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Best FTSE Brokers of 2025

BrokerNotes.co

Written by BrokerNotes.co

March 14, 2024

What is the FTSE 100 Index?

The Financial Times Stock Exchange 100 Index more commonly known as the FTSE 100 or the 'Footsie' index is a stock market index comprised of the 100 largest companies listed on the London Stock Exchange (LSE) in terms of market capitalisation. The FTSE 100 is now operated by FTSE Russell and was started in 1984 as a joint venture between the Financial Times and the London Stock Exchange.

As of the 31 January 2017, the 100 companies that make up the FTSE 100 had a market cap of over GBP 1,795 billion pounds which represented approximately 39 % of the total London Stock Exchange market cap of GBP 4,581 billion from a total of 2,261 companies.

Best Forex Brokers for Trading FTSE 100

Here are the best forex brokers for trading the FTSE 100.

IG
star 9.9/10 Overall
Summary Review Trading Platforms
Minimum Deposit£250.00
Tier-1 Licenses8
Tradeable Symbols (Total)19537

Year after year, IG has shown itself to be the best broker in the forex industry and a fantastic choice for forex traders. Highly trusted and regulated across the globe, IG delivers a wide variety of rich features, market research, and powerful trading tools. IG also offers seamless integration of trading signals into its web platform. Read full review

Apple iOS AppYes
Android AppNo
Proprietary PlatformYes
Desktop Platform (Windows)Yes
Web PlatformYes
MetaTrader 4 (MT4)Yes
MetaTrader 5 (MT5)No
Interactive Brokers
star 9.9/10 Overall
Summary Review Trading Platforms
Minimum Deposit$0
Tier-1 Licenses9
Tradeable Symbols (Total)8500

Interactive Brokers is a highly trusted broker regulated across the globe that delivers access to over 100 markets, including forex and CFDs. Its Trader Workstation (TWS) platform offers a variety of advanced trading tools for experienced traders, and IBKR's web-based platform is great for beginner forex traders. Read full review

Apple iOS AppYes
Android AppNo
Proprietary PlatformYes
Desktop Platform (Windows)Yes
Web PlatformYes
MetaTrader 4 (MT4)No
MetaTrader 5 (MT5)No
Saxo
star 9.7/10 Overall
Summary Review Trading Platforms
Minimum Deposit$0
Tier-1 Licenses7
Tradeable Symbols (Total)70000

Saxo is a highly trusted broker that operates multiple banks and is regulated across the globe. Saxo delivers an incredible cross-platform experience alongside powerful research and a vast selection of more than 60,000 symbols across multiple asset classes. It’s worth noting that minimum deposits at Saxo are steep. Read full review

Apple iOS AppYes
Android AppNo
Proprietary PlatformYes
Desktop Platform (Windows)Yes
Web PlatformYes
MetaTrader 4 (MT4)No
MetaTrader 5 (MT5)No
CMC Markets
star 9.5/10 Overall
Summary Review Trading Platforms
Minimum Deposit$0
Tier-1 Licenses5
Tradeable Symbols (Total)11925

CMC Markets is a highly trusted multi-asset broker regulated in multiple Tier-1 jurisdictions. CMC's powerful Next Generation trading platform for web and mobile delivers a huge selection of markets and a fantastic user experience. CMC Markets also ranks highly for its high-quality research and educational content. Read full review

Apple iOS AppYes
Android AppNo
Proprietary PlatformYes
Desktop Platform (Windows)Yes
Web PlatformYes
MetaTrader 4 (MT4)Yes
MetaTrader 5 (MT5)Yes
FOREX.com
star 9.5/10 Overall
Summary Review Trading Platforms
Minimum Deposit$100
Tier-1 Licenses7
Tradeable Symbols (Total)5500

FOREX.com is a highly trusted brand with a long history of offering forex in the U.S. and across the globe. FOREX.com offers its own flagship trading platforms for web and desktop, as well as the full MetaTrader suite. Though its pricing is higher than average, FOREX.com is a balanced choice for traders of all experience levels. Read full review

Apple iOS AppYes
Android AppNo
Proprietary PlatformYes
Desktop Platform (Windows)Yes
Web PlatformYes
MetaTrader 4 (MT4)Yes
MetaTrader 5 (MT5)Yes
Charles Schwab
star 9.4/10 Overall
Summary Review Trading Platforms
Minimum Deposit$0
Tier-1 Licenses5
Tradeable Symbols (Total)40000

Charles Schwab is a leader in platform technology and trusted by millions of investors globally with trillions in assets under its brands. Available exclusively to U.S. residents, Charles Schwab's forex offering consists of just over 70 currency pairs, along with powerful research and trading tools. Read full review

Apple iOS AppYes
Android AppNo
Proprietary PlatformYes
Desktop Platform (Windows)Yes
Web PlatformYes
MetaTrader 4 (MT4)No
MetaTrader 5 (MT5)No
XTB
star 9.2/10 Overall
Summary Review Trading Platforms
Minimum Deposit$0 info
Tier-1 Licenses2
Tradeable Symbols (Total)7184

XTB is a highly trusted brand with a proprietary platform (xStation 5) that delivers a rich selection of trading tools. XTB also offers CFDs for a wide range of asset classes, including multiple cryptocurrencies. Beginners will appreciate XTB's excellent educational content and the hundreds of lessons that are available via its Trading Academy. Read full review

Apple iOS AppYes
Android AppNo
Proprietary PlatformYes
Desktop Platform (Windows)Yes
Web PlatformYes
MetaTrader 4 (MT4)No
MetaTrader 5 (MT5)No
City Index
star 9.2/10 Overall
Summary Review Trading Platforms
Minimum Deposit£100.00
Tier-1 Licenses7
Tradeable Symbols (Total)13500

City Index, part of StoneX Group, is an award-winning, highly trusted broker with a long history of offering forex and CFDs across its global offices. City Index delivers a well-designed mobile trading app and a powerful web platform, as well as a large range of tradeable markets (though pricing is just average). Read full review

Apple iOS AppYes
Android AppNo
Proprietary PlatformYes
Desktop Platform (Windows)Yes
Web PlatformYes
MetaTrader 4 (MT4)Yes
MetaTrader 5 (MT5)No
eToro
star 8.9/10 Overall
Summary Review Trading Platforms
Minimum Deposit$50-$10,000
Tier-1 Licenses3
Tradeable Symbols (Total)5461

Best known for its copy trading platform suite, eToro is a highly trusted broker offering a large selection of cryptocurrency products, CFDs, shares, forex pairs, and a wide range of powerful trading tools. It’s worth noting that eToro is not a discount broker (though it offers zero-dollar commissions for U.S. stocks). Read full review

Apple iOS AppYes
Android AppNo
Proprietary PlatformYes
Desktop Platform (Windows)No
Web PlatformYes
MetaTrader 4 (MT4)No
MetaTrader 5 (MT5)No
Sponsored

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.

Which Companies are Listed on the FTSE 100 Index?

The companies which make up the FTSE 100 Index span a wide range of industries including banking, mining, telecoms, oil and gas, as well as private equity. While many of the companies on this Index are headquartered in the UK, quite a few are international organisations with their headquarters located outside of the UK.

The constituents of the FTSE 100 Index are decided on a quarterly basis by a committee and the main basis for inclusion is the total market capitalisation of those companies at the end of the previous quarter. Companies from the FTSE 250 index that have experienced market capitalisation growth to the extent that they would occupy the 90th or better position on the FTSE 100 index, are listed on the FTSE index for the upcoming quarter.

At the same time, a company on the FTSE 100 index that experiences a market capitalisation reduction to the extent that it falls to the 111th or worse position, would be delisted from the index. If there are any mergers or acquisitions, the index is updated immediately instead of quarterly.

Top 20 FTSE 100 Companies as at 31 January 2017 by Market Cap

How is the Value of the FTSE 100 Index Derived?

The value of the FTSE indices is calculated using market capitalisation, This means that the larger companies have a bigger influence on the value of the FTSE indices. The FTSE indices also take into account the free float capitalisation which means restricted stocks are ignored when calculating the market capitalisation using a Free float adjustment factor.

How can you trade the FTSE 100?

Three popular financial instruments to trade the FTSE 100 include ETFs,futures and CFDs.

Stock Index futures are complex financial instruments that were initially developed as a hedging instrument for institutional traders to protect against a reversal in stock prices in a portfolio. However, with technological advances and tech-enabled trading, retail traders that have the required capital to trade futures have entered the market and speculate on Stock Index Futures like the FTSE 100 Future on The Ice Exchange.

CFDs offer retail traders much smaller contract sizes and therefore a smaller capital requirement. For example, a minimum trade of a UK 100 future, a derivative of the FTSE 100 would require a trader 14.57 at the current 7286 index points with a broker like London Capital Group compared to a single contract on the Futures exchange of 72,860. Unlike trading on an exchange, trading CFDs involves buying and selling the instrument from the broker, therefore find a trusted and regulated broker like London Capital Group is an important step for traders.

*All information collected from LCG, see website for full terms and conditions. Example is for illustrative purposes only. Your capital is at risk. Last updated on February 21, 2017.

ETFs or electronic traded funds are investment products made of a group of assets designed to track the performance of the underlying asset, for example, the FTSE 100. ETFs can be bought from share dealing brokers like IG.

Related Indices

  • FTSE 250: this index does not include the top 100 companies which form the FTSE 100. The FTSE 250 is also referred to as 'mid cap' index.
  • FTSE 350: This index includes the FTSE 100 and FTSE 250 companies
  • FTSE Small Cap:
  • FTSE All-share: This index is made up of the FTSE 350 and FTSE small cap companies and represents 98-99% of the UK market capitalisation
  • DAX 30
  • Dow Jones

BrokerNotes.co 2025 Overall Rankings

To recap, here are our top forex brokers for 2025, sorted by Overall ranking.

Company Overall Rating Minimum Deposit Average Spread EUR/USD - Standard Trust Score Tradeable Symbols (Total) Read Review
IG logoIG
9.9 £250.00 0.98 info 99 19537 IG Review
Interactive Brokers logoInteractive Brokers
9.9 $0 0.59 info 99 8500 Interactive Brokers Review
Saxo logoSaxo
9.7 $0 1.1 info 99 70000 Saxo Review
CMC Markets logoCMC Markets
9.5 $0 0.61 info 99 11925 CMC Markets Review
FOREX.com logoFOREX.com
9.5 $100 1.4 info 99 5500 FOREX.com Review
Charles Schwab logoCharles Schwab
9.4 $0 1.35 info 99 40000 Charles Schwab Review
XTB logoXTB
9.2 $0 info 1.00 info 96 7184 XTB Group Review
City Index logoCity Index
9.2 £100.00 1.4 info 99 13500 City Index Review
eToro logoeToro
8.9 $50-$10,000 1 info 93 5461 eToro Review
Capital.com logoCapital.com
8.7 $20 info 0.67 info 87 3007 Capital.com Review
Swissquote logoSwissquote
8.7 $1000 N/A info 99 472 Swissquote Review
OANDA logoOANDA
8.7 $0 1.61 info 93 3928 info OANDA Review
AvaTrade logoAvaTrade
8.7 $100 0.93 info 94 1260 AvaTrade Review
Plus500 logoPlus500
8.6 €100 1.5 info 99 5500 info Plus500 Review
FXCM logoFXCM
8.6 Starts from $50 0.78 info 95 440 FXCM Review
Pepperstone logoPepperstone
8.5 $0 1.00 info 95 1726 Pepperstone Review
XM Group logoXM Group
8.5 $5 1.6 info 88 1394 XM Group Review
Admirals logoAdmirals
8.5 $100 0.8 info 93 8702 Admiral Markets Review
FP Markets logoFP Markets
8.4 $100 AUD 1.2 info 89 10000 FP Markets Review
IC Markets logoIC Markets
8.2 $200 0.62 info 84 3583 IC Markets Review
FxPro logoFxPro
8.1 $100 1.51 info 93 2249 FxPro Review
Tickmill logoTickmill
8.1 $100 0.51 info 86 725 Tickmill Review
Markets.com logoMarkets.com
8.0 $100 N/A info 93 2179 Markets.com Review
BlackBull Markets logoBlackBull Markets
8.0 $0 0.71 info 78 26000 BlackBull Markets Review
FinecoBank logoFinecoBank
8.0 $0 N/A info 94 9770 Fineco Bank Review
Vantage logoVantage
8.0 $50 1.30 info 90 1000 Vantage Review
ThinkMarkets logoThinkMarkets
7.9 $50 info 1.1 info 92 4000 ThinkMarkets Review
DooPrime logoDooPrime
7.8 $100 N/A info 83 10000 DooPrime Review
HYCM (Henyep Capital Markets) logoHYCM (Henyep Capital Markets)
7.8 $20 1.2 info 86 1199 HYCM Review
HFM logoHFM
7.8 $0 1.2 info 86 500 HFM Review
Trading 212 logoTrading 212
7.8 €10 1.9 info 79 8025 Trading 212 Review
Questrade logoQuestrade
7.8 $250 N/A 86 641
ActivTrades logoActivTrades
7.7 $0 0.98 info 81 1267
Trade Nation logoTrade Nation
7.7 $0 0.6 85 1000 Trade Nation Review
Moneta Markets logoMoneta Markets
7.7 $50 1.38 info 72 1016 Moneta Markets Review
BDSwiss logoBDSwiss
7.6 $10-$5000 info 1.6 info 73 1081 BDSwiss Review
TMGM logoTMGM
7.6 $100 N/A info 83 12000 TMGM Review
Eightcap logoEightcap
7.6 $100 1.0 info 85 736 Eightcap Review
Spreadex logoSpreadex
7.5 $0 0.81 info 71 10000 Spreadex Review
MultiBank logoMultiBank
7.5 $50 N/A 84 1042 MultiBank Review
ACY Securities logoACY Securities
7.5 $50 1.2 info 75 2200 ACY Securities Review
easyMarkets logoeasyMarkets
7.4 $25 0.8 info 84 230 easyMarkets Review
Exness logoExness
7.4 $10 info N/A 81 227 Exness Review
VT Markets logoVT Markets
7.3 $100 1.2 info 70 1000 VT Markets Review
IFC Markets logoIFC Markets
7.3 $1 1.44 info 73 630 IFC Markets Review
RoboForex logoRoboForex
7.3 $100 1.3 info 73 8400 Roboforex (RoboMarkets) Review
Octa logoOcta
7.3 $25 0.9 info 72 300 OctaFX Review
IronFX logoIronFX
7.2 $50 1.2 83 340 IronFX Review
Axi logoAxi
7.1 $0 N/A info 82 175 Axitrader Review
Earn logoEarn
7.1 $100 N/A 71 500 Earn Review
ATFX logoATFX
7.0 $500 N/A info 85 150 ATFX Review
iFOREX logoiFOREX
7.0 $100 N/A info 75 750 iFOREX Review
FXPrimus logoFXPrimus
7.0 $100 N/A info 71 140 FXPrimus Review
FXOpen logoFXOpen
6.9 $100 N/A info 76 87 FXOpen Review
Markets4you logoMarkets4you
6.8 $0 N/A info 61 150 Forex4you Review
GBE brokers logoGBE brokers
6.8 $500 N/A info 71 500 GBE Brokers Review
Alpari logoAlpari
6.8 $20 N/A info 68 105 Alpari Review
FXGT.com logoFXGT.com
6.6 $5 N/A info 69 117 FXGT Review
Xtrade logoXtrade
6.7 $250 N/A info 74 482 Xtrade Review
Libertex (Forex Club) logoLibertex (Forex Club)
6.7 $10 N/A info 73 300 Libertex Review
TopFX logoTopFX
6.7 Depends on payment method 1.03 info 67 655 TopFX Review
LegacyFX logoLegacyFX
6.7 $500 N/A 67 425 LegacyFX Review

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Methodology

At BrokerNotes.co, our data-driven online broker reviews are based on our extensive testing of brokers, platforms, products, technologies, and third-party trading tools. Our product testing extends to the quality and availability of educational content, market research resources, and the accessibility and capabilities of mobile platforms and trading apps. We also dive into each broker’s trading costs, such as VIP rebates, inactivity fees, custody fees, bid/ask spreads, and other fee-based data points.

Steven Hatzakis, an industry veteran with decades of experience in the forex market, leads the BrokerNotes research team. All BrokerNotes content is researched, fact-checked, and edited by the research team.

All websites and web-based platforms are tested using the latest version of the Google Chrome browser. Our Desktop PCs run Windows 11, and we use MacBook Pro laptops running the latest version of macOS to test trading on the go. We test mobile apps and products using iPhones running iOS 17 and Samsung devices running Android OS 14.

Note: The online brokers on our site provide the ability to trade forex in one or more ways, such as non-deliverable spot forex (i.e., rolling spot contracts), contracts for difference (CFD), or other derivatives such as futures. The availability of specific markets or features will depend on your country of residence and the broker's applicable brand or entity that services your account(s).

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. Learn more about foreign exchange risk.

About the Editorial Team

BrokerNotes.co

Founded in 2014 and acquired in 2021, BrokerNotes.co provides unbiased forex broker reviews and ratings to help traders and investors find the best broker for their needs. With over 60 brokers reviewed, our editorial team has published thousands of words of research to help our readers make informed choices.

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