Despite the rumors about over-regulation killing the industry, there are plenty of Forex / CFD brokers accepting German residents as clients.
I’ve looked at the best Forex brokers in Germany in detail and compiled the shortlist below. Read on to find the best Forex broker for you, and to learn some important facts about trading in Germany.
- AvaTrade, Highly regulated, choice of fixed or floating spreads.
- BlackBull Markets, Best ECN trading environment, with scalping and hedging.
- Eightcap, Competitive pricing + excellent daily videos.
- Pepperstone, Great ECN execution on MT4/5, cTader, TradingView and Pepperstone proprietary platform.
- Plus500, multi-asset and CFD broker.
Best Germany Brokers Comparison
| | | | | |
Regulators | ASIC, BVI, Central Bank of Ireland, FFAJ, FSCA, KNF, MiFID | FMA, FSA | ASIC, CySEC, FCA, SCB | ASIC, BaFin, CMA, CySEC, DFSA, FCA, SCB | ASIC, CySEC, FCA, FMA, FSCA, MAS |
Year Established | 2006 | 2014 | 2009 | 2010 | 2008 |
Execution Type(s) | Market Maker | ECN/STP, No Dealing Desk | ECN/STP, Market Maker | No Dealing Desk, NDD | Market Maker |
Minimum Deposit | |||||
Average Trading Cost EUR/USD | 0.9 pips | 1.3 pips | 1.0 pips | 1.1 pips | 1.3 pips |
Average Trading Cost GBP/USD | 1.5 pips | 2.0 pips | 1.2 pips | 1.4 pips | 1.7 pips |
Average Trading Cost Gold | $0.29 | $0.90 | $0.12 | $0.15 | - |
Trading Platform(s) | Other, MetaTrader 4, MetaTrader 5, Proprietary platform, Web-based+ | MetaTrader 4, MetaTrader 5, cTrader, Trading View | MetaTrader 4, MetaTrader 5, Trading View | Other, MetaTrader 4, MetaTrader 5, cTrader, Proprietary platform, Trading View+ | Proprietary platform, Web-based |
Islamic Account | |||||
Negative Balance Protection | N/A | ||||
| Visit Website | Visit Website | Visit Website | Get Started Visit Website75-95% of traders on margin lose | Get Started Visit Website82% of retail CFD accounts lose money |
The Most Trusted Trading Platforms in Germany
AvaTrade
In Summary Highly regulated, choice of fixed or floating spreadsTraders at AvaTrade get commission-free costs with a balanced asset selection. Clients get 1,250+ CFDs and ETFs, while vanilla options allow advanced traders to deploy complex strategies. Beginners benefit from the high-quality, spun-out trading academy SharpTrader. Besides a competitive trading environment, AvaTrade provides passive income opportunities via its lucrative partnership program. It has 70,000+ partners from 150+ counties and 250M+ commission payouts.
AvaTrade ranks among the most balanced Forex brokers in Germany and maintains an excellent choice of trading platforms. Algorithmic traders get upgraded MT4/MT5 platforms, and social traders have integrated MT4/MT5 services, Ava Social, ZuluTrade, or DupliTrade. Manual traders may use the proprietary web based AvaTrade WebTrader. Options traders get AvaOptions, and mobile traders the AvaTradeGO app.
Pros & Cons
- High quality educational offering via AvaAcademy
- Excellent choice of trading platforms catering to various trading needs
- Broad asset selection and cross-asset diversification opportunities
- Well-regulated and trusted broker with oversight from a central bank
- Trading costs competitive but nothing special
BlackBull Markets
In Summary Best ECN trading environment, with scalping and hedgingI consider BlackBull Markets among the best Germany Forex brokers as it has one of the most elite trading environments. The competitively priced commission-based ECN trading accounts with fees as low as $4.00 per lot create a distinct competitive advantage at BlackBull Markets, making it ideal for demanding trading strategies. BlackBull Markets has data feeds from 66+ third-party providers, keeping spreads tight.
VPS hosting ensures 24/7 low-latency Forex trading, and traders can connect advanced algorithmic trading solutions to BlackBull Markets via API. Traders also get the Autochartist plugin for MT4/MT5 and a competitive choice of copy trading providers.
Pros & Cons
- ECN/NDD execution model with deep liquidity
- Institution-grade pricing for retail traders via proprietary price aggregation
- ZuluTrade and Myfxbook for social trading
- Leverage of up to 1:500
- Limited deposit options
Eightcap
In Summary Competitive pricing + excellent daily videosEightcap ensures traders have a competitive edge few brokers can match with the Capitalise AI MT4 plugin, enabling algorithmic trading in a code-free environment. It lowers the entry bar for beginners to commence algorithmic trading, a necessary tool for profitable Forex trading. Therefore, I rank Eightcap among the best Germany Forex brokers. It also provides the MT5 FlashTrader plugin and has an AI-powered economic calendar.
Competitive commission-based trading fees feature spreads from 0.0 pips for a commission of $7.00 per 1.0 standard round lot. Eightcap also maintains a well-balanced asset selection of liquid trading instruments, including 100+ cryptocurrency CFDs.
Pros & Cons
- Low minimum deposit and high leverage of up to 1:500
- Competitive cost structure
- Excellent technology infrastructure and seasoned management team
- Daily research and quality educational content
- Limited leverage in some areas
Pepperstone
In Summary Great ECN execution on MT4/5, cTader, TradingView and Pepperstone proprietary platformPepperstone offers traders MT4/MT5, cTrader, Myfxbook Autotrade, DupliTrade, TradingView, and a proprietary mobile trading app for copy and mobile traders. It upgrades MT4 with the 28-plugin Smart Trader Tools package and Autochartist. The availability of Capitalise AI, enabling algorithmic trading in a code-free environment, makes Pepperstone one of the best German Forex brokers on my listing.
Traders get commission-based fees featuring raw spreads from 0.0 pips for a commission of $7.00 per 1.0 lot, while a volume-based rebate program lowers trading fees for active traders. The well-balanced asset selection of 1,500+ assets includes Forex, Forex indices, cryptocurrencies, and ETFs.
Pros & Cons
- Excellent choice of trading platforms consisting of MT4/MT5, cTrader, TreadingView and Pepperstone Platform
- Market-leading MT4/MT5 upgrade package, Autochartist, and API trading
- Social trading support via Signal Start, MetaTrader Signals, Copy Trading by Pepperstone, DupliTrade
- Leverage of up to 1:400 depends on jurisdiction and superb trade execution
- Demo accounts have 60-day time limits
Plus500
In Summary multi-asset and CFD brokerThe proprietary trading platform and mobile app offer a sentiment-based indicator, the high-quality data-driven analytical tool +Insights, and a fee-based guaranteed stop-loss order. Traders also receive real-time email, SMS, and push notifications based on price alerts and percentage-based hourly and daily price changes.
Plus500 maintains commission-free Forex spreads from 0.6 pips or $6.00 per 1.0 standard lot, on par with competitive commission-based ECN/STP/NDD brokers. The well-balanced asset selection features the iShares DAX and iShares EU50 ETFs, the SPDR EURO 50 ETF, 61 German equity CFDs, cryptocurrencies, and options. Therefore, I consider Plus500 to be among the best Forex brokers in Germany.
Pros & Cons
- Broad asset selection in equities and options
- Free and unlimited demo account
- Advanced free-of-charge analytical trading tools
- Global and regulated fintech platform
- Sub-standard trading platform without support for automated or social trading
German Regulation and BaFin Authorization
BaFin (Bundesanstalt fur Finanzdienstleistungsaufsicht) is the German financial regulator, which unlike most of its global counterparts, is not financed by the state. It exclusively funds itself through membership fees it collects from companies it regulates. Therefore, BaFin remains an independent regulator, operating autonomously and impartially.
BaFin was established in 2002 via the merger of three German regulators, has offices in Bonn and Frankfurt, and regulates over 2,700 banks, 800 financial services firms, and 700 insurance companies. It has legal enforcement powers, imposes fines for violations, and takes legal action where necessary.
What are the Best Deposit Methods Available to German Traders?
Since Germany has a well-developed financial system that is interconnected globally, German Forex traders have numerous deposit and withdrawal methods available. It offers the freedom to the individual to manage their finances as they see fit, provided their Forex brokers in Germany include them in their offering.
The available deposit and withdrawal methods at Forex brokers in Germany include:
- Bank wires
- Credit/debit cards
- Giropay
- Sofort
- PayPal
- Skrill
- Neteller
- Cryptocurrencies
- Prepaid cards
- Other e-Wallets
- Localized FinTech solutions
- EU licensed and regulated payment processors
- Emerging FinTech alternatives
The Importance of Competitive Trading Platforms & Software
Trading with a cutting-edge platform ensures traders can have a competitive edge in today's fast-moving financial markets. Forex brokers in Germany can offer out-of-the-box trading platforms. They are available as desktop clients, lightweight web-based versions, and mobile apps. The most competitive German Forex brokers offer proprietary alternatives or trading apps streamlined for mobile trading.
Out-of-the-box trading platforms offered by Forex brokers in Germany:
- MT4, the industry leader among Forex traders, with full support for algorithmic and copy trading, is home to 25,000+ EAs, plugins, and custom templates
- cTrader, the primary ECN trading platform and fiercest MT4 challenger with full algorithmic and copy trading support and the best out-of-the-box user interface
- MT5, which many consider the failed MT4 successor due to the lack of backward compatibility
- Sirix, a lesser-known alternative for manual traders
Proprietary trading platforms offered by Forex brokers in Germany:
The most competitive Forex brokers in Germany develop proprietary trading platforms. It requires intensive monetary and time investment, usually resulting in superior alternatives to out-of-the-box trading platforms. The drawback is that only a few support algorithmic trading.
Trading apps offered by Forex brokers in Germany:
Some Forex brokers in Germany may not develop proprietary trading platforms but make smaller investments in trading apps streamlined for mobile trading. These are ideal for traders who prefer to check their portfolios on the go and get relevant market news and analytics but are not well-suited for trading-related activities.
Why Should Traders Care About Commissions, Spreads & Fees?
Trading costs directly impact profits, and high spreads, as offered by many commission-free Forex brokers in Germany, can make most Forex trading strategies unprofitable. Forex traders must avoid the commission-free trap and carefully evaluate trading costs.
How to spot expensive Forex brokers in Germany?
The quickest way is to look at trading costs for all major currency pairs, where costs should not exceed $8.00 per 1.0 standard round lot. Therefore, commission-free spreads should not be above 0.8 pips, while commission-based alternatives must average spreads of 0.2 pips with a $6.00 commission. Traders can try to exploit a volume-based rebate program where it exists, potentially lowering final trading costs.
Bottom Line
Forex trading in Germany continues to expand and evolve, and Forex brokers in Germany get plenty of competition from FinTech companies. It all results in better trading conditions for clients, cutting-edge trading platforms, and lower trading costs. German Forex traders should ensure they trade with a regulated broker. They should carefully compare the core trading environment between brokers, searching for the lowest pricing environment and an asset selection that suits their trading strategy. The most competitive Forex brokers in Germany fully support algorithmic and copy trading.
