UK Spread Betting Reviews & Guides
We rank 14 FCA-regulated UK spread betting brokers every month.
Every month we re-read the published average spreads of 14 FCA-regulated UK brokers, scoring them against the same published criteria. Pepperstone leads the August 2026 ranking at 98/100. See the full ranking to find your best fit, or work a bet through the calculator to size a position before you trade.
Capital at risk when spread betting.
Choose your market
- 1 Pepperstone 98/100 1.34 pts avg
- 2 Spreadex 96/100 1.52 pts avg
- 3 OANDA 91/100 1.74 pts avg
Spreads are from our 1 Aug 2026 harvest of broker-published averages; the full 14 broker list, comparison table and cost board are on the ranking page.
See all 14 UK spread betting brokers rankedBetween 61% and 76.6% of retail investor accounts lose money across the 14 brokers we compare. What that figure does and does not mean.
- 14FCA-regulated brokers ranked on the same criteria
- 20brands reviewed since 2024
- 1 Aug 2026the spread data this ranking is built on
- 61% to 76.6%published share of retail accounts losing money
Start here
Compare by need
Five comparison pages covering accounts that fit different trading styles.
Guides
Where to start
New to spread betting
Your stake per point determines profit or loss, so position sizing and where the stop goes matter from the start. Work through our spread betting guide, then move on to spread betting strategies.
Tax on your profits
HMRC treats spread betting as gambling. For most UK individuals profits carry no Capital Gains Tax and no Stamp Duty. The conditions, and the professional-trader exception, are in our spread betting tax rules.
Work a trade through
Margin and profit per point on a specific bet are worked out by our spread betting calculator, on your own numbers and including the spread.
Read a full assessment
Each review covers costs, platforms, the FCA entity and reference number, and support. The write-ups sit in our spread betting broker reviews directory.
The census
The brokers we cover
We reviewed 20 brands and 14 currently let you open an account. All 14 hold FCA authorisation. We apply the same criteria to every broker. Bear in mind that there is always a risk involved with spread betting.
- 1
Pepperstone 98/100 - 2
Spreadex 96/100 - 3
OANDA 91/100 - 4
Capital.com 88/100 - 5
IG 86/100 - 6
ThinkMarkets 84/100 - 7
City Index 82/100 - 8
Trade Nation 76/100 - 9
FXCM 74/100 - 10
CMC Markets 62/100 - 11
FxPro 57/100 - 12
ActivTrades 56/100 - 13
Spread Co 46/100 - 14
Vantage 40/100
Three brands we have reviewed have stopped offering UK spread betting: Markets.com, ETX Capital and OvalX. They are covered in the reviews directory rather than listed here as accounts you can open.
Who we are
Why Trust Spread-Bet.co.uk
Justin Grossbard and Noam Korbl founded Spread-Bet.co.uk in 2024 after watching traders try to work out a provider’s spread betting terms from a page written about its CFD account. Justin has over 20 years trading and investing. Noam has over 15 years building fintech and business-finance ventures.
-
Justin Grossbard Co-founder. Investing since 1998 and actively trading since 2014, with over 20 years experience. -
Noam Korbl Co-founder. Runs operations and the commercial side from Melbourne, with over 15 years in fintech.
We apply the same criteria to every broker and score each out of 100. Published average spreads are re-read every month; our current set is from 1 Aug 2026. Every other detail, from the FCA entity and reference number to the demo cost, is read from the provider’s own UK site and recorded with the date it was read. Where a provider publishes nothing quotable, the cell stays empty.
We are paid when a reader visits a partner site. The ranking is not for sale and scores are independent of what a broker pays. You can read the full arrangement on our about us page and the criteria in our methodology. Our head office is at 1/650 Inkerman Road, Caulfield North, Victoria, Australia, 3161. Contact us if you have a question about the site or its founders.
- Founded
- 2024
- Brands reviewed
- 20
- Open FCA-authorised accounts
- 14
- Spread data re-read
- Every month
- Current spread data
- 1 Aug 2026
- Ranking scale
- Score out of 100
Method
How we score brokers
We open the trading accounts ourselves to see conditions and spreads first-hand.
Scoring starts with cost per trade, from the published average spreads we re-read monthly. We then assess platform quality: a wide range of platforms scores higher because automated, copy trading and chart trading each need something different. Funding and withdrawal terms and customer support are assessed next.
We add points for market analysis, rebate schemes and education. The result is a score out of 100 that reflects the value an account brings, not a feature list. The full criteria are in our methodology, and the 14 accounts are ranked against each other in our UK platform comparison.
Tool
Spread betting calculator
Our calculator returns margin and profit or loss per point on a specific bet, including the spread. You enter five inputs: currency pair, position size, opening price, closing price, and margin requirement.
It uses industry average spreads drawn from more than 40 brokers and their end-of-day market prices. Choose from six major pairs or select “other” for markets like the FTSE 100.
Capital at risk when spread betting.
Questions
FAQs
What is spread betting?
Spread betting is a derivative product for speculating on price movements without owning the underlying asset. Profit or loss depends on the accuracy of your prediction and the size of your bet.
It is the only derivative with tax-free status in the UK for most retail traders, carrying no Capital Gains Tax on profits and no Stamp Duty when placing a bet.
Are spread betting profits taxable?
Spread betting profits are not taxable for most UK individuals. HMRC treats spread betting as gambling, so no Capital Gains Tax and no Stamp Duty apply.
A professional-trader exception exists. Profits may be subject to Income Tax when spread betting is your main source of income, while remaining exempt from Stamp Duty. Individual circumstances differ, so speak to a tax professional about your own.
Is spread betting FCA regulated?
Spread betting is regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) in the UK. Only brokers licensed and authorised by the FCA can provide spread betting markets.
FCA-regulated brokers must hold segregated client funds, offer negative balance protection, and maintain transparent pricing.
Can I use MT4 for spread betting?
You can use MT4 for spread betting with some brokers, but it is not universally available.
Most brokers prefer their proprietary platforms. MT4 was designed for forex and CFD trading; equities or ETFs may not be available for spread betting on MT4.
Understand the risk
Spread bets are leveraged, and a leveraged position moves faster than the stake suggests. Across the 14 brokers we compare, the published share of retail investor accounts losing money runs from 61% to 76.6%.
This chart shows the percentage of retail investor accounts that lose money at each FCA-regulated broker, as published in their risk disclosures.
- OANDA 76.6%
- ThinkMarkets 75%
- FxPro 75%
- Trade Nation 73.7%
- Pepperstone 72.9%
- Vantage 70.98%
- IG 69%
- ActivTrades 69%
- City Index 68%
- CMC Markets 68%
- Capital.com 65%
- FXCM 65%
- Spread Co 63.3%
- Spreadex 61%
Disclaimer: leveraged instruments are risky. Conduct your own research before trading on margin or with leverage. This page is information rather than financial or tax advice. We are paid when you visit a partner site, and the ranking is not for sale.