Can You Trade Forex for A Living?

It is possible to make a regular income out of forex trading. To do so, however, means putting a substantial amount of capital on the market, and trading it regularly.

Forex trading has one great advantage: Many brokers do not charge commission.

The cost of a trade is taken out in the spread, and, once a trade becomes profitable, the payment to the broker is already made. Apart from a small annual fee, it is thus possible to limit actual costs of trading. 

The Best Forex Brokers + Trading Platforms

Broker	Our Rating	Description	Minimum Deposit	Regulation	Visit
eToro	5	The leading Social Trading platform with 4.5m traders Follow other traders or be a leader Personal service and VIP perks	$200	FCA, CySec, ASIC	Visit Broker eToro Review	Spread bets and CFDs are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. 65% 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.
XM	5	Free forex signals + market research Online education and webinars Fee free withdrawals and deposits	$5	CySEC, FSP, ASIC	Visit Broker XM ReviewROTW	Risk Warning: Your capital may be at risk
Plus500	5	No commissions and low spreads Advanced trading tools Minimal account fees	€100	FCA, CySec :	Visit Broker Plus500 ReviewT1 ROTW	Spread bets and CFDs are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. 80.6% 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.
IQOption	4.5	Stylish & Powerful Platform Trade Bitcoin + 12 Other Top Cryptocurrencies Plus Forex, Options, Stocks & ETF Trading	$10	CySec	Visit Broker IQOption Review	Risk Warning: Your capital may be at risk
AVATrade	4.5	Trusted, regulated broker with 10 yrs experience Multi award winning company Segregated accounts with leading banks	$100	Central Bank of	Visit Broker AVATrade ReviewT1 ROTW	Risk Warning: Your capital may be at risk
Easy Markets	4.5	Free Guaranteed Stop Loss Segregated funds at top tier banks Fixed spreads & negative balance protection	$100	ASIC, CySEC	Visit Broker Easy Markets ReviewT1 ROTW	Risk Warning: Your capital may be at risk
LCG (London Capital Group)	4.5	World class trading platform Expert market analysis FCA Regulated and traded on the LSE	0	FSA	Visit Broker LCG (London Capital Group) ReviewT1 ROTW	Risk Warning: Your capital may be at risk
ETX Capital	4	Choice of two professional trading platforms – TraderPro and MT4 Free trading course for deposits over £1,000 Choice of Forex, CFDs, Spread Betting and Cryptocurrencies	€100	FCA	Visit Broker ETX Capital ReviewT1	Spread bets and CFDs are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. 79.6% 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.
Markets.com	4	Tight spreads without commissions Advanced charting tools	$100	CySec	Visit Broker Markets.com ReviewT1 ROTW	Spread bets and CFDs are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. 73% 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.
FBS Markets.	4	Split second execution No requotes Range of accounts	$5	IFSC	Visit Broker FBS Markets. ReviewROTW	Risk Warning: Your capital may be at risk
InstaForex	3.5	'Asia's top broker' Wide choice of leverage options	$1	RAFMM, The Federal	Visit Broker InstaForex ReviewROTW	Risk Warning: Your capital may be at risk
EXNESS (NZ) Ltd.	3.5	Instant fund withdrawals - no commissions Tight spreads from 0.1 points Unlimited leverage	-	FDR (NZ), CySEC	Visit Broker EXNESS (NZ) Ltd. ReviewT1 ROTW	Spread bets and CFDs are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. 74-89% 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.
HF Markets Ltd. (HotForex)	3.5	8 Trading Platforms Spreads from 0.1 Pips $0 fees on deposits	$5	FSC & CySEC	Visit Broker HF Markets Ltd. (HotForex) ReviewROTW	Risk Warning: Your capital may be at risk
FXPrimus	3	Trusted by 100,000s of traders Fully licensed in the EU by CySec Tight spreads and fast withdrawals	$100	FSC Mauritius	Visit Broker FXPrimus ReviewROTW	Risk Warning: Your capital may be at risk
OLYMP TRADE	2		10		Visit Broker OLYMP TRADE Review	Risk Warning: Your capital may be at risk

Broker rankings last updated 17/11/2018 18:34

However, forex is not a get-rich-quick investment. It is, on the contrary, a demanding and time-intensive form of trading. The forex market is unforgiving: As seasoned forex traders often say: ‘Always remember, the market will hurt you if it you give it the opportunity.

To make a living at trading forex, you must learn to understand how the market works, gain serious experience at trading, and learn an in-depth proven strategy. If you are willing to spend the time to do this, and you are prepared to spend at least five to seven hours a day trading, then it is possible to make a living at the game.

Becoming a consistently profitable trader requires serious discipline, but it can be done and there are a happy few who achieve this.

Most forex traders anticipate earning 10-15 percent per month on their capital. In order to do this, however, you must make a fairly substantial initial investment. It is possible to begin trading with as little as $500, but you cannot really follow the movements of the market with so little invested. 

Normally, one should start with a minimum of US$10,000, or the equivalent. It is possible to begin with as little as US$5,000, or the equivalent, but it is a painful start.

Having a reasonable amount to work with allows you to avoid having to risk too much on any one trade. But you need to have enough money at your disposal to take a large enough position on a trade to make a reasonable amount of money.

Don’t quit your day job right away! Focus on building a consistently profitable track record and self-confidence and the money will follow. Forex trading is about consistency and security.

Good trading will lead to expanded trading. Good trading takes place one trade at a time. Trade the short-term – 15-minutes, an hour, the daily charts. Look for well-defined positions; take the advantage; clear out fast. The full-time trader is, above all, a trader who manages risk.