Compare The Best CFD Brokers in Australia

If you are on the hunt for one of the best CFD brokers in Australia, or are looking to learn more about CFD trading, then you have come to the right place!


Finding the most suitable CFD trading platform for your individual trading needs is not easy. On the face of it, most CFD platforms appear to be very similar, however each will vary and you need to be aware of what to look for in order to find the best fit.


Across this site you will learn more about CFD trading and we will also showcase a wide-range of differing CFD brokers in Australia. Take your time to learn about the key considerations to factor in when looking for the very best CFD providers – namely; regulation, trading fees, range of tradeable markets, security of funds, friendly & easy-to-use, plus more!

Compare some of the leading ASIC-regulated CFD Brokers

  • Best Low-Cost Broker

TD365.com

TD365.com is a low-cost broker, offering excellent value through low (or no) commissions and tight, fixed spreads. If you want a broker that doesn’t charge a lot to trade, then TD365 is a great option.

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  • Fast-Growing CFD Broker

Pepperstone

Pepperstone offer reasonably-priced spreads, low commissions, excellent customer support and a range of trading platforms to choose from. Fast Growing CFD Broker

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  • World-Leading CFD Broker

City Index

City Index has excellent technology, great charting packages and 30 years’ experience in the CFD industry.  Overall, City Index is an excellent choice to trade CFDs with.

 

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Risk Warning: CFD trading is not suitable for all investors. CFDs are leveraged trading products and carry a high level of risk. You do not own or have rights in the underlying assets. The information on this website is for general informational purposes and does not consider your personal objectives, financial situation or needs. We encourage you to seek independent advice.

Who are CompareCFDBrokers.com?

We are an independent CFD broker comparison site and our aim is to help you find a great broker to trade with. But this is not a simple process – there are hundreds of global CFD brokers to choose from….


On this website, we have researched, reviewed and compared some of the very best CFD trading platforms. You will learn what separates a good provider from a bad one, along with some CFD brokers we would recommend using (of course, the final decision is yours!). For those new to CFD trading, we have also added some content around what CFD trading actually is, how it works, alongside some FAQs.


So where do you start? Well, we’d recommend reading on!

Key Features We Compare:

Trading Costs

Every Broker will charge you when you trade on their platform. The important thing to find out is what they charge for and how much they charge.

Regulation

Choosing to trade with a regulated CFD broker is essential. Please do not trade with a CFD broker who is unregulated or your money will be at risk.

Trading Platform

You need to be comfortable with the trading platform that a CFD provider has to offer so please ensure you find the platform easy-to-use and uncomplicated.

Mobile App

Trades are executed quickly when you are comfortable with the look & feel of the trading system especially on mobile applications.

Range of Markets

You’ll have a good idea of which markets you want to trade and so the next step is to ensure that your broker of choice actually lists those instruments on their trading platform, otherwise they’ll be no good to you.


In-Depth Broker Reviews:

Frequently Asked Questions:

A Contract For Difference (CFD) is an agreement that is made based on the price of a financial asset. In the “contract”, a trader decides whether they believe the price of the underlying (financial) asset will increase in value, or decline, between the time the contract was opened and when it is indeed closed.

Furthermore, it is important to note that CFD trading is a form of leveraged trading that allows investors to speculate on the price movement of a financial instrument (such as a stock). However, at no point do you own the asset itself – you simply trade the CFD which is provided by your CFD broker.

If you believe the price of an asset such as a stock, index, currency or commodity is going to increase, then you would enter a “buy” position, or “go long”. If you believe the price of the asset will decrease then you would enter a “sell” position, or “go short”.

 

Here’s an example of how CFD trading works:

The ASX 200 is currently trading at 5,600. Your CFD broker is offering a price of 5,599 (sell) – 5,601 (buy). There is a 2 point spread (the difference between 5,599 and 5,601).

 

You believe that the ASX 200 price will increase in value (from 5,600). Therefore, you decide to BUY ten contracts of the ASX 200 at 5,601. Four hours later the price has moved to 5,638 and you decide it’s time to exit the trade.

 

You close your ASX 200 CFD trade at 5,638. That is a difference of +37 points from where you opened the trade earlier.

 

A 37 point difference x 10 units is a $370 profit for you!

Profit in rising and falling markets. With CFD trading, you are simply speculating (betting) on the price movement of an asset without actually owning it. Therefore, you can speculate that the asset will increase or decrease in value. In other words, profitable CFD trades can be achieved in a rising market by buying (“going long”), or in a falling market, by selling (“going short”).

 

Leverage: allows CFD traders to trade the financial markets using funds that represent a small fraction of the trades’ actual value. This can help magnify your potential profits; however it is important to understand that trading with leverage can also be a very serious risk if the trade goes bad.

 

Access to global markets. One of the key ingredients to successful investing or trading is diversification, and CFD trading gives you just that. Most CFD brokers will give you access to all the world’s markets, including international stocks, currencies and commodities – all without having to leave your bedroom.

 

No ownership. As you are simply speculating on the financial markets and not actually purchasing the physical asset, you don’t have to worry about ownership costs etc.

Large losses. Trading on margin means your potential profits can be magnified very quickly, but equally, your losses can be magnified just as quick. CFD trading requires a certain level of experience and may not be suitable for all investors.

 

Volatility. Market volatility can be ruthless and your entire account can be wiped out in seconds. Gapping is a real risk too. Gapping occurs when the price of an asset shifts suddenly from one price to another, very quickly. When gapping occurs, you might not be ‘stopped out’ at the level you requested.

There are typically 5 main reasons why people trade CFDs:

 

1. To make a profit on the price movements of a financial asset

 

2. Leverage: when you trade CFDs, you get access to leverage which means you only need a small outlay to trade

 

3. To hedge against an existing portfolio. Some traders will use CFDs as a risk management tool against an existing stock portfolio

 

4. Access global markets – all from one CFD trading account

 

5. Short selling. CFD trading allows traders to ‘short the market’. That is, rather than BUY in the hope a market rises in value, a trader can go SHORT and sell the financial instrument.

The options are almost endless – some brokers over over 30,000 instruments to trade!

 

That said, the most commonly-traded CFD markets are typically shares, commodities like oil & gold, indices, forex, bonds, cryptocurrencies, ETFs etc.

CFDs are a complex investment tool and there is a high level of risk involved.

 

They are not suitable for most people so please ensure you understand the risks involved before trading them. CFDs might be a suitable investment tool if you;

 

Have traded before and consider yourself an experienced trader;

 

Possess a strong understanding of CFDs and other financial products;

 

Have a high risk tolerance;

 

Can afford to lose some money;

 

Do not want to own the underlying assets;

 

Understand the risk management tools available, i.e. stop-loss orders etc.

 

Have completed lots of research.

CFD brokers act as an intermediary between you and the market. You may recall that a CFD is a contract between two parties (a buyer and a seller) to exchange the difference in value of an underlying asset, when the contract closes. Well, the counterparty to your trade is a CFD broker. They provide retail traders with a CFD trading platform, pricing, charting packages, support etc. so that they can trade the world’s markets.

 

Brokers vary in terms of the services they offer, the broker model they offer, the range of trading instruments available and trading conditions. It is up to an individual to choose a broker that best corresponds to their trading needs and requirements. This can be done by opening a demo account and/ or a live trading account to see if the broker is suitable to the investor.

Currently there are some 100+ CFD brokers globally, all providing similar trading conditions. This has made filtering through the vast array of brokers a very difficult task. We would recommend reviewing the table above to see our top 3 CFD broker recommendations.

Yes, CFD trading is absolutely legal in most jurisdictions!

In fact, it’s one of the most heavily regulated industries going around. The Australian Securities and Investment Commission (ASIC) is one example of a financial regulator who monitors & regulates the CFD industry in Australia. The FCA is another in the UK.

The answer to this commonly-asked question is; probably not.

 

That said, like any profession, it is possible to find an edge and to be one of the best in your field. And CFD trading is no different. But you will need to find a serious trading edge, be patience and need some luck as most CFD traders lose money (70-80%).

The majority of CFDs do not have an expiry date. To be clear, if the CFD is a “cash” market, i.e. the Wall St 30 rolling cash or UK100 rolling cash, there will be no expiry date. In these cash markets, the asset simply “rolls over” each evening into the next day.

 

The only CFDs that do have an expiry date are those that are classified “Future’s” markets. A future’s CFD market will always have an expiry date and the CFD broker will state when that is on their platform and/or market information pages.

 

Technically, you keep a non-Futures CFD open as long as you’d like, but bear in mind, you will pay overnight financing to keep the trade open.

Yes, your CFD trading will be affected by (company) dividend adjustments.

 

Every so often, companies like Tesla, Apple etc. pay dividends to their shareholders as a reward for investing in their company. These dividends are based on how well that company has performed. When a company pays a dividend to its investors, it is removed from the company’s share price (i.e. the stock price will drop, usually by the amount of the dividend).

 

When trading CFDs, your CFD broker will pay you a credit if you are LONG (buying) a stock and will charge you the dividend if you are SHORT (selling).

When you invest in shares, you are actually buying the underlying asset. That is, you are buying (and owning) a share in a business. As a shareholder, you will benefit if the price of those shares increases in value over time. In order to buy the shares, you will need to pay the full amount to take ownership. For example, you buy 100 shares in CBA for $70 per share. You will need to pay the full amount upfront ($7,000) to take ownership.

 

However, when you trade on a CFD trading platform, you do not own any shares or another financial asset. All you are doing is speculating on the price movement of a financial instrument. Put simply, you are speculating on whether you think the price of an asset will go up or down, without ever owning it.

 

What’s more, when you trade using a CFD platform, you are trading on margin. So, using the CBA share example above, you would not need to fund you trading account with the full $7,000. Instead, you would need to stump up a small % of that full notional value, known as margin.

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Disclaimer:
Please note that by investing in and/or trading financial instruments, commodities and any other assets, you are taking a high degree of risk and you can lose all your deposited money. You should engage in any such activity only if you are fully aware of the relevant risks. CompareCFDBrokers does not provide investment or any other advice, for further information contact us at: [email protected].

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