Binary options are high-risk: on each trade you can lose the whole amount you stake.

Best binary options brokers in 2026

Binary options are legal in most countries outside Europe, North America and Australia. We rank three brokers that accept traders worldwide, then check them country by country: below you will find a ranking for each of the 116 countries where binary options are legal and our top pick accepts residents.

How we score

Each binary options broker gets five sub-scores out of 5:

Platform (25%), costs and payouts (20%), deposits and withdrawals (15%), support (15%) and transparency and regulation (25%). The overall score is the weighted average, rounded to one decimal. None of these brokers is licensed by a top-tier regulator, which is why their transparency scores are low.

Availability is checked against each broker’s published list of restricted countries. The order of the ranking is set by our authors from their own experience with these platforms, so it does not always follow the scores.

Advertiser disclosure

Broksal is free to use because some brokers pay us a commission when you open an account through our links. It costs you nothing.

Commissions do not affect the facts we publish about regulation, payouts and country availability, which come from the brokers’ own documents and independent sources.

Our top 3

  1. 2
    IQ Option logo

    IQ Option

    4.0

    Its own fast platform with 300+ assets, a desktop app and payouts of up to 95%

    Minimum deposit
    $10
    Minimum trade
    $1
    Maximum payout
    Up to 95%
    Demo account
    $10,000, after sign-up
    Show pros, cons and costsHide details
    IQ Option trading platform screenshot
    IQ Option traderoom: chart with indicators, the investment amount and expiry on the right, and open positions below.

    What we like

    • Polished platform on web, desktop, Android and iOS
    • Payouts of up to 95% on some assets
    • Minimum deposit of $10 and minimum withdrawal of $2
    • Wide range of assets, including stocks and ETFs

    Watch out for

    • Binary options only through the unregulated international company; the group’s EU company does not offer them
    • Regulator action or alerts in Brazil, Singapore and India
    • The demo account needs a registration
    • An inactivity fee applies to accounts left unused for a long time

    Costs

    Options carry no commission; the cost is built into the payout. The minimum trade is $1. Deposits are free at IQ Option, but currency conversion by your bank still applies.

    Best for

    Traders who want stronger charting and a desktop app.

    Open free account

    Binary options are high-risk; you can lose your whole stake.

  2. 3
    Expert Option logo

    Expert Option

    3.7

    A simple screen, account tiers and a social feed, from a $10 deposit

    Minimum deposit
    $10
    Minimum trade
    $1
    Maximum payout
    Up to 90%
    Demo account
    $10,000, no sign-up
    Show pros, cons and costsHide details
    Expert Option trading platform screenshot
    Expert Option platform with the chart, trade amount and the list of top traders.

    What we like

    • Clean, simple platform that is quick to learn
    • Demo account without registration
    • Higher account tiers add assets and better payouts
    • Social feed with other traders’ deals

    Watch out for

    • Registered in St Vincent and the Grenadines with no government broker licence
    • Investor warnings in Canada and Singapore, and listed on the RBI Alert List in India
    • Fewer assets (around 100) than Pocket Option or IQ Option

    Costs

    No trading commission; the cost is the payout below 100%. Payouts depend on the account tier. Minimum deposit $10, minimum withdrawal $10.

    Best for

    Beginners who prefer a clean, uncluttered screen.

    Open free account

    Binary options are high-risk; you can lose your whole stake.

Binary options are high-risk products. Each trade is all-or-nothing: if the price ends on the wrong side, you lose the whole amount you staked. Most people who trade them lose money. Only trade with money you can afford to lose, and start on the free demo account. Nothing here is investment advice, and past payouts do not predict future results.

Rankings by country

Pick your country to see which of these brokers accept residents there, how deposits in your currency work and what the local rules say.

Europe (2)

🇧🇦 Bosnia and Herzegovina🇲🇰 North Macedonia

Latin America & Caribbean (30)

🇦🇬 Antigua and Barbuda🇦🇷 Argentina🇧🇸 Bahamas🇧🇧 Barbados🇧🇿 Belize🇧🇴 Bolivia🇨🇱 Chile🇨🇴 Colombia🇨🇷 Costa Rica🇩🇲 Dominica🇩🇴 Dominican Republic🇪🇨 Ecuador🇸🇻 El Salvador🇬🇩 Grenada🇬🇹 Guatemala🇬🇾 Guyana🇭🇳 Honduras🇯🇲 Jamaica🇲🇽 Mexico🇳🇮 Nicaragua🇵🇦 Panama🇵🇾 Paraguay🇵🇪 Peru🇰🇳 Saint Kitts and Nevis🇱🇨 Saint Lucia🇻🇨 Saint Vincent and the Grenadines🇸🇷 Suriname🇹🇹 Trinidad and Tobago🇺🇾 Uruguay🇻🇪 Venezuela

Asia (21)

🇦🇲 Armenia🇦🇿 Azerbaijan🇧🇹 Bhutan🇧🇳 Brunei🇰🇭 Cambodia🇬🇪 Georgia🇭🇰 Hong Kong🇰🇿 Kazakhstan🇰🇬 Kyrgyzstan🇱🇦 Laos🇲🇻 Maldives🇲🇳 Mongolia🇳🇵 Nepal🇵🇰 Pakistan🇰🇷 South Korea🇱🇰 Sri Lanka🇹🇼 Taiwan🇹🇯 Tajikistan🇹🇭 Thailand🇹🇲 Turkmenistan🇺🇿 Uzbekistan

Middle East (10)

🇧🇭 Bahrain🇮🇶 Iraq🇯🇴 Jordan🇰🇼 Kuwait🇱🇧 Lebanon🇴🇲 Oman🇶🇦 Qatar🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia🇦🇪 United Arab Emirates🇾🇪 Yemen

Africa (45)

🇩🇿 Algeria🇦🇴 Angola🇧🇯 Benin🇧🇼 Botswana🇧🇫 Burkina Faso🇧🇮 Burundi🇨🇻 Cabo Verde🇨🇲 Cameroon🇨🇫 Central African Republic🇹🇩 Chad🇨🇬 Congo🇨🇮 Côte d'Ivoire🇩🇯 Djibouti🇪🇬 Egypt🇬🇶 Equatorial Guinea🇸🇿 Eswatini🇬🇦 Gabon🇬🇲 Gambia🇬🇭 Ghana🇬🇳 Guinea🇬🇼 Guinea-Bissau🇰🇪 Kenya🇱🇸 Lesotho🇱🇷 Liberia🇲🇬 Madagascar🇲🇼 Malawi🇲🇷 Mauritania🇲🇺 Mauritius🇲🇦 Morocco🇲🇿 Mozambique🇳🇦 Namibia🇳🇪 Niger🇳🇬 Nigeria🇷🇼 Rwanda🇸🇳 Senegal🇸🇨 Seychelles🇸🇱 Sierra Leone🇸🇴 Somalia🇸🇹 São Tomé and Príncipe🇹🇿 Tanzania🇹🇬 Togo🇹🇳 Tunisia🇺🇬 Uganda🇿🇲 Zambia🇿🇼 Zimbabwe

Oceania (8)

🇫🇯 Fiji🇰🇮 Kiribati🇫🇲 Micronesia🇵🇼 Palau🇵🇬 Papua New Guinea🇼🇸 Samoa🇸🇧 Solomon Islands🇹🇴 Tonga

Where binary options are not available

Binary options are banned for retail traders in the EU, the UK, Australia, Canada and Israel, and in the United States they are allowed only on licensed exchanges. In some other countries where they are legal, these brokers do not accept residents. Our legality guide lists the status in all 197 countries.

Compared side by side

Pocket OptionIQ OptionExpert Option
Our score4.1 / 54.0 / 53.7 / 5
Minimum deposit$5$10$10
Minimum trade$1$1$1
Maximum payout92%95%90%
Demo balance$50,000$10,000$10,000
Demo without sign-upYesNoYes
Minimum withdrawal$10$2$10
Assets100+300+~100
Copy tradingYesNoYes
PlatformsWeb, Android, iOS, MT5Web, Desktop, Android, iOSWeb, Android, iOS
Account currencyUSDUSDUSD

How binary options work

You choose an asset, an amount and an expiry time, then predict whether the price will be higher or lower when the trade expires. If you are right, the broker pays back your stake plus the payout, for example 92%; if you are wrong, you lose the stake. Because every trade has a fixed maximum loss, it is easy to overtrade: start on the demo account and keep each trade small.

Frequently asked questions

Which binary options broker is the best?

Pocket Option is our top pick: a $5 minimum deposit, trades from $1, a $50,000 demo without registration and copy trading. IQ Option has the more advanced platform, and Expert Option the simplest one.

In which countries are binary options legal?

In most of Latin America, Africa, Asia and the Middle East no law prohibits them. We publish rankings for 116 such countries. They are banned for retail traders in the EU, the UK, Australia, Canada and Israel.

Are these brokers regulated?

They are registered offshore and are not licensed by a top-tier regulator; some regulators have published warnings about them. We list those warnings in each broker’s details.

Do I have to pay tax on binary options profits?

Profits must be taxed according to the local rules of the country where you are a tax resident. This is general information, not tax advice.