Total Cost of Trading

The total cost of trading, sometimes called the all-in cost, is the sum of every charge that reduces a position's result: the spread, any per-lot commission, overnight swap or financing, currency conversion applied to profits and losses, slippage against the intended price, and account-level charges such as inactivity or withdrawal fees. Looking at one item alone is misleading, because a headline-tight spread is usually paired with a commission, while a commission-free account carries a wider markup instead. Since costs are paid on every trade while outcomes are uncertain, frequent short-horizon strategies are the most sensitive to them, and a strategy's edge has to exceed total cost before anything is left over.