Short answer: An ECN forex broker passes your orders to a network of banks and liquidity providers, shows you their raw prices (spreads from 0.0 pips) and charges a commission per lot instead of marking up the spread. Plenty of retail brokers use "ECN" as an account name, so check the execution policy and the fee structure, not the label.
"ECN" sometimes gets printed on plain dealing-desk accounts. Below: what the terms actually mean, how to work out which one you're dealing with, and the raw-spread accounts in our data, with real numbers.
ECN, STP and market maker: how each one makes money
ECN (Electronic Communication Network)
Your order is matched against prices streamed by several liquidity providers. The broker doesn't take the other side. It earns a commission per lot, and that's it. Spreads float: very tight in the London and New York overlap, wider at rollover and around big news.
STP (Straight Through Processing)
The broker routes your order to one or more liquidity providers without a dealing desk. Instead of a commission, it usually adds a markup to the spread. In practice a lot of "STP" accounts are just the broker's standard account. Vantage's Standard STP, for example, starts at 1.0 pip with no commission, against 0.0 pips plus $6 on its Raw ECN account.
Market maker (dealing desk)
The broker quotes its own prices and is your counterparty. It earns from the spread and, on positions it keeps in-house, from client losses. Spreads can be fixed or variable.
Market making is legal and regulated almost everywhere. The issue is the conflict of interest: the broker does better when you do worse.
A-book and B-book
Most retail brokers run a hybrid. Trades passed to liquidity providers are "A-book". Trades the broker keeps are "B-book". One client can sit on each, and a broker can move a client from one to the other without telling them.
That's why an account called "ECN" tells you very little about how your orders are actually handled.
ECN vs STP vs market maker at a glance
| ECN | STP | Market maker | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Who takes the other side | Liquidity providers via network | Liquidity providers | The broker |
| Typical EUR/USD spread | From 0.0 pips, variable | Raw price plus markup | Fixed or variable, wider |
| Commission | Yes, per lot | Usually no | Usually no |
| Requotes | No, market execution | No, market execution | Possible with instant execution |
| Conflict of interest | Low | Low | Higher |
| Best for | Scalpers, high volume, news traders | Most retail traders | Small accounts, beginners wanting fixed costs |
How to tell if a broker is really ECN
No single test proves it. Run several:
- Read the order execution policy. Every regulated broker publishes one. Look for whether it acts as principal (your counterparty) or agent, and whether it names liquidity providers. "We act as principal" means the broker is on the other side of your trade, whatever the account is called.
- Look at the pricing. A genuine raw account shows spreads near zero in liquid hours and charges commission separately. An "ECN" account with a 1.0 pip spread and no commission is a marked-up account.
- Check the execution type. "Market execution" fills at the next available price with no requotes. "Instant execution" with requotes points to a dealing desk.
- Watch spreads at rollover and on news. Real ECN spreads widen when liquidity thins out. Spreads that never move at all suggest a fixed-spread market maker.
- Check depth of market. Some ECN platforms show Level 2 depth. Not all do, and on its own it proves nothing.
- Test with a small live account. Compare fills against the quote during news and see how slippage behaves in both directions. You should get positive slippage sometimes, not only the negative kind.
- Check the licence and the entity you'd join. Execution and disclosure rules are stricter at Tier 1 and Tier 2 regulators. See forex broker licence tiers.
Raw-spread accounts in our data
These are the raw, ECN or zero-spread accounts brokers publish with a commission figure. We haven't verified how any of them route orders; the account name is the broker's, not ours. The all-in cost is spread × $10 plus round-turn commission on one standard lot of EUR/USD.
| Broker | Account | EUR/USD spread | Commission (round turn) | All-in per lot | Licence tier | Verdict Score | Complaint flags |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| IC Markets | Raw Spread (MetaTrader) | 0.1 (average) | $7 | $8.00 | T1 | 9.8 | None |
| FP Markets | Raw | 0.0 (from) | $6 | $6.00 | T1 | 9.2 | None |
| Axi | Premium / Elite | 0.0 (from) | $4.50 / $3.50 | $4.50 / $3.50 | T1 | 9.1 | None |
| Vantage | Raw ECN | 0.0 (from) | $6 | $6.00 | T2 | 9.0 | None |
| Zero Markets | Super ZERO | 0.1 (average) | $5 | $6.00 | T1 | 8.8 | None |
| GO Markets | GO Plus+ | 0.0 (from) | $5 | $5.00 | T1 | 8.7 | None |
| Moneta Markets | Prime ECN | 0.26 (average) | $6 | $8.60 | T1 | 8.1 | None |
| FXOpen | Basic to Elite ECN | 0.0 (from) | $7 down to $3 | $3.00 to $7.00 | T1 | 7.6 | None |
| FXTM | Advantage | 0.0 (from) | $7 | $7.00 | T2 | 7.6 | None |
| Axiory | Nano | 0.3 (average) | $6 | $9.00 | T2 | 7.4 | None |
| IFX Brokers | Raw | 0.0 (from) | $6 | $6.00 | T2 | 6.9 | None |
| Windsor Brokers | Zero VIP | 0.0 (from) | $5 | $5.00 | T3 | 6.8 | None |
| Equiti | Premier | 0.0 (from) | $7 | $7.00 | T1 | 7.9 | Withdrawals refused, poor support |
Watch the basis column. IC Markets, Zero Markets, Moneta and Axiory publish average spreads; the rest quote "from" figures, which are best-case. So IC Markets' $8.00 isn't really worse than a "from" $6.00 elsewhere. It's measured on a tougher basis.
A few more brokers publish a raw-account commission but no EUR/USD spread we can use:
- Pepperstone Razor: $7 round turn (T1, 8.1, no flags)
- BlackBull Markets Raw (ECN Prime): $6 (T2, 7.9, no flags)
- Eightcap Raw: $7 (T1, 7.0, no flags)
- Tickmill Raw: $6 (T1, 7.9). Flags: withdrawals refused and poor support worldwide; deposits not credited and withdrawals refused in India.
- JustMarkets Raw Spread: $6 (T2, 7.2). Flags: withdrawals refused, slippage / price spikes.
- FxPro Raw+ and cTrader: $7 (T1, 7.2). Flags: withdrawals refused, slow withdrawals, slippage / price spikes, poor support.
- Moneta Markets Ultra ECN: $2 (T1, 8.1, no flags), the lowest commission we hold, though Moneta doesn't publish its spread.
We flag a complaint when at least 3 reviewers and 20% of recent Trustpilot reviews across 3 or more countries report the same problem (country flags use a 30% threshold). It's a pattern worth checking, not a ruling. The full method is on /how-we-rank/.
When an ECN account is worth paying commission for
A raw account makes sense if:
- You trade often or in size. Our data shows the saving against the same broker's standard account runs from nothing (IC Markets: $8 per lot either way) to $7 per lot (IFX Brokers and Equiti, where Standard costs $13 and $14). That only adds up with volume.
- You scalp or trade news and need market execution with no requotes.
- You run expert advisors that are sensitive to spread.
It's less useful if:
- You trade a few micro lots a month. Commission hits every lot and the saving is pennies.
- You want one simple cost. On a standard account the spread is the whole bill.
- You hold for weeks. Swap will cost you more than the entry ever did.
For standard and raw accounts side by side, see lowest spread forex brokers.
Common ECN myths
"ECN brokers can't manipulate prices." The broker still runs the platform, the price feed and the risk settings. A Tier 1 licence and a clean complaint record protect you better than an account name.
"Zero spread means zero cost." A 0.0 pip spread with $7 commission costs $7 a lot. Some "zero spread" accounts in our data, Windsor's Zero and Valetax's ECN among them, list no commission at all. That means the cost isn't published. It doesn't mean it's free.
"ECN means no slippage." Market execution fills at the next available price, and in a fast market that can be worse than your click. Normal. What isn't normal is slippage that only ever goes against you.
"Leverage is lower on ECN accounts." It depends on the broker and the entity, not the execution model. Check the leverage page for any broker.
What matters more than the execution model
Execution affects cost and fill quality. It doesn't decide whether you get your money out.
Our Verdict Score weights payout at 35%, leverage 25%, safety 25% and service 15%, and doesn't score cost at all. That's deliberate. Equiti's Premier account is cheap at $7 a lot, but we flag it for withdrawals refused. Before you open any raw account, check the broker's withdrawal record on its page and in the rankings.
FAQ
What is an ECN forex broker?
A broker that routes orders to a network of liquidity providers, shows raw interbank-style prices and charges a commission per lot instead of marking up the spread.
Is ECN better than a market maker?
ECN cuts the conflict of interest because the broker isn't your counterparty, and it usually costs active traders less. A regulated market maker can still be a fair broker, though. Licence quality and withdrawal record matter more than the model.
How much commission do ECN brokers charge?
In our data, published round-turn commissions on raw accounts run from $2 (Moneta Markets Ultra ECN) and $3 (FXOpen Elite ECN) up to $7 per standard lot. $6 to $7 is the most common.
Is STP the same as ECN?
No. Both send orders to outside liquidity without a dealing desk, but STP usually charges a spread markup and no commission, while ECN shows raw spreads and charges commission. Many brokers use the terms loosely.
Can I trust an account just because it's called ECN?
No. Account names are marketing. Read the order execution policy, check that commission is charged separately and test with a small account.
Do ECN accounts need a bigger deposit?
Sometimes. Top-tier raw accounts at some brokers carry higher minimums. Check the minimum deposit page for the broker you're looking at.
CFDs are leveraged products; most retail accounts lose money.