I’m looking at XM but I’m stuck on which account type actually works out cheaper once you factor in how you trade, swaps overnight, and any cashback you receive. I mostly scalp majors and gold during London, then sometimes hold into New York, so I’m trying to compare apples to apples.
If you’ve run all three, how did the numbers shake out for you? I’m thinking of a simple side-by-side using your real trades:
- pair and average spread seen during your usual session
- any commission per lot (if applicable)
- average swap paid or earned on overnight holds
- contract size and minimum lot so we don’t mix up micro vs standard pip values
- cashback per lot you actually received
Then: spread + commission − cashback + swap (when held) = your real cost per trade, in pips or currency. If you’ve got data for EURUSD, XAUUSD, or indices, that would help a lot. What did you end up choosing and why?
Ultra Low cheaper on gold for me
Micro for testing Standard for daily trading
Run a simple test across a week per account type. Use the same pairs, lot size, and trading hours. Export trade history. For each trade, convert spread to pips, add any commission in pips, subtract the cashback received, then add swap if held overnight. Adjust for contract size if you test Micro. Group by pair and session to find where costs spike. If you scalp, filter trades under five minutes. If you swing, the swap line matters more. The choice usually becomes obvious once you average per pair per session.
I just compare one week at a time.
Same pairs and hours, then pick the lowest average cost after swaps and cashback.
Ultra Low was cheaper on EURUSD for me. Micro helped for small EA tests.
I tested Ultra Low and Standard on EURUSD and XAUUSD in London session.
Ultra Low averaged lower cost on gold because spread was tighter during peak hours and I had no extra commission on my setup. On EURUSD, both were close, but Ultra Low still edged it during London. If I held overnight, swap differences mattered more than the small spread gap.
Micro only made sense for my EA tuning because contract size let me test tiny steps without changing risk too much.
My quick calc for EURUSD, 0.5 lot average on Ultra Low: average spread 0.9 pips, no commission on my side, rebate brought the net down around 0.2 to 0.3 pips on most trades. On Standard, spread floated closer to 1.4 to 1.6 pips at my hours so even with similar rebate it landed higher.
For swing trades, swaps overshadowed the spread difference. I now choose by session and holding time.