DD vs NDD: The IB’s Commission Killer or Cash Machine?
- forex368 Forex Education
- 2 minutes ago
- 3 min read
Here’s what they don’t put in the broker affiliate pitch deck:
→ Promote the wrong execution model, and your income gets throttled. → Promote the right one, and you can scale commissions month after month — without burning your brand.
This is the no-spin breakdown of Dealing Desk vs No Dealing Desk from the IB's side of the table. If you’re in this to make real money — not one-time CPA crumbs — pay attention.
DD vs NDD: Fast Breakdown for Commission-Focused Affiliates
What Matters Most | Dealing Desk (DD) | No Dealing Desk (NDD) |
Execution Route | Broker takes the trade internally | Routed to real liquidity providers |
Spread Model | Fixed (wider) spreads | Tight (variable) spreads |
How Broker Makes Money | Trader losses & spread markups | Commission + markup on raw spread |
How You Make Money | Higher short-term CPA payouts | Long-term rev share from active traders |
Trader Trust & Experience | Can suffer from slippage/manipulation | Stronger if execution is clean and transparent |
Best Use Case | Funnels, promos, quick churn | SEO, email, content, real retention |
Why IBs Need to Care
Your payout plan (CPA, Rev Share, Hybrid) is worthless if your referrals quit in 2 weeks.
DD brokers may hand you a juicy upfront CPA. But if their profit relies on your traders losing fast? You’ll have no lifetime value. No rebills. No base income.
NDD brokers attract smarter traders. Funded traders. Repeat depositors. That’s how you get consistent rev share without living on launch mode.
If you're scaling with:
SEO
Telegram
Email sequences
YouTube
Content-led traffic
…NDD pays you longer and pisses off your traders less.
The Ugly Side of DD Brokers (Nobody Mentions)
Wider spreads and execution “creep” to balance broker books
Bonus traps that block withdrawals
Trade delays or price manipulation on winning clients
You get the blame when traders get burned
Important: Not all DD brokers are toxic. But many don’t disclose how they treat profitable flow. If you’re promoting them without clarity, you’re taking on risk you don’t own.
Why NDD Works Better For Smart Affiliates
Cleaner execution (through liquidity providers)
Traders stick longer
You earn on volume, not short-term churn
Easier to build trust-based content funnels
Is it lower margin per trader? Yes. But they keep trading — and that’s where the money is.
Match Your Funnel to the Right Broker Model
Your Funnel Style | Best Fit Broker Model |
Paid ads & churn-and-burn | Dealing Desk (DD) |
SEO, email, content brand | No Dealing Desk (NDD) |
Serious traders, funded leads | NDD or ECN |
Short-term TikTok/IG leads | Hybrid or DD (test & rotate) |
Hard Truths You Can’t Ignore
Brokers that profit most per trade usually pay out the least in lifetime commissions.
If a broker only makes money when traders lose — you’re not a partner. You’re bait.
You can’t build a brand on bad flow. If your traders rage-quit after two withdrawals, you’re done.
What Should You Actually Do?
Running aggressive paid traffic and need fast CPA? Use DD — but only from brokers with fair T&Cs. Watch how they treat profitable traders.
Building brand, audience, or automation funnel? Go NDD — and pick partners who invest in long-term IB success.
Serious about scaling? Test both. But demand transparency. Ask the hard questions:
How do you handle profitable clients?
Can I split-test landing pages?
Do you support hybrid commission setups?
If they won’t answer, walk.
Want the Inside List of Brokers That Actually Pay?
I track, test, and monitor real IB experiences — across DD, NDD, and hybrid brokers.
If you’ve got traffic but need a better backend broker offer, let’s fix that.
Email me!
PS: I work as a consultant for Eurotrader, and they’re one of the cleanest setups I’ve seen for IBs.
If you want a broker that actually supports affiliates, offers transparent reporting, and knows how to scale trader volume without wrecking trust — check them out: