Trading costs can significantly impact your profitability. This guide explains each fee type, how to calculate your true cost per trade, and how to compare brokers side by side.
Types of CFD Broker Fees
CFD broker fees fall into two categories:
Trading Fees (direct)
- Spread — The difference between the buy (ask) and sell (bid) price. This is the most common fee structure.
- Commission — A fixed charge per lot traded, usually on ECN accounts. Replaces or supplements the spread.
- Overnight Swap (Rollover) — Daily interest on open positions held past market close.
Non-Trading Fees (indirect)
- Deposit fees — Most regulated brokers charge nothing; some charge a small percentage
- Withdrawal fees — Usually free; some charge for international wire or small amounts
- Currency conversion fees — If trading in an instrument denominated in a different currency than your account
- Inactivity fees — Monthly charges if no trades are placed after 3–12 months (varies by broker)
For active traders, the total cost per trade is: (Spread + Commission) × Lot Size + Swap (if held overnight)
Comparing Spreads by Broker
EUR/USD is the standard benchmark for spread comparison. Typical spreads on EUR/USD:
| Broker | Account | EUR/USD Spread |
|---|
| IC Markets | Raw Spread | 0.1 pips avg |
| Exness | Raw Spread | 0.1–0.2 pips avg |
| TMGM | Edge | 0.0–0.2 pips avg |
| XM | Zero | 0.0 pips avg |
| Exness | Standard | 0.3–0.8 pips avg |
| XM | Standard | 1.6 pips avg |
For active Forex traders making 10+ trades per day, even 0.1 pip differences compound significantly over time.
How to Calculate Commission Costs
On ECN accounts, commission is typically charged per standard lot (100,000 units of base currency):
Example: IC Markets Raw Spread Account
- Commission: $3.50 per lot per side = $7.00 round turn
- EUR/USD 1 standard lot at 0.1 pip spread = $1 + $7 commission = $8 total per round turn
Example: XM Zero Account
- Commission: $3.50 per lot per side = $7.00 round turn
- EUR/USD at 0.0 pip spread = $0 spread + $7 commission = $7 total per round turn
For a trader making 20 standard lot trades per month:
- IC Markets: 20 × $8 = $160/month in trading costs
- XM Standard: 20 × (1.6 pips × $10/pip) = 20 × $16 = $320/month in spread costs
ECN accounts are more cost-effective at higher volumes.
Understanding and Comparing Swap Rates
Swap rates (overnight financing costs) apply when you hold a CFD position past the daily rollover time (usually 5pm New York time).
Swap rates are:
- Based on the interest rate differential between the two currencies in a pair
- Different for long (buy) and short (sell) positions
- Applied three times on Wednesdays to account for the weekend
For swing traders holding positions for days or weeks, swap rates can be a significant additional cost. Check swap rates directly on the broker's contract specification page or MT4/MT5 instrument information.
Islamic (swap-free) accounts are available from Exness, XM, IC Markets, TMGM, and others — suitable for traders who cannot pay/receive interest.
