Beginner traders should look for a forex broker with strong regulation, clear pricing, an easy-to-use platform, and reliable support. Seacrest Markets is a great option for beginners thanks to its FSCA regulation, 24/7 human support, and fast trade execution.
Did you know that the foreign exchange market is the largest financial market in the world? There are an estimated 1,500 foreign exchange brokers that help direct the nearly $7 trillion daily forex trading transactions happening around the world.
But here’s what beginner investors need to know. All forex brokers aren’t the same, and knowing the difference between them can end up saving you a lot of time, money, and hardship.
Some platforms are built for speed, some for low cost, some for research, and a handful — like Seacrest Markets — intentionally prioritize simplicity and support, which are the two things beginners rely on most in their first year of trading.
Our guide will help you understand the landscape, familiarize you with the best forex brokers for beginners, and help you understand what to look for in a good forex broker.
What Makes a Forex Trading Broker Beginner-Friendly?
Here are some important parameters you should consider when choosing a forex broker for yourself.
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Regulatory approval
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A transparent fee and commission structure
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Beginner-friendly interface and platform features
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Strong educational support
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Choice of account types and trading flexibility
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Solid customer support
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A strong portfolio of risk management tools
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Demo accounts to test the service
A beginner-friendly interface and easy-to-use platform features are perhaps the first things to look for, but there are many other things to keep in mind.
An easy-to-understand, transparent cost structure is an absolute must. You should also look for brokers that offer solid educational resources, such as educational articles and how-to videos that translate complex forex trading concepts into plain English for beginners.
Certain brokers offer a lot of educational materials for beginners.
As a beginner, your most important tool to judge the right broker for you is demo accounts. Demo accounts let you taste the entire trading experience through virtual funds, letting you avoid risking real trading capital while test-driving the platform and figuring out the basics, like the difference between base currency and quote currency in a currency pair.
While most brokers offer demo accounts, they’re often restricted in their features or have limitations, so make sure you understand the fine print before you sign on.
Lastly, for a beginner, responsive customer support is an absolute must. It gives you the peace of mind that you’ll have someone to talk to when executing trades at odd hours. Seacrest Markets stands out with its 24/7 human support, giving beginners immediate help whenever they need it.
16 Best Forex Brokers for Beginners
1. Seacrest Markets: Best Forex Broker for Beginners
Seacrest Markets is one of the best forex brokers for beginners out there. The two main qualities that distinguish them from the crowd are their simplicity and speed.
They offer two account types: ECN and Classic. Their ECN account lets traders begin trading forex with speads from 0.1 pips. Their Classic account offers variable spreads, with zero commissions.
One of their key qualities is the simplicity of their trading experience. The platform is clean, intuitive, and straightforward. Order execution speed is quick, helping build confidence in beginner traders.
Their demo account lets you get access to real trading conditions, offering a window into the forex market without risking any of your money.
They offer one of the best customer support experiences, with 24/7 access to human representatives who know their stuff well.
Seacrest operates under FSCA regulation, which offers structural transparency that is very important for new traders.
2. IG Markets: Best Education Resources
If you are an absolute beginner and looking for a reputable broker that can help guide you through the initial learning phase, IG is one of the best forex brokers for beginners.
Novice traders can get a structured training path along with access to nearly 15,000 markets through their trading platform.
For major pairs like EUR/USD, their spreads are 0.8 pips, which are fairly competitive.
Their parent company is IG Group Holdings PLC. It is a member of the FTSE 250 and is regulated by authorities such as the FCA in the UK and ASIC in Australia.
They have a highly intuitive trading platform and offer access to a decent demo account that lets forex traders practice trade execution without many restrictions.
3. FOREX.com: Solid All-Around Choice
FOREX.com is consistently ranked among the best forex brokers overall, but it’s especially good for beginners. Forex traders get access to a broad range of currency pairs (more than 80+), giving them a lot of choice to figure out their trading strategies.
For certain account types, they offer spreads as low as 0.0 pips, though there are commission fees that need to be paid.
FOREX.com offers top-tier trading platforms like MetaTrader 4 and 5, but they also have their own extremely user-friendly proprietary trading platform, which many traders prefer to use.
As a beginner trader, you can get free access to a lot of educational videos. You also get help in the form of several market analysis tools and very responsive customer support.
4. Pepperstone: Good for Active Forex Traders
Pepperstone offers accounts with raw spreads of 0.0 pips and commission-based pricing, so if you are looking to start trading and are worried about finding a broker that offers competitive pricing, then this is the right place for you.
You can opt for one of several trading platforms on offer - MetaTrader 4, MetaTrader 5, and cTrader. Execution speeds are super fast, with average fill times under 30 milliseconds, which is perfect for beginners who need consistency in trade execution.
Pepperstone is regulated by both ASIC and the FCA.
They offer low minimum deposits (about $200, depending on the country where you live), and micro accounts where you can learn to trade with smaller positions as a beginner.
5. XTB: Cost-Effective Platform
XTB offers a proprietary but extremely user-friendly trading platform called xStation 5.
They have spreads with a low pip value of just 0.1 on most major listed currency pairs, which makes them one of the best low spread brokers for beginners.
They offer comprehensive educational resources that make the complex task of buying and selling currencies seem simple, apart from regular webinars, trading courses, and one-on-one training sessions for new traders.
They also provide traders with a demo account where you’re offered unlimited virtual funds to play around with during your early days.
The broker has been around since 2002 and is regulated by multiple agencies, including FCA, CySEC, and others.
6. CMC Markets: Advanced Tools for Growth
While CMC Markets is often considered a more advanced broker, it offers features that can also benefit beginners. Forex brokers need a wide range of tools and data analysis in order to grow their knowledge base, which CMC definitely shines at.
Moreover, as a forex trader, you do not want to be tied down to just one currency pair in the beginning. Instead, you should be learning to develop strategies across a wide range of currency pairs, so that you can hone your skills and apply them in different forex markets.
CMC lets you trade in over 330 currency pairs, which lets you spread your wings and learn how to make money trading forex in various scenarios.
They offer competitive spreads starting from just 0.7 pips on major pairs.
While their educational materials are a bit advanced, they offer a lot of technical insight for those who are analytically inclined.
They are also regulated by both the FCA and ASIC, and their client funds are parked in segregated accounts for security.
7. AvaTrade: Social Trading Integration
AvaTrade’s strong integration with social trading platforms like DupliTrade and ZuluTrade makes them perfect for beginners who want to opt for the copy trade route and benefit from the wisdom of other successful traders before getting into trading instruments themselves.
Many people think that a copy trading platform doesn’t really help beginner forex brokers because it's just blind copying without knowing the underlying logic, but this is a misunderstanding of what copy trading involves.
AvaTrade offers more than 50 educational videos, one-on-one training sessions, and webinars to help traders get the hang of how to get copy trading right.
The broker offers reasonable starting spreads of 0.9 pips for most currency pairs.
They’re regulated by the Central Bank of Ireland and ASIC. Minimum deposits start at $100. They also offer a free demo account with virtual funds, giving beginners a safe space to practise before trading with real money.
8. BlackBull Markets: Raw Spread Specialist
BlackBull Markets offers advanced-level pricing to traders without the massive investment requirements. Their ECN (Electronic Communication Network) accounts have raw spreads that start at just 0.0 pips, with a commission on trade value.
Their commission structures are very transparent, just $6 per standard lot round turn. If you want a standard account, then you can opt for it with a spread of 0.8 pips and zero commission.
BlackBull Markets offers access to three platforms: MetaTrader 4, MetaTrader 5, and cTrader.
The execution speed is a blazing 72 milliseconds on limit orders and 90 milliseconds on market orders.
The broker is regulated by the Financial Services Authority in Seychelles.
9. Fusion Markets: True Raw Pricing
Fusion Markets is a reliable broker that offers low costs to beginners. Its raw spreads start at 0.0 pips, and commissions are only $4.50 per standard lot round turn, with zero minimum deposits required for trade.
The broker offers MetaTrader 4, MetaTrader 5, and cTrader among platform choices.
Fusion Markets is regulated by ASIC in Australia. Their execution speeds are fairly consistent and quick, and their 24/7 customer service is consistently appreciated by traders.
While they do not offer extensive educational resources like IG or AvaTrade, the platform is easy to use, and the low costs make it an attractive option.
10. Charles Schwab: The Institutional Option
While definitely not famous for forex trading, Charles Schwab offers excellent forex capabilities through its futures platform. You’ll need to open a separate qualified account, but if you feel you need rock-solid regulation in your broker, then this is a definite option.
While their educational resources are understandably more focused on broader markets, they do have a good amount of material on forex.
Customer service is one area where Charles Schwab shines, with competent reps available 24/7 to answer all your questions.
Unfortunately, with an institutional broker like Charles Schwab, you will have to face a higher entry barrier, less competitive spreads, and a platform that’s not as intuitive as forex-only brokers.
11. Saxo Bank: Premium Platform
The extensive market access and sophisticated platform capabilities offered by Saxo Bank might be a good fit for you if you are willing to pay for all those extra premium features.
They offer two platforms - SaxoTraderGO and SaxoTraderPRO. Both offer advanced level tools that give you a lot more chance to explore and understand the technical aspects of forex trading.
While spreads are high, they are still competitive for major currency pairs.
The platform offers incredible diversity in market access across both forex and other markets. The platforms are extremely reliable, and their research quality is absolutely brilliant.
They have invested in a surprisingly strong array of educational resources, including articles, webinars, and market analysis, as long as you have the basic knowledge to follow them all.
They are primarily regulated by the Danish FSA but also by numerous other authorities in different jurisdictions. While minimum deposits are high, Saxo offers the kind of comprehensive trading experience that you will probably not get in any of the other platforms we have listed here.
12. eToro: Copy Trading Pioneer
eToro can be credited with taking social trading mainstream for retail trading. Their platform is perfect for copy trading, which makes it a good option for beginners who want to see what successful traders do before making their own market moves.
They have a social media-like user-friendly platform, which is designed for easy navigation, very different from traditional trading platforms. eToro lets you trade forex along with stocks, commodities, options, crypto and several other financial products.
Forex spreads are typically around 1.0 pips for major pairs. The broker is regulated by the FCA, CySEC, and ASIC. Minimum deposits are about $50-100.
13. OANDA: Veteran Reliability With Unlimited Demo Accounts
If you’re looking for a reliable broker that’s been around for a long time, OANDA should be your first choice. A veteran since 1996, OANDA is counted among the most credible and trustworthy forex brokers in the market.
While typical spreads for OANDA are around 0.8 - 1.2 pips, there are commission-based accounts where the spread falls to 0.0 pips.
Another good feature is the presence of unlimited demo account access, with no restrictions. As a beginner, there’s nothing better than a demo account where you can go crazy with your trading strategies without having to risk your capital.
It offers MetaTrader 4 and its own proprietary web and mobile platforms, and is regulated by the NFA and CFTC in the US, FCA in the UK, and ASIC in Australia.
While OANDA doesn’t have the kind of extensive educational materials as IG, it has a decent amount of content and a solid customer response team.
14. IC Markets: Professional-Grade Access
Ambitious beginners who want to quickly scale up their trading can consider IC Markets, a professional-grade ECN/STP broker that is usually preferred by advanced traders.
As an aside, Electronic Communication Network (ECN) brokers match orders with other market participants, while Straight Through Processing (STP) brokers route your order electronically to liquidity providers.
The idea is that they do not deal themselves, which implies that they never have a conflict of interest with the clients they are processing orders for.
With IC markets, you can get raw spreads that start at 0.0 pips, with a $7 commission fee per standard lot round turn. If you prefer a commission-free model, they also offer a standard account, which has spreads starting from 0.8 pips.
All the industry standard platform options, including MetaTrader 4, MetaTrader 5, and cTrader are available to users. IC has a $200 minimum deposit, which is fairly reasonable. The broker is regulated by ASIC and CySEC.
While its library of educational resources is fairly limited, beginners who prefer to learn by doing would appreciate the professional-level interface and features that it offers.
15. Exness: Competitive Spreads & Low Entry Barriers
In recent years, many brokers have lowered the barriers to entry to bring in more traders to their fold. Exness, in particular, has followed this path by offering accounts with minimum deposits as low as $10, which is perfect if you want to experiment a bit as a beginner.
Exness offers accounts like Standard, Standard Cent, Raw Spread, Zero, and Pro. You can choose the best fit for the level of base capital you are willing to invest and the kind of spreads and commissions you are comfortable with.
Platform options offered are the industry standard MetaTrader 4 and MetaTrader 5. The broker is regulated by the FCA, CySEC, and several other authorities.
While its educational resources are fairly sparse, the 24/7 customer support is quite solid and has received good reviews online.
16. Interactive Brokers: The Professional’s Choice
While not a conventional forex broker, Interactive Brokers is a multi-asset platform where you can do forex trading as one among the many financial products available.
What makes them appealing is their institutional-level pricing. Their tight spreads are among the best in the market, and their commission structure is fairly transparent and reasonably priced.
They offer the IBKR Trader Workstation platform, which is a powerful but complex tool for beginners to work with, but if they’re working their way up to being serious traders, the exposure that this broker provides is invaluable.
As a multi-asset platform, the regulation is, of course, extensive, including the SEC, FINRA, and multiple global authorities. In many regions, it offers $0 minimum deposits, but be sure to check the situation in your particular region. Their educational resources are somewhat lacking, but are reasonable enough for brokers who like learning by doing.
What's Next for Forex Trading?
The forex market is continuously evolving. Beginner traders need to keep abreast of the trends shaping the future. AI and ML are increasingly becoming part and parcel of the trading platforms.
As a beginner, it’s important to know about AI-powered market analysis tools, trade suggestions, and risk management features. Copy trading is another trend that is growing in popularity, and many brokers are starting to follow the example of the likes of eToro and AvaTrade.
Many forex brokers are also offering cryptocurrency integration into forex trading tools, blurring the distinction between forex and crypto trading.
Regulatory frameworks also continue to evolve across the world, challenging leverage availability and increasing compliance costs. Stricter oversight is likely to continue as a trend in the coming years.
The best forex brokers are adapting their platforms to these changes, while also working on their core strengths such as reliable execution, competitive pricing, educational materials, and strong support teams.
