What is the total cost of trading with an Australian CFD broker?
Verdict
- The total cost of trading with an Australian CFD broker is spread plus commission plus overnight holding costs, plus any currency conversion and account fees. At Pepperstone, our recommended broker, deposits, withdrawals and inactivity are free, so trading costs are the whole bill.
- A worked month at Pepperstone below (20 lots of EUR/USD on Razor, 5 lots of gold, 8 ASX share trades and 4 US share trades) comes to about US$251 plus A$112, before swaps and US share spreads.
- Swaps are the cost most often underestimated: they accrue every night a leveraged position stays open.
- Pepperstone Group Limited holds ASIC licence AFSL 414530.
Headline spreads describe one trade. Your real cost is what a month of trading leaves on your statement. Here is every component, then an example month built only from Pepperstone's published Australian prices.
The cost lines at Pepperstone, and why we recommend it
Pepperstone keeps the bill to trading costs: no deposit fees, no withdrawal fees on its Australian methods, and no inactivity fee. Of the per-trade costs, Razor forex is 0.1 pips average on EUR/USD plus USD 3.50 per side (USD 3.00 on cTrader); index CFDs have no commission; Australian share CFDs are 0.07% per side and US shares $0.02 per share. That makes a monthly cost easy to forecast.
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How much do CFD trading costs really add up over a month?
An example month for an active trader at Pepperstone, using published averages. Your volumes will differ; the method is the point.
| Activity | Cost per round trip | Month |
|---|---|---|
| 20 lots EUR/USD, Razor on cTrader | US$1 spread + US$6 commission | US$140 |
| 5 lots gold (100 oz), Standard | US$19 spread | US$95 |
| 8 ASX share CFD trades of A$10,000 | A$7 + A$7 commission | A$112 |
| 4 US share CFD trades of 100 shares | US$2 + US$2 commission, plus spread | US$16 plus spread |
| Deposits, withdrawals, inactivity | Free | Nil |
| Overnight swaps | Depends on rates and nights held | Variable |
The same month on the other account
On Standard, the 20 EUR/USD lots cost 1.1 pips each, or US$220 instead of US$140, while gold is about the same on both. On Razor via MT5 rather than cTrader, the forex line rises to US$160. Those choices move the bill more than a broker's headline spread does.
Costs people leave out
- Swaps: a position held for weeks can cost more in overnight charges than in spread; check rates in the platform.
- Currency conversion: US-dollar profits and costs are converted on an AUD account; holding a USD account avoids repeated conversion if you trade mostly US markets.
- Share CFD spreads: the commission is only part of the cost on US and ASX shares.
- Slippage: fills during news can be worse than the quoted price, and Pepperstone offers no guaranteed stops.
Sources
Does Pepperstone charge platform or data fees?
Its published Australian costs list spreads, commissions and overnight charges; check the PDS for any fee specific to your account before you trade.
Which Pepperstone account is cheaper overall?
For regular forex trading, Razor; on gold the two are close; share CFD commissions are the same on both.
How can I cut my monthly CFD costs?
Use cTrader for Razor forex, avoid holding leveraged positions longer than your strategy needs, and keep the account in the currency you trade most.
Costs are only part of the picture: CFDs are leveraged and you can lose money rapidly. The example month uses Pepperstone's published averages and illustrative volumes. Read the PDS and TMD; this is not investment advice.