The 10 Best Share CFD Brokers revealed. Share CFDs are popular among traders due to their potential for significant gains with minimal initial investment. With most brokers offering share CFDs, it can be difficult to choose the right broker. Therefore, to help traders make informed decisions, we have comprehensively evaluated these brokers to identify the 10 best.
In this in-depth guide, you’ll learn:
✅What is Share CFD Trading?
✅The 10 Best Share CFD Brokers
✅Advanced Tools for Share CFD Traders – Revealed
✅Fees in Share CFD Trading
✅Our Conclusion on The 10 Best Share CFD Brokers
✅Popular FAQs about The 10 Best Share CFD Brokers
And much, MUCH more!
10 Best Share CFD Brokers – a Comparison
10 Best Share CFD Brokers (2024)
- ☑️IG – Overall, the Best Share CFD Broker
- ☑️AvaTrade – Low Forex Fee CFD Broker
- ☑️Pepperstone – CFD Broker with MetaTrader4
- ☑️Tickmill – The Best Forex Spreads
- ☑️XTB – Best MetaTrader Trading Platforms
- ☑️HFM – The Best Forex Trading Accounts
- ☑️BDSWiss – Best Broker in Education and Research
- ☑️Exness – Best Multi-Asset Broker
- ☑️OANDA – Best Low-Cost Broker
- ☑️FP Markets – Best Forex Partnership Program
What is Share CFD Trading?
CFD (Contract for Difference) trading is a sophisticated financial approach that lets investors predict stock price movements without owning the stocks.
Using leverage magnifies the potential gains or losses with only a small initial investment required. However, this increased leverage also comes with heightened risks.
Unlike traditional stock trading, CFDs enable traders to profit from upward and downward movements, making them suitable for volatile market conditions.
Furthermore, CFD trading primarily focuses on predicting price movements, offering a straightforward and flexible alternative to traditional equity investments, particularly in market instability.
IG
IG is a comprehensive platform for trading share CFDs, offering over 10,500 stock CFDs and financial products like ETFs, indices, and commodities. It offers spread betting, Turbo24, options trading, and share dealing, catering to new and experienced traders.
This broker is known for its low forex costs, but its stock CFD fees are higher. It also offers tax-efficient investment options like Share Dealing ISA and Smart Portfolio ISA for UK investors and a SIPP for retirement savings.
Pros and Cons IG
AvaTrade
AvaTrade stands out in the share CFD industry due to its extensive selection of options such as stocks, indices, commodities, currencies, ETFs, and cryptocurrencies. This breadth offers traders the versatility to explore different markets using CFDs.
The broker is known for offering competitive spreads while executing fast trades that can be traded in over 1,000 stock CFDs available with leverage. The award-winning support and global regulation make it a popular option among traders looking for reliability and flexibility.
Pros and Cons AvaTrade
Pepperstone
Pepperstone provides a competitive landscape for share CFD trading, offering access to over 600 CFDs solely from US markets. The platform is lauded for its speedy and reliable execution, boasting an execution time of around 30ms and a fill rate of 99.90%, ensuring minimal slippage and no requotes.
Traders can engage in share CFDs on the MetaTrader 5 platform, leveraging features like margin trading to amplify their trading potential. It is crucial to note the additional risks associated with margin trading.
The broker charges $0.02 per share for share CFD trading, with a minimum of $0.2, a fee structure deemed reasonable compared to other brokers.
Pros and Cons Pepperstone
Tickmill
Tickmill has over 100 CFD Stocks, including popular FAANG stocks and diverse companies, allowing traders to participate in the stock market with lower capital. The platform offers no commission costs for trading CFDs, facilitating portfolio diversification across industries.
In addition, Tickmill is known for its low forex costs and offers no fees for deposits, withdrawals, or inactivity. Operating on the MetaTrader 4 and 5 platforms, Tickmill offers trading in forex, stock indexes, bonds, and commodities.
Pros and Cons Tickmill
XTB
XTB offers a competitive environment for share CFD trading, emphasized by its commission-free offer on stock and ETF trading for transactions. Up to €100,000 monthly volume, which is especially appealing to those trading US shares.
With its award-winning xStation 5 platform, XTB provides various analytical tools and real-time market data for beginner and expert traders.
XTB’s regulatory framework provides a secure trading environment reinforced by educational materials and customer assistance. In addition, XTB guarantees to provide transparent and cost-effective trading alternatives for share CFDs.
Pros and Cons XTB
HFM
HFM provides a complete platform for trading CFDs and individual stocks, including commission-free trading on over 2,000 equities using the MetaTrader 5 platform. However, transactions over 1,000 monthly shares incur a small cost of $0.10 per share.
The broker also allows for the purchase of fractional shares, which enables investors to access significant company shares and diversify their portfolios with a little starting commitment.
Pros and Cons HFM
BDSwiss
BDSwiss is a leading player in the share CFD market, offering traders access to top stocks from major global exchanges. The platform caters to beginners and seasoned traders with an average quarterly trading volume exceeding $98 billion and over 1.7 million registered accounts.
With over 250 CFD products, including currency pairs, commodities, cryptocurrencies, indices, share CFDs, and ETFs, BDSwiss provides a secure and well-regulated trading environment suitable for beginners and seasoned traders.
This comprehensive offering reflects BDSwiss’ commitment to providing comprehensive trading opportunities.
Pros and Cons BDSwiss
Exness
Exness offers CFD trading on major global stocks such as AAPL and AMZN. Furthermore, Exness allows traders to connect with the stock market using CFDs.
This provides leverage of up to 1:20 with a minimum investment of only $1, making stock market volatility more accessible and rewarding.
Their coverage of over 200 products across several financial markets and asset classes reflects its dedication to offering traders a broad and varied trading environment.
Pros and Cons Exness
OANDA
OANDA’s share CFD services enable traders to leverage their stock market positions without paying the full price for shares up front. Giving them more exposure to market movements while they remain budget-conscious.
As a fully licensed broker with over 25 years of expertise, OANDA offers various CFDs, such as indices, forex, commodities, shares, metals, and bonds. With cheap spreads and an easy-to-use trading environment, the platform appeals to new and seasoned traders.
OANDA
FP Markets
FP Markets stands out in the share CFD field by providing traders transparent access to over 10,000 stocks across four continents. The platform’s wide offering includes equities, indices, metals, commodities, and cryptocurrencies, with over 10,000 trading CFD products.
This broker offers traders numerous platforms for a consistent trading experience. It emphasizes transparency, extensive market access, and the flexibility to demand higher position sizes via leverage.
Pros and Cons FP Markets
Advanced Tools for Share CFD Traders – Revealed
Sophisticated tools can significantly enhance a trader’s ability to analyze markets, execute trades, and effectively manage risks in the rapidly evolving world of share CFD trading.
Designed with both inexperienced and seasoned traders in mind, the following tools provide a solid basis for making sound decisions and devising strategic plans.
Technical Analysis
A vital tool in Share CFD trading is Technical Analysis Software, which provides traders with a thorough understanding of market trends and patterns via indicators and charts.
Furthermore, this program helps traders detect probable buy or sell signals and estimate future price changes using previous data.
Automated Trading Systems
The Automated Trading System is another valuable weapon in a trader’s armory.
This method enables traders to specify specified criteria for trade entry and exits, which, when fulfilled, automatically execute deals.
This feature is important for capitalizing on opportunities that emerge after trading hours or managing holdings when direct market access is unavailable.
Risk Management Tools
Share CFD trading also relies heavily on risk management tools. These tools, like stop-loss orders and position size calculators, assist traders in reducing losses and protecting their profits by limiting the amount of money at risk.
Economic Calendars
Economic calendars are similar to personal market forecasts and vital for traders who want to keep ahead of market trends. These calendars serve as your road map, outlining impending economic data and events that may impact market conditions. With this knowledge, traders can fine-tune their methods and alter their positions ahead of market volatility, ensuring they are in step with overall market movements.
Mobile Trading Platforms
Mobile trading platforms have revolutionized contemporary trading, providing traders with unparalleled freedom and flexibility. These systems function as your trading cockpit, providing access to real-time market data and enabling you to monitor your positions while on the go.
Push alerts, for example, notify you of any market fluctuations in real time, ensuring you are constantly connected to the market’s pulse, no matter where you are.
Fees in Share CFD Trading
Spreads
A fundamental trading cost is the Spread, which refers to the variance between a share CFD‘s buy and sell prices. It relies on brokers’ discretion and depends upon underlying asset liquidity.
Opting for a broker with lower spreads could decrease trade expenses, rendering it an imperative consideration when choosing one.
Commissions
Some brokers charge a set fee per transaction or a percentage of trading volume. While some brokers provide commission-free trading, they may compensate by imposing larger spreads.
To properly control their trading expenditures, traders must first understand the structure and effects of these fees.
Overnight Fees
Overnight financing costs, or swaps, apply to positions kept open overnight. These costs are based on the leverage and size of the position and may build over time, reducing the profitability of long-term transactions.
The Overnight fees are a large consideration for Share CFD traders who use long-term trading strategies.
Inactivity Fees
Some brokers charge inactivity fees on accounts not traded in a specific period. These costs can progressively drain an account’s balance and are essential for traders who intend to trade infrequently, especially those with long-term strategies in Share CFD trading.
Currency Conversion Fees
Conversion Fees apply when a trader’s account currency changes from the underlying asset’s. These costs involve changing earnings and losses back into the account’s base currency and fluctuate depending on the broker’s exchange rate.
Traders should know these fees to manage their currency exposure and avoid excessive expenses
In Conclusion
In our experience, although using leverage is useful, it also increases hazards. Therefore, each broker’s offering must be thoroughly evaluated according to individual trading methods and risk tolerance to make the best decision.
Addendum/Disclosure: No matter how diligently we strive to maintain accuracy, the forex market is volatile and may change anytime, even if the information supplied is correct when going live.
Investor Warning: Foreign currency trading on margin is associated with an elevated risk and may not be appropriate for all South African investors.
Before engaging in foreign currency or Contract for Difference (CFD) trading, you must evaluate your investing goals, expertise, appetite for risk, and willingness to be exposed to risk. In addition, you should not start investing capital you cannot afford to lose because you could lose part of your original investment.