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Best Spread Betting Platforms In The UK

Financial spread betting is a leveraged bet on the price of financial markets, staked in pounds per point. Pepperstone ranks as the best spread betting platform in the UK, 98/100 in our ranking, the only broker publishing averages on all nine pairs we read. We rank 14 FCA-regulated spread betting brokers on six assessed criteria, with spreads read on 18 Sep 2026. Before depositing, check the firm name and FRN on the FCA register, for example Pepperstone Limited, FRN 684312.

Spread betting is leveraged, and between 60.7% and 76.6% of retail investor accounts lose money across the 14 brokers we compare. What that figure does and does not mean.

Our spread bet content is supported by broker partners, who pay us on a retainer basis rather than per referral.

14 UK Brokers Ranked

The 14 FCA-regulated brokers sit in score order.

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14 FCA-regulated UK spread betting brokers ranked by our score, with spreads read on 18 Sep 2026 and each score built from six marks on our scoring sheet dated 26 Aug 2026.
# Broker Score /100 Avg spread, 9 pairs EUR/USD Min deposit Platforms Partner site More
2 Spreadex
Guaranteed stop-loss orders are included, and the minimum deposit is £5.
 95out of 100 n/aMinimums only from 0.6 £5 TradingViewOwn: Spreadex Platform Visit Spreadex61% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading spread bets and CFDs with this provider.
3 Capital.com
Alongside guaranteed stop-loss orders, it gives you 5,000+ markets, and you can start with a £20 minimum deposit.
 85out of 100 n/aNone published n/a £20 TradingViewOwn: Web platform, Mobile app Visit Capital.com65% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading spread bets and CFDs with this provider.
4 IG
£250 minimum deposit, no inactivity fee, and a GSLO premium charged only if the stop is triggered.
 83out of 100 n/a8 of 9 pairs 0.85 £250 MT4, TradingView, ProRealTimeOwn: Web-based platform, Mobile trading app Visit IG70% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading spread bets and CFDs with this provider.
5 ThinkMarkets
Target spreads on all nine pairs. Spread betting runs on ThinkTrader, MT4 and TradingView, with a £0 minimum deposit and a demo account.
 82out of 100 n/aTargets only 1.1 pips target £0 MT4, TradingViewOwn: ThinkTrader Visit ThinkMarkets75% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading spread bets and CFDs with this provider.
=6 OANDA
A £0 minimum deposit applies, and its spread betting sub-account carries over 100 markets plus a demo account.
 80out of 100 n/aMinimums only from 0.6 pips £0 MT4, TradingViewOwn: OANDA web, OANDA mobile Visit OANDA76.6% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading spread bets and CFDs with this provider.
=6 StoneX Trading
Thousands of markets with GSLOs. StoneX Trading offers thousands of markets, guaranteed stop-losses, and spread betting via Web Trader, the StoneX app and TradingView.
 80out of 100 n/a5 of 9 pairs 0.8 £0 TradingViewOwn: Web Trader, StoneX Trading app Visit StoneX Trading68% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading spread bets and CFDs with this provider.
8 Trade Nation
Fixed spreads. Spreads are fixed, making the cost known before a bet is placed, with a £0 minimum deposit.
 77out of 100 n/a8 of 9 pairs 0.5 £0 TradingViewOwn: TN Trader Visit Trade Nation73.8% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading spread bets and CFDs with this provider.
9 FXCM
MetaTrader 4 pick. The minimum deposit is £50, spread betting runs on Trading Station and MT4, and it publishes no spread betting spread figure.
 67out of 100 n/aNone published n/a £50 MT4Own: Trading Station Visit FXCM67% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading spread bets and CFDs with this provider.
10 CMC Markets
Widest market range. Offers more than 330 forex pairs with a guaranteed-stop premium that is refunded if the stop is never hit.
 65out of 100 n/aMinimums only from 0.5 £0 MT4Own: CMC web platform, CMC mobile app Visit CMC Markets69% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading spread bets and CFDs with this provider.
11 ActivTrades
Three platform choices. Publishes target spreads on all nine pairs but no average, so no nine-pair cost comparison; betting runs on ActivTrader, MT4 and MT5.
 60out of 100 n/aTargets only 0.5 pips target £0 MT4, MT5Own: ActivTrader No partner link
12 Spread Co
Stakes from 1p per point. Fixed spreads on all nine pairs, from 1p per point stakes.
 43out of 100 2.26wider than 1.79 0.8 Not stated No third-party platformOwn: SATURN Trading platform, Spread Co mobile and tablet app No partner link
13 Vantage
900+ markets on MT4 and MT5. £50 minimum deposit with a demo account and 900+ markets, but no published spread figure; betting runs on MT4, MT5 and two more platforms.
 40out of 100 n/aNone published n/a £50 MT4, MT5Own: Vantage UK App, Vantage Web Trading Visit Vantage72.65% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading spread bets and CFDs with this provider.
14 FxPro
FxPro Edge platform and app. Its UK site states no minimum deposit, spread betting runs on FxPro Edge and the FxPro App, and no spread figure is published.
 30out of 100 n/aNone published n/a Not stated No third-party platformOwn: FxPro Edge, FxPro App Visit FxPro75% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading spread bets and CFDs with this provider.

Capital at risk when spread betting. Between 60.7% and 76.6% of retail investor accounts lose money with these providers.

Beginner means the broker states a demo account on its own UK web pages, and the minimum deposit is £20 or less. Experienced means three or more of MT4, MT5, cTrader and TradingView. Lowest cost means a comparable published figure on all nine pairs we read, averaging under 1.79 points, which is the mean of the nine per-pair averages of the brokers that publish one, read on 18 Sep 2026. Guaranteed stops means the broker offers guaranteed stop-loss orders. TradingView means TradingView charting on the spread betting account. £0 deposit means no minimum deposit. Indices means an index count or index spread published on its own site. Shares means a share count or share dealing spread published on its own site. Gold means a gold spread published on its UK site. Every broker offers forex spread betting, so there is no forex chip. MT4 and MT5 are MetaTrader 4 and MetaTrader 5.

The table is ordered by our overall score, not by any single measure listed below.

  • Pepperstone has the highest overall score in our table, at 98 out of 100.
  • Only 2 brokers publish a comparable figure on all nine pairs we read, and the lowest of them is Pepperstone at 1.7 points, the sum of its nine published figures divided by nine.
  • 6 of the 14 brokers accept the lowest minimum first deposit, which is £0.

Further down this page you will find four firms that offer spread betting to UK retail clients but are not in our ranking, and three brands that have stopped offering UK spread betting.

Compare two brokers side by side

The percentage measures the share of a provider’s retail accounts that finished a reporting period down. It does not measure how much they lost, how long they held positions, or whether the same accounts lose every period. A provider at the low end of the table is not safer than one at the high end, because the figure describes that provider’s client base as much as its product.

Justin Grossbard, co-founder of Spread Bet UK

Compiled by Justin Grossbard. Updated . How pages are made

Compare Your Shortlist Of Two Brokers Side By Side

Compare your shortlist by selecting any two of the ranked brokers and one forex pair from the nine we cover. The table updates with each change, and a differences-only switch hides rows where the displayed values and context match.

Side by side comparison of the two selected brokers on the selected forex pair.
AttributePepperstoneSpreadex
Overall score98/100Rank 195/100Rank 2
EUR/USD spread0.5 pts (average)all trading sessions from 1 to 31 August 2026; read 18 Sept 20260.6 pts (minimum)no window stated; read 18 Sept 2026
Minimum deposit£1022 Sept 2026£522 Sept 2026
Spread betting platformsPepperstone platform, MT4, MT5, cTrader, TradingView22 Sept 2026Spreadex Platform, TradingView22 Sept 2026
Guaranteed stopsNo22 Sept 2026Yes, conditions apply22 Sept 2026
Trading Cost10/10Scoring sheet, 26 Aug 20269/10Scoring sheet, 26 Aug 2026
Trading Experience10/10Scoring sheet, 26 Aug 20269/10Scoring sheet, 26 Aug 2026
Trading Platform10/10Scoring sheet, 26 Aug 202610/10Scoring sheet, 26 Aug 2026
Trust10/10Scoring sheet, 26 Aug 202610/10Scoring sheet, 26 Aug 2026
Range Of Markets9/10Scoring sheet, 26 Aug 202610/10Scoring sheet, 26 Aug 2026
Customer Service10/10Scoring sheet, 26 Aug 20269/10Scoring sheet, 26 Aug 2026

A blank cell means we hold no confirmed comparable value on file. It never means zero or unavailable.

Each spread cell shows the figure as the broker publishes it, with its original kind, unit or unit not stated, time window and read date. A minimum, a target and an average are not equivalent kinds of figure, so no cheapest winner is computed. None of these is a live quote.

Each of the six marks shown here is an assessed mark from our scoring sheet dated 26 Aug 2026.

If you are placing your first spread bet, the next section covers choosing a platform.

Which Is The Best Spread Betting Platform For Beginners?

Our pick for the best spread betting platform for beginners is CMC Markets, the only Beginner filter broker with a published minimum stake and guaranteed stops. Our Beginner filter keeps 8 of the 14 brokers with demos and £20-or-lower deposits.

With JavaScript on, the Beginner filter on our ranked table hides brokers that do not pass, and each row shows score and minimum deposit.

Your First Trade, Step By Step

  1. Choose a broker. Choose an FCA-regulated broker from our ranked table and check its FRN on the FCA Register. Verifying the FRN confirms the firm is authorised.
  2. Open an account. Open your account and pass identity verification and the broker’s appropriateness test. The test covers your experience and understanding of leveraged products, as FCA rules require.
  3. Fund the account. Fund the account with a first deposit, starting small to limit your exposure. The deposit must cover the margin requirement (3.33% for major currency pairs) plus room for the stop.
  4. Size your first bet. Pick one market you follow and size the stake per point so a stop being hit costs a fixed small share of your account. Use the position size calculator directly below this step to turn your account size, the share of it you will risk and your stop distance into a stake per point. A stop-loss closes your position when the market reaches a set level.

    Stake per point from your risk

    Turn a money risk and a stop distance into a stake

    Risk on this bet

    Daily range window: 20 trading days to 28 Aug 2026

    Risking £50.00 (1% of £5,000) with a 40-point stop on GBP/USD gives a stake of £1.25 per point. If the stop is hit you lose £50, though a normal stop can fill beyond its level if the market gaps.

    The 40-point stop is 69% of GBP/USD's average daily range, measured at 57.9 points over the 20 trading days to 28 Aug 2026. The same £50 risk with a stop the full width of that range is a stake of £0.86 per point.

    Range is the average daily high-to-low over the stated window, from our dataset of daily bars (5pm New York day boundary). The calculator rounds the stake down to the nearest £0.01, so the risk figure is never exceeded. A stake below a provider's minimum bet cannot be placed. A guaranteed stop holds the loss at exactly the stop for a premium; a normal stop can fill beyond it in a gap.

    We hold no measured daily-range dataset for this market, so no range comparison renders. The calculator rounds the stake down to the nearest £0.01, so the risk figure is never exceeded. A stake below a provider's minimum bet cannot be placed. A guaranteed stop holds the loss at exactly the stop for a premium; a normal stop can fill beyond it in a gap.

  5. Place the bet. Place the bet with a stop-loss attached. Use a guaranteed stop where your broker offers one, for the premium the broker states.
  6. Manage and close. Check the position daily and note any overnight funding charge on a position held past the broker’s cut-off time. The charge varies by broker and market. Close the bet at your planned exit level, not on emotion.

What Is The Smallest Spread Bet You Can Place?

Five of the 14 providers we track publish a minimum stake on their own UK sites: Spreadex, IG, FXCM, CMC Markets and Spread Co. The smallest published figure is £0.01 per point. The other 9 state nothing, so the answer for those accounts is whatever the platform accepts on the day, and the only way to find out is to ask them before you fund it.

How Much Does Spread Betting Cost?

The spread is the cost of the bet, so the board below is the pricing picture: the spread betting figure each broker publishes on the nine pairs we track, in points except where marked in pips, from our 18 Sep 2026 read. The average for EUR/USD across the five brokers that publish a comparable figure is 0.7 points, and the mean of the nine per-pair averages is 1.79 points.

Overnight funding is a daily charge or credit applied to a spread bet held past the broker’s cut-off, set as a rate above or below an interest-rate benchmark (StoneX Trading publishes SONIA plus 3% on long positions, SONIA minus 3% on short positions). Work out the cost for your own position with the overnight funding calculator.

Broker EUR/USDGBP/USDEUR/GBPUSD/JPYAUD/USDUSD/CADAUD/JPYEUR/JPYUSD/SGD Avg
1. Pepperstone 0.5 0.9 0.9 0.8 0.7 1.2 1.9 2.1 6.3 1.7
2. Spreadex from 0.6from 0.9from 0.9from 0.7from 0.6from 1.3from 1.3from 1.5from 2.5
3. Capital.com
4. IG 0.85 1.4 1.4 0.94 0.82 1.77 1.97 4.7
5. ThinkMarkets 1.1 pips target1.1 pips target1 pips target1.4 pips target1.2 pips target1.2 pips target1.4 pips target1.4 pips target1.8 pips target
=6. OANDA from 0.6 pips
=6. StoneX Trading 0.8 1.8 1.7 0.8 0.9
8. Trade Nation 0.5 0.8 0.5 0.6 0.4 0.7 1 0.7
9. FXCM
10. CMC Markets from 0.5from 0.9from 0.7from 0.7from 0.6from 1.3
11. ActivTrades 0.5 pips target0.8 pips target0.8 pips target0.5 pips target0.6 pips target1 pips target1 pips target1 pips target2.2 pips target
12. Spread Co 0.8 1 1 1 1 2.5 3 2 8 2.26
13. Vantage
14. FxPro
Average of brokers publishing one 0.71.21.10.80.81.521.76.3 1.79
Brokers in the average 555554343

Green cells are tighter than the average of the brokers publishing a comparable figure for that pair and red cells are wider, with the same words in each cell for anyone the colour does not reach. The board shows the spread figure each broker publishes for spread betting (average, typical or fixed; minimums and targets are marked as such), read from each broker’s UK website and re-read monthly, last read on 18 Sep 2026; all spreads are in points except those marked in pips.

A spread betting account is also worth distinguishing from a CFD account, which most of these providers offer alongside it. The mechanics are close cousins, but spread betting profits are currently free of UK capital gains tax for most UK retail traders, while CFD profits are not. Tax treatment depends on individual circumstances and can change.

What Do The Ranked Brokers State About Client Money?

All 14 state client money is segregated from the firm’s own money: Spreadex covers retail and not professional clients, CMC Markets unless a professional client agrees otherwise, and FXCM and ActivTrades speak of retail client money. 13 of the 14 state FSCS cover up to £85,000; our regulation page explains what the FSCS covers. FxPro states it is an FSCS member, that eligibility depends on the claimant’s status and the nature of the claim, but states no figure for the cover. All 14 publish a negative balance statement, mostly framed for retail clients. ActivTrades’ client agreement sets a contractual reimbursement subject to listed exclusions, and FxPro’s covers all clients provided it is not manipulated and accepted in good faith.

Each broker’s own statement on FSCS cover, negative balance protection and client money, read 19 Sep 2026
Broker FSCS cover, in its own words Negative balance protection Client money Sources
Pepperstone “If funds cannot be fully returned, eligible clients may be covered by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS) for losses up to £85,000.” “6.2 In this situation, if you’re a Retail Client: (a) you won’t be liable for any negative equity balance on your Account; and (b) we’ll adjust your Account equity balance to zero within 1 Business Day.” “We deposit the money that you pay us into our segregated client money account, which is an account held with a credit institution and maintained in compliance with the FCA Client Money Rules.” FSCS, negative balance, client money, read
Spreadex “Most types of investment business are covered up to the first £85,000. Further information about compensation arrangements is available from the FSCS (www.fscs.org.uk).” “As a retail client, you’re also covered by negative balance protection … meaning you can never lose more than the funds in your account.” “Spreadex is required to hold the money of Retail Clients (but not Professional Clients) in a segregated trust account in accordance with the regulations of the FCA, but this may not afford complete protection.” FSCS, negative balance, client money, read
Capital.com “Any deficit of funds, up to a maximum of £85,000, may be eligible for compensation through the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS).” “Negative balance protection As a retail client, your account balance cannot fall below zero. Losses are capped at the funds available in your account.” “We manage your money according to strict FCA regulatory requirements known as the client money and client assets rules (found in the Client Assets Sourcebook - CASS). This means we separate client money and assets from our own resources.” FSCS, negative balance, client money, read
IG “Any shortfall of funds up to £85,000 may be compensated for under the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS).” “Negative balance protection is a legal requirement in the UK which means your bank account with us can never fall below zero.” “Your money is held in segregated bank accounts under trustee arrangements. This ensures that the cash remains yours, rather than ours.” FSCS, negative balance, client money, read
ThinkMarkets “Client money is held in segregated accounts and is eligible for FSCS protection up to £85,000.” “Retail clients also have negative balance protection in line with FCA rules.” “Client money is held in segregated accounts and is eligible for FSCS protection up to £85,000.” FSCS, negative balance, client money, read
OANDA “We and the bank(s) we hold your client money with are covered by the UK Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS). If our business fails or defaults, you may be eligible for compensation up to £85,000 per eligible person.” “However, we provide all of our retail clients with negative balance protection. This means that retail client aggregate liability for all Products connected to their Account is limited to the funds held on their Account.” “We will treat any money we hold on your behalf, irrespective of your classification as a Retail or Professional client, as Client Money in accordance with the FCA’s Client Money Rules, and therefore hold your money in segregated Client Money bank accounts” FSCS, negative balance, client money, read
StoneX Trading “StoneX Trading is a member of the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS). In the event of liquidation, clients may be compensated up to £85,000 by the FSCS.” “To the extent required by applicable laws and regulations, we will provide negative balance protection to Retail Clients.” “We’re fully authorised and regulated in the UK by the FCA and hold client funds in accordance with their client money rules, meaning your funds are always protected in segregated client accounts.” FSCS, negative balance, client money, read
Trade Nation “Furthermore, any shortfall of funds up to £85,000 may be eligible for compensation under the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS).” “Where we have categorised you as a Retail Client, and to the extent required by Applicable Regulations, you cannot lose more than the total funds held in your Account with us at any given time. This is known as negative balance protection.” “Your money is securely held in segregated bank accounts under trustee arrangements. This means that the funds belong to you, not Trade Nation, and are clearly identified as client money.” FSCS, negative balance, client money, read
FXCM “If we are unable to satisfy repayment claims, eligible claimants have the right to compensation by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme, up to £85,000.” “Retail clients who maintain account(s) with Stratos Markets Limited could sustain a total loss of deposited funds but are not subject to subsequent payment obligations beyond the deposited funds” “The security of your money is a priority. All retail client money is held in segregated client money bank accounts.” FSCS, negative balance, client money, read
CMC Markets “Offers up to £85,000 to eligible clients should an investment firm cease trading with a deficit in their segregated client money” “It’s also important to note that you can’t lose more than your account value as a retail trader, because your account is covered by negative balance protection.” “Under the FCA’s Client Money rules, we’re required to segregate client money, and as a CMC Markets client, your money is held separately from CMC Markets’ own funds in a segregated bank account with a regulated bank (unless you are a professional client and you agree with us otherwise).” FSCS, negative balance, client money, read
ActivTrades “ActivTrades is a member of the UK’s Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS), which covers eligible investments up to £85,000 per person, per firm.” “it may still be possible to incur a negative balance whilst trading and therefore we will reimburse the negative balance on your account.” “ActivTrades PLC segregates all retail client funds from its own money in accordance with the UK FCA’s Client Asset rules.” FSCS, negative balance, client money, read
Spread Co “In the invent of our insolvency, you may be eligible to claim compensation from the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS) of up to £85,000.” “Where this is the case, retail clients will benefit from our Negative Balance Protection, which means your losses will never exceed the cash balance in your account.” “All client money is kept in a separate bank account, with NatWest Bank, from the company’s own funds. This is a requirement of the FCA’s client asset rules” FSCS, negative balance, client money, read
Vantage “Funds lost as a result of liquidation, up to an amount of £85,000, will be compensated for under the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS).” “Spread betting, CFD and foreign exchange trading each carry a high level of risk and can result in losses that, unless you are a Retail Client, may exceed your deposits.” “VGP segregates your funds from its own money in accordance with the UK FCA’s Client Asset rules.” FSCS, negative balance, client money, read
FxPro “FxPro UK Limited is a member of the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS). Eligibility depends on the status and the nature of the claim.” “FxPro offers Negative Balance Protection to all clients as part of the Client Agreement, given that it is not manipulated and is accepted in good faith. We are committed to a strict policy ensuring that clients may never lose more than their total deposits.” “Unless otherwise indicated, we will deposit your money in one or more segregated accounts at a credit institution in the UK, but separated from FxProʼs money.” FSCS, negative balance, client money, read

The statements above concern money held with the broker; a guaranteed stop limits the loss on a single bet at exactly its stop level, for a premium the broker states.

Which Spread Betting Brokers Offer Guaranteed Stop-Loss Orders?

8 of the 14 ranked brokers offer guaranteed stop-loss orders (GSLOs): Spreadex, Capital.com, IG, OANDA, StoneX Trading, Trade Nation, CMC Markets and Spread Co.

Broker GSLO Available Checked
1. Pepperstone No 22 Sep 2026
2. Spreadex Yes 22 Sep 2026
3. Capital.com Yes 22 Sep 2026
4. IG Yes 22 Sep 2026
5. ThinkMarkets Not confirmed 22 Sep 2026
=6. OANDA Yes 22 Sep 2026
=6. StoneX Trading Yes 22 Sep 2026
8. Trade Nation Yes 22 Sep 2026
9. FXCM No 22 Sep 2026
10. CMC Markets Yes 22 Sep 2026
11. ActivTrades No 22 Sep 2026
12. Spread Co Yes, selected markets 22 Sep 2026
13. Vantage No 22 Sep 2026
14. FxPro No 22 Sep 2026

Of the 14 ranked brokers, 8 offer guaranteed stops, 5 show no guaranteed stop in their published terms, and 1 is marked “Not confirmed” because its UK pages describe guaranteed stops for CFD trades without saying its spread betting account carries them. Each row is read against the provider’s own published terms, and the Checked column dates that read.

StoneX Trading, OANDA, Capital.com and IG charge a premium only if the stop is actually triggered, so an untouched GSLO costs nothing. CMC Markets charges the premium when you place the order and refunds it if the stop is never hit. ThinkMarkets added guaranteed stops to its ThinkTrader platform on 11 Feb 2026. Its UK pages describe them for CFD trades and do not say its spread betting account carries them, so it is not in the list.

Our stop-loss guide explains how the order types differ.

How To Choose A Spread Betting Broker?

A spread betting broker supplies the platform, the price feed and the execution behind every bet. Which suits a retail trader depends on trading style. Active traders weigh spreads most, while less frequent traders weigh the minimum deposit, guaranteed stops and platform.

  1. Spreads. The full cost board above shows all 14 accounts we track.
  2. Customer service. The Customer Service mark, one of six on our scoring sheet dated 26 Aug 2026, runs from 2/10 to 10/10 across the 14 brokers. Before funding an account, you can check each broker’s published support channels and opening hours on its own UK site.
  3. Trading platforms. 8 of the 14 offer MetaTrader 4, eight offer TradingView, three offer MetaTrader 5 and one offers cTrader, while 14 run software of their own. The ranked table above shows every combination. Our ranking of the Best Spread Betting Apps In The UK takes the mobile side on its own terms. All 14 ranked brokers now hold places in that order, built from the Trading Platform mark, an editorial judgement we assess for each broker, with equal marks sharing a place.
  4. Minimum deposits. Six of the 14 brokers ask for no minimum deposit at all. Spreadex asks £5, Pepperstone £10, Capital.com £20, FXCM and Vantage £50, and IG £250. Whatever the minimum, fund enough to keep clear of margin calls once you are trading. Open a demo before you fund anything. Some brokers publish nothing about a demo account, which is why Best Spread Betting Demo Account UK records what each provider states.
  5. Regulation. The broker you choose must be regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority, and every broker in this ranking is, with its FCA entity and reference number shown when its row in the ranked table above is opened. The same rule applies to forex and CFD trading, and our sister site CompareForexBrokers keeps a best forex broker UK list.

Match A Broker To How You Trade

Four questions, answered from the same data as our ranking. The order never changes; the questions only narrow the list.

With no preferences set, all 14 accounts in our ranking qualify, in our published order.

Every ranked broker with the four fields the matcher filters on: platforms, minimum opening deposit, guaranteed stop-loss orders and demo account, in our published order. An empty cell is a value the broker does not publish and we have not verified.
Rank Broker Score Platforms Min deposit Guaranteed stop Demo
1 Pepperstone 98/100 MetaTrader 4, MetaTrader 5, cTrader, TradingView, Pepperstone platform £10 Not offered Available
2 Spreadex 95/100 TradingView, Spreadex Platform £5 Available
3 Capital.com 85/100 TradingView, Web platform, Mobile app £20 Available Available
4 IG 83/100 MetaTrader 4, TradingView, ProRealTime, Web-based platform, Mobile trading app £250 Available Available
5 ThinkMarkets 82/100 MetaTrader 4, TradingView, ThinkTrader £0 Available
=6 OANDA 80/100 TradingView, MetaTrader 4, OANDA web, OANDA mobile £0 Available Available
=6 StoneX Trading 80/100 TradingView, Web Trader, StoneX Trading app £0 Available Available
8 Trade Nation 77/100 TradingView, TN Trader £0 Available Available
9 FXCM 67/100 MetaTrader 4, Trading Station £50 Not offered Available
10 CMC Markets 65/100 MetaTrader 4, CMC web platform, CMC mobile app £0 Available Available
11 ActivTrades 60/100 MetaTrader 4, MetaTrader 5, ActivTrader £0 Not offered Available
12 Spread Co 43/100 SATURN Trading platform, Spread Co mobile and tablet app Available Available
13 Vantage 40/100 MetaTrader 4, MetaTrader 5, Vantage UK App, Vantage Web Trading £50 Not offered Available
14 FxPro 30/100 FxPro Edge, FxPro App Not offered

The matcher filters, it does not score. The order is the score already published on each broker's review, and a broker leaves the list only because an answer you gave rules it out. An empty cell is a value the broker does not publish and we have not verified, and a filter on that question leaves that broker out.

Capital at risk when spread betting.

How Do You Open A Spread Betting Account In The UK?

You open a spread betting account with an FCA-regulated broker as a retail client, the category the FCA’s COBS 22.5 restrictions cover. Elective professional client status is a separate category with its own tests. ActivTrades publishes a professional account with leverage up to 1:400 for professional clients, read 22 Sep 2026. IG Index Ltd provides IG’s spread bets. Of the 14, 12 publish a minimum deposit from £0 to £250, read 22 Sep 2026.

If you want the full walkthrough from application to first trade, our step-by-step guide to Spread Betting For Beginners In The UK covers it.

Which Markets Can You Spread Bet On?

You can spread bet on forex, shares, indices, commodities, bonds and options with the brokers above.

Also Offering Spread Betting To UK Clients, Not Yet Ranked

Each firm offers financial spread betting to UK retail clients on its UK website, read on 24 Sep 2026, with an FCA Register entry. None has marks on our scoring sheet, so none carries a score or a place in our ranking. The loss figure shown is the firm’s own published figure.

Not yet ranked: 4 firms, their FCA Register entry and their own published loss figure
Firm FCA entity and FRN Register status Retail accounts losing money
Axi Axi Financial Services (UK) Limited (FRN 466201) Authorised 72.47%, CFDs
Intertrader Alvar Financial Services Limited (FRN 597312) EEA Authorised (UK branch of a Gibraltar firm) 50.8%, spread bets and CFDs
Accendo Markets Accendo Markets Limited (FRN 475285) Authorised 69%, spread bets and CFDs
FOREX.com StoneX Financial Ltd (FRN 446717) Authorised 74%, CFDs

Intertrader’s FCA Register entry is the UK branch of Alvar Financial Services Limited, a Gibraltar firm regulated by the Gibraltar Financial Services Commission. It is not a UK authorisation.

FOREX.com is a trading name of StoneX Financial Ltd, the firm behind StoneX Trading, which we rank.

Which Brokers No Longer Offer UK Spread Betting?

Three brands in our reviews directory offered UK spread betting and stopped. Two of them are the same business under different names.

  • Markets.com no longer offers UK spread betting. The withdrawal by Finalto Financial Services Limited covered retail clients, and the Markets.com brand itself. The notice carries no date.
  • ETX Capital no longer offers UK spread betting. Monecor (London) Limited ran the business, which traded as TradIndex, then ETX Capital, then OvalX. Clients were offered the chance to move their accounts to Capital.com.
  • OvalX was the same Monecor (London) Limited business under its final name, so the closure and the transfer offer above are the same events.

Most Searched Spread Betting Platforms In The UK

In September 2026, Spreadex was the most searched of the 14 FCA-regulated spread betting platforms we rank, on 40,820 branded Google searches from the UK. Popular is not the same as best: the ranking above scores each platform on what it offers; this table measures how many people in the UK looked for each brand.

Brand searches, all 14 platforms
120,260September 2026, -0.3% vs August
Most searched
Spreadex33.9% of all searches
Biggest riser (1,000+ searches)
ActivTrades+22.7% vs August
FCA-regulated spread betting platforms we rank, ordered by branded Google searches from the UK in September 2026
# Name Brand searches per month vs August 12 months
1 Spreadex 40,820 -0.4%
2 OANDA 22,460 -0.1%
3 IG 16,210 +4.0%
4 CMC Markets 12,380 +0.3%
5 Pepperstone 8,920 -2.3%
6 Vantage 6,310 -15.8%
7 Trade Nation 3,120 -3.4%
8 ActivTrades 2,650 +22.7%
9 Capital.com 2,570 -1.5%
10 FxPro 1,610 0.0%
Show all 14 platforms
Ranked 11 to 14 by branded Google searches from the UK in September 2026
# Name Brand searches per month
11 FXCM 1,360
12 Spread Co 780
13 ThinkMarkets 680
14 StoneX Trading 390

Source: Google search volume, the UK, September 2026.

How this is measured

Google Ads reports how many times a month people in the UK searched each platform’s brand terms, and the platforms are ranked on that figure alone.

A term counts for a platform only when that platform’s own website holds the first organic Google result for it in the UK; bare brand words that any company could own are left out.

A month-on-month change prints only where the previous month reached 1,000 searches, because Google rounds smaller volumes.

The figures are Google’s for September 2026, read on 15 October 2026, and the first-result check was run on 15 October 2026.

Our Spread Betting Video Review Of Pepperstone, Spreadex And ThinkMarkets

Our video review, published 31 December 2025, covers Pepperstone, Spreadex and ThinkMarkets, including FCA regulation, spreads and platform quality.

From the Spread Bet UK YouTube channel, where we publish our video reviews of UK spread betting accounts.

Spread Betting Platform FAQs

We rank 14 FCA-regulated brokers that offer UK spread betting, and these five score highest in our September 2026 comparison:

  • Pepperstone: The Best Spread Betting Platform In The UK (a spread betting average on all nine pairs).
  • Spreadex: guaranteed stop-losses available.
  • Capital.com: guaranteed stop-losses available.
  • IG: Range Of Markets To Spread Bet.
  • ThinkMarkets: runs ThinkTrader, MT4 and TradingView.

All 14 are ranked in full further up this page, from Pepperstone down to FxPro.

Three brands readers often ask about, Trading 212, AvaTrade and Admirals, do not offer a UK spread betting account, because Trading 212 and Admirals offer no spread betting product and AvaTrade has no UK entity.

Pepperstone publishes a spread betting average on all nine pairs. It is one of only two accounts of the 14 we read with a comparable figure on every pair (the other is Spread Co, which publishes fixed spreads). Against the average of the brokers that publish one, it is under on six pairs, level on two and over on EUR/JPY. Trade Nation publishes a fixed spread on eight of the nine pairs and is under the average on every one of those eight, in our 18 Sep 2026 read.

The wide end of the 18 Sep 2026 read puts USD/SGD widest at an average of 6.3 points across 3 brokers. Of the two complete accounts, Spread Co holds the wider nine-pair average at 2.26 points. The statistics page lists the widest spreads in the same read beside every pair and account.

Answered on other pages

Each of the 14 has a full write-up of its own, and those sit alongside the brokers that have stopped offering spread betting in our spread betting broker reviews directory.

Best Spread Betting Platforms In The UK

About The Author

Justin Grossbard, co-founder of Spread Bet UK
Justin Grossbard

Justin Grossbard co-founded Spread-Bet.co.uk with Noam Korbl in 2024, and co-founded the broker comparison network CompareForexBrokers with him in 2014. He has written for Kiplinger, Entrepreneur, Finance Magnates and MoneyShow since 2022, with articles on forex and trading at MoneyShow, Finance Magnates and Kiplinger.

Updated . Updated on 14 Oct 2026: The loss lines moved: Pepperstone to 73.6% from 72.9%, IG to 70% from 69%, Trade Nation to 73.8% from 73.7%, FXCM to 67% from 65%, CMC Markets to 69% from 68%, Spread Co to 60.7% from 63.3%, and Vantage to 72.65% from 70.98%. Spreadex's overnight funding charge is now 4% on FTSE 350 shares and plus or minus 4% on UK 100, Daily, from 3% and 3.5%. Vantage's overnight funding rate is now shown, at the base rate plus 3.5% a year on stocks, ETFs and indices, 0.7% on forex and spot precious metals, and 3% on commodities, priced from futures. Capital.com now shows no inactivity fee, and FXCM's UK rate card charges the lesser of 50 in the account's base currency or the remaining balance after 12 months with no trading. ProRealTime is now shown as a third-party platform. Five of the 14 brokers now publish a minimum stake, up from four, with FXCM's UK page showing smaller bet sizes from 7p a point. Trade Nation's rate card of 1 Sep 2026 charges 2.5% a year on forex, index and share positions and 3% a year on commodities, priced from futures. The loss-figure range now starts at 60.7% at Spread Co, from 61% at Spreadex, with 76.6% at OANDA unchanged.