In this article we compare three of the top brokers in regulated UK trading, Pepperstone, IG and CMC. We compare their features, platforms and which is best for all kinds of traders.
What Broker is Best for UK Traders: Pepperstone, IG or CMC Markets?
If you are deciding between Pepperstone, IG or CMC Markets, you are in good company. These are three extremely popular FCA-regulated brokers for UK traders, and all have certain advantages and disadvantages depending in what you are looking for in a broker.
Lucky for you, we’ve researched the advantages, disadvantages, and suitability for all three brokers for different types of traders. In short, here’s what we found:
- Pepperstone is best for large lot sizes with low costs on their Razor account.
- CMC is best for forex exotics with the widest range of forex pairs on TradingView.
- IG is best for stock trading with the largest range of stocks.
Results
If you are looking for a broker that offers it all, low fees, a wide range of forex pairs to trade, a decent range of CFD instruments including stocks and commodities, and multi-platform integration, then Pepperstone is the best place to start.
If you want to both trade and invest in stocks, mainly on a webtrader that is quick and easy to use, then IG would be best given the large asset range.
If you want to trade exotic FX pairs, like SGD/ZAR, and want to do it on a web trader platform or on TradingView, then CMC is your go-to.
Ultimately, choosing a broker is a personal choice, but let’s dig deeper and find out more about each broker.
Side-By-Side Comparison
| Broker | Instruments | Platforms | Our Favourite Account Types | Best For | Rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pepperstone | 2700+ FX, spread bets & CFDs on stocks, commodities, ETFs and indices | TradingView, cTrader, MT4, MT5, Pepperstone Trading Platform (mobile, browser) | Razor Account for large accounts & Spread Betting Account | High-Volume Traders & Spread Bettors | 5/5 |
| IG | 16,000+ FX, spread bets & CFDs on stocks, commodities, ETFs and indices | TradingView, WebTrader, MT4, MT5, WebTrader Pro Platforms, Mobile App | Standard Account | Stock Traders | 4.5/5 |
| CMC | 11,000+ FX, spread bets & CFDs on stocks, commodities, ETFs and indices | TradingView, MT4, WebTrader, Mobile App | Standard Account | Forex Exotic Trading | 4/5 |
Video Summary
1. Instruments / Asset Variety
For asset range / variety, IG will win any competition hands down. With 16,000+ instruments as of July 2026, IG remains the undisputed heavyweight when it comes to asset range. CMC packs a punch too, with 11,000+ instruments to trade, and Pepperstone has a focused list of 1,350+.
You might think ‘Thats it then. IG is the best.’ Well, not so fast. In our hands-on testing of the best TradingView brokers, we found CMC to be most dominant for forex exotics – which we will come onto later – and Pepperstone was present for all major and minor pairs. So if you are specifically trading forex, then there’s really not much in it. If, however, you are more diversified and looking at stocks, indicies and trading across a range of assets, then yes, IG is the best broker here.
Verdict: IG has the most instruments. CMC shows up for the most exotics. Pepperstone has a focused list of CFDs. IG wins by sheer volume.
No Minimum Deposit
Best for Stocks
IG offers 17,000+ trading instruments and combines robust regulation with cutting-edge platforms like ProRealTime, TradingView, and L2 Dealer.
68% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider. You should consider whether you understand how CFDs work and whether you can afford to take the high risk of losing your money.
2. Platforms
For newer traders, or even traders looking to upgrade their trading setup, platform variety & quality becomes paramount.
Choosing a broker with more platform options enables you to create new strategies, bots, and frankly just makes for a better user experience.
Which broker offers the best platform experience?
Let’s start with native webtrader experience. IG offers perhaps the greatest webtrader experience. You launch it straight from the browser and can start using it within minutes (see screenshot below). It’s simple, clean and efficient, allowing you to browse their offering of 16,000+ instruments really easily.
CMC offers their Next Generation platform, it’s flagship offering. This is a great platform for intermediate to advanced level traders but will take beginners some time to figure out. I encountered issues closing tabs (it said i had too many open) and generally finding things is not as intuitive as IG. However, if you are used to thematic trading, similar to a Trading 212 style, then this might be your best bet. They’ve also upgraded their platform offering for Spectre, their new spread betting offering, and this is a much simpler platform experience for all kinds of traders, so it’s a significant upgrade in user experience (see below).
Pepperstone also offers their own native webtrader experience, and whilst this is newer, it actually hits the nail on the head, providing a simple user interface (similar to the new Spectre platform) and does everything you need. It’s definitely the easiest to use out of the three, so if you are looking to just start trading, then that’s where I would start.
Which broker has the most platforms?
Pepperstone offers 4 free platforms – cTrader, Pepperstone Trading Platform, MT4, and MT5. IG is the runner-up with 3 free platforms – MT4, MT5 and a webtrader. CMC only offers 2 free platforms – webtrader and MT4 (no MT5 option). IG has the most paid platforms with L2 Dealer and ProRealTime.
IG offers a webtrader, MT4, MT5, TradingView, L2 Dealer and ProRealTime. The last two are slightly different and a pretty unique offering. ProRealTime costs £30 a month, unless you hit a certain trading volume but it offers the ability to create algorithmic bots (which we will come onto in a second), access deeper technical charting and view detailed options data. L2 Dealer is a DMA platform so offers direct market access and is only available to professional traders, so we will leave that out of the comparison for now.
Given this, IG offers 4 main platforms for free, 2 paid platforms (TradingView is third-party and ProRealTime is paid access-only) and 1 professional platform.
CMC offers MT4, TradingView, mobile app, and their Next Generation platform (webtrader). There is no MT5 option as of June 2026. As we mentioned they’ve also reworked their Next Generation platform for Spectre which has a nice / easy-to-use feel which is great.
However, this means CMC only offers three free platforms – MT4, their mobile app and Next Generation, given that TradingView is paid.
Pepperstone offers a native WebTrader (their Pepperstone Platform), cTrader, TradingView, MT4 and MT5. This is really the set of platforms traders are looking for. cTrader allows for native cBot creation, allowing for algorithmic trading, MT5 – which is not offered by CMC but is offered by IG – is seen as an upgrade to MT4, and a native webtrader experience is a must-have in 2026. All platforms also come with their respective apps, where Pepperstone plug into as the broker.
This means Pepperstone offers 4 free platforms (Pepperstone Platform, cTrader, MT4, MT5) and 1 paid platform – with TradingView as the only paid platform option (third-party).
Which is best for Algorithmic Trading?
For algorithmic trading in particular, using cBots for systemised strategies trading is something lots of traders are looking at with the rise of Claude Code & Generative AI in 2026. EA’s have always been a mainstay on MetaTrader and I don’t see this trend going away anytime soon, and TradingView offers algorithmic strategies & indicators in PineScript. These are key emerging trends in 2026 that will continue in future, and having variety ensures that you pick the right platform for the job.
So, based on all of this, which platform is best for algorithmic trading? Pepperstone is the only broker that offers Metatrader, TradingView and cTrader – allowing you to create algorithmic strategies in C#, PineScript and MQL4.
IG offers MT4, MT5, TradingView and ProRealTime – all of which enable algorithmic strategies. CMC only offers MT4 and TradingView. Ultimately Pepperstone is best for algorithmic optionality, then IG, then CMC. Given how urgent this to traders, and how fast it’s rising in the list of trading priorities (see Google Trends Graph below) this is something all brokers should really consider as important.
Verdict: Pepperstone offers the most free platforms with cTrader being the difference. They also excel in algorithmic trading, although IG offers a better native webtrader.
£10 Minimum Deposit
Best for Forex
Pepperstone is a Melbourne-based broker that offers an excellent range of assets in the financial trading markets, including CFD's for commodities, shares, ETFs and more.
73-89% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading on margin with this provider.
3. Account Types
Pepperstone offers three main account types: Razor, Standard & Spread Betting. CMC offers the same but instead of Razor, they offer FXActive, and IG offers only two account types: Spread betting and CFD trading / Standard.
Let’s look at how they stack up across spread betting, commision-based accounts (Razor and FXActive) and standard accounts.
Which Broker is Best for Spread Betting?
All three brokers offer spread betting options. This is a huge plus. In fact, we’ve already ranked them side-by-side in our best spread betting brokers comparison if you want to check that out. IG is dominant for sheer range of assets to spread bet, however, Pepperstone offers a devastating combination of low fees, and platform variety opening up algorithmic spread betting and CMC’s new Spectre account is definitely one to watch.
In Summary: IG offers the largest asset variety (16,000+), CMC is best for forex exotics with some of the largest currency options available and Pepperstone is best overall.
Pepperstone’s dominance is down to 3 main factors:
- Platform variety: Pepperstone offers the largest range of free platforms (cTrader, MT4, MT5 and their native Pepperstone Platform) offering multiple ways to trade.
- Algorithmic spread betting: With the inclusion of cTrader Pepperstone becomes the go-to destination for spread betting algorithmically using cBots.
- Ease-of-use & fees: Pepperstone’s platforms are simpler to use than CMC and on par with IG. This is great for active traders who just want to dive in. They also offer competitive fees, on par with CMC.
Now, if you are looking to spread bet everything under the sun, then choose IG. If you want to trade forex exotics then CMC proves itself as a dominant player, but if you are looking for an easy-to-use platform with a range of algorithmic spread betting options then choose Pepperstone.
Verdict: Pepperstone & CMC offer three main account types, vs IG’s two. Not having a Razor-style account puts IG at a disadvantage for scalpers and high-volume traders.
£10 Minimum Deposit
Best for Forex
Pepperstone is a Melbourne-based broker that offers an excellent range of assets in the financial trading markets, including CFD's for commodities, shares, ETFs and more.
73-89% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading on margin with this provider.
4. Fees
Fees structure really depends on your volume and what you trade, but CMC offers the lowest standard CFD trading account fees but higher fees for their FXActive account vs Pepperstone’s Razor account (designed for active, high-volume traders and scalpers).
Pepperstone & CMC are roughly equal on their spread betting fees (see below).
What is a Razor Account?
Pepperstone has a standard CFD account and a Razor Account, alongside their spread betting account for UK traders. The Razor account is designed for high-volume, active traders and scalpers – it’s the flagship offering in the UK for cost-sensitive traders, although there are competitors like Vantage’s Raw ECN account and CMC’s FXActive.
The advantage of the Razor account is their £2.25 each way commission (£4.5 total) with spreads starting at 0.0.
This effectively means that you can trade huge size and have very low fees, it also means that you can scalp (i.e. trade on lower timeframes) and be entered in at the same price you just saw moments ago – not wildly above or below the price when brokers price in spreads into their trading costs. Frankly, it’s one of the best account types for traders, full stop.
IG offers no such account type for UK traders, and CMC offers a competitor product: FXActive.
Pepperstone’s Razor Account vs CMC FXActive
So, how does Pepperstone’s Razor account compare to CMC’s FXActive Account? Well… here’s the breakdown.
| Broker | Account | Razor Instruments | Commission | Rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pepperstone | Razor Account | 90 FX pairs + 1,350 discounted spreads | £2.25 | 5/5 |
| CMC Markets | FXActive | 6 FX pairs + 300 discounted spreads | £2.5 | 4/5 |
CMC’s FXActive account offers 6 majors pairs to trade with 0.0 pip spreads and 300 discounted spreads (25% discount) on their Next Generation Platform or 175 pairs through MT4 (see screenshot below). Pepperstone offers 90+ instruments with 0.0 pip spreads and 1,350+ with discounted spreads on the Razor account. The difference is enormous.
Pepperstone offers a wider range of instruments at 0.0 pip spreads and a lower commission.
On a standard CFD account, CMC, IG and Pepperstone all have competitive fees. CMC has some of the tightest spreads – often 0.5 – 0.6 pips, leading both IG and Pepperstone on their standard account (IG hovers at around 0.7 – 0.8 pips and Pepperstone has spreads of around 1 pip).
On a spread betting account, Pepperstone is roughly equal to CMC (see screenshots below and above) with pips starting at around 0.6 – so Pepperstone’s spread betting account is frankly one of the most competitive around.
Verdict: Overall Pepperstone offers more instruments at lower fees than CMC’s FXActive account and IG doesn’t even have this option. CMC is best for standard accounts and Pepperstone is best for spread betting fees.
£10 Minimum Deposit
Best for Forex
Pepperstone is a Melbourne-based broker that offers an excellent range of assets in the financial trading markets, including CFD's for commodities, shares, ETFs and more.
73-89% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading on margin with this provider.
Summary
Choosing between Pepperstone, IG or CMC Markets is really a tough call, and depends on what you are looking for, so here’s a quick run-down.
Choose Pepperstone if you want to spread bet, trade high-volumes, or scalp. Their Razor account and low spread betting fees are perfect for this.
Choose IG if you want to trade a huge range of instruments and potentially want the additional benefits or spread betting, ISAs, and more of a ‘general purpose’ broker.
Choose CMC if you want to trade forex exotics, minor pairs, or want to open a spread-only account (i.e. standard account) without having to think too much about fees.
FAQ’s
Is Pepperstone, IG or CMC Better for Spread Betting?
All have roughly similar spread betting fees (from 0.5 – 0.7 pip spreads) but Pepperstone offers more platform variety including cTrader which enables algorithmic spread betting through cBots. IG offers the best native webtrader experience for beginners through to advanced traders.
Which is better Pepperstone, IG or CMC for Fees?
Fees depend on account type, instruments traded and overall account size. For spreads, Pepperstone’s Razor account is the most competitive for high-volume trading and frequent trading given the lower fees and wider range of assets vs CMC’s FxActive product. For standard accounts, CMC leads the pack with 0.5 vs 0.6 for IG and 1 pip spread for standard accounts.
What is the best broker overall?
We recommend choosing Pepperstone overall if you are a serious forex trader. If you are looking to trade stocks primarily then choose IG but for most traders Pepperstone will be the top choice.
More Resources
- CMC Fee Structure: https://www.cmcmarkets.com/en-gb/trading-costs
- Pepperstone Fee Structure: https://pepperstone.com/en-gb/trading/costs-and-fees
- IG Fee Structure: https://www.ig.com/uk/charges
- FCA-Approved Checker: https://www.fca.org.uk/consumers/fca-firm-checker
- Pepperstone Review for UK Traders
- IG Review for UK traders
- CMC Review for UK Traders
- Pepperstone, IG or CMC Markets: Which is Better? - July 3, 2026
- XTB vs Axi: Broker Comparison - June 12, 2026
- Best Spread Betting Brokers for UK Traders - June 3, 2026
