Costs, Spreads & FeesTrading CommissionPer-Lot Fee
Commission
An explicit per-trade or per-lot fee charged by the broker in addition to, or instead of, a marked-up spread.
What Commission means
Commission is a stated charge for executing a trade, usually expressed in account currency per standard lot, sometimes as a percentage of notional value on share and index instruments. It is the counterpart of raw pricing: rather than earning from a marked-up spread, the broker takes a transparent fee and passes the underlying market price through. Commission is normally deducted at the moment of execution, appearing as a separate line on the trade rather than being folded into the entry price.
The critical detail when comparing brokers is whether a quoted figure is per side or per round turn. A charge of USD 3.50 per side per standard lot is the same as USD 7 per round turn, and offers are advertised both ways. Commission is also charged on the notional traded rather than the margin posted, so a highly leveraged position attracts the same fee as an unleveraged one of the same size, and volume-tiered schedules may reduce the rate for active accounts.
Because commission is fixed per lot while spreads float, the relative attractiveness of commission-based and spread-only accounts depends on the pair and the time of day traded. On liquid majors during peak hours the commission-based structure is usually cheaper; on exotics or in thin sessions the difference narrows or reverses. Some introducing broker and rebate arrangements return part of the commission to the trader, which should be netted off when comparing.
Worked example
At USD 3.50 per side per standard lot, opening and closing 2 lots of EUR/USD costs USD 14 in commission, which on top of a 0.2 pip raw spread makes roughly USD 18 total for the round trip.
Related terms
- Raw SpreadThe underlying market spread passed to the client without broker markup, normally paired with a commission.
- Round TurnA complete trade cycle of opening and closing one position, used as the unit for quoting commission.
- SpreadThe difference between the bid and the ask price, and the most common way a forex broker is paid.
- RebateA partial refund of spread or commission paid back to the trader, usually per lot traded and often via an introducing broker.
- Total Cost of TradingThe complete cost of a trade or account, combining spread, commission, swap, slippage and non-trading fees.
Frequently asked questions
What does Commission mean in forex trading?
An explicit per-trade or per-lot fee charged by the broker in addition to, or instead of, a marked-up spread.
How does Commission work in practice?
The critical detail when comparing brokers is whether a quoted figure is per side or per round turn. A charge of USD 3.50 per side per standard lot is the same as USD 7 per round turn, and offers are advertised both ways. Commission is also charged on the notional traded rather than the margin posted, so a highly leveraged position attracts the same fee as an unleveraged one of the same size, and volume-tiered schedules may reduce the rate for active accounts.
What is an example of Commission?
At USD 3.50 per side per standard lot, opening and closing 2 lots of EUR/USD costs USD 14 in commission, which on top of a 0.2 pip raw spread makes roughly USD 18 total for the round trip.
Trade with a regulated broker
Understanding the terminology is the cheap part. The expensive part is choosing a counterparty whose execution, financing and withdrawal behaviour match what the marketing implies. Every broker below has been reviewed with a funded live account, and each review states which legal entity and which regulator applies to the account you would actually open.
Check the licence on the regulator's own register before you deposit — our regulators directory explains what each authority enforces, from leverage caps to compensation limits.