Raw-spread account or standard account: where the extra cost ends up
Posted: Sat Oct 31, 2026 11:10 am
Take a scalp with a two pip target on a major. On a standard account the spread might average around one pip with no commission. On a raw account the spread might sit near zero to a tenth of a pip, with a commission charged per lot per side. The numbers vary by broker, so treat these as an illustration, not a quote.
On the standard account the cost is inside the spread and easy to see on the chart. On the raw account the cost is split, and the commission usually shows up only in the statement. Judging the raw account by the spread alone looks like a free lunch. Adding the commission in pips shows that the real gap is often small, and it can go either way depending on the hour.
Here is where it hides. Commission is flat, while the spread is not. During quiet hours the raw account can be cheaper. During news or rollover both widen, but the standard account's markup widens with it, while the raw commission stays put, so in general terms the raw option tends to look better when conditions are rough.
The other hiding spot is round turn versus per side. A commission quoted per side is doubled on a full trade, and plenty of people mentally compare one side of the commission against a full spread.
The cleanest way to compare is to convert everything to pips per round turn, using the same trade times, and compare the totals instead of the headline numbers.
When raw and standard accounts were compared on the same pair, which one came out cheaper for the hours you actually trade?
On the standard account the cost is inside the spread and easy to see on the chart. On the raw account the cost is split, and the commission usually shows up only in the statement. Judging the raw account by the spread alone looks like a free lunch. Adding the commission in pips shows that the real gap is often small, and it can go either way depending on the hour.
Here is where it hides. Commission is flat, while the spread is not. During quiet hours the raw account can be cheaper. During news or rollover both widen, but the standard account's markup widens with it, while the raw commission stays put, so in general terms the raw option tends to look better when conditions are rough.
The other hiding spot is round turn versus per side. A commission quoted per side is doubled on a full trade, and plenty of people mentally compare one side of the commission against a full spread.
The cleanest way to compare is to convert everything to pips per round turn, using the same trade times, and compare the totals instead of the headline numbers.
When raw and standard accounts were compared on the same pair, which one came out cheaper for the hours you actually trade?