After testing 16 spread betting brokers, I found Vantage’s performance underwhelming. In particular, the trading costs and product range let the broker down. In this Vantage spread betting review, I’ll share my firsthand findings, after testing the broker with my live account.
Vantage Summary
In my testing comparison of 16 UK spread betting brokers, Vantage came out 13th on the list . The biggest issue I encountered was their fees, as I found high spreads on most of their markets.
Other problems that emerged during my testing were a poor selection of markets (fewer than 100), and substandard customer service. Unfortunately, the service was not good across my entire experience with Vantage, from opening an account to live trading.
One positive I found was the support for MetaTrader 4, which was enhanced by SmartTrader tools. If you are really focused on trading forex majors and indices, and nothing else, Vantage could work. But alternatives like Pepperstone offer a broader market selection and low spreads.
67.9% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading spread bets and CFDs with this provider.
I found Vantage’s spreads to be more expensive than I’d expect from a competitive broker.
During my testing, Vantage averaged a 1.20 pip spread on EUR/USD, higher than the industry average of 1.12 pips, as shown in the table below.
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Spread Bet Spreads
|
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|---|---|---|---|---|---|
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1.20 | 1.50 | 1.50 | 1.40 | 1.80 |
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0.80 | 1.10 | 1.40 | 1.00 | 1.40 |
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0.90 | 1.20 | 1.40 | 1.10 | 1.80 |
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1.00 | 1.10 | 1.50 | 1.20 | 1.50 |
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0.85 | 1.40 | 1.40 | 0.82 | 1.77 |
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1.10 | 1.30 | 1.60 | 1.20 | 1.60 |
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1.20 | 1.30 | 1.30 | 1.20 | 1.70 |
|
1.00 | 1.50 | 1.50 | 1.00 | 1.80 |
|
1.00 | 1.30 | 1.60 | 1.30 | 1.50 |
|
1.30 | 1.50 | 1.50 | 1.50 | 1.50 |
|
0.90 | 1.40 | 1.40 | 1.30 | 2.20 |
|
0.90 | 1.20 | 1.60 | 1.50 | 1.80 |
|
1.10 | 1.50 | 1.40 | 1.40 | 1.70 |
|
1.90 | 1.20 | 2.00 | 1.00 | 1.70 |
|
1.40 | 1.70 | 1.60 | 1.40 | 1.80 |
|
1.40 | 1.40 | 1.70 | 1.90 | 1.70 |
Avg. spreads are taken from each broker's website and updated monthly. Last update on 04/01/2025
In fact, this trend was consistent across all 9 currencies I tested, and Vantage’s spreads were higher than the industry average in many cases.
Here’s what our senior analyst Ross Collins thought about these spreads:
“High spreads are a red flag for me, if you are an active bettor looking to minimise your trading costs,” he said.
“Wider-than-normal spreads, even by just a few pips, increase the cost every time traders bet. Even just a small variation on the buying and selling price difference can leave you out of pocket”.
Take a look at my findings across more Vantage markets in the table below:
| Vantage Spread | Average Industry Spread | |
|---|---|---|
| EUR/USD | 1.2 | 1.12 |
| AUD/USD | 1.4 | 1.32 |
| EUR/GBP | 1.5 | 1.46 |
| GBP/USD | 1.5 | 1.94 |
| USD/JPY | 1.3 | 1.52 |
| AUD/JPY | 1.8 | 2.13 |
| EUR/JPY | 2 | 2.06 |
| USD/CAD | 1.8 | 2.09 |
| USD/SGD | 2.8 | 3.11 |
For the pairs that beat the average, this is only because outliers further down the list dragged the overall average up. As you can see from my list, there are plenty of brokers out there who offer far more competitive spreads.
If you’re curious about how Vantage stacks up against the other brokers I’ve tested, I encourage you to use this spread betting fee calculator. It’ll give you a clear picture of where Vantage stands in comparison.
Calculate Your Cost To Spread Bet
Total Cost of Spread Bet
Total Cost of Spread Bet
Total Cost of Spread Bet
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The trend continues when we look at share spread betting costs too. Pepperstone and City Index excel in this area, offering competitive fees which average 0.10%. Vantage, on the other hand, averages 0.18%.
| Share Category | Vantage Spread | Industry Average |
|---|---|---|
| UK Shares | 5pt | 5.19pt |
| US Shares | 0.15% | 0.16% |
| Geman Shares | 0.15% | 0.15% |
| Hong Kong Shares | 0.20% | 0.20% |
| Australian Shares | 0.20% | 0.17% |
It’s also worth noting that, right now, Vantage only supports the MT4 platform, and you can’t spread bet shares on MT4. So you can only use CFDs to trade shares on Vantage Markets at the present moment.
Our Verdict on Vantage’s Spread Betting Account Fees
Based on these findings, I’ve scored Vantage a 2/10 for their spread betting account fees. This low score reflects the fact that their spreads simply aren’t competitive – other brokers I’ve tested offer far better.
Vantage’s spread betting accounts only support MetaTrader 4. This is a bit of a disappointment, especially when you consider they offer MetaTrader 5 and TradingView for CFD trading.
However, it’s not all bad news. MetaTrader 4 is a fine platform, and I certainly prefer it to the proprietary platforms offered by most other brokers.
As I tested Vantage on MT4, I was impressed with the spread betting tools and features on the platform.
The advanced charting features are really strong. There is a wide range of drawing tools and 30+ indicators at your disposal, including popular indicators like Ichimoku and MACD.
Advanced traders also have the option to develop custom indicators or automate bets through Expert Advisors – not many platforms offer this.
I was particularly impressed with Vantage’s support for MT4 SmartTrader Tools – a set of 9 Expert Advisors that extends the platform’s capabilities. In my opinion, these tools make MT4 much better for account and trade management.
Here’s what my fellow SpreadBet co-founder Noam Korbl thought about the SmartTrader tools:
“The Mini-Terminal EA stands out to me from the SmartTrader selection, as it enhances a few of the native features of the MT4 platform, making them better,” Noam said.
“For example, it improves the one-click trading feature by allowing you to add stop-loss and take profit orders at execution. This is ideal for scalpers, protecting against fast falls, and capturing quick profits if the market jumps in your favour.”
While the platform selection might seem limited, I believe MetaTrader 4 is actually a strong choice for many spread bettors. It works well for new traders, scalpers, and algorithmic traders alike.
However, the inability to spread bet shares on the MT4 platform is certainly a drawback in my opinion.
Vantage doesn’t have a native or proprietary mobile trading app for spread betting, so it relies on MetaTrader 4’s mobile app. While the app has benefits, such as providing technical analysis indicators and reading financial news, I’m not its biggest fan.
One major drawback I found is that your analysis doesn’t sync from the desktop app to the charts on mobile. This means you have to manually replicate your charts if you want to analyse the financial markets on the go, which can lead to mistakes.
An aspect of the mobile app I did like, though, is the ability to set up price alerts. These alerts send push notifications when the market reaches specified prices. Or you can set the alerts to update you on open or pending orders. I found this feature useful when needing to react quickly to market changes.
Verdict On Vantage Trading Platforms
In my tests, I scored Vantage’s trading platforms 5/10. They earned points for offering the MT4 platform and its SmartTrader tools, which I found valuable additions. However, I found it odd that Vantage doesn’t offer TradingView like other top brokers I’ve tested, such as Pepperstone.
Additionally, the lack of a dedicated mobile app for spread betting, and the restriction on share spread betting, prevents me from scoring them higher.
67.9% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading spread bets and CFDs with this provider.
Yes, Vantage is a safe spread betting broker regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority and has been operating since 2009. With over 15 years of industry experience and over 900,000 customers using its services, Vantage earned a trust score of 7/10.
Financial Regulation
Vantage is accountable to the UK’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), the gold standard in financial regulation. The FCA is known for its stringent oversight, which includes strict capital requirements, regular audits, and mandatory client fund segregation.
These measures provide an extra layer of protection for you should anything happen to the broker, keeping your money safe. In addition, they ensure that all UK brokers offer negative balance protection, which means you never owe the broker any money.
I always like to see brokers regulated by multiple financial authorities across different jurisdictions. In my opinion, this demonstrates their commitment to operating at the highest standards. Vantage goes above and beyond, and is regulated not only by the FCA but also by other regulators like:
It’s not easy to meet the requirements of multiple regulators, so I see this as a definite plus for Vantage.
Reputation
Vantage has built a solid reputation in the industry over the past 15 years, with over 900,000 traders using their services. This is a clear sign that they’ve gained significant trust. I’ve found that brokers don’t reach this scale without maintaining a good reputation over time.
Their reputation is further bolstered by industry recognition through the awards they have received. I was particularly impressed to see that Vantage won the “Best Multi-Asset Broker” at the Online Money Awards in July 2024.
This recent accolade suggests they are providing good quality trading products to their users.
Vantage Reviews
When testing a broker, I always seek out independent customer reviews to gain insights from different perspectives. As of January 2025, I found that Vantage had a Trustpilot rating of 3.9 out of 5, from more than 4,000 reviews.
This is a fairly strong score, which is good to see.
Verdict on Vantage’s Trustworthiness
I’ve given Vantage an overall trustworthiness score of 7/10. This score reflects their strong regulatory standing, overseen by Tier 1 authorities like the FCA and ASIC. Their recent industry award and large client base of over 900,000 traders also helped boost this rating.
While there is always room for improvement, I believe Vantage is a reliable choice for spread betting, offering a secure and reputable platform for traders.
Vantage offers traditional methods for funding your trading account, including debit card and bank transfer options. While these are standard across the industry, some traders may prefer additional payment methods for added flexibility.
You’ll need to put down a minimum initial deposit of £50 to start spread betting. While this is a relatively low amount compared to some brokers, I prefer it when there is no minimum deposit requirement. Both Spreadex and Pepperstone offer minimum-free depositing.
No minimum deposit allows you to start with any amount you feel comfortable with. It doesn’t force you to deposit too much when you need to top up your account.
You can credit your Vantage account in USD, EUR or GBP. But it’s only GBP you’ll be using for spread betting.
Vantage keeps it simple with three deposit methods: debit card, credit card, and bank transfer. I appreciate that all these options have the same minimum deposit requirements and, more importantly, no fees – a big plus in my book.
During my testing, I found the debit card and credit card deposits were instant, which is great when you want to start trading right away. If you’re going the bank transfer route, be prepared to wait 1-2 business days. This timeline is pretty standard in the industry, so no surprises there.
For withdrawals, Vantage aims to approve requests within 24 hours, which is decent. In my tests, the actual withdrawal process took about 4 hours for approval, and it was then another day before I saw the funds back on my debit card statement. It’s not the fastest I’ve seen, but it’s certainly not the slowest.
Debit/credit card withdrawals can take up to three business days, while bank transfers might stretch to five. These aren’t the speediest times in the industry, but they’re average. There are no fees for withdrawing your money either.
Opening an account with Vantage is an online process in which you create your account while applying. The application involves standard questions about your market knowledge, financial details, and risk tolerance. These are compulsory for all spread betting brokers under the FCA’s requirements.
I found the process straightforward and completed it in just 10 minutes. But if you get stuck, live chat is on hand to lend support. My account was approved less than 24 hours after sending my verification documents, which is a decent turnaround.
Our Verdict On Vantage Funding and Withdrawals
Overall, I’d say Vantage offers a solid, if somewhat basic, approach to funding and withdrawals. They stick to standard payment options for deposits, and their withdrawal process is average for the industry.
The lack of fees for deposits and withdrawals is definitely a point in their favour. While they might not break any speed records, they’re reliable and straightforward. If you’re looking for a no-frills, fee-free experience, Vantage delivers on that front.
67.9% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading spread bets and CFDs with this provider.
Despite being a multi-asset broker, I was surprised to find that Vantage offers a very limited range of markets for spread betting. With roughly 80 financial instruments across 3 asset classes available for spread bettors, it’s one of the lowest choices I’ve tested out of 16 brokers.
This limited selection was unexpected and could be a drawback for traders looking for diverse opportunities on products like ETFs or shares.
In my experience with Vantage, I found that they offer 40+ currency pairs, covering majors, minors, and exotic pairs. While this selection includes the popular pairs you may trade regularly, like EUR/USD and GBP/USD, I noticed that the range of exotic pairs is somewhat limited.
If you’re a trader who prefers high-risk forex pairs, this might impact your decision to choose Vantage. However, the offering should be sufficient if you focus on major and minor pairs.
Testing Vantage’s commodities instruments, I discovered they offer 23 markets, consisting of 7 energy, 7 soft commodities, and 9 metals. A particular highlight that caught my attention is the ability to spread bet on gold and silver with different currency crosses, like XAU/EUR.
I find this attractive as it provides more flexibility in trading precious metals against various currencies, making it a decent opportunity for divergence trading or hedging. Besides this unique feature, Vantage offers standard markets, including gold, oil, silver, and sugar.
I found that Vantage provides 19 markets on major global stock indices. This includes the FTSE 100, representing the 100 largest companies on the London Stock Exchange.
While the selection isn’t extensive, it covers the most important global indices that traders typically focus on, including NASDAQ and S&P500.
In my testing, I noticed that Vantage restricts its share markets for spread betting. I believe this limitation is likely because the broker only uses MT4 for spread betting, which doesn’t have the infrastructure to trade stocks effectively.
This could be a significant drawback for traders looking to spread bet on individual company shares.
Our Verdict On Vantage Spread Bet Markets
After testing Vantage’s spread bet markets, I gave the broker an overall score of 5/10 for their market range. While the broker does provide popular markets like EUR/USD and FTSE 100, their product range of less than 100 instruments is one of the lowest I’ve seen.
For example, Spreadex dwarfs Vantage by offering 10,000 markets. I think Vantage’s limited selection could be a significant disadvantage for traders seeking diverse opportunities. However, if you’re focused on major forex pairs and indices, Vantage might still meet your needs.
According to their own statistics, Vantage’s execution speeds average between 100ms and 250ms. While these are decent speeds, and the delay is barely noticeable, I believe there’s room for improvement. A delay of more than 100ms could still put you at risk of slippage.
If execution speed is a priority for you (and it should be), faster options are available, like Pepperstone, which offers sub-80ms speeds on MT4.
As with all spread betting firms, Vantage operates a market maker execution model. This means they act as the counterparty to your trades, creating liquidity and allowing for faster execution and tighter spreads in some cases.
In my experience testing Vantage with over 50 bets, I didn’t encounter any slippage or requotes, which is a positive sign for any broker’s services. However, I noticed that Vantage doesn’t offer guaranteed stop loss orders (GSLOs).
The absence of GSLOs can make trading with the broker costly during volatile market periods, as you cannot protect against potential slippage impacting your stop-loss.
Our Verdict On Trading Conditions
I gave Vantage an overall score of 4/10 for trading experience, primarily due to its average to slow execution speeds and lack of a guaranteed stop loss.
While the broker performed well in my live trading tests, avoiding slippage and requotes, I can’t score them higher as I’ve tested much faster brokers.
I found Vantage’s customer service to be a mixed bag. On the positive side, they offer live chat support 24/5, which I found helpful during my testing.
What I appreciate about this is that you’re connected directly to a human representative instead of wasting time with a bot. This saves the hassle of filling in lots of information before getting a realistic answer, which is a big positive in my book.
In addition to the live chat, Vantage provides other avenues for help. These include email and phone support, both of which also offer 24/5 availability. However, I noticed that the email response time is 1-3 business days. In my opinion, this is too long – other top brokers are much faster.
The lack of an online help portal with frequently asked questions was a big drawback for me. Many top brokers offer this feature, allowing traders to find instant answers to basic queries.
I think Vantage is missing an opportunity here. They could provide quick, self-service support for common issues, which significantly enhanced the customer support experience. Hopefully, they will start offering this in the future.
Verdict On Vantage Customer Service
After testing Vantage’s customer service, I’ve given them an overall score of 4/10. This score primarily reflects their decent live chat service, which I found to be the most efficient support channel.
However, other communication methods involve waiting times that I believe are just too long for a broker.
Vantage offers a modest range of market research services, in the form of online lessons and webinars. Its educational resources are excellent, with in-depth lessons covering multiple topics for beginners and experienced traders.
I found Vantage’s market research to be decent, with market news and analysis from their in-house analysts. The commentary goes into exceptional detail that’s easy to interpret, backed up by informative charts.
I liked that the broker offered a “Week Ahead” article, analysing the important macroeconomic data coming up this week. There’s also a handy summary of the previous week. This gives traders a good overview of what to expect and helps them prepare for potential market moves.
Vantage View is a series of well-made videos based on the broker’s analysis across several sectors, discussing ideas you can take advantage of. I thought the analysis in these videos was equally good, offering valuable insights for traders looking to capitalise on current market trends.
I was impressed with the broker’s resources, which include 76 online articles. These articles cover a full spectrum of topics, from the basics of trading, to guides on trading psychology.
These articles are in-depth, with lots of examples to follow, which is better than what most brokers offer, in my opinion. If you’re new to spread betting, you can benefit from this comprehensive learning material, as it covers all the essential aspects of trading.
However, a drawback is that they do not offer the lessons in video format. This is a let-down for me, as I think they would attract more traders by making the learning more engaging, instead of presenting a wall of text.
In addition to articles, the broker hosts a weekly webinar to discuss the market outlook, including current trends, events, and market setups. You can learn to trade over the shoulder of an analyst, which is an invaluable experience if you ask me.
You can only spread bet on the MetaTrader 4 platform, which has a free demo account with £100,000 in virtual funds. I think this is more than enough to help you practice trading and get a feel for the platform before risking real money.
Our Verdict On Vantage Research and Education
I felt the broker made a good attempt at providing market analysis but hasn’t quite executed it as well as other brokers like Pepperstone, who also provides daily technical analysis signals.
The educational resources available are of high quality. If you don’t mind reading text, they’re full of value. However, if the articles were provided in video format, it would have been much better for engaging learners.
Spread betting can be profitable if you approach it correctly. You’ll need to develop a consistently profitable trading strategy with sound risk management. This involves making mistakes and taking losses, so you should practise on a demo account before risking real money.
Vantage offers retail traders leverage of up to 30:1 on its forex major pairs, and 20:1 on forex minors, commodities, and indices. If you want higher leverage, the broker can offer up to 500:1, but this is only for professional traders, and you won’t be protected by the FCA.
Yes, Vantage FX is regulated by multiple top-tier authorities.
For spread betting, the broker is regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority in the UK. Outside of spread betting, the broker is regulated to provide CFD trading through authorities such as ASIC in Australia and the Vanuatu Financial Services Commission (VFSC).
Spread betting is speculating on the direction of an asset’s price movement without owning the underlying asset. Profits or losses are determined by the accuracy of the bet and the size of the price movement.
Vantage is a multi asset spread betting broker that would suit a variety of trading styles, thanks to its support for MetaTrader 4. Because of this platform, the broker makes it easy for scalpers, day traders, and algo traders to use its services.
Financial spread betting involves speculating on various financial instruments like stocks, indices, and commodities. On the other hand, forex spread betting is specifically betting on currency pair price movements. The core concept is the same for both.
The main difference is that spread betting profits are tax-free, while CFDs are subject to capital gains tax. Both are exempt from stamp duty.
Additionally, spread betting exclusively uses GBP, so you do not experience any currency conversion fees. Conversion fees do apply to CFDs, as they are converted into the asset’s currency.
Yes, spread betting with Vantage offers the MetaTrader 4 platform for forex trading, commodities, and indices, which offers real-time pricing and advanced charts. The broker also offers MT4, MetaTrader 5, and TradingView for trading other derivatives like futures and CFDs.
Yes, you can spread bet with Vantage in the UK. The broker is regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority, which provides spread betting licences.
No, you cannot spread bet cryptocurrencies with Vantage in the UK, as the Financial Conduct Authority restricts crypto markets to UK retail traders.
However, if you are one of the broker’s professional clients and can tolerate the volatility of the markets, the broker does crypto CFDs (contracts for difference).
I found Vantage to be a trustworthy broker, which is essential in spread betting. However, there were many areas of their service that I felt let down by.
While they offer MetaTrader 4 with SmartTrader tools, this alone isn’t enough to sway me. The broker is stable and secure, but their trading costs are a drawback. Vantage achieved a score of just 2/10 in this area. Their spreads simply aren’t competitive, when compared to brokers like Pepperstone.
High trading costs make it harder to profit, so lower spreads are crucial. Vantage might suit traders who prioritise platform features over costs, but for most, there are better alternatives with more competitive pricing.
67.9% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading spread bets and CFDs with this provider.
