domestic forex brokers who have a valid FCA license or with any offshore broker offering services to UK residents.
Methodology
The mission of Business24-7 is to provide comprehensive, unbiased ratings and reviews of the best forex brokers. Trading platform, fees, mobile trading, payments, assets, regulation,
education and research are all part of our six-month evaluation of a broker’s account.The rating scale was based on thousands of data points that have been weighted into the scoring system. Brokerages were required to fill out a multi-point survey regarding every aspect of their platform. In-person demonstrations and evaluations were provided by the majority of the online brokers we reviewed. Stefan Grasic, along with our team of industry experts, conducted our reviews and developed this methodology for ranking what form is used in online investing.
Disclaimer
All trading involves risk. More than 80% of investors lose in spread bet and CFD trading. As these complex instruments allow for the use of leverage, there is a high risk of losing more money than you have deposited. Before attempting to participate in spread bets and CFDs, consider how well you understand them and if you can afford to lose your money.
