There are many forex brokers available for UK clients, but which ones offer the lowest spreads? Here is a summary of the top 10 brokers with the lowest spreads in UK.

Low Spread Forex Brokers in UK

The United Kingdom is one of the largest economies globally, with London serving as a high-liquidity global financial center. The forex market in London is one of the most active globally.

Additionally, the British Pound Sterling (GBP) is a major currency widely traded in the forex market. It's no wonder that trading activities are highly popular among the British population to this day.

Concerning forex brokers, the UK has stringent regulations under the supervision of the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). Numerous brokers offer attractive options with the lowest spreads.

However, some UK low spread forex brokers stand out among others:

  1. HF Markets: offering zero spread with no minimum deposit required.
  2. Pepperstone: low commissions and a 0-pip spread for EUR/USD and GBP/USD.
  3. ThinkMarkets: zero spread applies not only to EUR/USD but also to various major and cross pairs.
  4. Admirals: 0-pip spread for EUR/USD and a minimum deposit of $1.
  5. FXOpen: providing low spreads as low as 0.1 pips for major pairs.
  6. Plus500: there's a spread as low as 0.13 with no commission at all.
  7. Vantage Markets: imposing spreads around 0.2 - 0.5 pips for EUR/USD and GBP/USD.
  8. IG: spreads range from 0.6 to 0.9, with no commission and no minimum deposit.
  9. OANDA: spreads for major pairs start from 1 pip without commission fees.
  10. eToro: implementing fixed spreads of 1-2 pips for the most liquid pairs with no commission.

Why are these brokers better than others with the lowest spreads? Several factors contribute to this, such as regulations and the presence of physical offices. Before delving into each broker, let's first understand these factors.

 

Things to Consider when Choosing Low Spread Broker in the UK

There are several important considerations to keep in mind before selecting a forex broker for trading in the UK. Some of them include:

 

FCA Regulation

The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) is the primary regulatory body ensuring brokers' compliance with security and transparency standards in the UK. Since you are a UK resident, opting for an FCA-regulated forex broker is a must to ensure your security.

 

Having an Office in the UK

Next, it's advisable to choose an FCA-regulated broker that has a local office in the UK. This is particularly beneficial in situations where you face issues with the broker, especially if the problems cannot be resolved online.

If the broker has an office in the UK, you can easily visit it to resolve your problem more effectively. Moreover, the presence of a broker's physical office leaves a more trustworthy impression because you can witness its operational activities firsthand.

 

Offering the Lowest Spread for EUR/USD and GBP/USD

EUR/USD and GBP/USD are the most liquid currency pairs in the market. Both are frequently traded and are favorites among many traders due to their relatively stable volatility, unlike cross or exotic pairs that often experience sudden spikes or plunges.

So, if you're opting for a broker with the lowest spread, pay attention to the spread on these two pairs to gauge it. The lower the spread you have to pay, the more cost-effective your trading expenses will be.

 

Top 10 Lowest Spread Forex Brokers in UK

Based on the criteria mentioned above, the following 10 forex brokers have emerged as the best for UK clients. Let's review one by one.

 

1. HF Markets

  • FCA regulation number: 801701
  • Status: Authorised since 14/11/2018
  • Office address in the UK: Bloomsbury Building, 10 Bloomsbury Way, Holborn, London, WC1A 2SL
  • Office telephone number: +44 2035199890
  • Email for complaint: [email protected]
  • Spread for EUR/USD and GBP/USD: 0 pips

First, there is the broker HF Markets or HFM, which has been in the trading world since 2010. This broker has many regulations besides FCA, including CySEC, FSA Seychelles, FSC Mauritius, SVG FSA, Dubai, and FSCA.

UK clients can enjoy variable zero spreads in HF Markets' Zero Account. Overall, this CySEC-regulated broker offers three types of accounts besides the Zero Account: Pro, Cent, and Premium accounts.

Although the spread in the Pro account is not zero, it is still relatively low, at 0.6 for EUR/USD and GBP/USD. Meanwhile, for Cent and Premium accounts, the spread for EUR/USD is 1.4 pips, and for GBP/USD, it is 1.6 pips.

The broker also provides a feature called negative balance protection to safeguard clients' accounts and their funds. You can enjoy forex trading and various other assets with leverage as high as 1:2,000 at HF Markets.

Website
Established
2010
Leverage
1:2000
Min Deposit
$0
Regulation
Capital Markets Authority of Kenya, CySEC, DFSA (Dubai), FCA, FSA (Seychelles), SVGFSA, FSC (Mauritius), FSCA
Bonus offers
Trading contests
Free education
Personal manager
Trading by telephone
PAMM
Segregated accounts
Managed accounts
Affiliate program
Islamic accounts available
Compensation scheme
Negative balance protection
VPS
Copy trading
FasaPay
Neteller
Skrill
WebMoney
Wire transfer

HF Markets is an award-winning forex and commodities broker. Established since 2010, the company provides trading services and facilities to both retail and institutional clients. For more than 9 years in business, HF Markets has around 1,500,000 live accounts opened and 200 employees globally.

Based on its services, HF Markets can be regarded as middle-class category. Clients do not need to prepare a big deposit for joining to trade with this broker. Also, there are various account types, trading software, and tools to facilitate individuals and institutional customers to trade forex and CFD online.

HF Markets is a registered brand name of HF Markets (Europe). Based on the location, the company is regulated by various financial regulators. Here are the details:

  • HF Markets (SV) Ltd, registered in St. Vincent & the Grenadine as an International Business Company with the registration number 22747 IBC 2015.
  • HF Markets (Europe), authorized and regulated by the Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (CySEC) with Licence Number 183/12.
  • HF Markets SA (PTY), is authorized and regulated as a Financial Service Provider (FSP) by the Financial Sector Conduct Authority (FSCA) in South Africa, under license number 46632.
  • HF Markets (Seychelles), incorporated under the laws of the Republic of Seychelles with registration number 8419176-1, regulated by the Seychelles Financial Services Authority (FSA) under Securities Dealer Licence number SD015.
  • HF Markets (DIFC) Ltd, authorized and regulated by the Dubai Financial Services Authority (DFSA) under license number F004885.
  • HF Markets (UK) Ltd, authorized and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) under firm reference number 801701.

If traders have more experienced, knowledgeable, and sophisticated trading environment, they can join to become Professional Clients, who can manage and assess their own risks. For that reason, these kinds of clients are granted access to more favorable rates but afforded lesser regulatory protections than retail clients.

Trading with HF Markets can enable traders to access a variety of trading instruments like CFDs on Forex, Cryptocurrencies, spot metals (gold, silver, and others), energies (oil and gas), commodities (such as coffee, copper, and sugar), indices, bonds, and popular shares such as Google, Apple, and Facebook.

HF Markets offers some of the tightest spreads in the market, starting from 0 pips in Zero Account. This broker quote major foreign exchange currency pairs to five decimal places. Therefore, traders have the opportunity to get more accurate pricing and the best possible spreads.

HF Markets receives numerous highly prestigious titles, including the huge honor of being ed to join the ranks of the World Finance Top 100 Global Companies. Others are Best Client Funds Security Global by Global Brands Magazine, Best Global Forex Copy Trading Platform by Global Forex Awards 2019, Fastest Growing Forex Broker Mena 2019 by International Business Magazine, and many more.

After opening an account in HF Markets, traders will obtain various forex trading platforms to accommodate all of their trading demands. Whether traders like to trade on desktop or prefer to trade on-the-go, they can use MetaTrader 4 on desktop (terminal, multi-terminal, and web terminal) and phone (iPhone, iPad, and Android).

Clients' funds are held in segregated accounts. Only major banks are used by Markets because they believe that successful traders have to give their full attention to their trading rather than worrying about the safety of their funds.

Traders do not need to worry about transaction fees when depositing and withdrawing. Transaction fees are not charged, and diversity of payment methods enable them to choose between Wire Transfer, Bank Card, and online payments (Neteller, iDeal, Sofort Banking, and Skrill). HF Markets ensures that traders make fast transactions 24/5 during the standard hours.

Traders can earn extra income by joining the affiliate program offered by Markets. Clients who join this program will get some advantages, such as 60% of Net Spreads based on the volume traded by sub-clients, up to $15 per a lot of net revenue, and many more. More information about HF Markets can be obtained on their official website which is supported in 27 languages.

From the review above, it can be concluded that HF Markets is one of the award-winning forex and commodities brokers. There are various account types traders can choose in HF Markets, and the broker itself becomes a favorite among traders for its low spreads. This condition is very suitable for traders with limited funds and a desire to get more opportunities to gain maximum profit.

 

2. Pepperstone

  • FCA regulation number: 684312
  • Status: Authorised since 05/08/2015
  • Office address in the UK: 70 Gracechurch Street, London, EC3V 0HR
  • Office telephone number: +44 8000465473
  • Email for complaint: [email protected]
  • Spread for EUR/USD and GBP/USD: 0 pips

The next recommended broker with the lowest spread in the UK is Pepperstone. This multi-regulated broker has been in operation since 2010 and obtained its FCA license five years later.

Pepperstone offers two types of accounts: Razor and Standard accounts. To trade EUR/USD and GBP/USD with zero spreads, you need to open a Razor account. Meanwhile, the floating spread in the Standard account for both forex pairs is 1 pips.

There is no minimum deposit required to start trading with Pepperstone. Regarding leverage, you can take advantage of a maximum leverage of 1:500 for forex trading.

Website
Established
2010
Leverage
1:400
Min Deposit
$0
Regulation
ASIC, BaFin, Capital Markets Authority of Kenya, CySEC, DFSA (Dubai), FCA, SCB
Free education
Trading by telephone
PAMM
MAM
Segregated accounts
Affiliate program
Islamic accounts available
Compensation scheme
Negative balance protection
Low spread eur/usd
VPS
Trading via API
Copy trading
Webinar
PayPal
Wire transfer
Neteller
Skrill

Pepperstone was founded in 2010 by a team of experienced traders with a shared commitment to improve the world of online trading. Based in Melbourne, Australia, they grew to become one of the largest forex brokers in the world. If traders want to find a broker that provides low spreads, fast execution, and award-winning support, then the answer is Pepperstone.

Pepperstone has a strong legality guarantee because it has been licensed by the Australian regulator ASIC and FCA. Traders' funds can be deposited in segregated accounts at top Australian banks, one of which is the National Australia Bank (NAB). Therefore, the safety of funds is not a concern if a trader chooses to open an account in Pepperstone.

They succeeded in collaborating with 23 top banks to bring Bid to investors instantly via optical fiber. This allows all orders to be executed 100 percent automatically with low latency up to 0.05 milliseconds, without dealing desk intervention and requotes, as well as with super low trading costs.

Trusted by over 73,000 traders around the world, Pepperstone processes an average of USD12.55 billion of trading volumes every day. Because of that, they have many awards such as:

  • The Best Global Forex ECN Broker 2019 and Best Forex Trading Support-Europe
  • Best Australian Broker and Best Trading Platform 2018 by Compareforexbrokers.com
  • Best Forex ECN Broker, Best Forex Trading Support, and Best Forex Trading Conditions by UK Forex Awards 2018

With the many rewards gained, Pepperstone hopes to attract more and more traders from all over the world. The rising performance of Pepperstone is not only due to the super-tight spreads and fast execution that it provides, but also because many traders are interested in trading with deposits in currencies other than US Dollars.

For this reason, Pepperstone is one of the most market-responsive brokers because it is willing to accept deposits in 10 currencies, which include AUD, USD, EUR, CAD, GBP, CHF, JPY, NZD, SGD, and HKD.

Trading in Pepperstone would allow traders to choose between 11 trading platforms: MT4 for desktop, MT4 Mac, MT4 iPhone, MT4 Android, MT4 iPad/Tablet, MT5, WebTrader, cTrader WebTrader, cTrader cAlgo, and cTrader Mobile. The choice of trading platforms may seem confusing to novice traders, but actually, it is very useful because it has fast execution.

When trading forex, traders can enjoy raw spreads from 0.0 pips on Razor accounts, over 61 currency pairs, and commission-free account funding on a wide range of deposit options. In addition to currency pairs, Pepperstone provides many types of trading instruments, including CFDs for indices and shares, commodities, and cryptocurrencies.

Instruments in commodity trading are pretty much diversified. Not only metal, gold, and silver, but traders can also trade with soft commodities such as cotton, sugar, coffee, cocoa, and orange juice. Pepperstone also provides trading on energy (oil and gas).

There are two types of accounts provided by Pepperstone, namely Razor accounts, and Standard accounts. If you area beginner, it is recommended to choose a Standard account with an average EUR/USD spread of 1.0-1.3 pips and free commission.

Those with particular trading styles such as scalpers and algorithmic traders may enjoy the lower cost setup traditionally seen in a Razor account, with a commission from AUD7 round turn of 100k traded. You can start trading with a minimum lot of 0.01 (micro) and 1:400 leverage.

As a Pepperstone client, a trader can fund and withdraw with alternative methods including Visa, Mastercard, POLi internet banking, bank transfer, BPay, PayPal, Neteller, Skrill, and Union Pay.

If you are new to trading or looking to practice your trading strategies in a risk-free environment, you can create Demo Account in Pepperstone. But if you are an experienced trader or prefer to learn by doing, Pepperstone provides a Live Account that allows you to trade with live executions and pricing.

Traders can also follow and copy strategies from popular traders using third-party services while learning how to improve their trading abilities. Pepperstone has partnered with a range of social trading platforms that traders can choose from, such as Myfxbook, ZuluTrade, Mirror Trader, MetaTrader signals, and Duplitrade.

 

3. ThinkMarkets

  • FCA regulation number: 629628 (under the name TF Global Markets UK Limited)
  • Status: Authorised since 23/01/2015
  • Office address in the UK: G07 New Broad Street House, 35 New Broad Street, London, EC2M 1NH
  • Office telephone number: +44 02038295421
  • Email for complaint: [email protected]
  • Spread for EUR/USD and GBP/USD: 0 pips

ThinkMarkets broker also allows you to trade with zero spreads without a minimum deposit. The condition is that you must open a ThinkZero account.

Not only for EUR/USD and GBP/USD, but this broker, which has been operating for over a decade, even offers zero spreads on several other major pairs such as USD/JPY, USD/CHF, USD/CAD, and some other pairs like AUD/CAD, AUD/JPY, and EUR/AUD.

For standard accounts, this multi-regulated broker sets slightly higher spreads above 1 pips for major pairs. Especially for retail clients, the permitted leverage is up to 1:30. If you are a professional client who wants to succeed in trading with ThinkMarkets, the leverage can go up to 1:500.

Website
Established
2010
Leverage
1:500
Min Deposit
$0
Regulation
ASIC, FCA, FSA (Japan), FSCA, FSA (Seychelles), CySEC
Free education
Personal manager
PAMM
MAM
Segregated accounts
Affiliate program
Islamic accounts available
Compensation scheme
Negative balance protection
VPS
Trading via API
Copy trading
Webinar
Neteller
PayPal
Skrill
Wire transfer

As a multi-asset online brokerage, ThinkMarkets present a wide range of trading assets starting from Forex to Precious Metals, Commodities, Indices, Shares, and Cryptocurrencies. The Australian-based broker is established in 2010 and has since opened additional headquarters in London and regional offices throughout Asia-Pacific, Middle East, North Africa, Europe, and South America.

Along with its history operation, ThinkMarkets has been awarded and recognized many times in various aspects. Most recently, they won the Best Value Broker in Asia at the 2020 Global Forex Awards.

Average FX spreads for traders opening an account in ThinkMarkets start from 1.2 pips for the standard account, while ThinkZero provides the best trading experience with 0.1 pips spread. Still, traders may need to consider that ThinkZero applies commission from $3.5 per side for every 1000,000 trading volumes.

As a global online brokerage, ThinkMarkets operates under various financial regulatory institutions. For example, ThinkMarkets Australia is managed by TF Global Markets (Aust) Limited and is licensed by the Australian Financial Services as well as the Australian Securities and Investment Commission (ASIC) with ABN: 69158361561. ThinkMarkets UK is registered under the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) by the company name of TF Global Markets (UK) Limited (number: 09042646).

ThinkMarkets consistently try to improve their trading environments with various advanced products. Automatic trading fans are provided with free VPS Hosting, while passionate traders who'd like to experience beyond MetaQuote platforms can try ThinkMarkets' proprietary platform called ThinkTrader.

The trading platform is available on 3 different interfaces specifically designed for Web Desktop, Tablet, and Mobile displays. Furthermore, customized tools such as 80+ drawing tools and more than 125 indicators for technical analysis accessible even through Mobile screens would certainly provide a brand new trading on-the-go experience.

As far as market updates go, trading in ThinkMarkets would be accompanied with news from FX Wire Pro that is known for its strict policy toward upholding objective journalism and delivering critical, trusted information in real-time. Information segments covered by FX Wire Pro include Economic Commentary, Technical-level Reports, Currency and Commodities, Central Bank Bulletins, Energies and metals, together with Event-driven Flashes.

For payment methods, ThinkMarkets offer the gateway via bank transfer, credit card (Visa and MasterCard), Skrill, Neteller, POLi internet banking, BPay, and Bitcoin wallet.

All in all, it is safe to say that for a company that started business since 2010, ThinkMarkets is an accomplished broker in terms of legal standing and innovation in trading technology. As an additional safety assurance for traders, this broker underlines its commitment to provide a $1 million insurance protection program which is made possible by ThinkMarkets' insurance policy with Lloyd's of London that protects clients' funds for up to $1 million in the unlikely event of insolvency.

 

4. Admirals

  • FCA regulation number: 595450
  • Status: Authorised since 12/06/2013
  • Office address in the UK: 37th Floor, One Canada Square, Canary Wharf, London, E14 5AB
  • Office telephone number: +44 02077264003
  • Email for complaint: [email protected]
  • Spread for EUR/USD and GBP/USD: 0 - 0.1 pips

Admirals, also known as Admiral Markets, is a broker that has been serving clients from various countries since 2001. In addition to FCA, this multi-asset broker holds licenses from ASIC and five other regulatory bodies.

Trading EUR/USD at Admirals comes with zero spreads, but for GBP/USD, a spread as low as 0.1 pips is applied. This spread condition applies to two Admirals accounts, namely Zero.MT5 and Zero.MT4.

Meanwhile, the other two accounts, Trade.MT5 and Trade.MT4 also has a spread of 0.1 for both major pairs. For forex trading, UK clients can enjoy leverage up to 1:500 at Admirals. The minimum deposit to open an account is only $1.

Website
Established
2001
Leverage
1:500
Min Deposit
$1
Regulation
ASIC, CySEC, FCA, FSA (Estonia), FSA (Seychelles), FSCA, IIROC, Jordan Securities Commission
Bonus offers
Trading contests
Free education
Trading by telephone
PAMM
MAM
Segregated accounts
Affiliate program
Islamic accounts available
Compensation scheme
Negative balance protection
Swap
Low spread eur/usd
VPS
Copy Trading
Neteller
PayPal
Skrill
Wire transfer

 

5. FXOpen

  • FCA regulation number: 579202
  • Status: Authorised since 22/03/2013
  • Office address in the UK: 80 Coleman St, London, EC2R 5BJ
  • Office telephone number: +44 02035191224
  • Email for complaint: [email protected]
  • Spread for EUR/USD and GBP/USD: 0.1 pips

Although not reaching zero spread, FXOpen still offers low floating spreads as low as 0.1 pips for EUR/USD and GBP/USD. You can enjoy these spreads by opening an FXOpen account with an ECN account type.

Unfortunately, the minimum deposit required to start trading in FXOpen is quite high, which is £300. Additionally, the allowed leverage for forex trading is only up to 1:30. For some minor or exotic pairs, the leverage is only 1:20. This is certainly a significant consideration for traders with limited capital.

Website
Established
2003
Leverage
1:500
Min Deposit
$1
Regulation
FCA, ASIC, The Financial Commission, CySEC
Bonuses
PAMM
Trading contests
Segregated accounts
VPS
Compensation scheme
Negative balance protection
Low spread eur/usd
Islamic account
Personal manager
Affiliate program
Copy Trading
Wire transfer
FasaPay
WebMoney

FXOpen started its operation as an online trading provider for retail clients since 2005. The company was founded by a group of traders with a mission to provide services that refer to the interests of traders. FXOpen claimed to be one of the firsts to offer ECN trading via MetaTrader 4 (MT4). With FXOpen's unique proprietary price aggregating technology, their clients can benefit from the industry's most competitive spreads (from 0 pips) and low trading commissions.

In 2006, FXOpen also became the first broker to offer a micro account and a swap-free account. After that, they continue to be the pioneers of several new and high-tech services, including the first Crypto account that can provide trading facilities on 24 Cryptocurrency pairs such as Bitcoin, Litecoin, and Ethereum.

Furthermore, the company provides One Click Trading and Level 2 MT4 plug-ins, enabling traders to place trades with just one click of the mouse. Traders do not need to worry about trading security at FXOpen. They have registered in Nevis, the UK FCA, and ASIC Australia.

A variety of trading accounts are provided such as STP, Micro, ECN, and free unlimited demo accounts. The minimum deposit for each account depends on the account type; USD1 in Micro Account, USD10 in STP and Crypto Accounts, and USD100 in ECN Accounts. As for leverage, FXOpen offers up to 1:3 (for Crypto Accounts), and up to 1:500 (for Micro, STP, and ECN Accounts).

Besides, traders can enhance their trading capabilities with Myfxbook and Zulutrade automated trading systems. Both of these services allow anyone to copy the transactions of experienced traders. Thus, traders can replicate the results of professional traders' strategies.

The FXOpen PAMM Service allows copying trades from a Master account to one or more than one Follower account and automates the distribution of profits and losses. The Master operates personal capital through a PAMM account, and his trading strategy is replicated to the Follower's capital. The owner of the Follower account can view and analyze the performance of the PAMM account with the help of advanced analytics. There are 3 PAMM accounts in FXOpen, namely STP, ECN, and Crypto PAMM.

On ECN accounts, traders will get direct price quotes from leading liquidity providers, including Dresdner, SG Paris, Standard Chartered, Barclays Capital, Bank of America, CRNX, JP Morgan, Morgan Stanley, Deutsche Bank AG, RBS, CITI, and UBS. This is one of the reasons why FXOpen's ECN account has become a trader favorite.

After seeing the various advantages offered by FXOpen, traders can easily register an account, simply by filling out the form in the registration menu on the FXOpen website. Traders will be asked to verify documents in advance if the trader will make a deposit or withdrawal of funds. Based on traders' experience and information since FXOpen was founded, there have not been any major complaints about payments (depositing or withdrawing funds) from clients.

Once registered with the FXOpen broker, traders also have the opportunity to get other benefits. One example is the FXOpen cashback program for the first 90 days from registration as a new client. The minimum cashback is USD5 and the maximum is USD1,000.

Furthermore, free VPS is available for ECN, STP, and Crypto account holders. Traders can use FXOpen VPS without any fees for 1 month if they can maintain equity of USD5,000 at the end of the month or trade with a trading volume of USD10,000,000 per month. The advantages of VPS on FXOpen are excellent accessibility, flexibility, and speed.

Trading on FXOpen is made easier because traders can add insight into trading by entering contests. FXOpen Broker offers weekly and monthly trading contests on demo accounts through the ForexCup.com site. Traders can join competitions that are free of charge to hone their skills. If a trader wants a bigger challenge, there is also a trading contest on a real account.

The company also offers Forex partnership programs to traders, Forex brokers, and website owners who publish information about fiat and crypto-currency trading. There are 3 types of partnership levels, including Forex IB (Forex Agent) that attracts new clients to FXOpen using a referral (affiliate) link, Forex Rebate, and individual partnership conditions.

In Conclusion, FXOpen is a well-rounded forex brokerage for traders with a desire to try various trading instruments, a trading environment in ECN account, low minimum deposits, the best cryptocurrency trading condition, as well as interesting trading features like PAMM and demo contests.

 

6. Plus500

  • FCA regulation number: 509909
  • Status: Authorised since 29/06/2010
  • Office address in the UK: 8 Angel Court, Copthall Avenue, London, EC2R 7HJ
  • Office telephone number: +44 02038761640
  • Email for complaint: [email protected]
  • Spread for EUR/USD and GBP/USD: 0.13 - 0.19 pips

Plus500 is a broker that not only holds FCA regulations but also ASIC (Australia). Since its first operation in 2008, this broker has offered a wide range of trading instruments, including forex, stocks, CFDs, ETFs, indices, oil, cryptocurrencies, and metals.

For UK traders, Plus500 sets floating spreads starting from 0.13 pips for the EUR/USD pair and 0.19 pips for GBP/USD in the retail account. There are no commissions to be paid.

However, the minimum deposit is relatively high, amounting to $100, both for retail and professional traders. Usually, the minimum deposit for retail traders is smaller, but it's the same at this broker. The permitted leverage is also only up to 1:30 for forex trading.

Website
Established
2008
Leverage
1:300
Min Deposit
$100
Regulation
FCA, CySEC, ASIC, ISA (Israel), FSCA, MAS, FSA (Estonia), DFSA (Dubai)
Bonuses
PayPal
Skrill
Wire transfer

Plus500 is a UK-based company with its main offices located in the city of London. The company is authorized and regulated by FCA. For traders who are looking for a broker with top-tier regulators, Plus500 can be the right choice.

Plus500 offers 2,000 instruments to over a million clients. List of instruments available for trading with their CFD service include forex currency pairs, indices, cryptocurrencies, commodities, shares, and ETFs. Traders can choose instruments suitable for their needs.

Regardless, beginners should be extremely cautious while choosing their assets, as it can get daunting, confusing, and inherently risky.

When traders open an account, Plus500 will hold traders' funds on a segregated basis, following FCA's client money rules. Traders do not need to worry about Plus500 using their funds for hedging, as it is strictly prohibited to use clients' funds for this purpose.

Other advantages when trading in Plus500 are tight spreads and no commissions. The company only offers a single type of account, but traders can update the account from Retail to Professional by following some standards.

To apply Professional Accounts, traders have to fulfill at least 2 of the following 3 criteria eligible, such as sufficient trading activity in the last 12 months, financial instrument portfolio of over 500,000 Euro, and relevant experience in the financial services sector.

Plus500 is well-regarded for its services through the market spread, leverage up to of 1:30 for Retail Accounts, and leverage up to of 1:300 for Professional Accounts. Plus500 tries to give a sensible choice of leverage, which not only controls the risk but also helps novice traders to exercise more control over their trading emotions.

Founded in 2008, Plus500 provides almost the same features to both Retail and Professional account, including clients' money protection, negative balance protection, best execution for orders, clear and transparent information, as well as financial services compensation scheme. Still, Professional account is more advanced as it has access to FOS.

Based on the statistics, 76.4% of Retail account owners in Plus500 lose money when trading CFDs. Because of that, Plus500 always warns traders to consider their understanding of how CFDs work and their affordability to take high risk of losing money, before starting a trade in Live Account.

Even so, Plus500 has gained the trust of traders throughout the world. They have around 39 million positions opened, 304,000 active customers, and billions of volume trading processed by their system.

Plus500 always tries to give the best services to their clients. One of the ways to reach their goals is by making clients feel confident in their trading activity. They have a simple and easy-to-use trading platform, with an especially well-designed mobile platform. Traders can access the Plus500 platform via web-trader, iPhone/iPad, and Mobile App.

In their platform, traders will get advanced tools such as stop limit, guaranteed stop, free email and push notifications on market events, and alerts on price movements. All of these tools can help traders to navigate the market with better understanding.

As for payment methods, Plus500 provides various choices like Visa or MasterCard, electronic wallets (PayPal and Skrill), and bank transfer (direct bank to bank funds transfer).

For any concerns, troubles, or trading issues, traders can contact Plus500's customer service that is available 24 hours a day and 7 days a week. The official website of Plus500 can be accessed in 24 languages.

Overall, Plus500 has some advantages and disadvantages. As it has a license from an elite regulator, traders can feel safe when trading in Plus500. It also provides a 24/7 support team to help traders. But, offering leverages up to 1:300 is not suitable for high-risk traders, such as scalpers, who indulge in high-frequency trading that holds positions in the market for a brief period and typically use high leverage.

 

7. Vantage Markets

  • FCA regulation number: 590299 (under the name Vantage Global Prime LLP)
  • Status: Authorised since 01/07/2013
  • Office address in the UK: 7 Bell Yard, London, WC2A 2JR
  • Office telephone number: +44 2070435050
  • Email for complaint: [email protected]
  • Spread for EUR/USD and GBP/USD: 0.2 - 0.5 pips

Vantage Markets, sometimes referred to as Vantage, obtained its FCA regulation in 2013, a few years after first opening its business. This broker offers 40+ forex pairs that can be traded, ranging from major, cross, to exotic pairs.

The spreads for forex trading at Vantage Markets are not fixed, as they can change at any time. However, the average spread for EUR/USD is 0.2 pips and for GBP/USD is 0.3 pips on Raw ECN and Pro ECN accounts. A £1 commission applies for 1 lot in Raw ECN accounts, but there is no commission in Pro ECN accounts.

Unfortunately, the minimum deposit required to open an ECN-type trading account is quite high, up to $1,000 or £1,000. The permitted leverage is also as small as 1:30.

Website
Established
2009
Leverage
1:500
Min Deposit
$200
Regulation
ASIC, VFSC, CIMA, FCA, FSCA
Islamic accounts available
PAMM
MAM
Social Trading
Non-expiring demo
Negative Balance Protection
Segregated accounts
Regulatory Deposit Insurance
Trading via API
Compensation scheme
Low spread eur/usd
VPS
Personal manager
Affiliate program
Education
Copy trading
webinar
Neteller
Skrill
Fasapay

Vantage Markets was founded in 2009 in Australia. It is the brand name of the Vantage International Group which is regulated by the Cayman Islands Monetary Authority (CIMA). Before it is known as Vantage Markets as today, they used to be MXT Global in 2009 and Vantage Markets Pty LTD in 2015. The Vantage Group also operates other companies such as Vantage Global Prime, which is regulated by the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) and the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA).

According to the broker's website, Vantage Markets adds further protection to clients by segregating client funds and holding their funds with Australia's National Australia Bank (NAB). NAB is one of the 4 largest financial institutions in Australia as well as the Top 20 safest banks in the world. Thus, clients don't need to worry about saving their funds at Vantage Markets.

With Vantage Markets, traders will experience super-fast trade execution, as well as interbank grade and RAW ECN spreads. When combined, these elements offer clients a true institutional trading experience, across a wide range of trading instruments. They also offer services designed for both beginners and professionals with access to Forex ECN trading, as well as CFD trading on Indices, Commodities, and U.S & Hong Kong Shares. Those instruments are available to trade on MetaTrader 4, MetaTrader 5, MetaTrader WebTrader, CHARTS by TradingView, Mobile Apps, either for Mac, PC, iOS, or Android. There are also social trading platforms such as MyFXbook and Zulutrade.

By registering in Vantage Markets, traders will have access to an impressive range of educational materials and research tools including MT4 SmartTrader Tools, a wide variety of promotional trading offers and rebate programs, as well as access to accounts with up to 500:1 leverage.  However, the leverage for ASIC and FCA clients is 30:1, and normally no promotion for AU and UK clients because of the compliance policy.

Vantage Markets provides research in the form of technical and fundamental analysis on its blog from in-house staff as well as guest writers. There is also an economic calendar powered by MQL5 from MetaQuotes. For clients who deposit at least $1,000, Vantage Markets offers a suite of plugins for MT4 branded as MT4 SmartTrader Tools, developed by FX Blue LLP.

As an authorized representative of Vantage Global Prime, the broker caters to retail traders under the Vantage Markets brand and offers access to the following instruments:

  • 44 currency pairs, which are the most liquid global forex market currencies.
  • 16 most liquid Indices from across the globe, including the S&P 500, DAX, FTSE, DJ30, and more.
  • 16 commodities, either soft commodities or precious metals.
  • 5 indices futures such as DJ30ft, DAX4ft, and NAS100ft.
  • 600+ US, UK, and HK shares from large companies, such as Apple, Google, Coca-Cola, and big corporations listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange.

Clients can open accounts in Vantage Markets and deposit funds in 8 base currencies: USD, GBP, CAD, AUD, EUR, SGD, NZD, HKD, and JPY. They also provide clients with convenient deposit and withdrawal methods through local and international bank transfers, credit/debit cards, and e-payment.

Overall, Vantage Markets is valued to be proper for retail traders with small deposits who like the max leverage thresholds. In terms of pricing, the broker's commission-based Raw ECN account is the clear choice for cost-sensitive traders as it features a lower all-in cost compared to its Standard account offering.

 

8. IG

  • FCA regulation number: 195355
  • Status: Authorised since 01/12/2001
  • Office address in the UK: Cannon Bridge House, 25 Dowgate Hill, London, EC4R 2YA
  • Office telephone number: +44 2078960011
  • Email for complaint: [email protected]
  • Spread for EUR/USD and GBP/USD: 0.6 - 0.9 pips

IG Markets, more commonly known as IG, is a seasoned player in the trading world. This broker has been in operation since 1974. In 2001, IG obtained an FCA license and holds a CFTC license.

IG broker offers low spreads as low as 0.6 pips for EUR/USD and 0.9 pips for GBP/USD. What's advantageous with this broker is that no minimum deposit is required to start trading. No commissions are applied either, as they are already included in the spread costs.

Website
Established
1974
Leverage
1:50
Min Deposit
$0
Regulation
FCA, 195355, CFTC/NFA, 0509630
Accepts US traders
Free education
Wire transfer

IG Markets is an online trading provider with decades of experience in the financial market. Founded in 1974, the world-leading company has gathered more than 178,000 clients worldwide with over 16,000 markets reached as of 2019. IG Markets is authorized and regulated by the Australian Securities and Investment Commission (ASIC). It is also important to note that being established in 1974 makes IG Markets one of the forefront online CFD brokers. Their service has expanded to 15 countries across five continents.

Aside from famous for its reliable experience, IG Markets is also known for its truly broad range of trading instruments. In fact, the broker has long been regarded as one of the most accomplished companies in offering the most trading assets to clients. The wide choice of instruments includes forex pairs, 26 indices, over 12,000 shares, hard and soft commodities, cryptocurrencies, as well as other markets such as bonds, rates, and options.

Forex trading in IG Markets is provided in two ways: CFD and DMA (Direct). Here are the conditions for each type of trading:

Forex CFD

  • Minimum spread: 0.6 pips
  • Commission: None
  • Platforms: Web, mobile apps, MT4, ProRealTime, L2 Dealer, terminals and APIs
  • Trading size: Contracts
  • Demo account: Yes

Forex DMA

  • Minimum spread: No details
  • Commission: from $10 per $1 million traded
  • Platforms: Web, mobiles apps, L2 Dealer, terminals, and APIs
  • Trading size: Lots
  • Demo account: No

Both ways of trading are available for all clients. However, DMA does not enable trading in MetaTrader 4. Clients are also not allowed to trade in a demo account for virtual trading. It is essentially a type of trading reserved for experienced traders with high necessity for the best pricing in the market, as DMA offers market depth from a range of exchanges (including full market depth from the LSE).

Trading platforms in IG Markets are accessible via web, mobile app, and desktop. They are offered with 2 main varieties: Core Platforms and Specialist Platforms. The core platform is meant for all types of trading with the add-ons of DMA, ProRealTime access, and Forex Direct. Meanwhile, Specialist Platforms consist of L2 Dealer, ProRealTime, and MetaTrader 4.

The first two platforms charge fees that include minimum $2000 balance and monthly fees for shares data and level 2 prices (for L2 Dealer), as well as platform fees amounting to $40 per month and monthly fee for shares data (for ProRealTime).

IG Markets does not require a minimum balance to open an account. It also provides a swap-free account that frees clients for any interest, rollover, or swap charges on overnight positions. Yet, All costs and charges are built into the spread. This account suits well with long-term traders who need to keep their positions open for days or even weeks.

For beginners, IG Markets builds an IG Academy that gives interactive education and online trading courses. This way, clients can get a grip on the financial markets with the essentials of trading provided in infographics, video explainers, and end-of-course quizzes. Even better, the IG Academy is already integrated into its mobile app so clients can always learn about financial markets in much more efficient ways.

In conclusion, IG Markets is a client-friendly broker with more than 40 years of experience to back up its credibility. Their efforts and commitments to provide the best varieties of trading platforms are proven in the unique Core and Specialist Platforms.

Traders with little experience can apply to Forex CFD account in either Core Platforms or MetaTrader 4, while professionals can achieve the best experience in the financial market with IG Market's DMA trading and L2 Dealer or ProRealTime platforms.

 

9. OANDA

  • FCA regulation number: 542574 (under the name OANDA Europe Limited)
  • Status: Authorised since 17/05/2011
  • Office address in the UK: Dashwood House, 69 Old Broad Street, London, EC2M 1QS
  • Office telephone number: +44 02071011600
  • Email for complaint: [email protected]
  • Spread for EUR/USD and GBP/USD: 1 - 1.2 pips

The next recommended low-spread broker for UK clients is OANDA. This broker has operated since 1996 and obtained its FCA license in 2011. In addition to FCA, OANDA holds various other licenses, including ASIC, FSA Japan, CFTC, FSC BVI, IIROC, and MAS.

The forex trading spreads at OANDA are not fixed, but the average spread for EUR/USD is 1 pips and for GBP/USD is 1.2 pips. This spread applied to both OANDA's Standard and Professional Accounts. No minimum deposit is required in these accounts. However, the leverage is relatively low at 1:20.

One thing that distinguishes the two accounts is that a retail account has higher margin requirements than a professional account. Retail accounts also have a higher level of protection, including negative balance protection.

Website
Established
1996
Leverage
1:20
Min Deposit
$0
Regulation
CFTC/NFA, FCA, FSA (Japan), FSC (BVI), Kanto Local Finance Bureau (Japan), MFSA, 12, 2020, MAS, ASIC, AFSL No, IIROC
Islamic Accounts available
US traders are welcome
Negative balance protection
Segregated accounts
Compensation scheme
VPS Affiliate program
Trading via API
Education
Webinar
Swap
Wire transfer
Skrill
Neteller

Traders looking for brokers with accurate precision, OANDA can be an option. That is because OANDA is a broker that provides quotes with 5-digit accuracy and active price movements that follow market developments. Order execution speed is also faster in this broker.

It provides benefits for novice traders, as they can trade with smaller volumes using the calculation system based on currency value, unlike other brokers adopting the lot system.

Founded in 1996, OANDA was built by Dr. Michael Stumm who is a lecturer in Computer Engineering at the University of Toronto, Canada, along with his colleague, Dr. Richard Olsen of The Olsen Ltd., which is one of the leading econometric research institutes. They have a head office in San Francisco, United States.

OANDA branch offices can be found everywhere. Some of these offices are located in the United Kingdom, Singapore, Japan, and Canada. With this number of offices spread, OANDA has increasingly attracted the attention of clients worldwide.

OANDA's company is registered under several well-known jurisdictions in financial trading. They are regulated by CFTC and NFA in the US, FCA in the UK, ASIC in Australia, and many others. Traders do not need to worry anymore about security when trading in OANDA. However, these advantages make trading rules at OANDA more stringent compared to other brokers.

For example, OANDA only allows maximum leverage of 1:20, because the rules in the US and Japan do not allow leverage above that. Besides, the registration procedure is more complex due to various additional requirements that are not submitted by other forex brokers. On top of that, hedging is not allowed in one trading account as the client must open an additional account to hedge.

Nevertheless, OANDA is known for being a leading broker with many advantages offered. OANDA faces increased market risk during periods of price volatility, such as economic and political news announcements. When market spreads increase or decrease, their pricing engine widens or narrows spreads accordingly. That way, traders can get the latest conditions from price movements in the market more quickly.

Prices move very fast in the market. Especially when news releases have a large impact on market volatility. This condition is often exploited by brokers to take advantage of clients with Requotes. However, traders do not need to worry about additional costs when trading with OANDA.

The company never withdraws Requotes so traders can get maximum profit. When traders are unavailable to monitor open positions, they can set take profit orders to lock in profits and Stop Loss orders to help protect against further losses.

As an experienced and well-known online forex broker, OANDA is committed to maintain an efficient trading environment that reduces latency and provid tools to help clients manage the degree of acceptable slippage.

With a fast & reliable trading platform by OANDA, clients' trades are executed in 0.012 seconds. This suits traders who choose brokers based on execution speed.

Because of this exceptional execution service, it is not surprising that OANDA won many awards, including the winner of the world's Best Retail FX Platform at the prestigious e-FX awards. The broker is also voted number 1 for Consistency of filling trades at quoted prices, Execution speed, and Reliability of platforms.

There is no minimum deposit or minimum balance required to open an OANDA account. Deposit and withdrawal can be done easily. OANDA provides a variety of payment method facilities, including Paypal, Wire Transfer, Credit Card, and Debit. Traders can adjust it to the region where they live.

OANDA provides more than 100 trading instruments, including 71 currency pairs, 16 indices, 8 commodities (Brent Crude Oil, Copper, Corn, Natural Gas, Soybeans, Sugar, etc.), 6 Bonds, and 23 Metals.

The fxTrade and MetaTrader platform are available at OANDA. These platforms can be used for Desktop and Mobile. Another plus is they have an OANDA Technical Analysis that exists in collaboration with a technical analysis provider called Autochartist.

With these platforms, clients can monitor price movements easier and automatically recognize patterns created on charts, as well as receive alerts when the awaited patterns appear. Access to this technology can be enjoyed free of charge.

In conclusion, OANDA is an ideal broker for traders in need of fast execution backed by many years of experience. The company is also a good alternative for those looking for a well-regulated broker with flexible trading and deposit conditions.

 

10. eToro

  • FCA regulation number: 583263
  • Status: Authorised since 09/05/2013
  • Office address in the UK: 24th Floor One Canada Square, Canary Wharf, London, E14 5AB
  • Office telephone number: +44 02045251189
  • Email for complaint: [email protected]
  • Spread for EUR/USD and GBP/USD: 1 - 2 pips

Lastly, there is eToro, a broker that also offers low spreads for UK clients. The spreads for EUR/USD are 1 pips, and for GBP/USD, they are 2 pips, all of which are fixed. There are no commissions as they are already included in the spread.

This broker, which is also licensed by ASIC, CySEC, and FSA Seychelles, provides relatively high leverage of up to 1:400. However, the minimum deposit is $200, which is considered somewhat high.

Website
Established
2007
Leverage
1:400
Min Deposit
$200
Regulation
CySEC, FCA, ASIC, FINRA, Financial Services Regulatory Authority (Abu Dhabi), FSA (Seychelles)
Accepts US traders
Personal manager
Trading contests
Segregated accounts
Free education
Compensation scheme
Negative balance protection
Swap
Low spread eur/usd
Hedging
Islamic account
Affiliate program
Trading via API
Interest rate on funds
Copy trading
WebMoney
PayPal
Skrill
Wire transfer
Neteller

eToro established in early 2007, with a mission to make trading accessible to anyone, anywhere, and reduce dependency on traditional financial institutions. The company has head offices in the United Kingdom, Cyprus, USA, and Australia.

eToro (Europe) Ltd operates as a Financial Services Company authorized and regulated by the Cyprus Securities Exchange Commission (CySEC) under license no. #109/10. Meanwhile, eToro (UK) Ltd is authorized and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) under the license FRN 583263.

As for eToro AUS Capital Pty Ltd, the legal standing is acknowledged by the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) to provide financial services under Australian Financial Services License 491139.

A broker that belongs to the 4-digit type, eToro offers both short-term options for day traders and long-term options for investors, such as their innovative Smart Portfolios, a fully managed thematic portfolio.

Since 2007, eToro has been at the forefront of the Fintech revolution. The most recent was launched in 2017, which is Smart Portfolios powered by Machine learning Al. Beyond developing Smart Portfolios, the company integrated Microsoft's machine learning technology into Momentum DD.

The new Smart Portfolios investment strategy uses artificial intelligence to find the steadiest traders who are most likely to generate a double-digit return and bundle traders into one fully-managed portfolio. eToro has hundreds of financial assets for trading across several categories including stocks, commodities, crypto assets, currencies, indices, and ETFs. Each asset class has characteristics and can be traded using a variety of investment strategies.

Some positions on eToro involve ownership of underlying assets, such as non-leveraged positions on stocks and cryptos. Employing CFDs will enable a variety of options, such as leveraged trades, short (sell) positions, fractional ownership, and more. For example, traders can invest as little as USD100 in gold, even if a single unit of gold cost USD1,000. Some of eToro's most popular CFD commodities include gold, oil, natural gas, silver, and platinum.

Currencies are traded on eToro only as CFDs. Also, CFDs enable Sell (short) positions and leveraged trade, even for assets that don't offer the option in traditional trading. Some of the popular currencies include EUR/USD, GBP/USD, AUD/USD, USD/JPY, and USD/CAD.

Furthermore, An Exchange-Traded Fund (ETF) is a financial instrument comprising several assets grouped to serve as one tradable fund. After opening an account in eToro, traders can invest as little as USD250 in an ETF that costs USD500. Some of the popular ETFs on eToro include SPY, VXXB, TLT, and HMMJ.

However, eToro also offers additional functions using CFD trading. All leveraged ETF positions in the UK are under FCA regulations. Meanwhile, all CFD positions executed by eToro Australia are under ASIC regulations.

The company has other advantages. In all financial assets that can be traded, eToro does not charge any deposit or trading frees other than spreads.

eToro charges a USD25 fee for withdrawals and the minimum withdrawal amount is USD50. Long (Buy), non-leveraged crypto, stock, and ETF positions are not executed as CFDs and do not incur any fees. eToro does charge overnight or weekend fees for CFDs positions, such as leveraged positions and short (sell) orders.

Fee updates always apply to open positions. Fees are subject to change at any given time and could change daily, without prior notice, depending on market conditions.

As a beginner, trader can use CopyTrading eToro. Different from the features of other brokers, traders can copy the strategies of professional traders without fee or profit-sharing. Therefore, 100% profit is fully owned by traders. For example, while trader A who is copied by trader B, produces a profit of 10% this month, then trader B also gets a profit of 10%.

The company is the world's leading social trading network. Since eToro operates in complete transparency, each trader has valuable information on their eToro profiles, so other traders that are interested to copy their trades can have assistance in creating their best portfolios.

Another feature that is unique to eToro is the personalized, social News Feed. Just like on any social media, traders can post their updates on feed, comment on other's posts, and gradually create a feed that is tailor-fitted to trader's trading and investing interests. On eToro social trading platform, traders will also get notifications when a trader writes a new post and many other important updates.

 

Which Low Spread Broker is the Best?

The majority of traders seek a low spread broker to save on trading expenses. Therefore, to choose the best low spread broker, also consider other expenditures you may incur, such as commissions and the minimum deposit required to start trading.

The details have been summarized in a table for easier comparison:

No. 👤Brokers 🔢Spread 💸Commission Min Deposit
1 HF Markets From 0 pips $3 per lot/side $0
2 Pepperstone From 0 pips $3.50 per lot/side (£2.25 per lot/side) $0
3 ThinkMarkets From 0 pips £2.50 per lot side $0
4 Admirals From 0 - 0.1 pips $1.8 - $3 per lot/side $1
5 FXOpen From 0.1 pips

$3.50 per lot/side for accounts with a balance below $1,000.

$300
6 Plus500 From 0.13 - 0.19 pips $0 $100
7 Vantage Markets From 0.2 - 0.5 pips $1 or £1 per lot/side $1,000
8 IG From 0.6 - 0.9 pips $0 $0
9 OANDA From 1 - 1.2 pips $0 $0
10 eToro From 1 - 2 pips $0 $200

That's the top 10 forex brokers with the lowest spread for UK traders. HF Markets, Pepperstone, and ThinkMarkets emerge as the top 3, offering ultra-low spreads as low as 0 pips for major pairs like EUR/USD and GBP/USD.

The commissions they offer are also relatively favorable, allowing you to save on expenses. Additionally, the minimum deposit required to start trading with these three brokers is $0. This way, HF Markets, Pepperstone, and ThinkMarkets remain accessible to UK traders with limited capital.

 


Forex brokers offering low spreads can indeed help you save on trading expenses. In addition to low-spread brokers, you can also choose to use a broker's cent account if you want to minimize costs.