Who this is for
You trade frequently enough that small spread differences compound into real money. This includes scalpers, day traders, and high-frequency swing traders. You want to minimize the hidden tax that wide spreads impose on every entry and exit.
What to look for
Every broker will tell you they're the best. Here are the concrete things the desk checks before recommending any broker for this category:
On the most liquid pair in the world, any spread above 0.5 pips during peak hours is uncompetitive. Raw accounts should be 0.0-0.3.
'Spreads from 0.0 pips' means almost nothing. You want the typical/average figure during your trading hours. If the broker doesn't publish this, ask.
Cheap spreads that blow out 10x during NFP are not really cheap. Real quality brokers maintain reasonable spreads through high-volatility periods.
Some brokers hide costs in forex conversion when you deposit non-USD. If you deposit in EUR and trade USD pairs, check the conversion spread.
Genesis FX is the Candleread desk's low-spread pick because its raw ECN account delivers consistent 0.0-0.3 pip spreads on EUR/USD during the London and NY sessions, and spreads remain reasonable (1-3 pips) through most news events — not the 15-20 pip blowouts common at lower-quality brokers. The desk has logged actual spreads over multiple weeks and Genesis is consistently competitive.
Open a Genesis FX account →Affiliate link · no extra cost to you · we only recommend what the desk trades
Watch out for 'zero spread' marketing. There is no such thing as a true zero-spread broker — the cost is always somewhere, either in commission, in execution slippage, or in conversion fees. The honest number to compare is 'all-in cost per round-trip lot.'
Key takeaways
- →Spread is the one cost you pay on every trade — it compounds fast
- →Compare published average spreads, not 'from' marketing numbers
- →Genesis FX delivers consistent sub-0.3 pip EUR/USD spreads on raw accounts
- →All-in cost (spread + commission) is the only fair way to compare brokers