Which broker has the lowest spreads on crude oil?
Verdict
- Pepperstone is our pick for crude oil, but honestly: it does not publish a WTI or Brent spread in the data we verify, and neither do Capital.com or XS, so nobody can name the lowest crude spread from published figures.
- What Pepperstone does publish: WTI and Brent perpetual CFDs on its Bahamas retail margin table, and on its Australian cost page a 0.015% per side commission on those perpetuals.
- Retail leverage on commodities other than gold is 1:50 at Pepperstone's international entity, which serves Hong Kong without an SFC licence.
- The practical answer is to compare live quotes at the same moment; the steps are below.
Search for the lowest crude spread and you will find plenty of rankings. We can't stand behind any of them, because the brokers we compare don't publish a crude spread we can verify. So this page does something more useful: it explains why Pepperstone is still our pick for oil and gives you a method to find the tightest spread yourself.
Pepperstone is our pick, even without a published crude spread
We recommend Pepperstone for crude because of what it does publish: WTOIL-PERP and BRENTOIL-PERP on its Bahamas retail margin table, about 40 commodity CFDs on its account table (March 2025 data), five platforms on one Razor account, and a $10 minimum deposit. On FX and gold, where it does publish averages, its Razor pricing is among the lowest we can verify. On crude, check the live quote.
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How to find the tightest crude spread yourself
- Open the same crude symbol (WTI or Brent) at each broker on the same device.
- Note the spread at three moments: the Asian morning, the US cash open and just before the daily rollover.
- Write down the contract size, so you compare dollars per barrel rather than points.
- Add any commission; a raw-spread account can look tight until the commission is counted.
- Repeat on two or three days, because oil spreads move with inventory reports and headlines.
Three oil prices, three cost structures
- Cash CFD: spread only on a Standard account, plus nightly financing if held.
- Perpetual CFD: no expiry, a funding rate set weekly and applied daily at 5 pm New York; Pepperstone's Australian page lists 0.015% commission per side on WTOIL and BRENTOIL perpetuals.
- Because the perpetual's cost is a percentage, it grows with position size, while a spread cost grows with the number of contracts.
Leverage on crude from Hong Kong
None of the three holds an SFC licence in its published regulator list. Pepperstone's lower cap means more margin per barrel, which also means a bad oil day takes longer to empty the account.
| Broker | Leverage | Entity named |
|---|---|---|
| Pepperstone | 1:50 | Pepperstone Markets Ltd, Bahamas (SCB) |
| Capital.com | 200:1 | Capital Com Online Investments Ltd, Bahamas (SCB) |
| XS | Up to 1:2000 dynamic | Not specified |
Sources
Figures as published by each broker or regulator on its own site.
What is Pepperstone's WTI spread?
Pepperstone does not publish a WTI average in the data we verify. Open the symbol in its platform to see the live spread.
Are oil perpetual CFDs available to Hong Kong clients?
WTOIL-PERP and BRENTOIL-PERP appear on Pepperstone's Bahamas retail margin table, the entity that serves Hong Kong.
Why not just rank brokers by their 'from' oil spreads?
A 'from' figure is the best moment of the day. Without published averages, a live side-by-side test is the only fair comparison.
Leveraged CFD trading carries a high risk of rapid losses and is not right for every investor. This article is information only, not a recommendation to trade and not investment advice. Verify costs and eligibility directly with the broker.