Best Stock CFD Brokers 2026

Trade global shares with leverage. Compare top brokers for Stock CFDs.

David Okonjo

Written by

David Okonjo

Lisa Martinez

Fact Checked by

Lisa Martinez

Last reviewed:
By:David Okonjo
Fact-checked by:Lisa Martinez

Trading Stock CFDs

Stock CFDs allow you to trade price movements of major companies (like Apple, Tesla, Amazon) without owning the actual shares. This offers several benefits: you can trade with leverage (typically 1:5 to 1:20), you can easily short-sell to profit from falling prices, and you can often trade fractional shares. It's a key way to diversify a forex portfolio.

Do stock CFDs pay dividends?

Sort of. Since you don't own the stock, you don't receive a formal dividend. However, brokers perform a 'dividend adjustment'. If you are holding a long (buy) position, you receive a cash credit. If you are short, you pay a debit.

Coverage

How many stocks you can trade.

Broker
XM1200+1:20
RoboForex12000+1:20
HFM1000+1:5
AvaTrade600+1:5
Exness100+1:20
Plus5002800+1:5 (EU), 1:20 (Offshore)
Admirals3500+1:20
IG12000+1:5
eToro3000+1:5
XTB2000+1:5

Detailed Broker Analysis

Recommended
The CFD Specialist
9.4App Score

Plus500 is one of the easiest platforms for trading stock CFDs. Their proprietary interface allows you to find and trade shares from the US, UK, Germany, and significantly more markets with zero commission (costs are in the spread).

Forex spread classStandard
Minimum deposit$100
Inactivity fee$10/mo
Currency pairs2800+ (Stocks)
Deposit methodsPayPal, Card
Withdrawal feeNone
Admirals logo
Admirals
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Recommended
Diversified Trading
9.2App Score

Admirals is excellent because they offer both Stock CFDs (for trading/shorting) and real Stocks (for investing) from the same dashboard. Their fractional share offering on CFDs makes expensive stocks like Amazon accessible.

Forex spread classLow
Minimum deposit$100
Inactivity fee$10/mo
Currency pairs3500+ (Stocks)
Deposit methodsCard, Wire
Withdrawal fee2 Free/mo
Recommended
Commission-Free Stocks
9.5App Score

XM offers a very competitive offer for stock CFD traders: zero commission. While most brokers charge a fee per share, XM incorporates the cost into the spread, which can be cheaper for frequent traders opening smaller positions.

Forex spread classStandard
Minimum deposit$5
Inactivity fee$5/mo
Currency pairs1200+ (Stocks)
Deposit methodsCard, Wire
Withdrawal feeNone
Recommended
Massive Market Range
9.7App Score

IG is the heavyweight champion of stock coverage, offering over 12,000 shares. If there is a niche small-cap stock you want to trade as a CFD, IG is the most likely broker to have it. They also offer extended hours on US stocks.

Forex spread classLow
Minimum deposit$0
Inactivity fee$12/mo
Currency pairs12000+ (Stocks)
Deposit methodsWire, Card
Withdrawal feeNone
Recommended
Social Stock Trading
9.3App Score

eToro is the world's leading social trading network. It's famous for allowing you to buy real stocks with 0% commission (unleveraged) or trade stock CFDs with leverage, all while copying top investors.

Forex spread classStandard
Minimum deposit$50
Inactivity fee$10/mo
Currency pairs3000+
Deposit methodsPayPal, Card
Withdrawal fee$5
Recommended
0% Commission CFDs
9.5App Score

XTB offers a superb environment for European stock traders. You can trade real stocks with 0% commission (up to €100k monthly volume) and also access thousands of CFDs on their award-winning xStation 5.

Forex spread classLow
Minimum deposit$0
Inactivity fee$10/mo
Currency pairs2000+
Deposit methodsCard, Wire
Withdrawal feeNone
RoboForex logo
RoboForex
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Recommended
R StocksTrader
9.4App Score

RoboForex's dedicated 'R StocksTrader' platform is a beast. It provides access to over 12,000 instruments, including rare US stocks that other brokers don't list, with very high leverage options.

Forex spread classStandard
Minimum deposit$10
Inactivity feeNone
Currency pairs12000+
Deposit methodsCard, Crypto
Withdrawal feeFree x2/mo
Recommended
DMA Direct Access
9.3App Score

HFM offers Direct Market Access (DMA) on stocks via MT5. This means your orders are routed directly to the exchange order books, providing greater transparency and better pricing for large orders.

Forex spread classLow
Minimum deposit$0
Inactivity fee$5/mo
Currency pairs1000+
Deposit methodsCard, Skrill
Withdrawal feeNone
AvaTrade logo
AvaTrade
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Recommended
Hedging with Options
9.2App Score

AvaTrade is unique for offering Vanilla Options on stocks alongside standard CFDs. This allows sophisticated traders to hedge their stock portfolios or speculate on volatility with defined risk.

Forex spread classStandard
Minimum deposit$100
Inactivity fee$50/qtr
Currency pairs600+
Deposit methodsCard, Wire
Withdrawal feeNone
Recommended
Swap-Free Stocks
9.6App Score

Exness has removed swap fees on stock CFDs for most traders. This is a game-changer for swing traders who want to hold positions for days or weeks without overnight financing costs eating into profits.

Forex spread classUltra-Low
Minimum deposit$10
Inactivity feeNone
Currency pairs100+
Deposit methodsCrypto, Card
Withdrawal feeNone

Frequently Asked Questions

Sort of. Since you don't own the stock, you don't receive a formal dividend. However, brokers perform a 'dividend adjustment'. If you are holding a long (buy) position, you receive a cash credit. If you are short, you pay a debit.

Yes, this is the main advantage of CFDs. You can sell a stock you don't own to profit if its price falls, without the complex borrowing requirements of traditional short selling.

It depends on regulation. Retail traders in EU/UK/Australia are typically limited to 1:5 leverage on stocks. Offshore or Pro accounts may get up to 1:20.

The broker (or their liquidity provider). You hold a contract with the broker based on the price difference. You have no voting rights.

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Regional Availability Notice

Broker availability depends on your country of residence. Some brokers may not accept clients from certain jurisdictions including the USA, Canada, Japan, and others. The comparison table on this page shows country acceptance status. Please verify availability with the broker directly before proceeding.

Independent Analysis

Rankings based on verified data and hands-on testing. See our methodology →

Data Verified

January 2026