Where can I trade indices with leverage in the UK?
With an FCA-authorised broker, through index CFDs or index spread bets. Leverage for UK retail clients is capped by FCA rules, so you put up only part of the position's value as margin. Check the margin rate for each index on the broker's product page, because it differs between indices and is lower than the 1:30 allowed on major currency pairs.
Pepperstone Limited (FRN 684312) and Capital.com (FCA 793714) are both FCA-authorised. XS is not. If you want the broker we rank first for UK indices, you can open a Pepperstone account and try the index list on the demo.
Which broker offers the widest range of stock indices?
We cannot honestly name the single widest range across the whole market, because that would mean checking every broker's list on the same day. What we can confirm is Pepperstone's: more than 20 cash stock indices on its UK site, plus forwards on eight of them. That covers every major region a UK trader is likely to want.
A selection of Pepperstone's cash indices and what they track
| Pepperstone symbol | Market it tracks | Forward available |
|---|---|---|
| UK100 | FTSE 100 (United Kingdom) | Yes |
| GER40 | DAX (Germany) | Yes |
| US500 | S&P 500 (United States) | Yes |
| NAS100 | Nasdaq 100 (United States) | Yes |
| US30 | Dow Jones Industrial Average (United States) | Yes |
| JPN225 | Nikkei 225 (Japan) | Yes |
| AUS200 | ASX 200 (Australia) | Yes |
| HK50 | Hang Seng (Hong Kong) | Yes |
| EUSTX50, FRA40, US2000, CN50, VIX | Euro Stoxx 50, CAC 40, Russell 2000, China A50, volatility index | Cash only |
What is the best broker for trading the FTSE 100?
For the FTSE 100, we pick Pepperstone. It offers the UK100 as a cash index and as a forward, as a CFD or as a spread bet, and it charges no commission on either. For a UK resident, spread betting the UK100 means sizing in pounds per point, which can be easier to plan. Spread betting is described as tax-free in the UK, but tax treatment depends on your individual circumstances.
Before you trade it, watch the UK100 on the demo during the London open. The spread you see then is the one that matters, not the narrowest figure of the day.
What are the most actively traded indices for UK traders?
We do not have reliable volume data for UK retail traders, so we will not rank them. The indices UK traders tend to follow are easy to name, though: the FTSE 100 for the home market, the S&P 500, Nasdaq 100 and Dow Jones for the US, and the DAX for Europe.
Our own index signals focus on the Nasdaq and the DAX, because both move strongly during the European and US sessions. Our guide to index trading signals for Nasdaq and DAX explains how we trade them.