As a highly speculative investment and an asset class that by definition crosses international boundaries, foreign currency is a field that can attract many disreputable operations. IG is a platform that enables you to trade one thing, foreign currencies. Forex is a niche and highly risky asset class, which makes IG itself a fairly niche ig group review service. If you are looking for a dedicated toolkit for trading currencies, IG is well worth considering. Stay up-to-date with financial announcements, and ahead of market movements, with our news and analysis package – integrated into our online trading platform.

• Finally, let us compare IG CFD Account average spreads with those other major brokerages offered on the most actively traded Forex pairs.
• Trading central is also available as a technical analysis tool, providing charting and daily e-mail updates about the financial markets.
• IG holds your funds across a variety of banks and collectively services over 190,000 active clients as of its latest annual report for 2023.
• Place trades, analyse markets and manage your positions all from one intuitive interface.

Demo Account

At IG, we tend to use the term ‘points’, but you may see ‘pips’ used interchangeably by other brokers. Alternatively, if you think a pair will increase in value, you can go long and profit from an increasing market. At IG, we tend to use the term ‘pips’, but you may see ‘points’ used interchangeably by other brokers. These prices are indicative only, and subject to our website terms and conditions. We break down our algorithmic offering, so you can remove human error from your trading and backtest your theories. Compare features and decide which platform best suits your needs, with our helpful comparison table.

This fee-free structure supports seamless fund movement and makes cost management more predictable for all types of traders. We also evaluate the overall design of the mobile experience, and look for a fluid user experience moving between mobile and desktop platforms. IG, winner of our 2025 Annual Award for #1 Education, is a leader for its educational content. IG offers a vast selection of material in a variety of formats, including video, written articles, numerous weekly webinars, and guides. There are educational courses organized by experience level on IG Academy, complete with progress tracking and quizzes. IG also provides a dedicated mobile app for education, and its strong social community of over 64,000 members provides a selection of crowd-sourced articles.

A real positive of IG is that, unlike many other forex online brokers, all their client’s funds are not used for hedging. This means that all funds which include net running, unrealised profits are held for their clients in the major banks which is above and beyond AFSL requirements. This combined with their technology has led them to win several awards, including the Online Personal Wealth Awards in 2015. IG broker also source their forex market quotes directly from the world’s largest global exchanges and banks. In turbulent markets, their price improvement technology may give you a superior price to that quoted when available.

Industry awards

Its Trust Score of 99 from ForexBrokers.com, the highest of any broker they review, underscores its reliability as a financial service provider. 1 Tax laws are subject to change and depend on individual circumstances. Tax law may differ in a jurisdiction other than the Republic of Ireland.2 Based on number of active trading and investment accounts with IG in October 2024. As a result, all money withdrawn from your account must go to a bank account in the same name as your IG trading account. Yes, IG offer one of the largest range of financial derivatives products of all brokers.

• Currency pairs are sorted by occasionally odd categories, which chiefly reflect the limits of the currency marketplace.
• 67% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading spread bets and CFDs with this provider.
• (see our IG U.K. share dealing review), Germany, and Australia to access international stock exchanges, via its share trading account.
• We’ve been recognised by industry experts time and again for our cutting-edge tech and great value for money.
• That’s because a rising price means that more of the quote are needed to buy a single unit of the base, and a falling price means that fewer of the quote are needed to buy one of the base.

Get familiar with our powerful, easy-to-use platform

Steven Hatzakis is the Global Director of Online Broker Research for ForexBrokers.com. All content on ForexBrokers.com is handwritten by a writer, fact-checked by a member of our research team, and edited and published by an editor. Our ratings, rankings, and opinions are entirely our own, and the result of our extensive research and decades of collective experience covering the forex industry. IG has consistently ranked at the top of our education category, which is a key factor in determining the best brokers for beginners. IG delivers a wide range of powerful educational content and related materials as part of its IG Academy. Which features university-style courses along with progress tracking and quizzes to help accelerate your learning.

IG delivers a smooth and efficient deposit and withdrawal experience with zero fees and a solid range of payment options. The quick 1–3 day processing time and support for major global currencies further enhance its appeal for traders looking for simple and secure account management. IG makes getting started simple with a $250 minimum deposit and a fast, secure application process. With account options tailored for both beginners and experienced traders, and the ability to trade across platforms, IG delivers flexibility and accessibility from the very first step. IG stands out as a cost-efficient broker, especially for traders who prioritize low spreads and transparency.

App support

That said, the following factors can all have an effect on the forex market. Some of the most popular forex trading styles are scalping, day trading, swing trading and position trading. You might choose a different style depending on whether you have a short- or long-term outlook. Each currency has its own code – which lets traders quickly identify it as part of a pair. Trade seamlessly with our award-winning online platform.¹ Discover our platform benefits and access thousands of global markets wherever you are. That’s because these pairs represent some of the most widely-circulated currencies and so they attract the most traders.

Autochartist is another feature that can monitor CFDs and currency markets, alerting clients as to opportunities based on chart patterns. Trading central is also available as a technical analysis tool, providing charting and daily e-mail updates about the financial markets. If clients prefer to trade with No Dealing Desk Brokers, then IG offers direct market access trading execution. This type of trading means full market transparency and therefore tighter spreads. IG’s mobile trading app provides a full-featured experience, allowing users to open, manage, and close trades with real-time data and tools. The app is designed for ease of use while maintaining the functionality of the desktop platforms.

We do not manage client funds or hold custody of assets, we help users connect with relevant financial advisors. Too, it is hard to miss just how many currencies you can’t trade on this marketplace. Presented by our global team from IG and DailyFX, whatever your trading stlye or experience, we are confident you will find a topic that suits you. All our platforms use top-of-the-range web security, so you can trade with confidence. Markets can move in milliseconds, meaning the price you click to trade on may have changed by the time your order reaches us.

Practise trading forex on a demo account, in an environment with reduced risk. Get The Week Ahead, our free rundown of the coming week’s market-moving events and forex pairs to watch, delivered to your inbox every Sunday. It’s achieved by opening positions that will stand to profit if some of your other positions decline in value – with the gains hopefully offsetting at least a portion of the losses.

Australia and clients in the UK have the option of Share trading, which gives them shareholders rights as they have ownership of the company’s stocks, which they can later sell for profit. Australian’s and UK traders wanting to trade shares will need a Share dealing account. IG is one of the few forex brokers that offer domestic and international share trading in addition to CFD trading. The only other brokers we have covered that do this are CMC Markets, Trading 212, ThinkMarkets (in Australia and South Africa), and BlackBull Markets. What is unique about IG share trading is that a trader can use the same platform for both currency and stockbroking services. Standard trading execution is a spread-only account, which means no commission costs.

What is a forex pair?

This is how you will usually see these cryptocurrencies quoted elsewhere, too. You can trade cryptocurrencies with IG through CFDs (Contracts for difference). CFDs allow you to speculate on the price of cryptocurrencies without taking ownership of the underlying assets. Additionally, traders can get a wider exposure to the cryptocurrency market through the Crypto 10 Index. The broker provides traders with the demo account option, which traders can use to practice their trading strategies before implementing them on the live trading accounts.

Mobile trading

IG Charts can be included for free to provide technical indicators and the ability to trade directly from charts. Another option is ProRealTime, which is an advanced charting tool, with a dedicated suite of features. This charting balance has monthly costs, but these are not charged when traders actively trade on the platform. Additionally, the IG platforms allow FX traders to create a watchlist with their preferred financial instruments to find them at their fingertips. IG offers a wide range of trading platform options that are superior to forex brokers across forex and CFDs including MetaTrade 4, TradingView, IG Trading Platform, and L2 Dealer.

Our platform features customisable workspaces, advanced charting tools and more. Place trades, analyse markets and manage your positions all from one intuitive interface. You can trade 13,000+ markets, including forex, indices, shares, commodities and more – all on our online and mobile trading platforms.