The broker comes before the trade.
You’ve read enough to be ready. Before any money moves, decide who holds it. We check the licence, the costs and the small print on every broker we list, so the only thing left to decide is the trade.
Pepperstone92.00/100
Pepperstone92.00/100
Pepperstone92.00/100
Pepperstone92.00/100Where are you
starting from?
Choose one and the page rearranges itself around you: which brokers come first, which numbers you see, how much we explain.
Spread
The small gap between the buy price and the sell price. Every trade opens on the wrong side of it, so the tighter it is, the less the market has to move before you're even.
Swap
A fee, or sometimes a credit, for keeping a position open overnight. Check both directions before you hold anything past the daily close.
What a licence gets you
Which regulator can act if something goes wrong, and what compensation scheme (if any) backs your deposit. We check every licence number against the broker's own regulation page or the regulator's own public register.
Plus500Plus500All-in cost is the raw EUR/USD spread at one standard lot, plus round-turn commission, London session.
Put two side by side →Three places to start in the EU. Top picks for European Union.
Each holds an EU licence, asks for a small first deposit or none, prices plainly, and answers when you call. Each also wins a different test: highest overall score, lowest deposit to start, widest choice of platforms and markets.
PepperstoneCySEC 388/20
FxProCySEC 078/07
Plus500CySEC 250/14
Ranking covers EU-licensed entities only, scored on conditions we verified on the review date. Brokers may pay us when you open an account. That never moves a ranking. Scores calculated 11 October 2026 with our published method; see How we rank.
Your address changes the broker.
The Pepperstone a trader opens in London is a different company from the one in Sydney. Different spreads, different leverage, different protection. Tell us where you are and we'll only show you what you can open.
Counts are licensed entities in our index for each region. Choosing one here overrides the region we guessed from your connection.
Three ideas decide whether a broker suits you.
Each one comes with what it costs if you skip it.
The spread is your entry fee.
Every trade starts a little behind. That gap between buy and sell is the spread, and it's how most brokers earn. The wider it is, the longer the walk back to break-even, on every position you open.
Worked example: on one standard lot of EUR/USD, each 0.1 pip of spread is about US$1. A 1.0 pip spread instead of 0.2 costs you roughly US$8 the moment you click.
Spreads, broker by broker →Example: spread cost only, before commission, one standard lot — real raw/ECN spreads across the EU brokers we track, converted at US$10/pip.
Leverage works both ways.
Leverage lets a small deposit move a big position. Gains and losses grow at exactly the same rate, which is why regulators cap it for retail traders.
Worked example: at 30:1, a 1% move against you takes 30% of the margin behind that trade. At 500:1 the same move takes all of it, several times over.
Leverage, plainly →Worked example: retail leverage in the EU and UK is capped at 30:1 on major FX pairs (ESMA/FCA measures); this section doesn't change with the region tab above — check the entity's own cap on its profile.
The licence is your safety net.
It decides who hears your complaint, whether your money sits apart from the broker's own, and whether anything pays you back if the firm goes under. Same brand, different licence, different protection.
Worked example: a CySEC (EU) entity carries investor compensation up to €20,000 and segregated client funds. An offshore entity of the same brand may carry neither — check Regulators for what a specific broker's entity actually gives you.
Check any licence number →Worked example: a CySEC (EU) entity. This section doesn't change with the region tab above — real terms differ by entity, not by which region you're browsing from.
The full ranking.
Every EU-licensed broker we track, highest score first. Licence details come from the broker or the regulator, and each profile shows the day we checked. Tap a column to reorder.
| Broker | Licence | Min deposit | Assets | Score ↓ | Profile |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pepperstone Est. 2010 · MT4 · MT5 · cTrader · TradingView · Pepperstone Platform | CySEC 388/20 | No minimum | 1,300+ | 92.00 | View → |
| FxPro Est. 2006 · MT4 · MT5 · cTrader · FxPro Edge / FxPro app | CySEC 078/07 | No minimum | 2,100+ | 81.84 | View → |
 XMEst. 2009 · MT4 · MT5 · XM app | CySEC 120/10 | €5 | 1,400+ | 77.57 | View → |
 AvaTradeEst. 2006 · MT4 · MT5 · WebTrader · AvaTradeGO · AvaOptions · DupliTrade | CBI C53877 | €100 | 1,250+ | 75.61 | View → |
 EightcapEst. 2009 · MT4 · MT5 · TradingView · TradeLocker (selected regions) | CySEC 246/14 | €100 | 800+ | 73.92 | View → |
 ActivTradesEst. 2001 · MT4 · MT5 · TradingView · ActivTrader | CMVM 433 | No minimum | 1,000+ | 67.77 | View → |
| Plus500 Est. 2008 · Plus500 proprietary (web and app) · TradingView integration | CySEC 250/14 | €100 | 2,800+ | 63.00 | View → |
See the full listShow the top seven only 3 more brokers
| Broker | Licence | Min deposit | Assets | Score | Profile |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 DarwinexEst. 2012 · MT4 · MT5 · TWS and NinjaTrader via Interactive Brokers | CNMV | €500 | 400+ | Not yet rankedCost data not yet verified | View → |
 IQ OptionEst. 2013 · IQ Option proprietary platform only (no MT4/MT5) | CySEC 247/14 | €10 | 300+ | Not yet rankedCost data not yet verified | View → |
 NAGAEst. 2015 · NAGA Trader (web and app) · MT5 | CySEC 204/13 | €50 | 950+ | Not yet rankedCost data not yet verified | View → |
Licensed entities only. The same brand can offer very different terms through different entities. Brokers may pay us when you open an account; that never moves a ranking.
See all 10 brokers →Price the trade before you place it.
What a trade costs in this region: the median raw spread and commission, the median all-in cost per lot, and the lowest we have verified. Real averages, no "from" prices.
Across 3 raw-spread accounts in the EU index. With fewer than three brokers we show a dash instead of a misleading average.
Raw accounts charge commission. Standard accounts build it into the spread.
Spread plus commission on one standard lot of EUR/USD, across the 7 brokers with a verified figure in the EU index.
The cheapest verified all-in cost in this region. Each profile names the account it applies to.
At 5 lots a month, that’s about US$540 a year in trading costs.
Median of typical EUR/USD spreads and round-turn commissions across the 3 raw-spread accounts in the EU index. Figures verified 21 Sep 2026.
How opening an account works.
Three steps to a funded EU-regulated account. You apply with the broker directly, and we never see your documents.
Pick from the shortlist.
Three licensed brokers, chosen for how you actually trade. You open directly with them — we never touch your documents or your money.
Prove it's you.
Photo ID and proof of address. Regulated brokers are required by law to ask. One that doesn't ask is your warning sign.
Fund it, then start small.
Deposit well below what you could afford to lose, and trade the smallest size the platform allows. Size up once the routine feels boring.
Open with a broker we’ve checked.
Our top 7, in index order — each holds a licence for this region; see each profile for the regulator, licence number and the date we checked it.
PepperstoneCySEC 388/20Open account →92.00FxProCySEC 078/07Open account →81.84XMCySEC 120/10Open account →77.57AvaTradeCBI C53877Open account →75.61EightcapCySEC 246/14Open account →73.92ActivTradesCMVM 433Open account →67.77Plus500CySEC 250/14Open account →63.00Some links earn us a commission. That never changes a ranking or who appears here; this grid follows the index order for your region.
CFDs are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. Between 53% and 80% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs. You should consider whether you understand how CFDs work and whether you can afford to take the high risk of losing your money. Retail leverage is capped and negative balance protection applies under ESMA product intervention measures. Brokers displayed to visitors in the European Union are authorised and regulated by CySEC or an equivalent EEA competent authority; licence numbers are shown on each broker profile, as published by the broker or the relevant regulator, checked on the date shown there. BrokersNest is a research publisher, not a licensed adviser, and nothing on this page is personal financial advice.