IG
FOREX.com
CMC Markets
XTB
eToro
AvaTrade
Pepperstone
FP Markets
TickmillBest Forex Demo Accounts for 2026
Written by Steven Hatzakis
Edited by Jeff Anberg
Fact-checked by Joey Shadeck
Steven HatzakisSteven Hatzakis is the Global Director of Online Broker Research for ForexBrokers.com. He is a forex industry expert and an active fintech and crypto researcher.
Steven Hatzakis has been reviewing forex brokers for nearly ten years and has 25+ years of experience as a forex trader. His broker reviews are unbiased and independent, and his expertise is sought after for global FX conferences and speaking events around the world. Learn how we test.
Opening a free forex demo account, commonly known as paper trading, is a convenient and safe way to test trading software without risking real money in a live account.
In this guide, I’ll share my favorite demo account offerings from the top forex brokers; these demo accounts will let you try out some of the best trading platforms on the market before taking the plunge into trading forex with real money.
| Company | Average spread (EUR/USD) - Standard account | Minimum Deposit | Overall Rating |
 IG
|
0.91 | £1 |
|
 Interactive Brokers
|
0.226 | $0 |
|
 Saxo
|
1.0 | $0 |
|
 CMC Markets
|
1.3 | $0 |
|
 FOREX.com
|
1.00 | $100 |
|
 Charles Schwab
|
1.27 | $0 |
|
 XTB
|
0.92 | $0 |
|
Best forex brokers for demo accounts
The following highly rated forex brokers offer demo accounts, also called paper trading, that allow you to test out their trading platforms without risking any of your real money. Here are my picks for the best forex demo accounts:
- Minimum Deposit: £1
- Trust Score: 99
- Tradeable Symbols (Total): 19537
IG offers the ultimate comprehensive trading package, featuring excellent trading and research tools, industry-leading education, and an extensive range of tradeable markets. Read full review
- #1 Overall Broker in our ForexBrokers.com 2026 Awards.
- Highest Trust Score in 2026; most trusted forex broker.
- tastyfx brings IG access to U.S. forex traders.
- IG’s web platform requires some manual setup.
- MT5 is not available on IG.
- Only ~80 symbols available via MetaTrader.
- IG’s DailyFX news and research site has been discontinued.
- Minimum Deposit: $0
- Trust Score: 99
- Tradeable Symbols (Total): 8500
Interactive Brokers is a highly trusted multi-asset broker with an extensive offering of tradeable global markets. It delivers competitive fees and high-quality research and education, as well as a modern, institutional-grade trading platform suite. Read full review
- Access 150 markets in 34 countries; 28 base currencies.
- TradingView launched for both manual and algo traders.
- TWS desktop offers powerful tools for advanced strategies.
- New IBKR InvestMentor app offers beginner-friendly finance courses.
- TWS platform is overwhelming for beginners.
- No MetaTrader suite or copy trading tools available.
- $2 minimum commission can be costly for small trade sizes.
- Minimum Deposit: $0
- Trust Score: 99
- Tradeable Symbols (Total): 71000
Saxo is an exclusive multi-asset broker with brilliant research and a superb trading platform experience – as well as a stunning selection of over 40,000 securities. Read full review
- 70,000+ instruments including forex options.
- SaxoTraderGo has advanced tools and a clean interface.
- Offers algo orders, risk tools, and execution by order size.
- TradingView implementation supports Pine Script and API trading.
- No progress tracking or quizzes in education content.
- Platinum and VIP accounts have high deposit requirements.
- SaxoTraderPRO lacks quick-start layouts.
- Can’t drag-to-edit orders on SaxoTraderGo charts.
- Minimum Deposit: $0
- Trust Score: 99
- Tradeable Symbols (Total): 12029
CMC Markets is well-trusted across the globe, and delivers a terrific trading experience thanks to its excellent pricing and selection of over 12,000 tradeable instruments. Read full review
- 12,000+ instruments and over 282 forex pairs available.
- Next Gen platform is packed with tools and charts.
- Industry-best pricing with low spreads and active trader perks.
- Launched 24/7 crypto trading, following its acquisition of StrikeX.
- MetaTrader 4 has fewer symbols and limited product depth.
- Spreads have worsened slightly year-over-year on certain pairs.
- No automated trading on CMC’s proprietary platform.
- Education lacks progress tracking or interactive features.
- The quantity of research content produced has slowed.
- Minimum Deposit: $100
- Trust Score: 99
- Tradeable Symbols (Total): 5500
FOREX.com is a trusted brand that delivers an excellent trading experience for forex and CFDs traders across the globe. It offers a wide range of markets and provides an impressive suite of proprietary platforms – alongside limited access to MetaTrader. Read full review
- Trading Academy is great for all experience levels.
- Advanced charting through TradingView with 5,500+ symbols.
- Pro-grade trading tools on web and desktop.
- Spreads are higher than other low-cost brokers.
- Pricing is average unless you qualify for active trader discounts.
- Stock and futures trading require a separate StoneXone account.
- Minimum Deposit: $0
- Trust Score: 99
- Tradeable Symbols (Total): 40000
Charles Schwab is a highly trusted financial institution and multi-asset broker catering to U.S.-based and international forex traders. Schwab's award-winning thinkorswim platform offers over 70 tradeable currency pairs alongside impressive tools, research, and education. That said, the broker’s forex offering is still largely limited to what is available on thinkorswim. Read full review
- thinkorswim supports advanced forex trading.
- Multi-asset access with 40,000+ tradeable symbols.
- Live webinars and strong educational content.
- Forex trading only available on thinkorswim and to U.S. residents.
- No trading signals or copy trading.
- Forex-specific education is limited.
- Minimum Deposit: $0
- Trust Score: 96
- Tradeable Symbols (Total): 10900
As a trusted multi-asset broker, XTB offers outstanding customer service, a wide variety of forex and CFDs, and an excellent overall trading experience. Its xStation 5 trading platform is well-designed and packed with innovative features, and XTB’s offers comprehensive educational content and market research. Read full review
- xStation platform is intuitive and packed with useful tools.
- 200+ educational lessons via the Trading Academy.
- Zero-commission share CFDs available in the U.K.
- No support for MetaTrader or third-party platforms.
- Custom investment basket tool is temporarily unavailable.
- XTB Social feature is limited to users in Poland.
CFDs are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. Between 51% and 89% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs. You should consider whether you understand how CFDs work and whether you can afford to take the high risk of losing your money.
Top picks for demo accounts
Best Broker for Demo Accounts - IG
| Company | Overall Rating | Minimum Deposit | Average spread (EUR/USD) - Standard account | Virtual Trading (Demo) |
|
IG
|
|
£1 | 0.91 | Yes |
IG is my top pick for brokers that offer forex demo accounts in 2025. In addition to offering demo trading accounts with access to its versatile trading platforms, I’ve found from years of testing IG’s offerings that it delivers stellar research, excellent educational content, one of the best forex trading apps, and a wide range of available markets.
Opening a demo account with IG also includes access to their IG Academy, a series of educational courses that helped IG win our 2025 Annual Award for #1 Education. This resource allows you to benefit from the learning experience of simulated trades while also exploring their well-designed online courses covering forex basics.
These offerings put beginner forex traders in a great position to open a live account using real funds once they finish test-driving the platform with a virtual balance. IG’s demo accounts offer access to both their proprietary trading platform (winner of our 2025 Annual Awards for #1 Web Platform and #1 Mobile App) as well as MetaTrader 4 (MT4). Read my full-length IG review to learn more about why I’ve rated IG so highly for so many years.
Best demo account for experienced traders - IBKR
| Company | Overall Rating | Minimum Deposit | Average spread (EUR/USD) - Standard account | Virtual Trading (Demo) |
|
Interactive Brokers
|
|
$0 | 0.226 | Yes |
Interactive Brokers (IBKR) is another great option for experienced traders seeking a paper trading account for simulated trading. IBKR is a highly trusted multi-asset broker that ranks among the best forex brokers, differentiating itself with a wide offering of investments and a vast number of markets you can access from its platform.
A demo account provides access to these platforms, which includes its powerful charting and extensive software suite (IBKR won our 2024 Annual Award for #1 Platform Technology). The platform comes packed with plenty of research and trading tools that can satisfy even the most demanding traders.
The ability to test run Interactive Brokers’ platform in a simulated environment is a boon to professional traders (IBKR’s desktop platform may be too complicated for inexperienced traders). Read my full-length review of Interactive Brokers to learn more.
Award-winning platforms and tools - Saxo
| Company | Overall Rating | Minimum Deposit | Average spread (EUR/USD) - Standard account | Virtual Trading (Demo) |
|
Saxo
|
|
$0 | 1.0 | Yes |
Another strong pick on our list of the best brokers for forex demo accounts is Saxo, a well-regulated, highly trusted broker that ranks for many key categories. The broker's impressive SaxoTraderGO and SaxoTraderPRO platform suite helped it snag our 2025 Annual Award for #1 Platforms & Tools.
Saxo provides a great demo account to test these trading platforms, which are available for web, mobile, or desktop. You can also access its charts, trading signals, and versatile order entry tickets. One thing I like about Saxo’s order entry ticket is the ability to switch instrument types, such as when trading forex as either a spot or an option.
Live account minimum deposits were also recently lowered for its entry-level classic account, making it easy to transition from a demo account to a live account after you learn the trading software. Saxo provides outstanding research content, high-quality educational materials, and access to a substantial range of global markets. Read my full-length Saxo review to learn more.
FAQs
What is a demo or paper trading account?
A paper trading account, also known as a demo account, simulator, or virtual practice account, is like a free trial to using a broker’s trading platform for investing or trading in the financial markets. Frequently these test accounts are funded with a free allotment of fake currency to test out the software by making simulated trades. Once you have familiarized yourself with the trading platform in demo mode, you can decide whether you want to open a live version of the trading platform by funding a real account.
What are the advantages of forex demo accounts?
Learning to trade
While any gains or losses generated in a demo trading account shouldn’t be used as an indication of how well you’ll trade with real money, a demo account is still a good way to get started and learn some trading basics or troubleshoot an automated trading script.
I want to emphasize that the results you see in your demo account can vary greatly from results achieved in a live account. For this reason, paper trading accounts are best used to learn how to use the software effectively. Those attempting to test an actual trading strategy are better off using a live account with a small amount of risk capital to provide more realistic results.
Learn more about forex trading
Want to learn more about the fundamentals of forex trading? Check out my in-depth, Forex 101 educational series covering everything you’ll need to know about forex and currency trading. I dive into the ins and outs of leverage, explain how pips work, and more.
Backtesting strategies
Some demo accounts allow you to backtest an automated trading system, such as when using an automated trading strategy with forex trading platforms like MetaTrader or TradingView.
It is important to note that just because a trading strategy performs well within the backtesting environment of a demo account does not mean it will perform well when applied to a live trading environment.
I highly recommend instead testing any live trading strategies with a small amount of real funds to ensure the performance meets your expectations before scaling your investment capital higher.
Testing different signals and tools
Another benefit of using a demo account is that you can access the features available within the platform before using them with real funds in a live account.
For example, if a broker offers forex trading signals within the demo platform, you can test using them by replicating the trade or copying the signal in the demo account.
Be aware that some brokers may restrict access to certain premium features unless you have a live account already. Regardless, a free demo account can be a great way to preview any available features within the software that you want to explore without taking any risk.
Additional advantages
A demo account can complement your learning experience while consuming free educational content from a broker. It can serve as an essential tool while taking a free forex trading course or reading educational articles as it allows you to put some of the theory into practice.
Even for more experienced traders, demo accounts can be useful to reveal possible pain points or troubleshoot errors with your algo trading strategy that you can attempt to redress with assistance from the broker before funding your account with real money.
Is it free to open a demo account to trade forex?
Yes, it is free to open a demo account for forex trading. There may be some differences between brokers where some will allow you to open a free demo account independent of their live ecosystem, by providing only a name and e-mail, while others might require that you first open a live account. Additionally, some brokers may only offer trial periods for their paper trading accounts.
What is the best forex broker offering a demo account?
IG is our number one overall forex broker for 2025, and my top pick for simulated trading as it offers a robust demo account from within its client portal where you can see all of your simulated accounts across its various available account types, including forex, CFDs, options, spread betting, and share trading. The IG demo provides access to their web platform as well as the mobile app, using the same demo username and password across the board. They also offer a separate MetaTrader 4-focused demo account (read our MetaTrader 4 guide here).
Are forex demo accounts accurate?
Yes, forex demo accounts are an accurate representation of how the broker’s trading platform technology works. While simulated prices may not be completely aligned with real-time market prices, the simulation is sufficient to replicate the general experience even if it can’t be relied upon to predict how well you’ll succeed with live trades. I recommend using demo accounts solely to learn or troubleshoot the software before using a live account. There are far too many real-world variables like order rejection or slippage that don’t appear in simulated trades. It’s important to keep in mind that your trading performance in a demo account is entirely hypothetical and your trading strategy will often be different when risking actual money. Real-world trading strategies should always be tested live with a small amount of capital that you are willing to lose.
ForexBrokers.com Overall Rankings
Now that you've seen our picks for the best brokers on this guide, check out ForexBrokers.com's overall broker rankings. We've evaluated over 60 forex brokers, using a testing methodology that's based on 100+ data-driven variables and thousands of data points. Also take a look at our full-length, in-depth forex broker reviews.
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Forex Risk Disclaimer
There is a very high degree of risk involved in trading securities. With respect to margin-based foreign exchange trading, off-exchange derivatives, and cryptocurrencies, there is considerable exposure to risk, including but not limited to, leverage, creditworthiness, limited regulatory protection and market volatility that may substantially affect the price, or liquidity of a currency or related instrument. It should not be assumed that the methods, techniques, or indicators presented in these products will be profitable, or that they will not result in losses. Read more on forex trading risks.
About the Editorial Team
Steven Hatzakis is the Global Director of Online Broker Research for ForexBrokers.com. Steven previously served as an Editor for Finance Magnates, where he authored over 1,000 published articles about the online finance industry. A forex industry expert and an active fintech and crypto researcher, Steven advises blockchain companies at the board level and holds a Series III license in the U.S. as a Commodity Trading Advisor (CTA).
Jeff Anberg is a Senior Editor at ForexBrokers.com. Along with years of experience in media distribution at a global newsroom, Jeff has a versatile knowledge base encompassing the technology and financial markets. He is a long-time active investor and engages in research on emerging markets like cryptocurrency. Jeff holds a Bachelor’s Degree in English Literature with a minor in Philosophy from San Francisco State University.
Joey Shadeck is a Content Strategist and Research Analyst for ForexBrokers.com. He holds dual degrees in Finance and Marketing from Oakland University, and has been an active trader and investor for close to ten years. An industry veteran, Joey obtains and verifies data, conducts research, and analyzes and validates our content.