Which broker is best for shorting shares in the UK?
Verdict
- Pepperstone is our pick for shorting shares in the UK: you can sell 1,162 shares short as CFDs or spread bets from one FCA-regulated broker, with negative balance protection on retail accounts.
- A £8,000 short on a UK share costs £16 in round-trip commission on a CFD account, or nothing in commission as a spread bet, plus overnight fees if held.
- Losses on a short have no natural ceiling, and Pepperstone offers no guaranteed stop; Capital.com does.
- Retail margin on shares is 20% (1:5 leverage) at both Pepperstone and Capital.com.
Retail investors in the UK usually short shares through CFDs or spread bets, because selling first is as simple as buying. Pepperstone is our pick for it, on range and published costs. The bigger question when shorting is risk control, and that is where this page spends most of its time.
Shorting shares with Pepperstone
On a Pepperstone CFD or spread-betting account, a short is a sell order: you profit if the price falls and lose if it rises. The UK account tables list 1,162 shares, from London, the US, Europe, Australia and Hong Kong. Pepperstone Limited is FCA-regulated (684312), client money is segregated, eligible clients are covered by the FSCS up to £85,000, and a retail account that goes negative is returned to zero.
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What a short costs: a worked example
Selling 2,000 shares of a London-listed company at £4.00 as a CFD:
- Position value: £8,000. Margin at 1:5: £1,600.
- Commission at 0.10% per side: £8 to open, about £8 to close — roughly £16 round trip.
- The same short as a spread bet at £20 per point has no commission; the cost sits in the spread.
- A 10% rise to £4.40 costs £800 — half your margin — before any overnight fees.
Risk controls that matter more when you are short
- Accept that a stop is not a cap. Pepperstone's UK terms say it can't guarantee stop-loss execution, and shares can gap sharply on bid news or results.
- If you need a hard limit, use a broker with guaranteed stops. Capital.com (FCA 793714) offers them on its UK accounts.
- Check the cost of holding: overnight fees apply to spread bets held past 10 pm UK time, and a short held for weeks adds up.
- Ask how dividends are handled on short positions before you hold through an ex-dividend date.
- Confirm the share can be sold short on the platform at the size you want before relying on the trade idea.
Pepperstone vs Capital.com for short sellers
Pepperstone wins on published share range and commission detail; Capital.com wins on guaranteed stops.
| Pepperstone | Capital.com | |
|---|---|---|
| UK regulator | FCA 684312 | FCA 793714 |
| Spread betting | Yes | Yes |
| Guaranteed stop-loss | No | Yes |
| Negative balance protection (retail) | Yes | Yes |
| Retail share leverage | 1:5 | 1:5 |
| Minimum deposit | £10 | 20 GBP |
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Sources
From the brokers' own UK documentation.
Can you short shares with a spread bet in the UK?
Yes. With a spread bet you sell at a stake per point and profit if the price falls. Pepperstone offers its 1,162 shares in its UK spread-betting account.
Can I lose more than my deposit when shorting with Pepperstone?
As a UK retail client, no: Pepperstone returns a negative balance to zero. Professional clients do not get this protection.
Does Pepperstone offer guaranteed stops for short positions?
No. Its UK terms say stop-loss orders can't be guaranteed. Capital.com offers guaranteed stop-loss orders.
CFDs and spread bets are complex and high risk because leverage magnifies losses as well as gains. Pepperstone Limited states that 73.6% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading these products with it. Broker terms change; confirm them before opening an account. Not investment advice.