Best CFD Brokers for 2024 • Pros, Cons, Fees & More • Benzinga (2024)

Benzinga readers love Interactive Brokers and IFC Markets as the best CFD broker for forex.

Contracts for differences (CFDs) allow traders to speculate on the future price movements of almost any asset class. When you trade in CFDs, you don’t own the underlying asset. Instead, the contract covers only the price change between the start and end of the contract.

CFD trading is a risky business, so it is essential that you choose from the best CFD broker options to act as your market intermediary. The broker will provide you with the services and trading instruments you need to succeed in your CFD trading venture. Choose a broker that offers the best trading platform at the least cost, with a range of products and educational resources to help you along the way.

Benzinga answers some of your questions in this article and discusses some of the best CFD trading platforms for forex.

Quick Look: Best CFD Brokers

• Best for Experienced CFD Traders: Plus500
• Best for Advanced Features: Capital.com
• Best for User Friendly Platform: AvaTrade
• Best for Canadian and Asian Traders: IFC Markets
• Best for Traders Who Rely on Technical Analysis: FXGT.com
• Best for Easy-to-Use Forex Platform: Trade Nation
• Best for Comprehensive Trading Options: Interactive Brokers
• Best for Ease-of-Use: FOREX.com
• Best for Forex Execution: IG Markets
• Best for Non-US Traders: XTB
• Best for Customized Fee Structures: HYCM
• Best for Superior Trading Conditions: BlackBull Markets

Best Contract For Difference Forex Brokers

CFD trading is risky, so give yourself the best chance of success and partner with the best CFD broker.

1. Best for Experienced CFD Traders: Plus500

Plus500 is a global multi-asset fintech group operating trading platforms globally, along with offering a wide range of trading products including CFDs, Share dealing, and Futures trading (US).

Plus500 has a proprietary web trading platform called WebTrader as well as iPhone/iPad, Android and Windows apps.

The firm does not charge a commission but makes money from spreads. It charges an overnight funding fee and a $10 inactivity fee. Plus500 will charge a currency conversion fee of up to 0.7% for all trades on instruments you hold in a currency that is different from your account's currency. The following fee can be also applied to the trader's account: Guaranteed Stop Order.

Pluss500 offers leverage of up to 1:30 for retail accounts and up to 1:300 for professional accounts. Negative balance protection is available for account types following EU requirements.

Plus500 is authorized and regulated by the following regulatory agencies:

• Plus500CY Ltd is authorized & regulated by CySEC (#250/14)
• Plus500UK Ltd is authorized & regulated by the FCA (#509909)
• Plus500S Pte Ltd, licensed by the MAS (#CMSI00648-1) and IE Singapore (#PLUS/CBL/2018)
• PlusS0OSEY Ltd is authorized and regulated by the Seychelles Financial Services Authority (Licence No. SD039)
• Plus500AU Pty Ltd (ACN 153301681), licensed by ASIC in Australia ASL #417727
• FMA in New Zealand FSP #486026, Authorised Financial Services Provider in South Africa PSP #47546.

You do not own or have any rights to the underlying assets. Consider if you fall within our Target Market Distribution. Please refer to the Disclosure documents available on their website.

Plus500 allows funding through wire transfer, Visa/Mastercard, Skrill and PayPal. The platform also supports a demo account. Withdrawals and deposits can be managed from the Funds Management tab on the platform where you input details regarding the mode of withdrawal or deposit.

The firm offers customer support in 32 languages. It has a webpage dedicated to answers for some FAQs with an online form for entering questions that are not answered by the FAQ section. The firm also has a 24/7 online support team.

2. Best for Advanced Features: Capital.com

When you use Capital.com, you can trade CFDs on the NASDAQ 100, gold, oil and about 6,500 other assets or markets. With Capital.com, you get:

• Tight spreads
• No commissions
• Fast order execution
• High privacy and security standards
• Educational tools
• Current news items

As you investigate investing in CFDs, you can do more than throw your money into the markets and wait for a result. You can make informed decisions and grow your portfolio naturally.

The firm is regulated by:

• U.K.’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA)
• The Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC)
• The Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (CySEC)
• National Bank of the Republic of Belarus

With an easy-to-use interface and intuitive, artificial intelligence (AI)-powered platform, you benefit from Capital.com learning about your trading habits and informing you of best practices that can help you grow your portfolio.

3. Best for User Friendly Platform: AvaTrade

AvaTrade is known for its user-friendly forex and CFD trading platform. They provide a range of educational resources and tools to help traders improve their skills and knowledge. This makes it a great platform for both beginners and experienced traders looking to enhance their trading strategies. They offer a diverse range of currency pairs, commodities, stocks, and indices, giving traders plenty of options to choose from. This allows traders to diversify their portfolios and take advantage of different market opportunities.

4. Best for Canadian and Asia Traders: IFC Markets

IFC Markets brings you a unique take on CFD trading. With IFC Markets, you can invest in:

• Continuous index CFDs
• Stock CFDs
• Cryptocurrency CFDs
• Continuous CFDs on commodities
• CFDs on commodity futures
• CFDs on ETFs
• CFDs on crypto futures

With IFC Markets, you benefit from the 15 years of experience the platform brings to the table. Clients from over 80 countries can establish an account, trade on several platforms and diversify their investments as much as possible.

Crypto CFDs are available for Bitcoin and Ethereum, with more coming soon. You can also avail yourself of 1:8 leverage, low minimums and low spreads.

Best-suited for intraday, mid-day and small-volume traders, you can use MetaTrader ⅘ or NetTradeX to trade or try the GeWorko Portfolio Quoting Method to build synthetic assets.

5. Best for Traders Who Rely on Technical Analysis: FXGT.com

FXGT.com offers access to CFDs based on a number of assets, including stocks, forex, equity indices, energies, cryptos and much mire. Because there are so many options, you may want to branch out and go with synthetic crypto pairings, precious metals, NFTs, DeFi token or even the GTi12 index.

These crypto CFD pairings can include BTC, ETH, XRP, BCH, LC, ADA, DOT, XLM, DOG, SOL, SHB and more paired with USD, EUR, JPY, etc.

Choose the type of account that works best for you, access leverage up to 1:1000, get bonuses when they come, invest in micro lots, take advantage of raw spreads and zero swaps. The platform is fully regulated, available on MT4 and MT5 and offers negative balance protection.

Even though it’s not available in the U.S. or UK, there’s a lot to be excited about when utilizing FXGT.com to build your portfolio.

6. Best for Easy-to-Use Forex Platform: Trade Nation

Trade Nation is a forex and CFD broker that is known for fixed spreads and transparent fees. You can use this platform to gain the benefit of no account minimums, multiple trading tools, no extra fees for deposits or withdrawals, no inactivity fees and a fully-digital experience.

You can research your assets fully before spending a dollar, along with reviewing daily reports, watching educational videos and checking out real-time news on the markets. With over 1,000 markets from which you may choose, the app is easy to manage, you can save money, practice in a demo account and enjoy negative balance protection along with segregated accounts for your financial clients and access to copy trading.

True, the platform is not available to U.S. investors, but it’s an uncomplicated way to manage your funds, build a portfolio and make the most of the forex and CFD markets.

7. Best for Comprehensive Trading Options: Interactive Brokers

Clients can add quotes to the exchange book in the same way they would trading stocks because Interactive Brokers (IBKR) immediately matches all CFD orders with a hedge order so that a non-marketable CFD order creates a matching non-marketable order for the underlying share on the exchange. Additional benefits include:

• Transparent, low commissions and financing rates
• Margin efficiency
• Efficient CFD reference pricing
• Trade CFDs alongside the underlying shares

Commissions start at 0.05% on all share CFDs, with lower rates available for active traders. Overnight financing charges start at benchmark +/-1.5%, with lower spreads available for larger balances.

8. Best for Ease-of-Use: FOREX.com

The highly regulated firm FOREX.com offers 220 CFDs across major asset classes through its FOREX.com brand. That information, plus a quick test drive of FOREX.com’s platforms is all you need to confirm that you’re in good hands. Exceptional platform speed and performance drive the FOREX.com experience, and you’ll get CFD trading on stocks, commodities and indexes.

No matter what you trade, you’ll gain access to FOREX.com’s Advanced Trading Platform, the MetaTrader 4 platform and a web-based platform and mobile trading option. All accessibility options ensure that you won’t miss a thing.

To fund your account, the minimum initial deposit required is at least $50 of your selected base currency. However, FOREX.com recommends you deposit at least $2,500 to allow for more flexibility and better risk management when trading your account.

Forex markets are open 24 hours a day, Sunday to Friday. FOREX.com makes itself available 24/5 during open market hours. Note that FOREX.com offers CFDs only in FCA and Cayman Islands Monetary Authority (CIMA)-regulated regions.

9. Best for Forex Execution: IG Markets

IG Marketsis more than a leading forex broker that allows you to delve into trading pairs preferred by investors worldwide. The broker is based in the UK, part of the IG Group and allows you to invest in CFDs, if you so choose. US clients can invest in forex, but CFDs are reserved for approved accounts throughout the rest of the world.

When you use IG Markets to invest in Contracts for Difference, you will pay less, gain access to high leverage and 24/5 customer care. Spreads are competitive, and the dashboard is quite easy to manage.

Investors can more easily manage risk, invest in more than 17,000 markets, set up customized price alerts and teach themselves about CFDs through the site. Therefore, novices and experts alike can use this platform to buy into the CFD market, tie in forex investments and grow their portfolios at their own pace.

10. Best for Non-US Traders: XTB

XTB offers access to more than 2,000 financial instruments and more than 4 dozen currency pairs. Plus, the platform allows you to buy into the CFD market by investing in stock, index, ETF and crypto CFDs.

There’s no minimum deposit, and you can take leverage that can get as high as 500:1. There are no commissions, and your spreads on each investment will range from 0.5 to 0.7.

11. Best for Customized Fee Structures: HYCM

Founded in 1977, HYCM, a division of the Henyep Group, is authorized by two tier-1 regulators. A minimum deposit of $100 will get you access to trade in indices, commodities, cryptocurrency and 69 currency pairs.

HYCM offers users three account structures, each with different fee structures, so you can tailor your package to make the most of your trade frequency and risk profile. It offers Islamic-compliant trading options.

HYCM supports MetaTrader 4 and 5 trading software. It also has its own in-house trading platform. As an HYCM trader, you’ll enjoy access to a vast library of educational resources as well as technical and fundamental analysis tools.

12. Best for Superior Trading Conditions: BlackBull Markets

BlackBull Markets is an online forex and CFD broker that has been operating since 2014. As a relatively newer player in the industry, they have quickly made a name for themselves by offering competitive trading conditions and innovative products. But the question on everyone's mind is, "Is BlackBull Markets a good CFD forex broker?"

One of the standout features of BlackBull Markets is their commitment to transparency and regulation. They are regulated by the Financial Service Providers Register (FSPR), a well-respected regulatory authority based in New Zealand. Additionally, they are a member of the Financial Dispute Resolution (FDR) service, which adds an extra layer of protection for their clients. This level of regulatory oversight is reassuring for traders, as it ensures that the broker is operating within a certain set of standards and guidelines.

When it comes to trading conditions, BlackBull Markets offers low spreads and competitive pricing, making them a popular choice for experienced traders. They also offer high leverage, up to 1:500, giving traders the opportunity to make larger trades with a smaller investment. They have a wide range of forex and CFD products available for trading, making them a versatile option for traders who want to diversify their portfolios. Overall, BlackBull Markets is a reputable and reliable forex and CFD broker with attractive trading conditions and a solid track record.

What is Contract for Differences Trading?

A CFD is a contract executed between two parties, a buyer and a seller, which means that the seller pays the buyer the difference between the current value of an asset and its value when the contract is due. No physical exchange of assets (which could be a physical share, currency pairs or commodity) takes place between the buyer and the seller, and neither party can claim physical ownership of the asset. CFD trading is illegal in the U.S., although European brokers allow CFD trading in U.S. assets.

Make Decisions and Trade

To trade CFDs, first decide on which underlying asset you want to trade. CFD instruments could be shares, treasuries, forex pairs, commodities and stock indices such as the U.K. 100, which aggregates the price movements of all the stocks listed on the FTSE 100.

Then, open a position and then enter details such as whether you want to buy or sell the CFD, the amount intended for investment, leverage and other considerations.

Leverage is available for a margin account. Leverage refers to a loan extended by a broker, and the securities and cash in your trading account serve as collateral. It allows you to enter into a larger deal than what your account funding permits.

You and the CFD broker then enter into a contractual agreement that covers details such as the opening price for the position and the fees involved.

Determine Profit/Loss

If the position closes in a profit, the broker is liable to pay the trader. If it closes in a loss, the brokerage charges the trader the difference. Assume you wish to go long on a CFD based on the shares of XYZ company, currently priced at $400, on the premise that the shares are undervalued and will likely go up. You would log into your brokerage account and place an order for, say 100 XYZ CFD.

If the value of the shares rises by $10, in line with your expectations, you gain $1,000 (100 x $10). On the other hand, if the value falls by $10, you owe your broker $1,000. Because of the leverage allowed, a trader needs to pay only $4,000 if the margin requirement is 10%. In the first case when you made the right bet. Your profit percent will be $1,000/$4,000 *100 = 25%.

In the second case, your loss percent will be $1,000/$4,000*100, which will be 25%. Meanwhile, if you had chosen to invest in the shares trading in a stock market, your loss percentage would have been 1,000/40,000*100, or 2.5%.

What to Look for in a CFD Broker

As you zero in on the right CFD broker, it’s important to consider a slew of factors, including regulation, costs, tradable asset classes and the trading platforms available.

Regulation

Regulation ensures the safety of your funds from internal company fraud or bankruptcy. Make sure the broker you’re considering is regulated by the regulatory agency of that particular location. For example, in the U.K., the FCA is the regulatory agency and in Australia, it is the ASIC.

Cost of Trading

CFD trading involves costs such as spread, holding costs and commission and possibly more, depending on the broker you choose.

• The spread is the difference between the buy and sell prices in the order book. The narrower the spread, the less the price needs to move in your favor before you start to make a profit, or if the price moves against you, a loss.
• At the end of each trading day, positions open in your account may be subject to a charge called a holding cost, and you’ll also pay a separate commission charge when you trade CFDs.

Also, how complicated is it to deposit and withdraw funds? The more funding options your broker offers, the better.

Broad Tradable Asset Classes and Markets

Broad tradable asset classes and markets give you wider choice availability. Some underlying assets you can trade include stocks, indexes, commodities, currencies, cryptocurrencies and ETFs.

Easy-to-Use Platform

Look for a CFD trading platform that offers intuitive trading software and CFD software, fast execution, high-quality trading tools, a positive trading experience and an order management system. You may lose out on profits if the user interface is poor and navigation difficult. The platform should be secure and give you the flexibility to place different types of orders.

Find the Best CFD Broker and Start Trading

First traded in the 1990s, CFDs are a derivatives product that is supported by a vast market of brokers. If you’re looking for the best CFD broker, find one with the services to fit your strategy. Understand the costs to maximize your profits. Make sure the trading platform is easy to navigate and contains the educational resources and analysis tools you need. Once you find a suitable platform, you can start trading forex quickly.

Frequently Asked Questions