Ratings on this site follow a fixed, published process. Compensation from brokers never changes a score.
Eligibility
Every broker we cover must be an actively operating forex/CFD broker, with a public track record and verifiable trading conditions, and it must accept Canadian residents — this is a hard requirement for inclusion, not a scoring factor, because a broker that can't serve our readers isn't relevant to them regardless of how well it scores on everything else. Beyond that, we do not require a Canadian (CIRO) licence — but we do require, and separately disclose, regulatory status: whether a broker holds one or more licences from a recognised authority (such as ASIC, the FCA, FSCA, FSA Seychelles or FSC Mauritius), and if we could not verify any such licence, we say so explicitly in the review rather than omitting the point. Kudotrade is included on this basis: it is actively searched for and marketed, but our research did not turn up a verifiable licence from a recognised regulator, and its review and score reflect that.
Scoring model
| Factor | Weight | What we test |
|---|---|---|
| Regulation & safety | 30% | Number and strength of active licences, fund segregation, negative balance protection, operating track record |
| Trading costs | 25% | Typical spreads on majors, commissions, swap schedules |
| Platforms & tools | 20% | MT4/MT5 support, proprietary platform quality, mobile apps, copy trading |
| Market range | 15% | Currency pairs, metals, indices and other CFDs |
| Service & funding | 10% | Support responsiveness, deposit/withdrawal speed and cost |
How we handle bonus promotions
Where a broker runs a first-deposit or redeposit bonus, we list the headline terms (percentage, minimum deposit, cap) sourced from the broker's own published terms, alongside a standing reminder that bonus credit is non-withdrawable and acts as leverage rather than cash. Bonus availability does not factor into our regulation & safety score, and we do not rank brokers higher simply for offering a larger bonus.
How we make money
When you open an account through links on this site, we may receive referral compensation from the broker. This funds the site. It can affect which brokers we feature and link placement — it does not affect scores, which are produced by the methodology above before any commercial consideration. Where a broker's regulatory status is weak or unverified, our review reflects that regardless of any commercial relationship.
Update cycle
Scores are reviewed monthly and re-tested in full twice per year, or immediately after material changes (pricing, regulation, platform availability, bonus terms, or a material change in a broker's regulatory status or Canadian availability).