I’ve been trying to figure out the exact math for my trading costs on OANDA, and it’s turned into more of a project than I expected. There are so many moving parts—the spread changes depending on the time and pair, some accounts have commissions and others don’t, and then the GlobeGain rebate comes in as a separate thing.
I wanted to create a clean method to calculate the real cost of a trade so I can compare OANDA fairly to other brokers or just understand whether my trading is actually profitable after all costs.
Here’s what I’m wrestling with: Let’s say I trade one lot of EUR/USD. The spread is 1.1 pips at entry. If my account type charges commission, that’s another piece. Then the GlobeGain rebate hits later—but I’m not 100% sure if it applies to the spread, the commission, both, or something else.
Should I be calculating the cost per trade, per day, or per week to get a meaningful picture? And how do I factor in the rebate timing—does it matter if it comes back a few days later?
I’d really like to see someone else walk through a real example: a specific pair, a specific lot size, spread amount, commission (if any), and the rebate, all laid out clearly. That way I can replicate the method for my own trades and start tracking actual profitability with real numbers.
Anyone have a straightforward way to do this without overcomplicating it?
Entry spread plus commission minus rebate per lot.
Calculate round trip cost not one side.
Here’s the formula: (Entry Spread + Exit Spread + Commission per Side × 2) × Lot Size - Rebate per Lot = Total Cost. Example: EUR/USD, 1 standard lot, 1.1 pip entry spread, 1.0 pip exit spread, 0 commission (STP model), 0.4 pip rebate. Cost: (1.1 + 1.0) × 100,000 × 0.0001 - (0.4 × 100,000 × 0.0001) = $20 - $4 = $16 net cost. Track this per trade for a week, then you’ll know your average cost and can calculate breakeven for your strategy.
The rebate timing doesn’t matter for profit calculations—it all comes down to total in versus total out. Record spread on entry and exit, commission if charged, and subtract rebate. Do this for every trade. At the end of the week, sum it all up and divide by number of trades to get average cost per trade. Compare that against your average profit per trade to see if you’re actually in the black.
I started keeping a simple Google Sheet for this. Each row is one trade: I put the pair, lot size, entry spread, exit spread, commission, and rebate.
Then a formula calculates total cost per trade. Over time you see patterns—which pairs cost more, whether commissions actually hurt, and how much the rebate really saves you.
It’s not fancy but it works.
Use a spreadsheet to track every trade. Much easier.
I built a tracking sheet about a year ago. The key insight was realizing that rebates don’t reduce spread cost directly—they’re a separate line item that comes back to your account.
So the calculation is: spread on entry (when you open) + spread on exit (when you close) + commission (if your account has it) = total friction cost. Then subtract the rebate amount you earned on that trade = net cost.
For one standard lot of EUR/USD with 1.1 pip entry and 1.0 pip exit and 0.4 pip rebate, that’s ($220 total spread - $40 rebate) = $180 net cost. If you’re grinding on scalps, this compounds fast. That’s why tracking it matters.
Track weekly, not per trade. Per trade gets cognitive overload and makes you hate math. Weekly gives you enough data to see patterns without burning out. I log my spreads on entry and exit every day, then every Sunday I calculate total cost for the week, average cost per trade, and compare it against my profit. After a month of this, you’ll know exactly whether OANDA makes financial sense for your style or if you should switch.