Last updated: September 2026 · Reviewed by the Partner Federation partnerships team, with two decades of combined experience in online trading and brokerage partnerships.
On this page
- 1. What is a markup?
- 2. How a markup lets partners earn more than the standard rebate
- 3. A simple markup example
- 4. The trade-off: what a markup means for the client
- 5. Why not every broker offers a markup
- 6. When the markup model actually works
- 7. Ask this before you agree to a marked-up rate
- FAQ
Most partners think of their per-lot rebate as a fixed number the broker publishes and everyone on a given tier gets. In practice, some brokers will go further for the right partner: they widen — or “mark up” — the spread the client trades on beyond the broker’s own standard pricing, and pass that extra markup straight through to the partner as additional rebate income. It’s how a handful of partners end up earning $30 a lot or more, well above what a standard lot rebate program typically pays — and it’s also why some of the highest headline rebate rates you’ll see advertised come with a catch that isn’t always spelled out.
1. What is a markup?
Every broker prices its spreads with some margin built in above the raw price it gets from its own liquidity provider — that base margin is where standard lot rebates and spread share payouts already come from (see Spread Share for how that standard mechanism works). A markup is when the broker widens the client’s spread further still, beyond that standard pricing, specifically so it can pass the additional amount to a partner as extra rebate income on top of what that partner would normally earn.
The client pays for it directly, in the form of a wider spread on every trade. The broker doesn’t dip into its own margin to fund the higher payout — the partner’s bigger rebate is funded by the client trading on a worse price than they otherwise would.
2. How a markup lets partners earn more than the standard rebate
A typical lot rebate program pays somewhere in the $3–$12 per lot range, depending on the broker, the instrument, and the partner’s tier. A marked-up arrangement can push that considerably higher — up to $30 a lot or more in some cases — because the payout is no longer capped by the broker’s own standard margin. The broker simply widens the spread enough to cover the higher payout and still keep its own margin intact.
This is also exactly why brokers use it as a promotional lever. A rate that sounds unusually generous is an effective way to attract partners with a large, active, price-insensitive client base — the kind of partner whose clients are unlikely to notice or shop around on pricing. The headline rate gets the partner’s attention; the client funds it.
3. A simple markup example
Say a broker’s standard lot rebate for a partner at this volume tier is $8 per lot, funded from its normal spread margin. The broker then offers to mark up the spread an additional 2 pips beyond its standard pricing (using the industry-typical estimate of roughly $10 per pip on a standard lot), and passes that entire extra amount through to the partner. Here is the same client, trading the same 200 lots a month, under each scenario:
| No markup (standard rebate) | With a 2-pip markup | |
|---|---|---|
| Standard lot rebate | $8/lot | $8/lot |
| Markup passed through to the partner | — | +$20/lot (2 pips × ~$10/pip) |
| Partner’s total rate per lot | $8/lot | $28/lot |
| Client’s monthly volume | 200 lots | 200 lots |
| Partner earns this month | $1,600 | $5,600 |
The client, meanwhile, is now trading roughly 2 pips wider than they would be on the broker’s standard pricing, on every single trade, for as long as the arrangement stays in place. (These figures are illustrative, to show the mechanism — actual rebate rates, markup amounts, and pip values vary by broker, instrument, and account type.)
4. The trade-off: what a markup means for the client
For the partner, the upside is straightforward: a materially higher rebate rate than the standard program pays, on the same referred volume, with no extra work beyond keeping the client trading.
For the client, the cost is also straightforward, even if it’s rarely spelled out to them: they trade on a wider spread than they would with a broker — or a partner — not using a markup. Spread cost is invisible in the way a commission line item isn’t; most clients never see it itemized, which is exactly why the arrangement is viable for the broker in the first place, and exactly why it’s worth being clear-eyed about as the partner recommending the broker.
Here is what that looks like on a real pair. Say EUR/USD normally trades at a 1.5 pip spread with this broker’s standard program. Marked up by the same 2 pips used in the earnings example above, the client is now trading at a 3.5 pip spread instead — more than double the cost of entering and exiting a position, on every single trade:
| Without a markup | With a 2-pip markup | |
|---|---|---|
| EUR/USD spread | 1.5 pips | 3.5 pips |
| Spread cost on a 1-lot trade (~$10/pip) | $15 | $35 |
| Extra cost to the client from the markup | — | +$20 per lot traded |
That extra $20 per lot is, not coincidentally, the same $20 per lot the partner picked up in the earnings example — the markup doesn’t create new money, it just moves it from the client’s execution cost into the partner’s rebate. (These figures are illustrative; actual EUR/USD spreads and pip values vary by broker, account type, and market conditions.)
5. Why not every broker offers a markup
Markups are not a universal feature of lot rebate or spread share programs — plenty of brokers won’t do it at all. Advertising unusually high rebate rates is only useful if the broker is also comfortable with what stands behind them: clients quietly trading on wider spreads than the broker’s own standard pricing. That has a direct reputational cost. A trader who compares their execution against a demo account, a different broker, or simply notices their fills are consistently worse than expected can trace that straight back to the spread they’re paying — and a broker whose pricing looks worse than its competitors’ risks exactly the kind of scrutiny covered in Compliant Marketing Rules for Forex & CFD Partners. Brokers that are protective of their pricing reputation, or that compete heavily on tight spreads as a selling point, tend to avoid marked-up deals altogether rather than risk that trade-off.
6. When the markup model actually works
Markup arrangements hold up best when the partner is providing real, ongoing value to the end client — high-touch account management, genuine market education, active support, a service relationship worth paying a premium for. In that context, a client trading on a slightly wider spread is arguably getting something in return: a partner who’s actually invested in their outcome, not just a referral link.
They hold up worst when the partner is a pure volume-driver with no ongoing relationship to the client at all — in that case, the client is absorbing a real, ongoing cost with nothing offsetting it, which is the scenario most likely to eventually surface as a complaint, a churned client, or reputational damage to the broker.
7. Ask this before you agree to a marked-up rate
The single most important question to ask before taking a markup deal isn’t “how high is the rate” — it’s what level is the broker marking up from. The same headline number can mean very different things depending on the answer.
| Marked up from the entry-level rate | Marked up from your actual tier | |
|---|---|---|
| Your normal rate on this broker’s standard program, at your volume | $15/lot | $15/lot |
| Broker’s lowest/entry-level partner rate | $5/lot | $5/lot |
| The “marked-up” rate you’re offered | $30/lot | $30/lot |
| Actual markup being added on top of what you’d normally earn | $25/lot (marked up from the $5 entry rate) | $15/lot (marked up from your real $15 tier) |
The offer looks identical — $30 a lot — in both columns. But in the first case, the broker is quietly comparing against the lowest rate it pays anyone, so the true amount of extra spread the client is absorbing is much larger than it needs to be for a partner who could reasonably expect $15 a lot anyway. Ask directly: “what would my rate be on your standard program at my volume, with no markup?” If the broker can’t or won’t answer that clearly, treat the headline number with real caution — you can’t judge whether a marked-up rate is a genuinely good deal, or how much your clients are really paying for it, without knowing your own real baseline first.
FAQ
Is a markup the same thing as a lot rebate?
No. A lot rebate is the standard per-lot payout a partner earns under a broker’s published program. A markup is the broker widening the spread beyond its own standard pricing and passing that extra amount through as additional rebate on top of — or instead of — the standard rate.
Is this the same as a Spread Share deal?
They’re related but not identical. Spread Share is a named, standard ongoing model where the partner earns a set percentage of the broker’s normal spread margin. A marked-up rate is a bespoke, above-standard arrangement negotiated case by case, and can sit on top of either a lot rebate or a spread share style payout.
Do clients know their spread has been marked up?
Usually not in a way that’s itemized to them the way a commission would be. Spread cost is embedded in the price they trade at, not broken out as a separate line item — which is exactly why the arrangement is viable for the broker, and exactly why it carries reputational risk if a client does notice.
Why would a broker do this instead of just paying more from their own margin?
Because a markup doesn’t touch the broker’s own margin at all — the extra cost is funded by the client’s wider spread, not the broker’s balance sheet. That’s also why it needs the right kind of partner: one whose clients won’t churn or complain once they notice the pricing.
How do I find out if a rate I’m offered includes a markup?
Ask directly whether the rate is on the broker’s standard published tier for your volume, or whether it’s been enhanced above that tier specifically for you — and ask what your rate would be with no markup applied. See Negotiating Your Rate for more on getting a straight answer on this kind of question.
Can a marked-up rate change or be pulled later?
It’s more exposed to change than a standard published rate card, since it depends on an ongoing broker-side decision to keep widening spreads on your clients’ behalf rather than a general policy. Confirm whether it’s contractually guaranteed or an informal arrangement before you rely on it — see How Partners Actually Get Paid for what to check on payout terms generally.