Best Forex Demo Accounts

Trading forex in a demo account offers a great way to get started operating in the world’s largest financial market. Forex demo accounts let you practice different trading strategies without risking any real money. They also allow you to test out the functionality of different brokers before committing to one. 

In this article, Benzinga discusses the best forex demo accounts available in the market. Whether you are a novice trader looking to hone your skills or an experienced trader wanting to try out new strategies, a demo account can be a valuable tool in your trading arsenal. So let's explore the top options and find the perfect fit for your trading needs.

Quick Look: Best Forex Demo Trading Accounts

• Best for Unlimited Demo Time: Plus500
• Best Overall: FOREX.com
• Best for Instant and Easy Access to Forex Markets: Trading.com
• Best for Fast Execution: tastyfx
• Best for Copy Trading: eToro
• Best for High Volume Traders: Tickmill
• Best for Virtual Funding Amount: AvaTrade

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Disclosure: CFDs are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. 69% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider. You should consider whether you understand how CFDs work and whether you can afford to take the high risk of losing your money.

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Best Forex Demo Accounts

These days you have a lot of options to choose from among the various online forex brokers to trade currencies through, although traders based in the U.S. have fewer choices as a result of strict U.S. regulatory restrictions that often discourage online brokers from participating in that market. 

Below you will find the top forex, contract for difference (CFD) and/or spread betting brokers that offer a trading demo account in 8 key categories. You will also find details about each broker along with a screenshot of the trading platform you can check out via demo account trading. After deciding on a reputable broker, you can get in touch with them directly to open and start trading in a demo account.

1. Best for Unlimited Demo Time: Plus500

Plus500 is a specialist CFD broker and offers CFD trading for stocks, forex, commodities, exchange-traded funds (ETFs), options, indices and cryptocurrencies. It provides a portfolio of over 2,000 instruments.

Plus500 has over 1,000 assets available for trading in a demo account that includes 70 forex currency pairs, as well as stocks, cryptocurrencies, exchange-traded funds (ETFs), indices and options. The broker does not accept U.S. clients. 

Plus500 desktop and mobile trading platforms have an intuitive interface that both novices and experienced traders will find very accessible to use for demo account trading. The broker also offers unlimited time on its demo accounts, which makes them ideal for building a long-term performance track record. 

2. Best Overall: FOREX.com

FOREX.com offers a demo trading account to prospective clients and ranks as the best forex broker overall. You can practice trading up to 80 currency pairs on FOREX.com’s advanced trading platforms, even if you live in the U.S.

Non-U.S. residents can also use the popular MetaTrader platform that allows you to automate your trading plans and backtest new strategies. You can check out Benzinga’s FOREX.com Review for more information about this excellent broker.

3. Best for Instant and Easy Access to Forex Markets: Trading.com

Trading.com is becoming the go-to choice for traders seeking a straightforward yet effective trading platform. Tailored for modern traders, it boasts a user-friendly interface that streamlines trade executions, especially for those who prioritize simplicity over complex features. What distinguishes Trading.com amidst the competitive broker landscape is its highly competitive spreads, ensuring cost efficiency for users. The platform has an attractive design, easy navigation and provides a seamless trading experience.

Additionally, Trading.com is a registered Retail Foreign Exchange Dealer (RFED) with the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) and a member of the National Futures Association (NFA #0516820), ensuring confidence for traders using the platform. While advanced traders may find the platform's features somewhat limited, Trading.com offers a balanced blend of functionality and user-friendliness, making it a compelling option for traders of all levels.

4. Best for Fast Execution: tastyfx

tastyfx (formerly, IG Group) is a comprehensive online forex and CFD broker that offers full access to the currency market via multiple trading platforms and supports trading in almost 90 currency pairs. The broker does take U.S. customers and requires a $250 minimum deposit to open a live account. For those learning how to trade currencies, tastyfx offers free online courses, webinars and seminars as part of its tastyfx Academy.

Novice traders will like tastyfx's intuitive mobile, web and desktop platforms that are available to demo account users and include the popular MetaTrader 4 suite. More experienced traders will appreciate the platform’s wide choice of technical indicators and charting tools, including its ProRealTime online charting software aimed at advanced technical traders. 

While tastyfx could improve its customer service, the broker offers tight dealing spreads and can suit traders who prefer a streamlined interface and/or like to trade on a tablet device.

5. Best for Copy Trading: eToro

eToro specializes in social or copy trading that allows you to follow and duplicate in your own account the trades of expert traders who have an established track record with proven profitability. 

eToro also lets you trade more than 2,000 different assets in a demo account, and virtually any trader should find its intuitive forex platforms and apps easy to use, although it does not support the popular MetaTrader platforms. 

eToro also has excellent educational resources and it accepts U.S. residents of most states as clients.

6. Best for High Volume Traders: Tickmill

Tickmill's forex demo account is a valuable tool for traders looking to practice their skills in the world of currency trading. Tickmill's demo account provides a realistic trading environment with live market data, allowing traders to practice their strategies without risking real money. One of the significant advantages is that traders can gain experience and test their trading strategies without any financial risk. It's an excellent platform for beginners to get started.

Tickmill offers a wide range of trading instruments, including forex currency pairs, commodities, and indices, which allows traders to explore various markets and assets. The platform is user-friendly and intuitive, making it suitable for traders of all levels. It's easy to navigate and offers various trading tools and indicators.

7. Best for Virtual Funding Amount: AvaTrade

If you want a substantial amount of virtual money to practice trading with, then AvaTrade offers an impressive sum of $100,000 to initially fund your demo account. 

That makes this broker our top pick from a virtual funding standpoint. 

AvaTrade also excels when it comes to the number and variety of trading platforms supported, which include MetaTrader, ZuluTrade and an impressive forex and options trading platform called AvaOptions.

Why Choose a Demo Account?

Trading in a demo account can really help forex beginners who might otherwise have to learn how to trade forex using real money and the financial risks with it. While demo trading lacks the emotional rush involved in risking real funds, it does train you to watch the market. It can also give you a good feel for how exchange rates move without risking any real money. A demo trading account can also be useful to practice in and improve your trading skills in different market conditions.

Virtual trading removes the key psychological element involved in risk-taking that can make or break a trader. Even though it does not accurately assess your trading abilities, it can help you practice. You can also use demo account trading to assess the historical performance of your trade plan and train yourself to use a trading platform.

Basically, a forex demo account offers an educational tool for novices to begin trading forex and test their strategies in a real-time trading environment without taking the associated financial risks involved in trading a real money account.

Risk and Reward in Currency Trading

Forex traders make money just like stock traders do by taking positions that rise in value. They can also lose money by taking positions that depreciate in value. When trading positions remain open, any profits or losses stay unrealized, but they become realized when the position is closed out. 

Almost all online forex brokers let traders increase the risk they can take and potentially magnify their profits by leveraging. Leverage is generally expressed as a ratio of the size of the position you can control when you place 1 base currency unit on a deposit to use as margin. A 200:1 leverage ratio, therefore, means you can control a $200 position by placing just $1 on deposit as margin. 

To trade successfully, typically only consider making transactions that meet a certain minimum risk/reward ratio that you find acceptable. For instance, you could risk 100 pips on 1 trade to potentially gain 300 pips if your market view turns out to be correct. This results in an estimated risk/reward ratio of 100:300 or 1:3 on that trade. 

No matter what you decide to do, you must be prepared to lose all the money you put up as margin when trading forex, so do not trade with funds you cannot afford to lose. If you are mentally prepared for a loss, you will not be shocked if a trade doesn’t work out. Keeping mentally prepared lets you think through all your options instead of viewing the forex market as a get-rich-quick scheme, which it most definitely is not since most retail traders lose money.

A demo account gives you a real-time accounting of the profits and losses on your simulated trading positions without you incurring any actual financial risk or rewards. Ultimately, it is the best way to learn how to trade forex by practicing in a risk-free environment.

Opening a Demo Account Helps You Choose a Forex Broker

Selecting the right forex broker is one of the most important decisions you will make as a forex trader, so choose wisely. In addition to finding one that fits your trading requirements, you’ll also want a reliable and reputable broker that submits to a strong regulatory agency for oversight. 

Opening a forex trading demo account with any online broker that you would consider using makes total sense. You can use a demo trading account to learn how to use the broker’s trading platform to practice trading and test out new trading strategies in a real-time trading environment without the risk of actual financial loss.

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