59.7% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider
- Good Money Guide experts commend Interactive Brokers (IBKR) for its robust CFD trading capabilities, highlighting its low-cost structure and direct market access, which allows traders to place orders directly on the exchange. The platform is particularly suited for experienced traders, with advanced tools and features that cater to high-volume trading, though some users may find the desktop interface complex.
- Across 1375 user reviews on Good Money Guide, averaging 4.6/5, customers frequently praise the platform's low fees, extensive market access, and efficient trade execution. Many users appreciate the comprehensive tools available for both novice and experienced traders, while some express concerns about the complexity of the platform and slower customer support response times.
Interactive Brokers (IBKR) CFD Trading Expert rating
Our expert rating is the average of the areas listed here, each scored out of 5 by our team.Our experts have rated Interactive Brokers (IBKR) CFD Trading across five key areas of our review framework.
- Pricing5.0
- Market Access4.5
- App & Platform5.0
- Customer Service4.0
- Research & Analysis5.0
Pros
- Low-cost CFD trading
- Wide market range of CFD markets
- DMA CFD trading
Cons
- Better for advanced CFD traders
- Complex desktop platform
See full expert review
Our verdict
IBKR offers CFD trading on around 8,500 markets including 100 forex pairs, 20 commodities, 13 indices, and thousands of international stocks. I’ve traded through IBKR a fair bit and there is no doubt that Interactive Brokers CFD offering is one of the best around.
59.7% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider
Can you trade CFDs with Interactive Brokers (IBKR)?
Yes, you can trade CFDs or contracts for difference with Interactive Brokers, but you have to go through some quite arduous suitability tests to ensure that you understand the risks involved.
But once you are in, I found Interactive Brokers to be one of the best CFD brokers, most appropriate for experienced and sophisticated CFD traders. However, it also has lighter versions of its Workstation downloadable trading platform on the portal for newer traders who may want to stick with one platform as they become more experienced.
Trading Platforms: There are two different platforms, which I tested by short-selling Travis Perkins as a CFD. We discussed TPK in our podcast, and the general consensus in the comments on TikTok was that everyone hates them and that it's too expensive. You can see below examples of both trading platforms and how different they look.
The downloadable platform Workstation lets you trade CFDs with the most types of order execution with IBKR, for instance, VWAP, pairs trading, time and price-sensitive order entry. These tools are most suited to professional and very high-volume traders, or hedge funds that are working very large orders and don’t want to scare the market. Most retail CFD traders will have no need for them, but it is representative of IBKRs overall service in that it provides an exceptional institutional-grade CFD platform to retail clients.
There is also an excellent pairs trading feature where you can simultaneously trade one CFD stock against another as a percentage. IBKR is the only CFD broker that lets you do this. With other trading platforms you have to do two separate orders.
As you can see from when I shorted TPK on the Portal web-based version it is much simpler. But you still get some good order execution types, but it's very much for retail CFD traders compared to IBKR Workstation which is for professionals.
Market Access: Whilst Interactive Brokers does not offer the most CFD markets, they do offer one of the best ways to trade them. With IBKR CFDs you can trade with direct market access (DMA) on the exchange so you can place your orders directly on the order book at better prices than the bid/offer.
In reality, CFD brokers with the most markets are those that offer access to small or illiquid stocks which are probably not suitable for CFD trading anyway. But, IBKR offers access to the majority of stocks and markets most traders could need.
CFD Fees: The commission is charged post-trade so you get clean prices with no mark-up and IBKRs commission rates (added post trade) are the best around. Commission on UK stocks is 0.02% and 0.003% on US stocks.
Out-of-hours Trading: IBKR lets you trade CFDs on US stocks, indices, commodities and currencies overnight and on some parts of the weekend. Overnight trading starts from 8pm US ET time on Sundays and for those with US stock trading permission you get access to free overnight data.
CFDs on restricted ETFs: You can also trade ETFs as a CFD that you otherwise would not be able to invest in if based in the UK. One of the major drawbacks of ETFs listed in the US is they do not provide a Key Information Document (which tells you what is in them and how risky they are), so the UK regulators won't let UK investors buy them as they are not transparent. However, with IBKR you can trade these as a CFD (which is an OTC product).
Customer reviews for Interactive Brokers
Customer ratings come from reviews left on this site. Every review is read and approved before it is published.Based on 1,375 reviews
- Excellent74%
- Very good14%
- Basic7%
- Poor2%
- Bad2%
What customers like
- Low fees and competitive pricing
- User-friendly platform
- Fast execution and reliability
What customers dislike
- Poor customer service
- Confusing account management
- Slow response times
Read customer reviews
No.1
I have used it a lot for trading with options and currency exchanges. I would say the best in terms of tools, offering, and commissions, without a doubt
Top Platform
The TWS platform which is available for all customers has a top professional level
it really works for me
good charts good executions
Easy!
IB platform allows me to do trading in an easy and very efficient way. Transaction costs are very low. The notification system allows me to buy/sell when I have decided so.
Happy with them so far
Low fees, no fuss. Thanks IBKR
costumer service
after confirmed application for trading permission you can trade everything all over the world.
Best trading Plattform
Easy, fast & reliable
Overall Excellent platform for investments
I use it for my personal investment. Great software and at very low fees. Recommended
A non-professional trader's delight
Having used four different trading platforms, Interactive Brokers has the easiest to use platform and best prices.
The platform for everyone
Easy enough to use, reliable, gives everyone access to the financial world
Very nice service
Very efficient service and helpful when needed
Simple and efficient
Adapted to all investor types with easy to use interfaces and high efficiency
One-stop shot for investing and trading!
IBKR is very powerful, with plenty of tools with wide access to different markets for investors and traders of different profiles.
Excellence
Very professionell
Great platform
Good, reliable and user-friendly platform/website, clear fee structure, competitive fees, no upselling or other BS.
Reliable and functional
An ideal broker for trading shares (in my case, mainly US equities and ETFs) and holding them in custody. Easy-to-use, highly accessible and fast platform, with a huge range of assets and buying and selling options. Extensive customisation options and good, helpful customer service. In my personal experience, highly recommended.
My main broker
Best pricing and execution.
A fit for all
Does all you could ask for then some!
Transparency, user-friendly, support
Interactive Brokers offers a broad range of the investment products, including stocks, ETFs, mutual funds, and bonds across global markets, with competitive pricing and powerful research tools that support diversified portfolio building. However, access to cryptocurrency is relatively limited and less straightforward compared to platforms that specialized in the digital assets
Great interface, availability and pricing
IBKR is the answer if you're looking for a platform where you can be an active trader in assets around the world - be it stocks, derivatives, commodities or others. Interface is intuitive and easy to use on both desktop and mobile. Fees are very reasonable. And robust availability is great.
Compare Interactive Brokers to other CFD trading platforms below:
| CFD Broker | CFD Markets | Overnight Fees | Customer Reviews | More Info |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | 13,500 | 2.5% +/- SONIA | (Based on 125 reviews) | See Platform 69% of retail investor accounts lose money |
 | 5,000 | 2.5% +/- SONIA | (Based on 21 reviews) | See Platform 74% of retail CFD accounts lose money. |
 | 1,200 | 2.5% +/- SONIA | (Based on 110 reviews) | See Platform 73% of retail investor accounts lose money |
 | 2,000 | 20% Long / 10% Short | (Based on 146 reviews) | See Platform 76% of retail investor accounts lose money |
 | 8,500 | 1.5% +/- SONIA | (Based on 1,375 reviews) | See Platform 59.7% of retail investor accounts lose money |
 | 10,000 | 3% +/- SONIA | (Based on 272 reviews) | See Platform 61% of retail investor accounts lose money |
 | 17,000 | 2.5% +/- SONIA | (Based on 746 reviews) | See Platform 70% of retail investor accounts lose money |
 | 12,000 | 2.9% +/- SONIA | (Based on 237 reviews) | See Platform 69% of retail investor accounts lose money |
 | 9,000 | 2.5% +/- SAXO RATE | (Based on 137 reviews) | See Platform 62% of retail investor accounts lose money |
 | 2,976 | 6.4% +/- SONIA | (Based on 283 reviews) | See Platform 61% of retail investor accounts lose money |
 | 2,100 | 9% Long / 0.4% Short | (Based on 139 reviews) | See Platform 74% of retail investor accounts lose money |
Richard is the founder of the Good Money Guide (formerly Good Broker Guide), one of the original investment comparison sites established in 2015. With a career spanning two decades as a broker, he brings extensive expertise and knowledge to the financial landscape.
Having worked as a broker at Investors Intelligence and a multi-asset derivatives broker at MF Global (Man Financial), Richard has acquired substantial experience in the industry. His career began as a private client stockbroker at Walker Crips and Phillip Securities (now King and Shaxson), following internships on the NYMEX oil trading floor in New York and London IPE in 2001 and 2000.
Richard’s contributions and expertise have been recognized by respected publications such as The Sunday Times, BusinessInsider, Yahoo Finance, BusinessNews.org.uk, Master Investor, Wealth Briefing, iNews, and The FT, among many others.
Under Richard’s leadership, the Good Money Guide has evolved into a valuable destination for comprehensive information and expert guidance, specialising in trading, investment, and currency exchange. His commitment to delivering high-quality insights has solidified the Good Money Guide’s standing as a well-respected resource for both customers and industry colleagues.
