| Updated: June 17, 2024You want to trade GBP/USD but struggle to find a reliable broker? We come to your aid with a toplist of legit brokers offering the tightest spreads and best overall conditions for trading this forex pair. Read on to learn more about our top picks and what makes them the best brokers for trading GBP/USD.
FP Markets73.85% of retail investor accounts lose money
Fusion Markets74-89% of retail CFD accounts lose money
Pepperstone75.5% of retail investor accounts lose money
AvaTrade76% of retail investor accounts lose money
CMC Markets71% of retail investor accounts lose money
eToro51% of retail investor accounts lose money
Global Prime74-89% of retail CFD accounts lose money
IG70% of retail client accounts lose money
Admirals73% of retail investor accounts lose money
Swissquote61% of retail investor accounts lose moneyComprehensive Comparison of the Top 10 GBP/USD Forex Brokers
| Forex Broker | GBP/USD Spread | GBP/USD Commissions | Number of FX pairs to trade | Trust Pilot Rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Fusion Markets | 0.11 | $0 Classic Account, $4.50 round turn on Zero Account | Over 200 | 4.8 ⭐ |
| 2. Global Prime | 0.22 | $0 Standard Accounts; $7 round turn on Raw Accounts | 56 | 4.1 ⭐ |
| 3. FP Markets | 0.30 | $0 Standard Account; $6 round turn on Pro Account | 70+ | 4.8 ⭐ |
| 4. Admirals | 0.5 | $3 per lot | 82 | 4.1 ⭐ |
| 5. CMC Markets | 0.9 | $2.50 per lot | 330+ | 4.2 ⭐ |
| 6. IG | 0.9 | $0 | 80+ | 4.1 ⭐ |
| 7. Pepperstone | 1.0 | $0 (Standard Account), $7 round-turn (Razor Account) | 100 | 4.5 ⭐ |
| 8. AvaTrade | 1.3 | $0 | 250+ | 4.5 ⭐ |
| 9. Swissquote | 2.0 | $9 per lot (Standard); $0 (Premium) | 80+ | 3.6 ⭐ |
| 10. eToro | 2.0 | $0 | 55 | 4.2 ⭐ |
Top 10 Brokers with Lowest Spreads for GBP/USD
Fusion Markets is a globally recognized broker regulated in Australia, Vanuatu, and the Seychelles. The company provides a streamlined and affordable trading experience, with minimum spreads starting from zero pips and below-average commissions. Fusion Markets offers over 90 currency pairs available at interbank market rates.
The services of Fusion Markets are accessible to traders from all walks of life, as the broker has no deposit fees or minimum account size requirements. GBP/USD spreads average 0.11 pips. Beyond forex, Fusion Markets facilitates trading in precious metals, energies, soft commodities, US shares, indices, and cryptocurrencies. MT5, MT4, and TradingView are all supported here.
Gleneagle Asset Management Limited (ABN 29 103 162 278) trading as Fusion Markets, is the issuer of the Fusion Markets Products described in this communication. Trading in Fusion Markets Products involves the potential for profit as well as the risk of loss which may vastly exceed the amount of your initial deposit and is not suitable for all investors. You should read all of these Financial Product Service Terms, the Product Disclosure Statement (PDS) and the Financial Services Guide (available on our website) carefully, consider your own financial situation, needs and objectives for investing in these Fusion Markets Products and obtain independent financial advice.- 2. CMC Markets
CMC Markets is a standout option for forex traders insisting on transparent pricing, fair trading conditions, and competitive spreads. The broker falls under the regulatory purview of ASIC, FCA, MAS, and BaFin, further adding to its immaculate reputation. It offers an extensive range of financial instruments, including over 330 tradable forex symbols.
Forex traders at CMC Markets will benefit from exceptionally swift order processing and tight spreads. The broker relies on eight feeds from first-tier banks to deliver razor-sharp pricing. Spreads at CMC Markets average 0.9 for GBP/USD, a better pricing than many rival brokers offer. The London-based company boasts exceptionally high fill rates without partial refills regardless of order size.
Spread bets and CFDs are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. 71% of retail investor accounts lose money when spread betting and/or trading CFDs with this provider. You should consider whether you understand how spread bets and CFDs work and whether you can afford to take the high risk of losing your money. - 3. Pepperstone
Launched in 2010, Pepperstone is a legit multi-regulated broker catering to customers from over 160 jurisdictions. The company hails from Melbourne but has a solid presence outside Australia. It carries licenses from multiple financial watchdogs, including FCA, SCB, DFSA, and CySEC. Pepperstone clients can choose from over 700 markets tradable at raw spreads, including 90 or so forex pairs.
The broker offers highly competitive pricing for GBP/USD as spreads for this pair average 0.40 with certain account types. Pepperstone also ensures superior order execution without requotes or partial fills, allowing clients to make the most of their trades. You can connect your Pepperstone account to state-of-the-art platforms like MT4, MT5, cTrader, and TradingView.
CFDs are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. 75.5% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider. You should consider whether you understand how CFDs work and whether you can afford to take the high risk of losing your money. - 4. Global Prime
Global Prime is an industry-leading online broker from Australia that has been doing business with customers for over 13 years. The company targeted primarily institutional clients when it emerged in 2010, but launched a retail arm shortly after. The broker has licenses from the regulators of Vanuatu, Australia, and the Seychelles. It has no requirements for minimum account size, rendering it ideal for traders from all walks of life.
Customers can choose from over 150 global markets across asset classes like currencies, crypto, indices, and commodities. Low-cost trading is another area this broker excels in as it offers average GBP/USD spreads of 0.22. Global Prime poses a solid alternative for small-scale traders, allowing them to open positions as small as one micro lot.
Global Prime is a trading name of FMGP Trading Group Pty Ltd (ABN 74 146 086 017) and is regulated by ASIC and licensed to carry on a financial services business in Australia under Australian Financial Services License No. 385620. Gleneagle Securities Pty Limited trading as Global Prime FX, is a registered Vanuatu company (Company Number 40256) and is regulated by the VFSC. The website is owned and operated by FMGP Trading Group Pty Ltd, ABN 74 146 086 017. - 5. Swissquote
Swissquote is a Switzerland-based forex and CFD broker that scores highly in important areas like safety, fair pricing, and trustworthiness. But of course, this is to be expected from a well-regulated banking group that trades its shares publicly on the Swiss Stock Exchange. The group and its entities serve customers from over 150 countries with licenses from FIMNA, MAS, FCA, and CySEC.
Traders doing business with Swissquote enjoy access to an impressive multi-asset market array, including more than 80 forex pairs and 400 CFDs. Swissquote offers fair pricing without hidden commissions or charges. The broker ensures deep liquidity by partnering with a network of first-tier banks and multiple liquidity providers. Retail customers can trade in standard, mini, and micro lots.
CFDs are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. 61% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider. You should consider whether you understand how CFDs work and whether you can afford to take the high risk of losing your money. - 6. eToro
Launched in 2007, eToro is perhaps the best and most widely known platform for copy and social trading. The industry-leading brand has over 30 million active customers worldwide and caters to this vast client base with a rich offering of more than 5,000 tradable instruments. This impressive selection includes 55 forex pairs, 100 cryptocurrencies, over 4,500 stocks, 35 commodities, and more.
New customers can give eToro a risk-free drive test via demo accounts with $100,000 in virtual credits. The broker demonstrates an unwavering commitment to client education, offering abundant research tools and educational materials on its website. Spreads for CFDs on forex majors are razor-sharp at eToro and start from 2 pips for GBP/USD.
CFDs are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. 51% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider. You should consider whether you understand how CFDs work, and whether you can afford to take the high risk of losing your money. - 7. FP Markets
If you are looking for consistently tight forex spreads, FP Markets is perhaps your best bet. This well-regulated broker maintains consistently low spreads for major currency pairs, offering prices as tight as zero pips in certain cases. Majors like GBP/USD are tradable with average spreads of 0.3 pips only via ECN accounts.
The company provides a choice from over 70 forex majors and crosses. Trading in other assets like shares, metals, indices, cryptos, and ETFs is also possible. Traders face a healthy choice of third-party platforms, including MT4, MT5, TradingView, and cTrader. The risk of slippage is minimal at FP Markets as the broker relies on state-of-the-art technology to ensure low latency and lightning-fast order processing.
10 per quarter for non-AU traders; 20 per quarter and notional volume of AU$1,000,000 per 4 quarters in the last 1 year 73.85% of retail CFD accounts lose money - 8. AvaTrade
Established in 2006, AvaTrade is a reliable option for clients looking to trade forex in a well-regulated and secure environment. Licensed by nine regulatory bodies, including ASIC, CySEC, and the FSCA, this trusted broker delivers access to over 1,200 financial instruments tradable at ultra-competitive prices. Forex traders benefit from super-tight spreads for over 50 major, minor, and exotic currency pairs.
Small-scale retail traders can trade forex majors like GBP/USD in micro-lots consisting of 1,000 currency units only. AvaTrade additionally provides copy trading services, allowing beginners to follow successful investors and replicate their positions. On top of these merits, the broker offers a superior support service via live chat, telephone, and email.
CFDs are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. 76% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider. You should consider whether you understand how CFDs work and whether you can afford to take the high risk of losing your money. - 9. IG
IG is a trustworthy low-cost broker providing fair trading conditions, outstanding research tools, and access to over 18,000 tradable symbols. In business for over fifty years (est. 1974), the company serves north of 313,000 clients worldwide with licenses from first-tier regulators like the FCA, FINMA, DFSA, MAS, and JFSA. The broker excels at order execution execution, filling orders within ten milliseconds on average.
Forex traders enjoy commission-free CFDs where spreads for major currency pairs start from 0.6 pts. Seasoned investors insisting on order book transparency and direct market access can trade via the robust L2 Dealer platform. MetaTrader 4 is an option for IG customers looking to execute trades in a familiar and user-friendly environment.
CFDs are complex instruments. 70% of retail client accounts lose money when trading CFDs, with this investment provider. You can lose your money rapidly due to leverage. Please ensure you understand how this product works and whether you can afford to take the high risk of losing money. - 10. Admirals
Formerly Admiral Markets, Admirals is an award-winning global broker boasting regulatory approval in Cyprus, South Africa, Canada, and Australia. The multi-regulated brokerage allows speculation on price movements with over 4,000 CFDs for forex, equity indices, stocks, and commodities. Spreads for key currency pairs start at 0.5 pips, with low-volume customers having the option to trade forex in micro lots.
Straight-through processing (STP) is a noteworthy advantage of trading with Admirals. The broker fills client orders within a split second and imposes no restrictions on trading strategies. Scalpers, hedgers, day traders, and long-term investors are welcome here. Customers can improve their performance with various analytical tools, including market heat maps and economic calendars.
CFDs are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. 73% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider. You should consider whether you understand how CFDs work and whether you can afford to take the high risk of losing your money.
The GBP/USD Currency Pair in Brief
The GBP/USD is one of the oldest and most liquid currency pairs in the forex market, boasting an average daily trading volume of approximately $330 billion. Colloquially known as ‘the cable’, this pair juxtaposes the value of the British pound sterling to that of the United States dollar. Various factors can influence the price of this pair, including interest rates in the UK and the US, inflation, and geopolitical and economic events.
The pair exhibits a positive correlation with EUR/USD and a negative correlation with USD/CHF. Traders can go long (buy) or short (sell) with this pair. When going long, traders hope sterling prices will increase against the dollar, allowing them to lock in profits after selling the pound. Conversely, when traders short their GBP/USD positions, they profit when the dollar price strengthens against the pound.
What Is Spread in Forex Trading?
Spreads measure price movements in the forex markets, reflecting the difference between the bid and ask prices of paired currencies. These bid-ask price differences are measured in units called pips (percentage in point). Most brokers quote the bid-ask prices for forex majors down to the fourth decimal place, although five-decimal quotes are also available at some forex trading platforms.
Spreads indicate the upfront costs built into forex trades, so the narrower they are, the better for the trader. Let’s assume a broker offers a 1.2559 bid price and a 1.2569 ask price for the GBP/USD forex pair. You can calculate the spread by subtracting the bid from the ask price. It follows that the spread in our example equals one pip (0.0001).
Highly liquid forex pairs like GBP/USD have narrower spreads as they are typically traded in larger volumes. If you want to profit from your GBP/USD trades, it is essential to understand what factors cause their spreads to broaden. This could be anything from major political decisions like Brexit to fluctuations in inflation and interest rates.
Minimum Spreads for GBP/USD Pair
Forex majors like GBP/USD offer tighter spreads than crosses and exotic pairs because they have higher liquidity and larger trading volumes. Such currency pairs appeal to forex traders because their narrower spreads translate into fewer transaction costs and greater profits from successful trades. Spreads vary wildly across different trading sites, with some online forex brokers offering substantially better bid-ask quotes for forex majors.
From our observation, the lowest spreads for the GBP/USD pair start from 0.0 or 0.1 at brokers with more generous trading conditions and reach 1.3 at sites with less competitive bid-ask prices. We recommend you compare the spreads across multiple brokers to find the best trading conditions for GBP/USD.
Market Hours for Trading GBP/USD
The foreign exchange market is split between four financial hubs (London, Tokyo, Sydney, and New York), located in four different time zones. Forex traders have 24-hour access to the markets on weekdays (Mondays through Fridays) as trading hours overlap due to time-zone differences. Trading hours are important because they impact liquidity and spread width.
Major currencies are optimal to trade whenever liquidity is at its highest as this translates into tighter spreads. Experts recommend trading the GBP/USD pair during the London (7:00-16:00 UTC) and New York (13:00-22:00 UTC) sessions as spreads are at their lowest during these timeframes.
Pros and Cons of Trading GBP/USD with Leverage
Key Pros
- There are multiple advantages to trading GBP/USD, starting with the deep liquidity and more competitive spreads associated with this major currency pair. These factors enable savvy traders to execute trades at a lower cost and benefit more than they would from less actively traded pairs. Small-scale traders can also considerably increase their exposure by leveraging their GBP/USD positions with contracts for difference (CFDs).
- CFDs are leveraged derivatives enabling traders to speculate on and hopefully profit from currency price fluctuations in either direction without buying the underlying assets. There is no need to commit with substantial amounts of money as you can open larger positions with nominal capital outlay.
- EU traders, for instance, can benefit from leverage as high as 30:1 for forex majors like GBP/USD. At this leverage ratio, they can open trades of up to €30 for every €1 they have available in their live balance. Greater market exposure results in more profits from successful trades. Furthermore, forex majors like GBP/USD are less volatile so price fluctuations are not as sharp compared to forex crosses and exotic pairs.
Key Cons
- Using leverage is not without its downsides, however, as it could significantly amplify your losses if GBP/USD prices move abruptly against your positions. Market gaps and unexpected price fluctuations can result in margin calls and position liquidation when your balance drops below the minimum required maintenance margin.
- Finally, we should not underestimate the impact leverage could have on traders’ psychology. Using higher leverage could result in more anxiety and rash decision-making, both of which are guaranteed to negatively impact your long-term performance.
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