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Below are some sample prices as to what you may see while looking at your brokers real-time Forex prices... Below the SAMPLE price board is a description of how you would read each:

USD/JPY 106.07
USD/CAD 1.3257
USD/CHF 1.2826
EUR/USD 1.2089
GBP/USD 1.8331
AUD/USD 0.7624
EUR/GBP 0.6595
EUR/JPY 128.23
EUR/CHF 1.5505

In the example U.S. Dollar / Japanese Yen (USD/JPY)
The sample price shown of 106.07 means that the cost of one U.S. dollar is 106.07 Japanese yen. As the dollar strengthens relative to the yen, then this price will increase to, say, 106.85. If the dollar weakens relative to the yen (in other words, the yen strengthens relative to the dollar), then this price will decline to, say, 105.35.

In the example U.S. Dollar / Canadian Dollar (USD/CAD)
The sample price shown of 1.3257 means that the cost of one U.S. dollar is 1.3257 Canadian dollars. As the U.S. dollar strengthens relative to the Canadian dollar, then this price will increase to, say, 1.3288. If the U.S. dollar weakens relative to the Canadian dollar (in other words, the Canadian dollar strengthens relative to the U.S. dollar), then this price will decline to, say, 1.3197.

In the example U.S. Dollar / Swiss Franc (USD/CHF)
The sample price shown of 1.2826 means that the cost of one U.S. dollar is 1.2826 Swiss francs. As the dollar strengthens relative to the Swiss franc, then this price will increase to, say, 1.2854. If the dollar weakens relative to the Swiss franc (in other words, the Swiss franc strengthens relative to the dollar), then this price will decline to, say, 1.2774.

In the example Euro / U.S. Dollar (EUR/USD)
The sample price shown of 1.2089 means that one Euro costs 1.2089 U.S. dollars. Consequently, one can quote the price as $1.2089. As the Euro strengthens relative to the dollar, then this price will increase to, say, 1.2124. If the Euro weakens relative to the dollar (in other words, the dollar strengthens relative to the Euro), then this price will decline to, say, 1.2013.

In the example British Pound / U.S. Dollar (GBP/USD)
The sample price shown of 1.8331 means that one British Pound costs 1.8331 U.S. dollars. Consequently, one can quote the price as $1.8331. As the pound strengthens relative to the dollar, then this price will increase to, say, 1.8382. If the pound weakens relative to the dollar (in other words, the dollar strengthens relative to the pound), then this price will decline to, say, 1.8288.

In the example of Australian Dollar / U.S. Dollar (AUD/USD)
The sample price shown of 0.7624 means that one Australian dollar costs 0.7624 U.S. dollars. Consequently, one can quote the price as $0.7624 or 76.24 cents. As the Australian dollar strengthens relative to the U.S. dollar, then this price will increase to, say, 0.7681. If the Australian dollar weakens relative to the U.S. dollar (in other words, the U.S. dollar strengthens relative to the Australian dollar) then this price will decline to, say, 0.7575.

In the example Euro / British Pound (EUR/GBP)
The sample price shown of 0.6595 means that one Euro costs 0.6595 British pounds. As the Euro strengthens relative to the pound, then this price will increase to, say, 0.6634. If the Euro weakens relative to the pound (in other words, the pound strengthens relative to the Euro) then this price will decline to, say, 0.6558.

In the example Euro / Japanese Yen (EUR/JPY)
The sample price shown of 128.23 means that one Euro costs 128.23 Japanese yen. As the Euro strengthens relative to the yen, then this price will increase to, say, 128.76. If the Euro weakens relative to the yen (in other words, the yen strengthens relative to the Euro) then this price will decline to, say, 127.78.

In the example Euro / Swiss Franc (EUR/CHF)
The sample price shown of 1.5505 means that one Euro costs 1.5505 Swiss francs. As the Euro strengthens relative to the Swiss franc, then this price will increase to, say, 1.5543. If the Euro weakens relative to the Swiss franc (in other words, the Swiss franc strengthens relative to the Euro) then this price will decline to, say, 1.5483.

The FOREX market quotes dealable real-time bids and offers for each currency pair. For example, say that USD/JPY is currently quoted as 106.05/106.08. The first quote is the bid (the price at which someone is currently willing to buy dollars against the yen) and the second quote is the ask (the price at which someone is willing to sell dollars against the yen).

A trader who wants to buy dollars against the yen at the market must deal at the offer of 106.08. This is referred to as "lifting" or "paying" the offer. The trader will do this if he believes that USD/JPY will increase, say, to 106.75 (i.e. the dollar will strengthen against the yen). All orders to buy, whether a market, stop or limit order deal on the offer.

If a trader wants to sell dollars against the yen at the market, then he must deal at the bid of 106.05. This is referred to as "hitting" the bid. The trader will do this if he believes that USD/JPY will decline, say, to 105.45 (i.e. the dollar will weaken against the yen). All orders to sell, whether a market, stop or limit order deal on the bid.

The difference between the bid and offer is referred to as the "spread" and represents a cost of transacting in the FOREX market. The more liquid is a particular currency pair, the smaller will be the spread and hence, the cost. All other financial markets - bonds, equities, and futures - also have a spread, so this is not something particular to the FOREX market.

FOREX bids and offers are "dealable" meaning that a trader can almost always transact at the quotes shown. (During very volatile times, there may be some discrepancy.) This price transparency is a great advantage of the FOREX market as the trader knows with almost certainty the price at which a trade can be done.

The minimum fluctuation of an exchange rate is referred to as a "pip". For USD/JPY and EUR/JPY, a pip is equal to 0.01 and for the other exchange rates, a pip is equal to 0.0001.

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Disclaimer - I am not a commodity trading advisor. The information on this site is for trading education only. There are no trading recommendations for any one individual made on this site and this information is paper trades for trading education. All trades are extemely risky and only risk capital should be used when trading.

U.S. Government Required Disclaimer - Commodity Futures Trading Commission Futures and Options trading has large potential rewards, but also large potential risk. You must be aware of the risks and be willing to accept them in order to invest in the futures and options markets. Don't trade with money you can't afford to lose. This is neither a solicitation nor an offer to Buy/Sell futures or options. No representation is being made that any account will or is likely to achieve profits or losses similar to those discussed on this web site. The past performance of any trading system or methodology is not necessarily indicative of future results.

CFTC RULE 4.41 - HYPOTHETICAL OR SIMULATED PERFORMANCE RESULTS HAVE CERTAIN LIMITATIONS. UNLIKE AN ACTUAL PERFORMANCE RECORD, SIMULATED RESULTS DO NOT REPRESENT ACTUAL TRADING. ALSO, SINCE THE TRADES HAVE NOT BEEN EXECUTED, THE RESULTS MAY HAVE UNDER-OR-OVER COMPENSATED FOR THE IMPACT, IF ANY, OF CERTAIN MARKET FACTORS, SUCH AS LACK OF LIQUIDITY. SIMULATED TRADING PROGRAMS IN GENERAL ARE ALSO SUBJECT TO THE FACT THAT THEY ARE DESIGNED WITH THE BENEFIT OF HINDSIGHT. NO REPRESENTATION IS BEING MADE THAT ANY ACCOUNT WILL OR IS LIKELY TO ACHIEVE PROFIT OR LOSSES SIMILAR TO THOSE SHOWN.