How a pair is written
EUR/USD, GBP/JPY, XAU/USD. The first code is the base currency and the second is the quote currency, and the number attached to it is how much of the quote currency one unit of the base costs. The order is fixed by convention, not by choice — nobody quotes USD/EUR.
Majors, crosses and exotics
Majors are the most heavily traded pairs, and every one of them has the US dollar on one side: EUR/USD, GBP/USD, USD/JPY, USD/CHF, USD/CAD, AUD/USD, NZD/USD. Crosses are pairs of two major currencies with no dollar, such as EUR/JPY or EUR/GBP. Exotics pair a major currency with a smaller economy, and they carry wider spreads because fewer people trade them.
Why the pair changes the arithmetic
Pip size, contract size and pip value all depend on the pair. A pip on EUR/USD is 0.0001; on USD/JPY it is 0.01. Gold uses a 100 ounce contract where a currency pair uses 100,000 units. The same lot size means very different money on each, which is the single most common source of accidental over-risk.
Metals and crypto use the same notation
XAU/USD is gold priced in dollars, XAG/USD is silver, BTC/USD is bitcoin. The notation is borrowed, but the contract sizes are not. Treating XAU/USD as though it behaves like a currency pair is how accounts get hurt.
In short
| Format | BASE/QUOTE, for example EUR/USD |
|---|---|
| Majors | Seven pairs, all containing the US dollar |
| Crosses | Two major currencies, no dollar |
| Exotics | A major currency against a smaller economy |
Common questions
Which pair should a beginner trade?
That is a personal decision nobody can make for you, but the mechanical argument is for a major: tighter spreads, more information available, and hours that overlap with the sessions most people can actually watch. Exotics cost more to enter and leave.
Why is there no USD/EUR?
Convention. The market settled on quoting EUR/USD, and every platform follows it. If you want the reverse rate, it is one divided by the quoted price.
Do all pairs move together?
Many move in related ways because they share a currency. If the dollar strengthens broadly, every pair with USD on the quote side tends to fall at once. That is why holding three "different" trades that are all short the dollar is really one trade at triple size.
Trading forex and CFDs on margin carries a high level of risk. Most retail accounts lose money. Nothing on this page is financial advice or a recommendation to trade.