Best CFD Trading Platforms in Australia 2024

Finding a reliable CFD Broker for Australian traders is a time-consuming task. We put together this guide to help you find a quality CFD Trading platform.

We researched over 50 brokers and analyzed them based on CFD fees, security, regulation, trading platform, investment selection, and much more.

Below, we list the best brokers for CFD trading in Australia and alternatives for CFD traders.

List of Top Rated CFD Trading Platforms and Brokers in Australia for 2024

We review the best brokers for CFD Trading in Australia below, but here is a quick guide on our top picks :

  • AvaTrade – Best CFD Trading Platform in Australia for Beginners
  • Plus500 – Low-Cost CFD Trading Platform Australia
  • XTB – Best CFD Trading Platform in Australia for Day Trading
  • IG – Top CFD Trading Platform Australia for Multiple Trading Platforms

Compare CFD Trading Platforms in Australia

CFD Trading PlatformMinimum DepositCFD Fees# of CFDsProduct SelectionOur Score
AvaTrade$100Low1200+CFDs on: Bonds & Treasuries, Stocks, Indices, Commodities, ETFs4.9/5
Plus500$100Low2000+CFDs on: Indices, Forex, Commodities, Crypto, Shares, Options, ETFS4.8/5
Pepperstone$0Low1200+Forex CFDs, Commodity CFDs, Cryptocurrency CFDs, Shares CFDs, ETF CFDs4.8/5
XTB$0Low2100+Forex, Indices, Commodity, Stock CFDs, ETF CFDs, Crypto4.7/5
IG$0 - $300Medium17000+CFDs on: Indices, Forex, Shares, Commodities, Cryptocurrencies, Bonds, Options4.6/5

2. AvaTrade – Top CFD Trading Platform for Forex

AvaTrade is a top choice as the Forex CFD trading platform in Austrlaia. AvaTrade offers investors a wide range of features designed to serve both experienced and amateur traders. This includes an expedited account opening process, a well-designed and top-performing proprietary share trading interface, and the possibility of using third-party platforms such as Meta Trader.

Fees

The cost of trading with AvaTrade is reasonable and embedded in the bid/ask spread of each platform's instrument.

This broker charges an average spread of 0.5 for trading the S&P 500 index and an average spread of 1 for trading the Europe 50 index.

The cost of trading individual stocks varies from one stock to the other.

A hypothetical position of $2,000 held by a week with a 20:1 leverage ratio for stock indexes and a 5:1 leverage ratio for individual stocks should generate the following costs:

  • S&P index: $0.9 per trade.
  • Europe 50 index: $0.6 per trade.
  • Apple stock: $4.1

There is also a $50 inactivity fee charged by AvaTrade each quarter if the user fails to log into his account for a period longer than three months.

Available Markets

The portfolio of CFDs offered by this platform includes:

  • 20 stock indexes.
  • 630 individual stocks.
  • 5 ETFs.
  • 17 commodities.
  • 2 bonds.

Platform

AvaTrade offers a web-based, desktop, and mobile version for its proprietary platform (Webtrader), while MetaTrader 4 and MetaTrader 5 is also available.

Webtrader has a user-friendly interface that allows investors to browse through the platform's available CFDs easily while also allowing them to take a look at certain comprehensive reports showing the performance of their trades, fees paid, and other similar information.

One downside of the web version is that it does not support price alerts and it does not offer a two-step login feature.

The desktop version is fairly similar to the Meta Trader interface, but this one does support price alerts.

The mobile trading app offers a well-designed interface that takes advantage of the limited screen space provided by most mobile phones. The search function works perfectly and there's a unique feature that's only available for the mobile version which is the AvaProtect order type, designed to prevent financial losses resulting from trades if an additional fee is paid.

The app is available for both Android and iOS.

Account Opening

Opening an account is easy and completed 100% online. This CFD Trading Platform is available for most countries except where CFDs are banned, such as the United States, and other countries like Iran and Syria.

Four different types of accounts are available at AvaTrade. The minimum deposit is $100. However, if the deposit is made via bank transfer, the minimum goes up to $500.

The ID verification process with AvaTrade is faster than with other brokers and it typically takes less than a day as long as the user sends all the information required on time.

AvaTrade offers a demo account for traders who want to test the platform before depositing money on it.

Deposit & Withdrawal

AvaTrade offers 5 different currencies for their accounts including the Australian Dollar (AUD), which is a great feature for residents of Australia as they can save money on conversion fees.

No deposit fees are charged. Debit and credit card deposits are credited instantly.

Bank transfers, on the other hand, may take a few days to be cleared.

Withdrawing money from AvaTrade doesn't generate an extra fee but there's a maximum withdrawal limit of up to 200% of the last deposit made if the withdrawal is sent to a debit or credit card.

For bank transfers, there's no upper limit for withdrawals.

Read full review

Visit AvaTrade

3. Plus500 – Good CFD Broker

Featured Image Plus 500

Plus500 is one of the most popular CFD Trading Platforms in the world. Most of its popularity is attributed to how easy it is to start CFD trading with them. The online registration process is seamless and its fees are competitive compared to other brokerage firms. Plus500 is listed on the London Stock Exchange, which adds credibility to its operations.

Visit Website

“CFD Service. Your capital is at risk.”

Fees

Plus500 fees are on the low-end of the industry and this broker does not charge a commission for CFDs, as its fees are embedded within the bid/ask spread of each instrument. The spread is the difference between the price at which a CFD can be bought and sold.

*This is the average spread charged by Plus500 for some of the most popular financial instruments covered by their CFDs:

  • USA 500 CFD: 0.7 pips.
  • AAPL CFD: 1.12
  • EUR/USD currency pair CFD: 0.00008

*on August 25th,2021

Additionally, a 0.7% currency conversion fee is charged for currencies different than the base currency of the account and a $10 quarterly fee is charged to accounts that have been inactive for 3 months or more.

Available Markets

These are the financial assets covered by Plus500 CFDs:

  • 1,800 individual share CFDs
  • 33 stock indexes CFDs
  • 92 ETF CFDs
  • 22 commodity CFDs
  • 14 cryptocurrency CFDs

Platform

Plus500 offers a proprietary interface, and it does not support third-party software such as Meta Trader. Plus500 platform is user-friendly. It was primarily conceived to enhance the share trading experience.

The customizability of the web version and the mobile trading app is fairly limited. They offer a selection of 107 different technical indicators, a trader’s sentiment tool for each instrument, an economic calendar, and a news feed powered by high-end providers like Reuters and CNN.
However, no fundamental information is provided on the stocks listed.

Finally, both versions allow for a two-step security login and the mobile app offers biometric recognition for logging in.

Account Opening

Plus500 minimum deposit is $100. If the deposit is made via bank transfer, the minimum deposit is $500.

The process of opening the account is easy and two accounts are available for traders: Real Money Account and the Demo Account. There are two options: retail and pro accounts.

The main difference between both is that pro accounts have access to higher leverage ratios, but users have to meet certain criteria to be eligible for it. But do note that professional clients loose their ICF (Investor Compensation Fund) rights.

Deposit & Withdrawal

Plus500 charges no deposit fees. They offer five free withdrawals per month. After those five withdrawals, a $10 fee applies to any additional withdrawals. Meanwhile, the minimum withdrawal amount is $50 for e-wallet withdrawals and $100 for bank transfers.

They offer 10 different base currencies for CFD trading accounts, including the Australian Dollar.

Visit Website

CFD Service. Your capital is at risk.

4. XTB – Top CFD Broker for Market Access

XTB logo

XTB is a global CFD broker based in Europe that offers its services to clients in Australia. This provider charges low fees on stock index CFD trades and offers a quick online registration process that only takes a few minutes to be completed.

Additionally, deposits and withdrawals can be made without incurring an extra charge, which is great for traders with a limited amount of capital.

Fees

CFD fees for this broker are on the low end of the industry and these are the average spreads charged for the most popular instruments:

  • S&P fees: 0.6 average spread.
  • Europe 50 fees: 2.2 average spread.

For individual stocks, fees are a bit higher than other brokers mentioned above.
As a reference, for a hypothetical $2,000 long position held for one week with a leverage ratio of 5:1 the cost of CFD trading an Apple stock would be $17.9.

Available Markets

This is a list of the CFD instruments offered by XTB:

  • 42 stock index CFDs.
  • 1,700 individual stock CFDs.
  • 103 ETF CFDs.
  • 18 commodity CFDs.
  • 3 bond CFDs.
  • 25 cryptocurrency CFDs.

Account Opening

The minimum deposit to open a trading account is $250 and two accounts are available: the standard and the pro account.

The standard account offers wider spreads but no commission fees on CFD trades while the pro version offers tighter spreads but with an extra commission fee. XTB offers various base currencies for its accounts including the Australian Dollar, which is good news as clients in Australia can save money on conversion fees.

Deposit & Withdrawal

No deposit fees are charged for debit cards, credit cards, or bank transfers, but a 2% charge applies to e-wallet deposits. No withdrawal fees are charged if the withdrawal is higher than $100. Withdrawal amounts lower than $100 incur a $20 fee.

Deposits can be made via debit card, credit card, e-wallet, and bank transfer, while withdrawals can only be made via bank transfer.

5. IG Markets

IG Markets is a UK-based broker that provides access to more than 16,000 different markets and offers competitive trading fees to investors in Australia.

Fees

The cost of trading CFD with IG Markets varies depending on the instrument. This list references the trading fees charged by IG Markets for different underlying assets:

  • Individual stock fees: 0.1% of the value of the contract.
  • Commodity fees: 0.3% of the value of the contract
  • Index fees: 0.4% of contract value.
  • Cryptocurrency fees: 0.2% of contract value.

There's also an inactivity fee of $12 per month if the user fails to log into the account for more than 24 months.

Available Markets

IG Markets offers the following number of underlying assets for its CFDs:

  • 68 stock index CFDs.
  • 10,500 individual stock CFDs.
  • 1,900 ETF CFDs.
  • 47 commodity CFDs.
  • 13 bond CFDs.
  • 8 cryptocurrency CFDs.

Account Opening

The minimum deposit to open an account with IG Markets is $300 for debit, credit cards, and e-wallets while no minimum is required for bank transfers.

Verifying an account with IG Markets is reportedly slower than usual, as it takes an average of 3 days to complete it.

Deposit & Withdrawal

Not additional charges are collected for deposits or withdrawals made with IG Markets and accounts in Australian Dollars are available for residents of Australia.

You can only change the base currency of your account by writing an e-mail to IG Markets' customer service department.
Deposits can be made via debit card, credit card, bank transfer, or e-wallet and the same applies for withdrawals except for e-wallets which are not supported for withdrawing money.

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How to pick a CFD Broker in Australia?

There are many key variables you should consider when choosing a CFD broker in Australia, and some of them are:

  • Reliability of the CFD provider: your broker should be regulated by an agency from a tier-1 jurisdiction, such as ASIC, and the company should have a clean record of transparency and excellent customer service so you can feel safe enough to entrust them with your money.
  • Available underlying assets & markets: traders like to have a wide variety of available financial instruments they can trade CFDs on. Your broker should be able to provide you with access to a wide range of markets and global stock exchanges.
  • Conditions to open an account: each company has a certain criteria to open an account with them including a minimum deposit required, whether they offer an AUD-based account, the process of opening such account, etc. You should know what to expect when registering with them.
  • Deposit & withdrawal conditions: depositing and withdrawing money should be fast and easy. Some charge a deposit fee while others charge withdrawal fees or impose a minimum withdrawal amount and these are all details you should know before you deposit your money with them.
  • Trading fees: the cost of trading CFDs is comprised of various elements including a spread that varies depending on the underlying asset, an overnight trading fee if you hold the CFD for longer than a day, and the cost incurred for leveraging your transaction.
  • Non-trading fees: brokers commonly charge other fees aside from their regular fees including inactivity fees, deposit fees, withdrawal fees, account opening fees, or premium-access fees.
  • Trading platform: since you will be spending a significant amount of time in front of your computer screen, your broker's platform should be user-friendly and well-designed to provide you with a comfortable trading experience.
  • Research tools: new ideas for trades don't just grow on trees and the broker you ultimately pick should be able to provide you with some trading ideas through certain reports like analyst recommendations, an economic calendar, a news feed, or market summaries.
  • Educational materials: CFD traders progressively learn how to get better by using the materials provided by their brokers, along with other tools. Having things like educational videos, webinars, glossary terms, and other similar materials at hand could be very valuable to continue improving your trading skills.

What is a Contract for Difference (CFD)?

A Contract for Difference (CFD) is an innovative financial product that tracks the price of an underlying asset – i.e. a stock, bond, commodity, or other similar instruments – and generates profits or losses for the investor based on the relative fluctuation of the price once the contract is settled.

Traders can take both long or short positions by using a contract for difference, and they can hold the contract for a more extended period, even though there are costs associated with holding CFD positions for longer than a day.

These instruments are primarily conceived for high-frequency traders – i.e. day traders – due to these holding costs, with the longest holding period commonly extending to a week.

One important thing to keep in mind with CFDs is that traders do not hold the underlying security of a CFD, which means that the contract per se doesn't have any value if the price moves in the opposite direction that the trader expected.

There's a high risk of losing money while trading CFDs if traders do not set proper stop-loss orders that can quickly get them out of a certain position if the price moves in the opposite direction from their trade.

It is also important to keep in mind that all platforms report that a high number of investor accounts lose money while trading CFDs, which means that you should consider trading this financial instrument only if you understand the risks involved in doing so and how your holdings can be adversely affected by unfavorable price movements.

How does the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) Regulate CFD Brokers?

In Australia, the institution in charge of overseeing brokers and other financial institutions and investment organizations is known as the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC).

The role of this organization is to ensure the adequate functioning of financial providers by enforcing a set of rules and guidelines that seek to maintain an optimal level of transparency within the financial markets.

To put it in plain words, their job is to protect investors by preventing unlawful practices that may harm their interests.

ASIC-regulated are those that have passed a set of standards set by the institution. Being approved to operate in Australia means that ASIC will monitor their activities. Investors conduct their transactions by using their platform knowing that there's a government agency that has their backs.

More information about ASIC can be found on their website and ASIC regulated brokers have to display their license number on their website and they must also inform investors that they have been approved to operate in Australia.

Certain well-reputed brokers offer their services to CFD traders in Australia even though they may not be regulated by ASIC directly. In this case, it is important to ensure that it is licensed and regulated by a tier-1 jurisdiction agency.

This is a quick list of regulatory bodies in the countries where online brokers are usually regulated:

  • Canada – Investment Industry Regulatory Organization of Canada (IIROC)
  • United States – Securities & Exchange Commission (SEC)
  • Singapore – Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS)
  • European Union – European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA)
  • Cyprus – Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (CSEC)
  • Switzerland – Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority (SFMSA)
  • United Kingdom – Financial Conduct Authority (FCA)

Summary

Here are the best-rated CFD platforms in Australia in 2024:

  1. AvaTrade – Global CFD Broker Australia – 4.8/5Visit AvaTrade
  2. Plus500 – Great Platform For Advanced CFD Traders in Australia – 4.9/5Visit Plus500“CFD Service. Your capital is at risk.”
  3. XTB – Best for Stock Index CFD Australia – 4.7/5Visit XTB
  4. IG – Good CFD Broker Australia – 4.6/5Visit IG Markets

CFDs are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. 72% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider. You should consider whether you understand how CFDs work and whether you can afford to take the high risk of losing your money.

About the author

Ziga Breznik is the owner and head of research at PublicFinanceInternational.org – he is an active investor in the forex, crypto and stock markets – he has seen trading platforms disappear along with his investments – especially during the “crypto boom”. Ziga learned the hard way that finding a reputable and trustworthy online brokerage is key to long-term success in the financial markets. He founded PublicFinanceInternational.org as a platform where he shares his research with one goal in mind: to provide unbiased and trustworthy online brokers reviews.