What the spread actually costs you
A quoted spread is a number on a marketing page until you multiply it by how you trade. Set your lot size, how often you trade and how long you plan to keep going, and this prices the EUR/USD spread bill at all 10 brokers we track — using their real quoted figures, not averages.
Spread cost only. Commission-based accounts, swap charges and non-EUR/USD pairs are excluded, so treat this as a floor rather than a full bill.
The arithmetic
How this number is built
One pip on EUR/USD is $10 per standard lot
A standard lot is 100,000 units. EUR/USD moves in 0.0001 increments, so each pip is worth $10 on a full lot, $1 on a mini lot and $0.10 on a micro lot. Everything below scales from that.
You pay the spread once per round turn
Opening at the ask and closing at the bid means the spread is charged on the full trip in and out, not twice. A 0.60 pip spread on one lot is therefore $6 per completed trade.
Frequency is what turns pennies into a bill
Two trades a week is 8 round turns a month. Five a day is 110. At the same lot size that is a fourteen-fold difference in what a wide spread costs — which is why scalpers care about a tenth of a pip and swing traders barely notice it.
What this deliberately leaves out
Commission-based accounts (raw spreads plus a per-lot fee), overnight swap charges, inactivity fees, withdrawal costs and currency conversion. Raw accounts often quote near zero and charge $3–$7 per lot per side instead, so on this measure they look cheaper than they are.
Reference
The quoted spreads behind the maths
Typical EUR/USD figures on each broker's tightest standard or raw account, with the entry cost and regulatory cover alongside them.
| Broker | EUR/USD | $ per lot round turn | Min. deposit | Tier-1 | Account tiers | Go |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Pepperstone | 0.60 pips | $6.00 | None | 3× T1 | Standard, Razor | Visit → |
| 2Plus500 | 0.60 pips | $6.00 | $100 | 2× T1 | Retail, Professional | Visit → |
| 3IC Markets | 0.62 pips | $6.20 | $200 | 1× T1 | Standard, Raw Spread | Visit → |
| 4Exness | 0.70 pips | $7.00 | $10 | 1× T1 | Standard, Raw Spread, Zero, Pro | Visit → |
| 5XM | 0.80 pips | $8.00 | $5 | 1× T1 | Standard, Ultra Low, Zero | Visit → |
| 6FxPro | 0.90 pips | $9.00 | $100 | 1× T1 | Standard, Raw+, Elite | Visit → |
| 7AvaTrade | 0.90 pips | $9.00 | $100 | 2× T1 | Retail, Professional | Visit → |
| 8OANDA | 1.00 pips | $10.00 | None | 5× T1 | Standard, Core, Swap-free | Visit → |
| 9FOREX.com | 1.00 pips | $10.00 | $100 | 4× T1 | Standard, Commission, STP Pro | Visit → |
| 10eToro | 1.00 pips | $10.00 | $50 | 2× T1 | Retail, Professional | Visit → |