Trading forex, you are really borrowing one currency to buy another. Every currency carries an interest rate set by its central bank, the US Federal Reserve prices USD, the European Central Bank prices EUR, and so on. Leave a position open overnight and you are borrowing at one rate while lending at another.
The broker charges or credits you the net interest differential for each night you hold the position. This is called the swap, rollover, or overnight fee.
The swap rate is normally quoted in pips, or in your account currency per lot per night. Every broker prints its rates inside the platform, tucked into the contract specifications for each instrument.
Swap rates change as central bank rates change. The rates in any broker's platform reflect current market conditions.
Markets do not settle over the weekend, so brokers serve up a triple swap on Wednesday nights (that one charge covers Wednesday plus the Saturday and Sunday settlement). Hold a position through Wednesday's cut-off at 5pm New York and you are billed three nights in one.
If your swap rate is negative, that Wednesday portion is a cost worth planning for. Anyone holding for several weeks should tot up the weekly swap with the triple charge baked in.
Plenty of brokers lay out swap-free accounts, often called Islamic accounts, for clients whose faith forbids paying or earning interest (riba). On these, no overnight swap is added or credited at all.
Instead, brokers typically recover the cost through a fixed administration fee, a spread surcharge, or a charge per position per day after an initial period. The terms vary significantly between brokers. Some brokers offer swap-free accounts to any client regardless of religion, others require documentation. Use our free broker check tool to check whether a specific broker offers swap-free accounts.
For the fast crowd, day traders and scalpers, the spread is the main course of the bill; they are in and out inside a session and never touch a swap. For anyone holding for days or weeks, swap can quietly grow past the spread and become the bigger line item.
| Holding period | Dominant cost | Tip |
|---|---|---|
| Seconds-hours (intraday) | Spread | Focus on tight spreads; ECN accounts |
| 1-3 days | Spread + some swap | Check both spread and swap rate |
| 1-4 weeks | Swap often > spread | Calculate weekly swap before entering |
| Months | Swap dominant | Consider swap-free account |
A forex swap (rollover or overnight fee) is the interest charge or credit applied when you keep a position open past the broker's daily cut-off time (usually 5pm New York time). It reflects the difference in interest rates between the two currencies in the pair.
Swap = Contract size × Swap rate × Number of nights. For example, 1 standard lot at a swap rate of -0.52 pips held for 3 nights = 1 × $10 × 0.52 × 3 = $15.60 total cost. Swap rates change with central bank decisions.
On Wednesday nights, brokers apply triple swap to cover the weekend. A position held open past Wednesday's 5pm New York cut-off is charged three days of swap at once. This is standard industry practice across all brokers.
Yes. Many brokers offer swap-free (Islamic) accounts where no overnight interest is charged. Instead they may charge an administration or conversion fee. Check our broker check tool for swap-free availability at any broker.
Last updated 2026-09-16. This article is for educational purposes only and does not constitute financial advice.