Spreads and Margin Comparisons

In selecting a Spreadbetting company many factors are important, but more than anything you should pay close attention to the margin requirements, the spreads, and the minimum amounts. The spreadbet providers vary from those that target the general punters with very low starting bets, such as Fin Spreads, to those like Barclays stockbrokers that are currently not targetting the mass market and thus have larger initial minimum trade levels.

Margin

The Deposit Margin is the amount that you will need to place in order to trade a certain commodity or stock. This varies according to the instrument being traded. For example, a UK listed equity such as Vodafone would require a 5% margin at CMC, whereas a smaller, less liquid stock would require 20% or more to be placed. The lower the deposit margin the higher the leverage and potential gains or losses will be.

Spread

The lower the spread the higher your gains. Spread represents the difference between the oprice at which you buy, and the price at which you sell. More than anything, the spread is what determines how much cut the spreadbetting company takes from your hard-earned earnings.

Company	Margin	Spread	Min Trade	Account min	Free Demo	Our Review
MF Global	15-100%	2 pips	£1	£0
Cantor Index	10-50%	3 pips	£1	£0
ShortsandLongs	0.4-15%	1 pip	£1	£50
ETX	10-30%	1 pip	£1	£100
CMC Markets	1-20%	1 pip	£1	£200
Barclays	10-100%	1 pip	£3	£0
Etrade	10-100%	1 pip	£3	£0
Tradefair	3-15%	1 pip	£1	£0
RBS	1-20%	1 pip	£1	£200
City Index	10-100%	1 pip	£1	£0
Selftrade	5-90%	1 pip	£0.50	£0
NatWest	1-20%	1 pip	£1	£200
IG Index	10-75%	1 pip	£0.10	£0
ODL	5-100%	1 pip	£1	£0
ProSpreads	3-15%	1 point	£3	£1000
Capital Spreads	3-15%	1 pip	£1	£0
TD Waterhouse	30-60%	1 pip	£1	£0
World Spreads	2-20%	1 pip	£1	£500
Fin Spreads	5-100%	1 pip	£0.10	£0
Spreadex	3-50%	1 pip	£1	£200
GFT	0.5-25%	1 pip	£1	£120

Use the margin and spread list above to get started

If you would now like to get started have a look at some of the reviews on the spread betting companie page.