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Richard Berry
- October 17, 2023
Trading CFDs in Australia is no different from trading CFDs anywhere else in the world. But it’s important to understand what CFDs are in Australia. A CFD is a contract for difference that enables traders to speculate on the price of a FX pair, stock index or commodity. When you trade CFDs in Australia, you don’t actually own the stock or commodity; you instead enter into a contract based on the difference between the opening and closing price of the position.
Australia CFD Broker Reviews
Use our comparison tables to compare the best Australian CFD brokers. Choose or switch to a CFD broker that offers the most markets, best pricing and client security.
City Index
- City Index has an excellent CFD trading platform with 12,000 markets 25 commodities, with spreads as low as 0.8 for gold trading and 0.3 for crude oil.
- Australia Address: City Index (StoneX): Suite 28/01 264 George St, Sydney NSW 2000, Australia
City Index Review
Name: City Index
Description: City Index is one of the oldest spread betting and CFD brokers based in the UK. They were founded in 1983 and offer trading in over 13,500 financial markets, to around 126,000 active clients. City Index is currently owned by StoneX, a US brokerage listed on the NASDAQ valued at $1.75bn.
70% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading spread bets and CFDs with this provider.
Why we like them:
City Index offers some of the best trading tools and analysis to help traders perform better. Their unique post-trade analytics and voice brokerage service make it an excellent choice for large and frequent traders.
Pros
- Excellent trading tools
- Voice brokerage
- Publically listed
Cons
- Trading only, no investment account
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Pricing
(4)
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Market Access
(4.5)
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Online Platform
(4)
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Customer Service
(4.5)
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Research & Analysis
(4.5)
Overall
4.3Pepperstone
- Pepperstone has a very comprehensive package of automated trading tools on MT4.
- Australia Address: Pepperstone Group Limited, 727 Collins St Level 16, Tower One, Docklands VIC 3008, Australia
Pepperstone Review
Name: Pepperstone
Description: Pepperstone were founded in 2010 in Australia and have since then grown to be a global brokerage with international offices and around 400,000 active clients. They offer spread betting and CFDs on 1,200 major market instruments, which means they focus on the most heavily traded assets, mainly forex and indices trading. Of those 900 are shares on the major stocks on international exchanges.
75.6% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider.
Why we like them
Pepperstone is a good choice for traders that want to automate their trading strategies through MT4. As far as MT4 brokers they are one of the biggest and best and offers so good EA packages.
Pros
- Tight pricing
- Wide range of MT4 markets
- Pre-built MT4 indicator packages
Cons
- Limited market access
- Only third-party platforms
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Pricing
(5)
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Market Access
(3.5)
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Online Platform
(4)
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Customer Service
(4)
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Research & Analysis
(4)
Overall
4.1IG
- One of the largest global brokers operating in Australia with a vast selection of markets to trade with great liquidity.
- Australia Address: IG, 15/55 Collins St, Melbourne VIC 3000, Australia.
IG Review
Name: IG
Description: Founded in 1974 IG are one of the world’s largest margin trading brokers and they offer CFDs, FX and Spread Betting (in the UK) alongside share trading and prime brokerage to over 350,000 active clients and offers 19,000 tradable markets. IG also recently introduce physical share dealing and smart portfolios for longer-term investors.
Why we like it
IG pioneered online trading and financial spread betting for private clients and remains not only one of the largest online trading platforms, but also one of the best. IG stands out through deep liquidity, high market range and excellent added value such as trading tools and analysis.
Pros
- Wide market range
- Excellent liquidity & DMA equities
- Listed on the London Stock Exchange
Cons
- Customer service can be slow
- No DMA futures trading
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Pricing
(4.5)
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Market Access
(5)
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Online Platform
(5)
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Customer Service
(4)
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Research & Analysis
(5)
Overall
4.7CMC Markets
CMC Markets has good CFD sentiment tools and over 388 forex pairs to trade. Australia Address: Level 20, Tower 3, International Towers, 300 Barangaroo Ave, Barangaroo NSW 2000, Australia
CMC Markets Review
Name: CMC Markets
Description: CMC Markets is one of the original spread betting and CFD brokers based in the UK. They have been providing forex trading services since 1989 and are now listed on the London Stock Exchange. The broker has over 300,000 active clients trading online and is operated from 13 global offices, with headquarters in The City of London.
Summary
CMC Markets has always offered, and still does one of the best trading platforms for high-frequency and active traders. It’s a good choice for those that want to trade on tight spreads, with a platform built on exceptional tech.
77% of retail investor accounts lose money when spread betting and/or trading CFDs with this provider. You should consider whether you can afford to take the high risk of losing your money.’
Pros
- Excellent trading platform
- Good liquidity
- Unique sentiment tools
Cons
- Trading only, no investing account
- Limited smaller cap stocks
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Pricing
(5)
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Market Access
(4)
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Online Platform
(5)
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Customer Service
(4)
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Research & Analysis
(5)
Overall
4.6Saxo Markets
- Saxo Markets provides OTC & DMA (direct market access) trading for gold and oil.
- Australia Address: Saxo Markets, Suite 1, Level 14/9 Castlereagh St, Sydney NSW 2000, Australia
Saxo Markets Review
Name: Saxo Markets
Description: Saxo Markets is one of the largest CFD brokers worldwide and provides direct market access to equities, bonds, forex, futures and options as well as being a major liquidity and infrastructure provider to wealth managers, banks and smaller brokers.
Why we like them
Saxo Markets is a good choice for more sophisticated traders. The platform, analysis, and direct market access may be too complicated for beginners. But, for experienced traders its coverage, commissions and research are unrivalled.
Pros
- Direct market access
- Low commissions
- Robust trading platform
Cons
- Seen as a trading platform for professionals
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Pricing
(4.5)
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Market Access
(4.5)
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Online Platform
(5)
-
Customer Service
(4.5)
-
Research & Analysis
(4.5)
Overall
4.6FAQs:
Here are the answers to the most commonly asked questions by people searching for the best Australian CFD broker.
There are a lot of Australian CFD brokers that offer MT4 (Pepperstone is one of the best), however, the more established brokers like IG have their own trading platform. MT4 is a universally recognised CFD platform but can be a little complicated for beginners.
As CFDs are an OTC product, you need a big account to get direct market access. Having DMA CFDs enable you to get better pricing by placing orders inside the bid and offer. However, unlike CFDs where the broker sets the price rather than the exchange, there is commission added to DMA CFDs as opposed to it being built into the price.
The Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) regulates all CFD brokers in Australia. We only feature CFD brokers that are regulated by ASIC and you should never trade with a broker that is not locally regualted.
Yes, for reviews of the best CFD brokers in Australia like Pepperstone, City Index and IG, use our comparison tables then click on the “reviews” link. Traders can review their CFD brokers by pricing, customer service, market range, trade speed and added value. We have also interviewed many of the CEOs which you can read in our interview section.
When comparing Australian CFD brokers it’s important to ensure that they are properly regulated. Never trade with a broker that is not regulated by the appropriate regulatory body. In Australia, it is ASIC.
The main things to consider when choosing an Australian CFD broker are:
- Range of markets
- Regulator status
- Commission and pricing
- Educational tools
- Margin and leverage
