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Spread betting
Spread betting is the tax-free way to take advantage of rising or falling markets.1 With seamless execution and the ability to go long or short on more than 16,000 markets, spread betting with IG brings you all the expertise of the world’s No.1 provider.2
Call 0800 195 3100 or email newaccounts.uk@ig.com to talk about opening a trading account. We’re here 24 hours a day, from 8am Saturday to 10pm Friday.
Contact us: 0800 195 3100
Why start spread betting with IG?
No capital gains tax or stamp duty1
Negative balance protection on your account3
Full exposure with a small initial deposit
Advanced technology, with our best-ever web platform
No commission to pay – just the dealing spreads
Available on forex, indices, shares, commodities and more
What is spread betting?
Spread betting is a form of derivatives trading that allows you to take a position on whether you think a market will rise or fall, without having to buy the underlying asset. Spread betting is flexible as it's possible to take short positions and deal on over 16,000 markets.
What are the benefits?
- Thousands of markets
- Tax-free profits
- Go long or short
- Trade on margin
How do I spread bet?
- Open a trading account
- Find an opportunity
- Take a position
- Monitor your trade
Open a spread betting account
Fill in our simple online form
We’ll ask a few questions about your trading experience.
Get swift verification
We can usually verify your ID in just a few seconds.
Fund your account and trade
Or practise on a risk-free demo if you’d prefer.
How much will I have to pay?
Margins
Spread betting and CFD trading are forms of leveraged trading, meaning you can win, or lose, a significant amount more than you deposit initially. Though not actually a cost to you, the margin you pay makes a big difference to the affordability of your trade.
Spreads
Your key payment for trading is the spread – the difference between the buy and the sell price – which is essentially our commission for executing your trade. We work to keep our spreads among the lowest in the business.
| Retail margin | Leverage equivalent | Professional margin What is this? |
Leverage equivalent | |
| Forex | 3.33% | 1:30 | 0.45% | 1:222 |
| Indices | 5% | 1:20 | 0.45% | 1:222 |
| Shares | 20% | 1:5 | 4.5% | 1:22 |
| Commodities | 5% | 1:20 | 0.45% | 1:222 |
| Cryptocurrencies | 50% | 1:2 | 4.5% | 1:22 |
| Minimum spreads from | |
| Forex | 0.6 |
| Indices | 0.1 |
| Shares | 0.1 |
| Commodities | 0.3 |
| Cryptocurrencies | 0.1 |
Depending on your position, you may need to pay overnight funding.
How much will I have to pay?
Margins
Spread betting and CFD trading are forms of leveraged trading, meaning you can win, or lose, a significant amount more than you deposit initially. Though not actually a cost to you, the margin you pay makes a big difference to the affordability of your trade.
Spreads
Your key payment for trading is the spread – the difference between the buy and the sell price – which is essentially our commission for executing your trade. We work to keep our spreads among the lowest in the business.
| Retail margin | Leverage equivalent | Professional margin | Leverage equivalent | |
| Forex | 3.33% | 1:30 | 0.45% | 1:222 |
| Indices | 5% | 1:20 | 0.45% | 1:222 |
| Shares | 20% | 1:5 | 4.5% | 1:22 |
| Commodities | 5% | 1:20 | 0.45% | 1:222 |
| Cryptocurrencies | 50% | 1:2 | 4.5% | 1:22 |
| Minimum spreads from | |
| Forex | 0.6 |
| Indices | 0.1 |
| Shares | 0.1 |
| Commodities | 0.3 |
| Cryptocurrencies | 0.1 |
Depending on your position, you may need to pay overnight funding.
It’s free, quick and simple to create a financial spread betting account with us. Open one today, and you’ll get access to over 16,000 financial markets.
When you’re ready, you choose your deal size. What’s more, new spread betting clients get lower minimums for one month.
IG spread betting awards
Choose the world’s No.1 spread betting provider
Why open a trading account with anyone but the best spread betting provider? With 45 years of experience, we’re proud to offer a truly market-leading service.
You might be interested in…
Find out which of our similar leveraged trading products could work best for your goals.
Explore the differences between spread betting and share dealing.
Understand the risks of trading, and discover the tools we offer to help you mitigate them.
1 Tax laws are subject to change and depend on individual circumstances. Tax law may differ in a jurisdiction other than the UK.
2 Based on revenue excluding FX (published half-yearly financial statements, June 2019).
3 Negative balance protection applies to trading-related debt only and is not available to professional traders.
4 By number of primary relationships with FX traders (Investment Trends UK Leveraged Trading Report released July 2019).
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