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Written by Steven Hatzakis
Edited by John Bringans
Fact-checked by Joey Shadeck
March 05, 2024
ForexBrokers.com has been reviewing online forex brokers for over six years, and our reviews are the most cited in the industry. Each year, we collect thousands of data points and publish tens of thousands of words of research. Here's how we test.
Trading forex (currencies) in international markets is popular among residents in Canada. Before any forex broker in Canada can accept forex and CFD traders as clients, they must become authorised by Canada's regulatory body: the Canadian Investment Regulatory Organization (CIRO).
Founded in June 2023, the CIRO consolidates and carries on the functions of the Investment Industry Regulatory Organization (IIROC) and Mutual Fund Dealers Association (MFDA). We also recommend Canadian residents follow IIROC on Twitter, @IIROCinfo and @FINTRAC_Canada.
CFDs are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. Between 74% 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.
Best Canadian Forex Brokers for 2024
To find the best forex brokers in Canada, we created a list of all firms authorised by Canada's new regulator, the CIRO, then ranked the brokers by their Overall ranking. Here is our list of the top Canadian forex brokers.
- Interactive Brokers - Great overall, best for professionals
- CMC Markets - Excellent overall, best platform technology
- FOREX.com - Excellent all-round offering
- AvaTrade - Great for beginners and copy trading
- OANDA - Trusted broker, great research
- FXCM - Excellent trading platforms and tools
Best Forex Brokers Canada Comparison
Compare Canada authorised forex and CFDs brokers side by side using the forex broker comparison tool or the summary table below. This broker list is sorted by my Overall rankings of the top forex brokers.
| Company | Accepts CA Residents | Regulated by the CIRO | Average Spread EUR/USD - Standard | Minimum Deposit | Overall Rating | Visit Site |
| check | check | 0.63info | $0 |  | Visit Site | |
| check | check | 0.61info | $0 | | ||
| check | check | 1.4info | $100 | | Visit Site | |
| check | check | 0.92info | $100 |  | ||
| check | check | 1.57info | $0 | | Visit Site | |
| check | check | 0.74info | Starts from $50 | | ||
| check | 1.1info | $100 AUD | | |||
| check | 1.0info | $100 |  | |||
| check | N/A | $50 | | |||
 | check | 1.44info | $1 | |
Interested in stock trading? Read our guide to the best online brokers in Canada.
Winners Summary
Best Broker in Canada - CMC Markets
| Company | Accepts CA Residents | Regulated by the CIRO | Overall Rating | Minimum Deposit | Average Spread EUR/USD - Standard | Visit Site |
| check | check | | $0 | 0.61info |
CMC Markets is my pick for the best forex broker in Canada in 2024. Founded in 1989, CMC Markets is a highly trusted, publicly traded brand that holds five Tier-1 licenses regulatory licenses, including the Canadian Investment Regulatory Organization (CIRO).
Forex traders looking for a great mobile trading app will enjoy CMC Markets' Next Generation platform. The app closely resembles the web version of the broker’s Next Generation platform and comes loaded with charting tools, integrated research and education, predefined watchlists, and more. CMC Markets’ excellent mobile experience has helped it earn Best in Class honors for Mobile Trading Apps in the ForexBrokers.com Annual Awards eight years in a row.
CMC Markets also delivers some of the lowest trading costs in the industry. In our 2024 Annual Awards, CMC Markets finished Best in Class in the Commissions and Fees category thanks to its consistently low spread offering, which is available for all customer segments and account types. Beginner forex traders will appreciate CMC’s wide range of educational resources and MetaTrader enthusiasts can use MT4 plugins from Autochartist and FX Blue.
I’ve been testing CMC Markets’ platforms, products, and services since 2017; learn more about this broker by checking out my full review of CMC Markets.
Best Offering of Investments - Interactive Brokers
| Company | Accepts CA Residents | Regulated by the CIRO | Overall Rating | Minimum Deposit | Average Spread EUR/USD - Standard | Visit Site |
| check | check | | $0 | 0.63info | Visit Site |
Interactive Brokers’ extensive range of tradeable markets, instruments, and symbols helped the broker earn our 2024 Annual Award for #1 Offering of Investments. Founded in 1977, Interactive Brokers is a highly trusted, publicly traded (NASDAQ: IBKR) brand regulated in an impressive nine Tier-1 jurisdictions.
Interactive Brokers offers a vast selection of global financial markets, from stocks and options to futures and spot forex. Traders also gain access to spot bitcoin trading (in the U.S.), spot gold, and spot bitcoin ETFs. IBKR also offers over a dozen micro futures, including for major forex pairs.
Though Interactive Brokers does not offer MetaTrader 4 or MetaTrader 5, it does deliver a modern, institutional-grade trading platform suite that helped it win our 2024 Annual Award for #1 Institutional Clients. The Trader Workstation (TWS) desktop platform offers a variety of advanced trading tools and sophisticated order types that will delight professionals and advanced forex traders.
It’s worth noting that beginner forex and CFD traders might be intimidated by the broker’s miscellaneous fees and the complexity of its proprietary platforms. Learn more by reading my full review of Interactive Brokers.
Best Interactive Educational Experience - FOREX.com
| Company | Accepts CA Residents | Regulated by the CIRO | Overall Rating | Minimum Deposit | Average Spread EUR/USD - Standard | Visit Site |
| check | check | | $100 | 1.4info | Visit Site |
FOREX.com is a highly rated broker that delivers some of my favorite educational content for forex traders. Founded in 1999, FOREX.com is a GAIN Capital brand under the parent company of StoneX Group (NASDAQ: SNEX), and is regulated in seven Tier-1 jurisdictions.
The launch of FOREX.com’s Trading Academy helped the broker make significant strides in our Education category. I found the interactive courses within the broker’s Trading Academy to be rich with detail and highly informative for traders of all experience levels. Trading Academy courses include progress tracking, quizzes, and other interactive features that make the learning experience fun. I was so impressed with the interactive aspects of the broker’s educational content that I awarded FOREX.com’s Trading Academy our 2024 Annual Award for #1 Interactive Educational Experience.
It’s also worth noting that, in 2023, FOREX.com launched MetaTrader 5 in the U.S. and Canada. The RAW account is now available to FOREX.com’s clients in Canada. FOREX.com’s RAW Spread account delivers commission-based pricing (similar to its STP account) and volume-based rebates for active traders. Learn more about why FOREX.com is a great choice for forex traders in Canada by checking out my full review of FOREX.com.
Best for Beginners - AvaTrade
| Company | Accepts CA Residents | Regulated by the CIRO | Overall Rating | Minimum Deposit | Average Spread EUR/USD - Standard | Visit Site |
| check | check | | $100 | 0.92info |
AvaTrade’s in-depth educational content for beginners includes a wide range of educational videos, 100+ informative articles, and integrated quizzes accompanied by a progress tracking feature. AvaTrade’s in-house educational content (for its AvaAvademy) features 150 lessons and 50 quizzes. Traders also gain access to educational content from highly rated third-party providers like Trading Central. The broker's abundance of content designed to educate beginner forex traders helped AvaTrade earn Best in Class honors for Beginners and Education in our 2024 Annual Awards.
Beyond its helpful content for beginner forex traders, AvaTrade is a balanced option for forex traders that offers an impressive suite of trading platforms. Its proprietary platforms, WebTrader and AvaTradeGO, are robust. AvaTrade also offers the full MetaTrader suite.
There are also multiple platform options for social copy trading, including DupliTrade, ZuluTrade, and the MetaTrader signals market. Read my full review of AvaTrade to learn more.
securityWhy regulation is important
Choosing a well-regulated forex broker is important for avoiding forex scams. Check out my popular educational series that teaches you how to identify common forex scams and provides helpful information about what to do if you've been scammed. For crypto traders, I explain how you can spot common crypto scams.
How to Verify IIROC Regulation
To identify if a forex broker is regulated as Dealer Member by IIROC, the first step is to identify the registered name from the disclosure text at the bottom of the broker's homepage. For example, here's the key disclosure text from OANDA's website:
OANDA (Canada) Corporation ULC is regulated by the Investment Industry Regulatory Organization of Canada (IIROC), which includes IIROC's online advisor check database (IIROC AdvisorReport), and customer accounts are protected by the Canadian Investor Protection Fund within specified limits.
Next, look up the firm name on the Dealer Member section or AdvisorReport module of the IIROC website. Here is the official page for OANDA and results are also available on the CSA's website which shows each province that the broker can operate in Canada.
About CIRO (previously known as IIROC)
As of June 2023, CIRO is the new regulator in Canada, following a rebranding and reorganization from IIROC. IIROC was a national self-regulatory organization (SRO) that was established as a non-profit corporation on June 1st, 2008 as part of the consolidation of the Investment Dealers Association of Canada (IDA) and the Market Regulation Services Inc. (RS). CIRO is recognized by the Canadian Securities Administrators (CSA) which includes all Canadian provinces including the following regulatory bodies in Canada:
- British Columbia Securities Commission
- Alberta Securities Commission
- Financial and Consumer Affairs Authority
- Manitoba Securities Commission
- Ontario Securities Commission
- Autorité des marchés financiers
- Financial and Consumer Services Commission
- Nova Scotia Securities Commission
- Prince Edward Island
- Government of Yukon Securities Registrar
- Newfoundland Securities Commission
- Northwest Territories Securities Commission
- Office of the Superintendent of Securities (Nunavut)
For a historical breakdown, here's a link to IIROC's webpage on Wikipedia.
Is forex legal in Canada?
Yes, forex trading is legal in Canada. It’s always recommended to choose a broker that is well-regulated (preferably locally) and highly trusted. Forex trading in Canada is regulated provincially; each Canadian province is regulated by its own respective regulatory authority. It’s worth noting that regulators in certain jurisdictions – such as the British Columbia Securities Commission– regulate more strictly than others.
Do you pay tax on forex trading in Canada?
With the important caveat that we cannot provide tax advice, it should be said that residents of Canada must report all income to the Canadian Government – including all capital gains (or losses) over $200 that come from trading forex.
According to the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA), “Foreign exchange gains or losses from capital transactions of foreign currencies (that is money) are considered to be capital gains or losses. However, you only have to report the amount of your net gain or loss for the year that is more than $200.”
How your tax professional may elect to apply any such gains or losses you have from trading in the financial market may vary depending on your unique circ*mstances. It may be best for Canadian citizens or residents to consult a tax professional to determine any potential Canadian tax obligations. If you are not a Canadian resident or citizen, you must report your global income from forex trading in the country of your permanent residence.
How do I start trading forex in Canada?
To open a forex trading account in Canada, it’s important to start by selecting a forex broker that is well-regulated and properly licensed in Canada by the Canadian Investment Regulatory Organization (CIRO). Once you’ve chosen a forex broker, you can follow this step-by-step guide to getting started with forex trading in Canada:
- Complete the live account application process with your forex broker and read through the applicable terms and conditions.
- Next, you’ll need to fund your new brokerage account. Choose your preferred deposit method, and make sure you are starting with an amount you can afford to risk.
- Check out a demo (or, virtual trading) account to familiarize yourself with the broker’s trading platform. Get comfortable with the broker’s website and product offerings, and consume any available educational content.
- Put together a trading plan. Even the best traders can lose money, but the key to long-term success lies in sticking to a trading plan that keeps your average losses low (relative to your average profits).
- Now, you can enter the forex market. Choose your desired trade size, and open a long position by clicking buy on a given currency, or open a short position by clicking sell.
schoolHow to start forex trading
Learn more about getting started as a forex trader by checking out my in-depth Forex 101 educational series. I go over everything you need to know to start out as a forex trader; you'll learn about forex and currency trading, leverage in the forex market, how to calculate pips, and more.
Who is the best forex broker in Canada?
CMC Markets is our number one rated forex broker in Canada in 2024. CMC Markets is a highly trusted brand that is publicly traded (LON: CMCX) and regulated by the Canadian Investment Regulatory Organization (CIRO), CMC Markets offers an extensive range of 10,000+ tradeable investment products on its Next Generation web trading platform and mobile app.
What is the best forex trading app in Canada?
The best forex trading app available to forex traders in Canada is CMC Markets’ mobile app. CMC Markets delivers a terrific overall mobile app experience. Featuring a clean, intuitive design, CMC Markets' mobile app delivers powerful charts, multiple research tools, integrated educational content, and much more. Our researchers have rated CMC Markets’ mobile forex trading app highly in our full-length review of CMC Markets.
Check out our walkthrough of CMC Markets' highly rated mobile app:
Check out a gallery of screenshots from CMC Markets' mobile trading app, taken by our research team during our product testing.
What is the best forex broker for beginners in Canada?
AvaTrade is my pick for the best forex broker in Canada for beginner forex traders in 2024. The quality (and quantity) of educational content provided by AvaTrade helped it win Best in Class honors for our Beginners and Education categories in our 2024 Annual Awards. AvaTrade offers over 100 educational articles as well as a wide assortment of videos to help beginners learn the ropes of forex trading. Well over 100 lessons are available, accompanied by dozens of quizzes for beginners to test their forex trading knowledge. Third-party educational content from award-winning providers, such as Trading Central, is available to AvaTrade clients. Simply put, AvaTrade delivers a high-quality experience for beginner forex traders.
Article Resources
- Canadian Investment Regulatory Organization (CIRO)
- Investment Industry Regulatory Organization
- New Self-Regulatory Organization (New SRO)
- IIROC Wikipedia
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At ForexBrokers.com, our reviews of online forex brokers and their products and services are based on our collected data as well as the observations and qualified opinions of our expert researchers. Each year we publish tens of thousands of words of research on the top forex brokers and monitor dozens of international regulator agencies (read more about how we calculate Trust Score here).
Our research team, led by Steven Hatazkis, conducts thorough testing on a wide range of features, products, and services. We test all available trading platforms for each broker – whether they are proprietary or come from third-party providers – and evaluate them based on a host of data-driven variables. Our research team collects and validates thousands of data points each year.
We also take an in-depth look at each broker’s commissions and fees, such as bid/ask spreads – including the average spread data for some of the most popular forex currency pairs. We research other trading costs, such as inactivity or custody fees, minimum deposit requirements, VIP rebates and/or discounts, and a range of other important fee-based data points.
Some of the other important research categories that are factored into our testing include mobile trading accessibility and capability, availability of market research and educational content, and each broker’s regulatory status and number of held regulatory licenses.
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 also test on mobile devices; for Apple, we test using the iPhone XS running iOS 16, and for Android we use the Samsung Galaxy S9+ and Samsung Galaxy S20 Ultra devices running Android OS 13.
All content on ForexBrokers.com is handwritten by a writer, fact-checked by a member of our research team, and edited and published by an editor. Generative AI tools are not a part of our content creation or product testing processes. Our ratings, rankings, and opinions are entirely our own, and the result of our extensive research and decades of collective experience covering the forex industry. Read our Generative AI policy to learn more.
Read our full explanation and accounting of our research and testing process to learn more about how we test.
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
Steven Hatzakis is the Global Director of 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).
John Bringans
John Bringans is the Senior Editor of ForexBrokers.com. An experienced media professional, John has close to a decade of editorial experience with a background that includes key leadership roles at global newsroom outlets. He holds a Bachelor’s Degree in English Literature from San Francisco State University, and conducts research on forex and the financial services industry while assisting in the production of content.
Joey Shadeck
Joey Shadeck is the 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.
