Beginner course
Choosing a Broker
Regulation, account types, the real cost of trading, execution quality, platforms, moving money in and out, and the red flags that mark a broker to avoid.
8 lessons · 63 minutes · Free
Free. Enrol to open the lessons; your progress and certificate are saved to your account.
Free certificate
Mark every lesson complete and pass the final quiz with 70% or more to get a certificate of completion. You can download it as a PDF or share it on LinkedIn.
Get your certificateYour broker holds your money, sets your prices and fills your orders. Choosing one is the only trading decision you make before you have any skill, and it is the one most beginners make on the strength of an advert.
This course does not recommend any broker. It gives you the checklist to judge any of them.
Lessons
- 1Why regulation mattersThe first and most important check. What a serious regulator actually does for you, and what an offshore licence does not.
- 2Account typesStandard, raw, cent and swap-free accounts. What each one is for, and how to work out which is cheapest for the way you trade.
- 3The real cost of tradingSpread, commission and swap, and how to add them into one cost per trade, per month and per year.
- 4Execution and slippageThe price you click is not always the price you get. What execution quality means, how to test it, and which orders protect you.
- 5Platforms: MT4, MT5 and cTraderThe three platforms most brokers offer, what actually differs between them, and how to choose without being swayed by a feature list.
- 6Deposits and withdrawalsWhere your money goes when you deposit, what it costs to move it in and out, and how a small withdrawal tests a broker before you deposit more.
- 7Red flags and scamsThe warning signs that a broker, a signal seller or an account manager is going to cost you your deposit. A checklist to run before any money moves.
- 8Course check: test yourselfFlashcards for the broker vocabulary, and ten questions on regulation, accounts, costs, execution, platforms, money movement and red flags.