A CFD, or contract for difference, allows you to speculate on the price movement of financial assets like stocks, commodities and currencies without having to buy the underlying asset. It is an agreement between you and your broker to exchange the difference in the price of an asset from when it opens to when it closes – you never actually own the shares or any other instrument you are trading.

UK traders can trade uk cfd brokers on a range of markets, with brokers offering access to more than 5,000 global markets including forex, share indices and commodities. eToro offers an impressive collection of 5,000 CFD assets, while Plus500 is one of the newer CFD brokers and has won plaudits for its intuitive mobile platform and comprehensive risk management features.

The best uk cfd brokers will offer low spreads and a high degree of transparency. In addition, they should be FCA regulated and have their financial records publicly available.

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UK retail traders don’t pay stamp duty on CFDs and profits from CFD trading are taxed at a rate equivalent to 20% of the margin used to open a position, unless you are holding a large enough position to qualify for reduced spreads or reduced capital gains tax (CGT). It’s also worth considering whether a broker offers a demo account, as this can give you an idea of what it is like to trade live before you invest any money. The most popular UK CFD brokers also provide easy-to-use trading platforms that are quick to load and offer real-time quotes with drawing tools for technical analysis.