How We Review and Score a Broker
Every rating on Brokers Alerts comes from the same four checks and a transparent, six-category score. No hidden formula, no unverified claims.
The Short Version
License Verification
Checked directly against the regulator’s own record.
Withdrawal Test
Real account, real funds, real result.
Complaint Review
Every Report a Broker submission checked.
Editorial Sign-Off
Analyst research, editor approval, both named.
The Score, Explained
Every broker we’ve fully tested gets a score from 0.0 to 10.0. It comes from six categories, each weighted by how much it actually matters to whether a broker is safe to trade with. We publish the full formula below, so if you can see a broker’s category numbers, you can check our math yourself. Most sites that use a score don’t show you that part.
The Six Scoring Categories
| Category | Weight | What It Measures |
|---|---|---|
| Regulation & Licensing | 30% | License checked directly against the regulator's own database, plus the regulator's tier and any active warnings. |
| Withdrawal Reliability | 20% | The result of our own funded-account withdrawal test: amount received, time taken, and whether it matched the broker's stated terms. |
| Complaint Record | 20% | Verified Report a Broker submissions and other confirmed complaints, and whether they're isolated or a repeating pattern. |
| Trading Conditions Transparency | 15% | Whether spreads, commissions, and fees are disclosed clearly and match what we were actually charged during testing. |
| Platform & Execution | 10% | Platform stability and execution quality found during testing: slippage, requotes, downtime, and order speed. |
| Customer Support | 5% | How support performed during a real, documented contact attempt. |
Regulation, Withdrawal Reliability, and Complaint Record make up 70% of the score between them. That’s deliberate. A broker’s platform or support can be excellent, but that should never be able to outweigh whether it’s actually regulated and pays out.
Knockout Rules
Two categories can override the score entirely. A broker can’t average its way past either one.
Regulation & Licensing Scores 3.0 or Below
The broker’s license can’t be verified against the regulator’s own record, it operates only through offshore or unregulated entities, or there’s an active regulatory warning against it.
Withdrawal Reliability Scores 2.0 or Below
We’ve confirmed a case, through our own test or a documented Report a Broker case, of a broker withholding or refusing a withdrawal beyond its own stated terms.
Either one triggers an automatic Scam Warning, no matter how well the broker scores everywhere else. We still show the full score and breakdown so you can see exactly why.
Sample Scores
Illustrative only, not real brokers.
Sample 1: Clears Trusted
| Category (Weight) | Score | Weighted |
|---|---|---|
| Regulation & Licensing (30%) | 8.5 | 2.55 |
| Withdrawal Reliability (20%) | 8.0 | 1.60 |
| Complaint Record (20%) | 7.5 | 1.50 |
| Trading Conditions (15%) | 8.0 | 1.20 |
| Platform & Execution (10%) | 8.0 | 0.80 |
| Customer Support (5%) | 7.0 | 0.35 |
| Composite | 8.0 |
Composite: 8.0. No knockout, Regulation and Withdrawal both clear 5.0. Tagged Trusted.
Sample 2: Neutral, Not a Red Flag
| Category (Weight) | Score | Weighted |
|---|---|---|
| Regulation & Licensing (30%) | 6.0 | 1.80 |
| Withdrawal Reliability (20%) | 5.5 | 1.10 |
| Complaint Record (20%) | 3.0 | 0.60 |
| Trading Conditions (15%) | 6.0 | 0.90 |
| Platform & Execution (10%) | 7.0 | 0.70 |
| Customer Support (5%) | 6.5 | 0.325 |
| Composite | 5.4 |
Composite: 5.4. No knockout triggers, Regulation and Withdrawal both clear the knockout line easily. But the composite falls short of the 6.5 Trusted line, pulled down mainly by a weak Complaint Record. This broker is tagged Neutral, not Scam Warning: we found nothing that looks like fraud, but it hasn’t earned Trusted status either.
Sample 3: Knockout Overrides a Passing Composite
| Category (Weight) | Score | Weighted |
|---|---|---|
| Regulation & Licensing (30%) | 2.0 | 0.60 |
| Withdrawal Reliability (20%) | 9.0 | 1.80 |
| Complaint Record (20%) | 8.0 | 1.60 |
| Trading Conditions (15%) | 9.0 | 1.35 |
| Platform & Execution (10%) | 8.5 | 0.85 |
| Customer Support (5%) | 8.0 | 0.40 |
| Composite (raw) | 6.6 |
The raw math here works out to a 6.6, which would normally clear our Trusted line. But Regulation & Licensing scores a 2.0, at our knockout threshold, so this sample broker is tagged Scam Warning regardless. A strong reputation everywhere else doesn’t offset a license we can’t verify.
Sample 4: Scam Warning on Composite Alone, No Knockout
| Category (Weight) | Score | Weighted |
|---|---|---|
| Regulation & Licensing (30%) | 4.0 | 1.20 |
| Withdrawal Reliability (20%) | 3.5 | 0.70 |
| Complaint Record (20%) | 3.0 | 0.60 |
| Trading Conditions (15%) | 3.5 | 0.525 |
| Platform & Execution (10%) | 3.0 | 0.30 |
| Customer Support (5%) | 4.0 | 0.20 |
| Composite | 3.5 |
Composite: 3.5. Neither category hits its individual knockout line, so no knockout fires here. But the composite itself falls below our 4.0 Scam Warning floor: this is a broker that’s weak, not fraudulent-looking, across nearly every category, not one that failed a single test. Uniformly weak performance below 4.0 is a different, worse pattern than a single soft category like Sample 2 above.
How a Broker Gets Tagged
Composite of 6.5 or higher, no knockout triggered, and Regulation & Licensing and Withdrawal Reliability each score at least 5.0. Not every Trusted broker scores the same, the number itself shows the difference between a 6.6 and a 9.2.
Testing is complete, no knockout triggered, and the composite is 4.0 or higher, but the broker doesn’t clear the Trusted bar, either because the composite falls below 6.5, or because it clears 6.5 without Regulation & Licensing and Withdrawal Reliability both individually reaching 5.0. This is not a warning and not an endorsement. We show the same full category breakdown as a Trusted or Scam Warning review, so it’s clear exactly why the broker landed here instead of one bucket over.
A knockout rule triggers, or the composite falls below 4.0 once testing is complete. Always shown with the full category breakdown, never just the tag on its own.
License verification or the withdrawal test isn’t finished yet. We don’t publish a score until both are complete, a partial number would be exactly the kind of unverified claim we don’t make.
What Can Change a Score
A score isn’t permanent. A new Report a Broker submission, a change in license status, or a failed re-test can move any category, and with it, the overall score and tag, including moving a broker between Neutral and either Trusted or Scam Warning as new evidence comes in. Every review shows a visible last updated date.
Editorial Sign-Off
The score is calculated from the category inputs, but nothing publishes on the number alone. Our broker analyst runs the research and testing. Jaber Numan checks it against our methodology and legal disclosure standards as Managing Editor. Alexander Evans, our founder and content manager, holds final approval before anything goes live. The score documents our judgment, it doesn’t replace it.
Editorial Independence
No commercial relationship can move a category score or override a knockout rule. Affiliate relationships only ever attach to Trusted listings and Best Brokers pages, never to a Neutral or Scam Warning review.
Legal & Risk Disclaimer
Trading and investing carry a real risk of losing your money, including all of it. The status shown on this review reflects our assessment at a point in time, not a guarantee or personal recommendation. Read our full Risk Disclaimer before acting on anything in this review.
Last reviewed: August 27, 2026
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