| Updated: October 26, 2024Globally, the foreign exchange market is the largest and most liquid market, with daily trading volume of $7.5 trillion in April 2022, up 14% from $6.6 trillion in 2019, according to the latest Forex market survey of central banks from the Bank for International Settlements (BIS). With more than 170 different currencies, the Forex market operates 24 hours a day 5 days a week. The United States accounts for 16.5% of the global Forex market turnover, with the US Dollar involved in nearly 88% of all Forex trades.
Forex trading is legal in the US and under the regulatory control of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC). Brokerage companies in the US must register as Futures Commission Merchants and Forex Dealer Merchants with the CFTC and the National Futures Association (NFA). Furthermore, to be authorized to cater to retail customers, brokers must hold a minimum of $20 million in regulatory capital. Generally, US Forex traders benefit from a tightly regulated trading environment, with plenty of Forex trading platforms to pick from to commence their trading journey.
Investing in the Forex market can be a worthwhile undertaking as long as traders are informed appropriately of trends and news and equipped with the proper trading tools and platforms. The current US Forex Trading Demographics Statistics have been predominantly sourced from Zippia, an online recruitment business, founded in 2015 and based in San Francisco, California. The company provides various other in-depth demographics and statistics specific to the US.
US Forex Trading Demographics Statistics
In this report (updated October 2024), we have compiled useful data about US Forex Trading Demographics by several important aspects, including the total number of traders, gender, age, race, education, occupation, and annual income, among others.
Total Number of Forex Traders in the US
Over the past several decades, trading has advanced immensely, attracting millions of online users. Compared to the past, it has become much easier to become a trader. According to The Modern Trader study and research documents, there are more than 14 million active online traders globally.
The approximate number of Forex traders in North America is nearly 2.1 million, with more than half being from the US. There are nearly 320 million internet users in the US with 1 in 213 being an online trader, or nearly 1.3 million US Forex traders.
US Forex Trader Gender Ratio
According to Zippia’s data, men trade nearly nine times more than women, with the US gender split sitting at 91.5% vs 8.5% in favor of male traders. However, when it comes to the success rate, women make more profitable Forex picks than men, suggesting that they take a well-balanced approach to risk.
US Forex Trader Gender Statistics
* Data provided by Zippia
We can also look at the US Forex trader gender ratio in the span of a little bit more than a decade, from 2010 to 2021. As can be seen from the chart below, slight increases in the percentage of female traders in 2011 and 2014 are noticeable, followed by a downward trend from 2018 to 2021. The average percentage of female traders stands at 10.14% for the whole period.
US Forex Trader Gender Ratio from 2010 to 2021
* Data provided by Zippia
Although women make substantially fewer trades than men, various statistics point to their greater success in terms of Forex picks. This might be attributed to women’s careful risk assessment, according to experts.
US Forex Trader Age Statistics
The majority of US Forex traders, or 58% of all traders in the country, are aged 40 and above. Those in the age group between 30 and 40 represent 28% of all traders. And finally, those between 20 and 30 years of age make up 14% of the overall trading population of the US. The average age of US Forex traders is 43 years.
US Forex Trader Age Statistics
* Data provided by Zippia
US Forex Trader Demographics by Race
As far as the ethnicity of the US Forex trading population is concerned, 67.1% of Forex traders are White, whereas 12.1% are Asian. Hispanic or Latino Forex traders make up 11.1% of all traders, while the share of Black or African American traders is 5.4%. Traders of unknown ethnicity make up 4.1% of the total volume and American Indians and Alaska Natives represent 0.2% of all traders.
US Forex Trader Demographics by Race
* Data provided by Zippia
From 2010 to 2021, the percentage of White, Black or African American, Asian, and Hispanic or Latino traders has been varying. There is a noticeable decrease in the percentage of White Forex traders. From 74.55% White Forex traders in 2010, their share has dropped to 67.08% in 2021. Similarly, the share of Black or African American traders in 2010 was 6.03%, then it gradually declined to 5.39% in 2021. By contrast, the share of Asian traders in the US rose from 8.02% in 2010, to 12.08% in 2021. Similarly, Hispanic or Latino traders increased from 9.88% in 2010 to 11.13% in 2021.
US Forex Trader Average Age by Race and Gender
The average age of male Forex traders belonging to the Unknown ethnic group is 40 years, whereas female representatives of the same group are 48.5 years old. The average age in the White ethnic group is 43 years for male traders and 47 years for female traders. The age gap between male and female Forex traders in the Black or African American ethnic group is quite a big one, with an average age of 40.5 years for male traders and 47 years for female traders. Female Forex traders of Asian origin are younger, with an average age of 37.5 years, whereas male representatives of the same group are 42 years old on average. Finally, male Hispanic or Latino traders have the lowest average age of all groups, at 37 years, while female traders from this ethnicity are 42 years old on average.
One can easily spot the overall tendency of female traders from each ethnic group to be older than their male counterparts. The Asian ethnic group is a notable exception, with female traders being younger than male traders.
US Forex Trader Average Age by Race and Gender
* Data provided by Zippia
Wages Earned by the Different Ethnicities of the US Forex Trading Population
In terms of wages earned by the different ethnicities of the US Forex trading population, those falling under the category of Unknown have the highest average income of $115,393. White US Forex traders earn $113,327 on average. Asian traders rank third, with an average salary of $111,131, whereas Hispanic or Latino Forex traders come in fourth, with a $103,571 average salary. Black or African American Forex traders earn the least, with an annual income of $97,737.
Wages earned by the different ethnicities of the US Forex trading population
* Data provided by Zippia
US Forex Trader Unemployment Rate
Yet another interesting piece of statistics is the US Forex traders’ unemployment rate over a period spanning 2010 through 2021. It can be seen from the table below that the lowest unemployment rate for the specified period stood at 2.39% in 2018, whereas the highest one was recorded in 2010, at 7.50%. The average value for the entire period stood at 4.48%.
| Year | US Forex Trader Unemployment Rate |
|---|---|
| 2010 | 7.50% |
| 2011 | 6.42% |
| 2012 | 6.14% |
| 2013 | 4.28% |
| 2014 | 4.90% |
| 2015 | 3.10% |
| 2016 | 4.15% |
| 2017 | 3.43% |
| 2018 | 2.39% |
| 2019 | 3.02% |
| 2020 | 4.76% |
| 2020 | 3.65% |
* Data provided by Zippia
Size of Companies Where US Forex Traders Work and Type of Occupation
The greatest percentage of US Forex traders, or 36%, work at companies whose size is between 100 and 500 employees. 28% of US traders are employed by businesses with 50 to 100 employees. Larger-scale employers, with 500 to 1,000 employees, come in third, accounting for 16% of US traders’ workplaces. 12% of traders pursue careers at companies with 1,000 to 10,000 employees, 4% – at businesses with more than 10,000 employees, and the remaining 4% – at businesses with less than 50 employees.
Various jobs in the public sector are the occupational field of 13% of US Forex traders. The private sector accounts for the greatest percentage of all traders (79%). Governmental jobs account for 8% of all traders.
The top six most common industries for Forex traders are finance, with 38%, followed by manufacturing, government, media, health care, and professional, each with 8%.
US Forex Trader Educational Degree
Forex traders with a Bachelor’s degree get the lion’s share of the US trading population, with 61%. With 20%, holders of Master’s degree come in second. Associate degree holders make up 9%, traders with a high school diploma represent 4% of all, and holders of other degrees – 6%.
US Forex Trader Educational Degree
* Data provided by Zippia
Traders with a Master’s degree have the highest annual income of $146,537. Those with a Doctorate degree earn $133,898 per year, whereas the income of holders of Bachelor’s degree stands at $115,113.
Languages Spoken by US Forex Traders
The most widespread foreign language among US Forex traders is Spanish, with 24% of traders fluent in it. Chinese and Russian share the second spot, each with 12%. German and Mandarin rank third, with 8%. The remaining 36% are shared by multiple other languages.
Foreign Languages Spoken by US Forex Traders
* Data provided by Zippia
US Forex Market Currency Pairs Ranked by Popularity among US Traders
The US Dollar is the most traded currency, with nearly 88% of all trades in the US market involving it. With 36% of all trades, the Euro comes in second. The most traded currency pair is the USD/EUR, with a 27% share of the market. It is followed by the USD/GBP pair, accounting for 12% of the market. The USD/JPY pair comes in next, constituting 11% of all trades. The USD/CAD pair ranks fourth, representing 7.5% of all Forex trades.
US Forex Market Most Traded Currency Pairs
* Data provided by Zippia
The Best Time to Trade for US Forex Traders
The Forex market is among the most available financial markets, as it is open to traders 24/5. However, during major market overlaps, there is an increase in active traders, which results in more liquidity and volatility in Forex pairs. The best time to trade Forex for US traders is from 8 am to 12 pm EST due to the market overlap between the London Stock Exchange and the New York Stock Exchange.
As far as the best day of the week to trade Forex is concerned, Thursdays and Fridays are generally considered to be the most volatile days. Short-term fluctuations as a result of economic and political news are an important exception to this rule.
Conclusion
As we can conclude from the statistics, the Forex market presents US Forex traders with plenty of successful investment opportunities, as long as they are properly equipped with the necessary tools and information. As far as the US Forex Trading Demographics Statistics are concerned, we can single out some of the key findings of this report:
- There are nearly 1.3 million Forex traders in the US.
- The gender ratio stands at 91.5% to 9.5% in favor of male US Forex traders.
- The average age of US Forex traders is 43 years.
- The average annual salary of US Forex traders is $115,092.
| Additional Forex Trading Statistics | |
|---|---|
| Forex Daily Trading Volume | Forex Trading Statistics |
| Most Traded Forex Currency Pairs | |
| US Dollar Share of Global Currency Reserves | |
| US Forex Trading Market | |