Which spread betting broker is cheapest for small position sizes?
Verdict
- Pepperstone is our pick for small spread bets: no commission, no inactivity fee, a £10 minimum deposit and the lowest or joint-lowest published spread floors in our UK data on EUR/USD (0.5).
- At £1 a point, a Pepperstone EUR/USD round trip costs 50p at the minimum spread, against 60p at the 0.6-point floors published by IG and Spreadex.
- Spreadex has the lowest entry point at a £5 minimum deposit; CMC Markets matches Pepperstone's 0.5 EUR/USD floor.
- For small traders, fixed charges such as inactivity fees and international wire fees can matter more than a tenth of a point.
With small stakes, percentages bite: a fixed fee or a wide spread eats a larger share of each pound you risk. The cheapest provider is the one with tight spreads, no commission and no standing charges. Pepperstone ticks all three on its published terms.
Why Pepperstone suits small bets
Pepperstone's spread betting account has no commission, so the spread is the whole trading cost. It publishes minimums of 0.5 on EUR/USD, 0.8 on GBP/USD, 0.4 on the US 500, 0.9 on the Germany 40 and 1 on the UK 100. There is no inactivity or account-keeping fee, deposits by card, Apple Pay or Google Pay start at £10 and cost nothing, and withdrawals by card are listed as free.
Affiliate link — we may earn a commission at no extra cost to you.
Cost per £1-a-point bet at Pepperstone
| Market | Minimum spread | Cost at £1/pt | Cost at £2/pt |
|---|---|---|---|
| EUR/USD | 0.5 | 50p | £1.00 |
| GBP/USD | 0.8 | 80p | £1.60 |
| US 500 | 0.4 | 40p | 80p |
| Germany 40 | 0.9 | 90p | £1.80 |
| UK 100 | 1 | £1.00 | £2.00 |
How other UK firms compare on small bets
- CMC Markets: EUR/USD from 0.5 pips on its standard account, the same 50p per £1-a-point round trip; no minimum deposit published.
- IG: EUR/USD from 0.6 points, 60p a round trip at £1 a point.
- Spreadex: EUR/USD from 0.6 points; the lowest minimum deposit we found, at £5.
- StoneX Trading: EUR/USD from 0.7, or 70p at £1 a point.
- Capital.com: spread betting available and 20 GBP minimum deposit; it publishes live spreads only, so we can't price a bet.
Hidden costs that hurt small accounts
- Overnight fees: at Pepperstone, bets held past 10 pm UK time pay financing on the full position value.
- Wire fees: Pepperstone's costs FAQ mentions £15 for an international bank wire withdrawal; card withdrawals avoid it.
- Currency conversion: keep a GBP base currency if you deposit in pounds.
- Minimum stake: set per market and shown in the platform, not on fee pages; check that the market you want accepts the stake you can afford.
Sources
Does Pepperstone charge an inactivity fee?
No. It may archive accounts with less than 10 units of currency that have been unused for three months or more, but it charges no fee.
Which UK spread betting firm has the lowest minimum deposit?
Spreadex at £5 among the firms we checked; Pepperstone is £10.
Are published spreads guaranteed for small bets?
No. They are minimum or from figures; the live spread varies with market conditions.
Small stakes still carry leverage, and spread bets can lose money quickly. Pepperstone says 73.6% of its retail investor accounts lose money on spread bets and CFDs. Broker terms change; this is not investment advice.