Raw Spread vs Standard Account: Which Is Cheaper for You?
Raw spread vs standard account: compare spread × $10 plus commission per lot, find your break-even spread and see which suits scalpers or swing traders.
Most brokers offer two ways to pay for exactly the same trade. One account shows a wider spread and no commission; the other shows a spread close to zero and a fee for every lot. The raw spread vs standard account question is which of those adds up to less for the way you trade.
Quick answer: A raw spread account charges a tight spread plus a commission per lot; a standard account builds its fee into a wider spread. To compare them, work out spread × $10 + commission per standard lot for each. Raw is cheaper whenever the spread gap is worth more than the commission, which favours frequent, short-term traders most.
Raw spread vs standard account: what is actually different?
Every price your broker shows you has two parts. The first is the market’s own spread: the gap between the best bid and ask that the broker’s liquidity providers are quoting at that moment. The second is whatever the broker adds on top to get paid. The two account types differ only in where that second part sits.
- A standard account, sometimes called spread-only or classic, puts the broker’s fee inside the spread. You might see EUR/USD quoted 1.2 pips wide with no commission at all.
- A raw spread account, sold under names such as raw, ECN, zero or pro, passes you something close to the market spread, perhaps 0.2 pips on EUR/USD in busy hours, and charges a separate commission per lot traded.
The figure below shows the same trade priced both ways. The market spread at the start of each bar is identical. What changes is whether the broker’s fee is folded into the price or listed beside it.
Neither account is free. The broker is paid either way; the only questions are how much and how visibly. On a standard account the fee is hidden in plain sight: it never appears as a line in your trade history, it just makes every entry price slightly worse. On a raw account the commission is printed next to every trade. That visibility has an odd effect. A commission you can see often feels more expensive than a markup you cannot, even when it is smaller.
The account label also does not tell you how your orders are handled. A “raw” account can be filled by a broker acting as market maker, and a standard account can be routed to outside liquidity providers. Our guides to ECN vs market maker brokers and STP vs ECN vs dealing desk explain how to check. Read the pricing, not the name. The Academy lesson on account types also covers cent and swap-free accounts.
The cost formula: spread × pip value + commission
To compare two accounts fairly, put both into the same unit: cost per standard lot, round trip (opening and closing one lot). The formula is the same for every pair:
Cost per lot = spread in pips × pip value per lot + round-turn commission per lot
For any pair quoted in US dollars, such as EUR/USD or GBP/USD, one pip on one standard lot of 100,000 units is worth $10, so the formula becomes the familiar spread × $10 + commission. If pips and lots are still hazy, the lesson on pips and lots covers them in a few minutes.
Here is how the formula plays out at several typical combinations of spread and commission. The figures are illustrative, chosen to show the range you will meet, not quotes from any broker.
| Standard spread | Raw spread + commission | Standard cost per lot | Raw cost per lot | Cheaper |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1.2 pips | 0.2 pips + $7 | $12 | $9 | Raw, by $3 |
| 1.0 pip | 0.1 pips + $7 | $10 | $8 | Raw, by $2 |
| 1.5 pips | 0.3 pips + $6 | $15 | $9 | Raw, by $6 |
| 0.9 pips | 0.2 pips + $7 | $9 | $9 | Neither |
| 1.2 pips | 0.5 pips + $8 | $12 | $13 | Standard, by $1 |
| 0.8 pips | 0.0 pips + $10 | $8 | $10 | Standard, by $2 |
The first row is the pairing used throughout our guide to forex trading costs: $12 a lot on standard against $9 on raw. But look at the last two rows. A raw account with a slightly wider spread or a higher commission can lose to a competitive standard account, and “0.0 pips” is not cheap if the commission is $10.
Three conversions people skip
The formula only works if every input is in the same form. Commission in particular is quoted in at least three ways, so convert them to the same form before comparing.
Per side versus round turn. Some brokers quote the charge for opening and closing together (round turn); others quote it per side, charged once on entry and once on exit. $3.50 per side is $7 round turn. Comparing “$3.50” on one account with “$6” on another, without noticing the difference, makes the dearer one look cheaper.
Per million traded. Some raw accounts charge per million dollars of value traded, per side. One lot of EUR/USD at 1.08 is €100,000, worth about $108,000, so $35 per million per side comes to about $3.78 a side and $7.56 round turn. Because the charge follows the value of the position, it rises when the exchange rate rises: the same rate on GBP/USD near 1.27 works out at about $8.89 a lot.
Pairs not quoted in dollars. A pip on USD/JPY is 0.01 yen, so one lot’s pip is worth 1,000 yen. At 150 yen to the dollar that is about $6.67, not $10. The commission stays at $7, so on USD/JPY it is worth about 1.05 pips instead of 0.7. Our guide to pip value by currency pair shows how to work it out for any pair.
Once everything is converted, divide the total cost by the pip value to express it in pips: $9 on EUR/USD is 0.9 pips. Pips are the useful unit, because they can be compared directly with your stop and target, which is where the cost really bites.
Break-even analysis: when the commission pays for itself
A raw account is cheaper whenever the spread you save is worth more than the commission you pay:
(Standard spread − raw spread) × pip value per lot is greater than the commission per lot
Rearrange it and you get the break-even spread gap: commission ÷ pip value. With a $7 commission on EUR/USD, that is $7 ÷ $10 = 0.7 pips. If the standard account’s spread is more than 0.7 pips wider than the raw account’s, raw wins; if the gap is smaller, standard wins.
The chart below shows the same idea as a picture. The diagonal line is the standard account’s cost as its spread widens; the flat lines are two raw accounts, whose cost does not depend on the standard spread at all. Wherever the diagonal climbs above a flat line, that raw account is cheaper.
The break-even gap is not the same on every pair, because the pip value changes while the commission usually does not. With a $7 commission and a US-dollar account:
| Pair | Pip value per lot | Break-even spread gap |
|---|---|---|
| EUR/USD | $10 | 0.70 pips |
| GBP/USD | $10 | 0.70 pips |
| USD/JPY (near 150) | about $6.67 | about 1.05 pips |
| EUR/GBP (GBP/USD near 1.27) | £10, about $12.70 | about 0.55 pips |
So the raw account’s advantage is weakest on yen pairs, where the commission is a bigger slice of each pip, and strongest on pairs quoted in pounds, where each pip is worth more. If most of your trading is on one pair, run the break-even for that pair, not for EUR/USD.
Does trading more change the answer?
Mostly, no. Because both costs are per lot, the cheaper account per lot stays cheaper whether you trade 2 lots a month or 200. What volume changes is how much the choice matters. A $3 difference per lot is $30 a month at 10 lots and $150 at 50.
There are two exceptions to “volume does not change the winner”. Some brokers cut the commission for high monthly volume, which can tip the balance towards raw for very active traders. And some set a minimum commission per trade, which makes very small positions on a raw account dearer than the per-lot rate suggests. If you trade in micro lots, check for a minimum before you compare.
To see the monthly figures for your own trading, set your trades, average size, spreads and commission in the calculator below.
Standard
per month, spread only
Raw / ECN
per month, spread + commission
Raw spread vs standard account at your own volume: monthly cost of spread only versus tight spread plus commission. Typical pricing for illustration, not a quote from any broker.
Scalpers vs swing traders: which account suits your style?
The break-even rule tells you which account is cheaper per lot. Your trading style tells you whether the difference is worth caring about. Measure cost against the distance you are trying to capture.
A scalper aiming for 6 pips with a 6-pip stop on EUR/USD pays 1.2 pips on the standard account in our example: 20% of the target, gone before the trade starts. On the raw account the all-in cost is 0.9 pips, or 15%. A swing trader aiming for 90 pips pays 1.3% of the target on standard and 1.0% on raw, a difference that barely registers. But the swing trader holds for days, and the swap on five nights is bigger than either.
The cleanest way to feel the difference is the break-even win rate: the share of trades you must win just to stand still once costs are included. With target equal to stop:
- Scalper on standard: a win nets 6 − 1.2 = 4.8 pips and a loss costs 6 + 1.2 = 7.2 pips, so you need 7.2 ÷ 12 = 60% winners to break even.
- Scalper on raw: a win nets 5.1 pips and a loss costs 6.9, so you need 6.9 ÷ 12 = 57.5%.
- Swing trader, five nights of swap at 3.5 pips: a loss costs 90 + 1.2 + 3.5 = 94.7 pips on standard, so the break-even is 94.7 ÷ 180 = 52.6%. On raw it is 94.4 ÷ 180 = 52.4%.
For the scalper, two and a half percentage points of win rate is the difference between a workable method and a slowly losing one. For the swing trader, 0.2 points is noise. Our guide to the risk-reward ratio and the lesson on risk and reward explain the break-even calculation in full.
Frequency multiplies all of this. If you trade often on a standard account, the spread alone adds up fast. The calculator is set to 25 mini-lot trades a week at 1.2 pips.
Spread cost = spread in pips × pip value for your trade size. It is paid on every trade, whether it wins or loses.
That is $30 a week and $1,440 over a 48-week year in spread alone. The same trading at a raw all-in cost of 0.9 pips would come to $1,080, a saving of $360 a year. For a scalper or an active day trader, that is a real share of the year’s result.
For a swing trader, the bigger lever is swap. The stack below is one raw-account swing trade: 0.5 lots, a 0.2-pip spread, $7 commission per lot and five nights of swap at −$7 per lot.
Spread = pips × $10 × lots. Commission and swap are quoted per lot. A trade must earn more than the total before it makes anything.
The spread costs $1, the commission $3.50 and the swap $17.50, for $22 in total. On the standard account the spread would be $6 and there would be no commission, so the trade would cost $23.50: just $1.50 more. If you hold positions for days or weeks, compare swap rates between brokers before you worry about account type. Our guide to swap in forex shows where to find them.
Swap, minimum deposit and execution: what else differs
Price is not the only difference between the two accounts. The table sums up what is usually the same and what often differs; brokers vary, so check each item in the account’s own terms.
| Feature | Usually | What to check |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Different by design | Spread and commission at the hours you trade |
| Swap rates | Usually the same | The contract specifications for each account |
| Leverage and margin | Same, set by regulation | The leverage shown for your client category |
| Minimum deposit | Sometimes higher on raw | The account opening page |
| Spread type | Raw always variable; standard sometimes fixed | Whether “fixed” can widen in fast markets |
| Platforms | Often the same | Whether a platform is offered on one type only |
| Swap-free version | Not always on both | Whether the account you want has one |
| Instruments | Commission may vary by asset class | Charges on metals, indices and energy |
Swap. At most brokers the overnight rates are the same on both account types, because they reflect the same interest rate differential. Not all, though. Open the symbol’s specification window for each account and compare the long and short swap directly. If you need an account with no overnight interest, our guide to swap-free accounts explains how brokers recover that cost instead.
Minimum deposit. Some brokers set a higher minimum for raw accounts; many now use the same minimum for both. Either way, the minimum deposit tells you nothing about what trading costs, so do not let it decide the account.
Spread behaviour. Raw spreads are always variable. They are tight in busy hours and widen at the daily rollover, around big data releases and at the Sunday open, exactly as standard spreads do, and the commission is charged in full regardless. Some standard accounts offer fixed spreads, which are wider at their best but predictable. Read whether “fixed” can still widen in fast markets.
Execution. Both accounts can suffer slippage on market and stop orders. A raw account does not promise better fills, and a standard account does not promise worse ones. The only way to judge is to compare requested and filled prices in your own history, as the lesson on execution and slippage shows.
Regulation. Account type has no effect on how your money is protected: the licence and client-money rules belong to the firm, not the account. In the UK, firms must also tell you their costs and charges before you trade; the Financial Conduct Authority sets those rules. Regulation comes first in any choice, as our checklist on how to choose a forex broker explains.
How to work out which account is cheaper for you
You need about a week of data and four steps.
1. Record spreads at the hours you actually trade. Advertised spreads are usually typical figures for the busiest hours on the most liquid pair. If you trade after work in the evening, or in the Asian session, your spreads will be wider. Many brokers let you open a demo of each account type with live prices; note the spread on your main pairs at your usual times for a week. Our guide to the bid–ask spread explains why it moves.
2. Convert the commission to round turn per standard lot, as in the figure earlier: double a per-side figure, and work a per-million rate out on the value of one lot.
3. Cost one lot on each account with spread × pip value + commission, for each pair you trade.
4. Multiply by your monthly volume in lots. Your trade history already shows it; if you are new, estimate honestly and round up.
Before you decide, tick off the checklist below. It saves your progress in your browser, so you can come back to it while comparing two brokers.
Before you pick an account type
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Common mistakes when comparing raw and standard accounts
Comparing headline spreads
“From 0.0 pips” describes the raw spread at its best moment, before commission. Always add the commission back and compare the all-in cost per lot. The last row of the table above, 0.0 pips plus $10, is dearer than a 0.8-pip standard spread.
Forgetting to convert per-side commission
A $3.50 per-side commission is $7 round turn. Comparing it with another account’s $6 round-turn figure as if both were the same kind of number is the quickest way to pick the wrong account.
Using EUR/USD numbers for every pair
The break-even gap depends on the pip value. A raw account that saves $3 a lot on EUR/USD may save almost nothing on USD/JPY. Run the numbers for the pairs you trade most.
Measuring at the wrong time of day
Spreads at the London–New York overlap say little about spreads at 11 p.m. If you trade quiet hours, the raw account’s advantage can shrink or vanish, because the commission stays the same while both spreads widen.
Letting cheaper trading become more trading
Lower cost per trade can quietly encourage more trades. If moving to a raw account takes you from 30 trades a month to 60, you will pay more in total, not less. That pattern is part of overtrading, and a cost column in your trading journal is the simplest way to spot it.
Frequently asked questions
Is a raw spread account better than a standard account?
Neither is better in general. A raw account moves the broker's fee from the spread into a visible commission. It is cheaper whenever the spread you save, multiplied by the pip value, is worth more than the commission. For most active traders on major pairs that is true, but for occasional traders the difference is small and either account is fine.
Why do raw spread accounts charge a commission?
Because the broker has to be paid somehow. On a standard account the fee is added to the spread. On a raw account the broker passes on something close to the market spread and charges a separate fee per lot instead. The commission is not an extra cost; it is the same kind of cost moved to where you can see it.
Is a raw spread account good for beginners?
It can be, but it rarely matters much at the start. Beginners usually trade small sizes and few trades, so the monthly difference is a few dollars. A standard account is simpler to read because there is only one cost. What matters far more is that the broker is regulated and that you keep risk per trade small.
What is a typical commission on a raw spread account?
Many brokers charge roughly $6 to $7 per standard lot round turn on major pairs, often quoted as $3 to $3.50 per side, though rates vary and some charge per million traded. The commission only means something next to the spread: always compare spread times pip value plus commission per lot.
Do raw spread accounts need a bigger deposit?
Sometimes. Some brokers set a higher minimum deposit for raw accounts, while many now use the same minimum for both types. The minimum deposit tells you nothing about trading costs, so choose the account on its all-in cost per lot and its terms, not on how much you need to open it.
Is the swap different on a raw spread account?
Usually not. At most brokers the overnight swap rates are the same on both account types, because they reflect the same interest rate differential. Some brokers do set them differently, so open the contract specifications for each account and compare the long and short swap on the pairs you hold overnight.
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