Adding a contract for difference (CFD) to your portfolio could reduce your risk and increase your returns through diversification. A typical CFD trading platform lets you trade thousands of financial instruments and commodities, with no obligation to own the underlying asset.
CFDs let you speculate on a price movement of an asset, whether stocks, cryptocurrencies, commodities or forex, giving you the ability to diversify your trading over a wide range of assets. Keep in mind that trading in CFD contracts cannot be traded by U.S. residents.
In the following article, we have reviewed the best CFD platforms currently available for trading, taking into account key features like commissions, markets, payments and regulation.
Quick Look: Best CFD Trading Platforms
- Best for Mobile Users: Plus500
- Best for Ease-of-Use: FOREX.com
- Best for Advanced Tools and Features: Vantage Markets
- Best for Advanced Traders: Saxo
- Best for Low Fees: Axi
- Best for Multiple Account Options: FxPro
- Best for Professional Traders: Interactive Brokers
- Best for All Around Offerings: City Index
- Best for Beginners: Tickmill
Best CFD Platforms for Trading
Here are some of the best CFD trading platforms available.
1. Best for Mobile Users: Plus500
- Best For:Forex and CFD Trading for Mobile UsersVIEW PROS & CONS:securely through Plus500 Forex's website
Plus500 is a global multi-asset fintech group that operates trading platforms globally, offering a range of trading products, including CFDs, Share dealing and Futures trading (US).
Highlights of the platform include:
- Quick onboarding
- Simplified mobile trading
- Easy-to-use platform
- CFDs for indices, ETFs, shares, forex, commodities, options and cryptocurrency
- Free deposits and withdrawals
- $100 minimum investment
- 0.7% currency conversion fee per transaction, when the currency in your account is different from those traded
However, Plus500 is not a platform for novices as it solely makes money from spreads and does not charge a commission. You may start trading Plus500 right away, leverage your experience, expand your portfolio, and start making money right away.
Why We Picked It: Benzinga enjoys how Plus500 helps investors build multi-asset portfolios that can be tasked to save for the future, produce income now or something in between, including its intuitive interface and rich cache of information.
2. Best for Ease-of-Use: FOREX.com
- Best For:Excellent Trading Conditions and Overall OfferingsVIEW PROS & CONS:securely through Forex.com Europe's website
FOREX.com, a regulated firm, provides 220 CFDs in major asset classes under its FOREX.com brand. By testing FOREX.com's platforms and reviewing the provided information, one can confirm their reliability. FOREX.com provides CFD trading on stocks, commodities, and indexes, with exceptional platform speed and performance.
Why We Picked It: FOREX.com offers access to their Advanced Trading Platform, MetaTrader 4 platform, and web-based platform as well as mobile trading options for all traders. The accessibility options guarantee no missed experiences.
2. Best for Advanced Tools and Features: Vantage Markets
- Best For:CFD TradersVIEW PROS & CONS:securely through Vantage Markets's website
Vantage Markets offers a comprehensive CFD trading platform that caters to both novice and experienced traders. Established in 2009, Vantage has over 15 years of market experience, providing access to more than 1,000 CFD products, including forex, indices, commodities, shares, ETFs, and bonds.
Why We Picked It: Vantage Markets provides access to a diverse range of tradable assets, including forex pairs, global indices, precious metals such as gold and silver, energy commodities, soft commodities, shares, and ETFs. The platform supports advanced trading through MetaTrader 4 (MT4), MetaTrader 5 (MT5), ProTrader powered by TradingView, and a user-friendly mobile app, all equipped with cutting-edge charting tools, one-click trading, and various technical indicators. Traders benefit from competitive spreads starting as low as 0.0 pips and fast execution speeds, enabling them to seize market opportunities with precision.
3. Best for Advanced Traders: Saxo
Saxo empowers traders with a high-performance platform offering access to a vast array of over 70,000 financial products, along with comprehensive resources to guide informed decision-making. Through Saxo, you can adeptly navigate market fluctuations with curated investment themes, expert market commentary, mobile alerts, advanced charting tools, and immersive webinars.
Why We Picked It: You'll have access to the sleek and responsive SaxoTraderGO app to enjoy the convenience of executing trades with the same efficiency and speed as on your desktop. For SaxoTraderPro members, whether trading on desktop or app, you'll have access a suite of high-performance tools designed for managing and executing orders seamlessly. You can benefit from comprehensive market analysis features, including the depth trader, time and sales data, algorithmic orders, advanced charting package, option chains, and user-friendly trade tickets engineered for speed and productivity, ensuring swift order placement with just a click.
4. Best for Low Fees: Axi
Axi is a global online trading platform offering over 220 financial products, including forex, shares, commodities, indices, and cryptocurrencies. Known for its competitive pricing, high liquidity, and powerful trading platforms, Axi provides flexible leverage, raw spreads starting from 0.0 pips, and fast execution speeds.
Why We Picked It: Axi supports traders with various educational resources, a multilingual support team, and the industry-standard MT4 platform. Axi is recognized for its transparency, reliability, and commitment to customer service, making it a trusted broker for traders in over 100 countries.
5. Best for Multiple Account Options: FxPro
FxPro offers traders like you the opportunity to trade in forex and CFD markets where you can access hundreds of assets, including forex, metals, indices, shares and cryptocurrencies.
Why We Picked It: You can work with 1 of 8 base currencies and save because there are no account or transaction fees. Inactivity fees will apply after 6 months if your account is not in active status. There’s no commission charged and the spreads are very tight. Trade on MT4 or MT5 to get fast execution and reach out to the multilingual customer support team 24/5 for assistance.
6. Best for Professional Traders: Interactive Brokers
- Best For:Active and Global TradersVIEW PROS & CONS:Securely through Interactive Brokers’ website
Interactive Brokers offers some of the lowest commissions and fees for retail traders, as well as some of the highest quality features, research and services available for traders. Interactive Brokers is also one of the most professional and versatile online brokers currently available to retail traders who can afford its substantial initial deposit of $10,000 or the equivalent.
Why We Picked It: Interactive Brokers operates in 150 markets in 33 countries and you can open an account in 25 different currencies. Interactive Brokers is represented on all major world markets and exchanges, plus most regional stock, options and commodities exchanges. The broker is overseen by all major regulators around the world. While the broker is U.S.-based, its CFD trading operation is based in the U.K.
7. Best for All Around Offerings: City Index
- Best For:CFD and Forex TradersVIEW PROS & CONS:securely through City Index Australia's website
City Index is a prominent online trading provider, specializing in Contracts for Difference (CFDs), forex, and spread betting. With more than 35 years of industry experience, City Index offers a broad selection of tradable assets, catering to both individual and institutional traders. The platform serves traders worldwide, offering its services in multiple languages.
Why We Picked It: City Index is a well-established CFD broker known for its reliability, competitive pricing, and wide range of tradable markets, including forex, indices, shares, and commodities. It offers advanced trading platforms like MetaTrader 4 and its proprietary Web Trader, featuring powerful tools for charting, analysis, and risk management. With strong regulatory oversight, responsive customer support, and additional features like educational resources and market insights, City Index caters to both beginner and experienced traders, ensuring a secure and user-friendly trading experience.
8. Best for Beginners: Tickmill
- Best For:Low Deposit RequirementVIEW PROS & CONS:securely through Tickmill Forex's website
Tickmill is a multi-regulated, award-winning investment firm that provides access to a wide range of asset classes, including CFDs on forex, precious metals, indices, stocks, commodities, cryptocurrencies, and bonds.
Why We Picked It: In addition to offering multiple platforms, Tickmill supports traders of all experience levels with competitive pricing, leverage up to 1:500 (depending on entity and client classification), dedicated customer support, in-depth market analysis, and a comprehensive suite of trading tools and educational resources. Known for its low spreads and fast execution, Tickmill allows various payment methods and imposes no restrictions on strategies like hedging or scalping.
Features to Look for in CFD Trading Platforms
Keep these things in mind when looking for a suitable CFD trading platform:
Trading Costs
The less you pay out to your CFD broker in trading costs, the more money you will have in your trading account. Trading costs include trading commissions and fees, dealing spreads and account management fees.
Tradable Assets
You will want to select a CFD trading partner that offers CFDs on all the underlying assets you wish to trade. Assets that can be traded as CFDs include stocks, indices, commodities, currencies (forex), and cryptocurrencies. CFDs allow traders to speculate on the price movements of these underlying assets without actually owning them, offering potential profits from both rising and falling markets.
Customer Support
How easily and quickly you can access your broker in case a problem arises and how well they respond to queries and resolve issues can make a substantial difference to your success as a CFD trader. Also, novice traders may require more customer support and educational materials while they learn the ropes of CFD trading.
Mobile App
Many CFD traders want to be able to watch asset markets, check their CFD trade executions, enter trades and perform market analysis using their smartphones or tablets while away from their desktop computers. A CFD broker having a mobile app suitable for your device can therefore become a priority feature.
Trading from Charts
If you plan on doing technical analysis and then quickly entering a trade when you spot an opportunity, you will probably want to trade directly from price charts. Most decent CFD trading platforms will offer this important feature.
Fast Execution
Since CFD trading opportunities are often fleeting, transactions need to be executed quickly. Make sure a broker you are considering has quick transaction times for clients based in your locale and that issues like order slippage and requotes are minimal. You can test execution speeds by making small transactions in a live account.
Frequently Asked Questions
Are CFDs good for trading?
Those traders who wish to use leverage tend to find CFDs attractive, and CFDs are typically simpler to trade than the underlying asset. Still, trading CFDs involves special risks that include minimal broker regulation, possible low liquidity and the need to maintain enough margin to cover possible leveraged losses.
Is CFD trading profitable?
If you have a sound trading plan, then CFD trading might be profitable for you, and some people have reported making substantial sums of money trading CFDs. You can also profit from both upwards and downwards trending markets when trading CFDs.
Is CFD trading high risk?
CFD trading can be considered high risk due to factors such as leverage, volatility in the market, and the potential for significant financial losses. There is always a chance of losing all or a substantial portion of your investment when engaging in CFD trading. It requires thorough research, proper risk management, and a deep understanding of the market to minimize the risks involved.
Get a Forex Pro on Your Side
FOREX.com, registered with the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), lets you trade a wide range of forex markets with low pricing and fast, quality execution on every trade.
You can also tap into:
- EUR/USD as low as 0.2 with fixed $5 commissions per 100,000
- Powerful, purpose-built currency trading platforms
- Monthly cash rebates of up to $9 per million dollars traded with FOREX.com’s Active Trader Program
Learn more about FOREX.com’s low pricing and how you can get started trading with FOREX.com.
About Jay and Julie Hawk
Jay and Julie Hawk are the married co-founders of TheFXperts, a provider of financial writing services particularly renowned for its coverage of forex-related topics. With over 40 years of collective trading expertise and more than 15 years of collaborative writing experience, the Hawks specialize in crafting insightful financial content on trading strategies, market analysis and online trading for a broad audience. While their prolific writing career includes seven books and contributions to numerous financial websites and newswires, much of their recent work was published at Benzinga.