Exchange-traded funds (ETFs) are investment funds that hold a collection of underlying assets such as shares, commodities and bonds. ETFs are quoted on exchanges and can be bought and sold like shares. ETFs can track a broad index, industry sector or specific market.

ETF Trading | Open an Account & Trade on ETFs

Q: What's the difference between investing and spread betting/trading CFDs on ETFs?

When investing in ETFs, you buy and own units in the fund, and deposit the full value of your position upfront. When spread betting or trading CFDs, you speculate on the price movements of an ETF without owning the underlying asset. This means you can take both long and short positions. Spread bets and CFDs are leveraged products, meaning you only need to deposit a percentage of the full trade value to open a position.

Q: What markets can ETFs provide exposure to?

ETFs can provide exposure to a wide range of markets and asset classes, including stock indices, commodities, bonds and industry sectors such as financials and energy. ETFs are commonly used by traders and investors seeking diversified market exposure through a single product.

Q: Can I trade ETFs out of hours?

We offer extended trading hours on selected products, including US ETFs. Please check our trading platform for the latest products and trading hours available. To view the ETFs that you can trade around-the-clock from Monday to Friday, log in and select Products > Library > Extended Hours.

Q: What are the risks of trading ETFs?

Although ETFs can provide diversified exposure to a basket of assets, their value can still rise and fall depending on the performance of the underlying assets and broader market conditions. As a result, you could lose money if the market moves against your position. When trading leveraged products such as spread bets and CFDs, profits and losses are based on the full value of the position, not just the initial deposit (margin). This means leverage can amplify both gains and losses, and you may lose more quickly than when investing without leverage. It's important to understand the risks involved and consider using risk-management tools, such as stop-loss orders, to help manage your exposure.

Q: Is it free to open an account?

There's no cost to open a live trading account with us. You can also view prices and use tools such as charts, Reuters news, or Morningstar quantitative research equity reports, free of charge. You'll need to deposit funds in your account to place a trade.

Q: Is CMC Markets regulated?

Yes, CMC Markets UK plc (registration number 173730) is fully authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) in the UK. Retail client money is held in segregated client bank accounts and money held on behalf of clients is distributed across a range of major banks, which are regularly assessed against our risk criteria.

Q: Is CMC Markets covered by the FSCS?

Yes, your eligible deposits with CMC Markets are protected up to a total of by the Financial Services Compensations Scheme (FSCS), the UK's deposit guarantee scheme. If CMC Markets ever went into liquidation, retail clients would have their share of segregated money returned, minus the administrator's costs in handling and distributing these funds. Any shortfall of funds up to may be compensated under the FSCS.

Q: How does CMC Markets segregate client money?

Under the FCA's Client Money rules, we're required to segregate client money (unless you agree with us otherwise) from CMC's own funds. The funds held in segregated bank accounts do not belong to CMC, and will be held in a way that enables it to be identified as client money. Learn more about client money regulations

Q: How does CMC Markets make money?

CMC Markets earns revenue through spreads and other applicable fees and charges. The fees and charges that apply may vary depending on the product and account type.

Financial Conduct Authority regulated

Protected up to £85,000³

FTSE 250 group

2026 WINNER

Best Spread Betting Broker

Good Money Guide Awards 2026

2025 WINNER

Best Mobile Trading Platform

ADVFN International Financial Awards

2025 WINNER

No.1 Commissions & Fees

ForexBrokers.com Awards

Why trade ETFs with us?

Your favourites in one place

Invest in or trade on over 5,000 ETFs, including the most popular themes from the US and Europe.

Fast, 100% automated execution

Experience fully automated, lightning-fast execution².

No partial fills

No dealer intervention – we don't reject or partially fill trades based on size.

Competitive pricing

Enjoy tight spreads, with no hidden costs, on our full range of ETFs.

ETF trading costs

ETFs have evolved from an obscure investment fund to one which attracts trillions of dollars' worth of assets.

View a selection of our ETFs across three topical themes. For spread betters and CFD traders, we also show overnight holding cost rates and the margin required to open a position.

PRODUCT	PRICE	DAY	WEEK	TREND	Holding Cost Buy Overnight	Holding Cost Sell Overnight	MARGIN RATE

Pricing is indicative only. Past performance is not a reliable indicator of future results.

ETF prices shown are based on our CFD price.

PRODUCT	PRICE	DAY	WEEK	TREND	Holding Cost Buy Overnight	Holding Cost Sell Overnight	MARGIN RATE

Pricing is indicative only. Past performance is not a reliable indicator of future results.

ETF prices shown are based on our CFD price.

PRODUCT	PRICE	DAY	WEEK	TREND	Holding Cost Buy Overnight	Holding Cost Sell Overnight	MARGIN RATE

Pricing is indicative only. Past performance is not a reliable indicator of future results.

ETF prices shown are based on our CFD price.

PRODUCT	PRICE	DAY	WEEK	TREND	Holding Cost Buy Overnight	Holding Cost Sell Overnight	MARGIN RATE

Pricing is indicative only. Past performance is not a reliable indicator of future results.

ETF prices shown are based on our CFD price.

PRODUCT	PRICE	DAY	WEEK	TREND	HOLDING COST BUUY OVERNIGHT	HOLDING COST SELL OVERNIGHT	MARGIN RATE

What do our customers say about trading with us?

Discover why 2 million+ global traders and investors choose us.⁴

great chartsgreat chartsYves Larochelle,19 hours ago

like numbersnumberslike numbersAlbert,2 days ago

So easy to useSo easy to use, no irritating complication like I’ve experienced on other platform, I certain that I’m sticking with them…Millie,3 days ago

I use CMC for spread bettingI use CMC for spread betting. It’s pretty easy to use. Like any leveraged trading platform, it’s easy to take a lot of risk! Easy to use,3 days ago

very easy platform quick to move around…very easy platform quick to move around user friendly easy to learn comfortable to use Yunus Luqmani,5 days ago

New hereNew here, and finding my way around and looking to the futureRobert Patterson,5 days ago

Prefect dataPrefect dataKhalil,6 days ago

Good simple to use appGood simple to use appDIPA LAKHMAN,7 days ago

I like it because it’s easy to trade or…I like it because it’s easy to trade or make deposit or withdraw and quick login and logout and no extra charges Afsin,22 October

Enjoying the demo facilityEnjoying the demo facility. Allows you to experiment with strategies.Gavin Hatchett,21 October

Platforms to suit every trader

An award-winning platform & app

We've invested over £100m into our award-winning platform¹, creating pioneering technology to suit all trading styles.

Advanced order execution
Intuitive charting, with mobile-optimised charts
Pattern recognition scanner
Gauge market sentiment
Morningstar equity research and Reuters news

Mobile

Packed with powerful features, yet intuitive, and available to all traders. Whatever the next step in your trading journey, our mobile platform can help you get there.

SCAN THIS QR CODE
TO DOWNLOAD THE APP

Desktop

We've built our web trading platform to be powerful and intuitive. It combines leading-edge features and security, fast execution, and best-in-class insight and analysis. Designed to support any strategy.

Try our platform

recommended

TradingView

A globally-renowned charting experience for every trader. Enjoy the best of both worlds: TradingView's supercharged charts, with our tight spreads.

Supercharged charting
Join the community
Market calendar
Flexible price alerts
Smooth integration

Open an accountLearn more

Mobile app

TradingView's mobile apps are available on the App Store and Google Play Store. Ensure that your device is up to date and your operating system is supported.

Google PlayApp Store

Desktop app

Tradingview's desktop app is available for download on Windows, Mac and Linux.

LinuxWindowsMacOS

recommended

MetaTrader 4

Trade on the world's most popular trading platform, with tight spreads and fast, transparent execution.

Trade on forex, indices and commodities
Tight spreads from 0.0 pips with our FX Active account
One-click trading
Customisable charts with pre-installed indicators
Automated trading with Expert Advisors

Open a demo account

Mobile

Millions of traders have already chosen the MetaTrader 4 mobile app to trade on the financial markets, anytime and anywhere.

Desktop

Download MetaTrader 4 for PC or MAC and trade on the world's most popular trading platform.

Access MT4 WebTrader

Ways to trade

Tight spreads on 21,000 instruments, volume-based discounts, and no hidden fees.

Spread betting

A tax-efficient way of speculating on the price movement of global financial instruments.

Go long or short on 21,000 instruments
Trade with leverage
CMC web platform, iOS and Android app
Tax-free profits⁵
MT4 platform available

Available schemes: Price+, Alpha

CFD trading

Trade on the price movement of underlying financial assets, with no stamp duty to pay.⁵

Go long or short on 21,000 instruments
Trade with leverage
No stamp duty to pay⁵
Trade via our web platform, iOS or Android app, or MetaTrader 4
Link your account to TradingView

Available schemes: Price+, Alpha

FAQs

New to ETF trading?

What are ETFs?

What's the difference between investing and spread betting/trading CFDs on ETFs?

What markets can ETFs provide exposure to?

Can I trade ETFs out of hours?

What are the risks of trading ETFs?

New to CMC Invest?

Is it free to open an account?

Is CMC Markets regulated?

Is CMC Markets covered by the FSCS?

How does CMC Markets segregate client money?

How does CMC Markets make money?

Any questions?

Email us at

clientmanagement@cmcmarkets.co.uk

or call on +44 (0)20 7170 8200

We're available whenever the markets are open, from Sunday night through to Friday night.

¹Recent awards include: Best Spread Betting Broker, Good Money Guide Awards 2026; No.1 Most Currency Pairs & Best-in-class for Overall Excellence, MetaTrader, Mobile Trading App, Professional Trading, Research & TradingView, ForexBrokers.com Awards 2026; Best Broker for Active Traders, Professional Trader Awards 2025; Best Mobile Trading Platform and Best Spread Betting & CFD Education Tools, ADVFN International Financial Awards 2025; No.1 for Commissions & Fees, ForexBrokers.com Awards 2025.

²0.009 seconds spread bet and CFD median trade execution time on CMC Markets' web and mobile platforms, 1 April 2024-31 March 2025.

³XX

⁴Based on over 2 million unique user logins across CMC's trading and investing platforms, including partners, as at November 2025.

⁵Tax treatment depends on individual circumstances and may be subject to change in the future.

⁶Max discount in tier. Discounts are based on our tiered-volume discount scheme and are variable per product. View our Price+ page for more details.

⁷Interest scheme T&Cs apply.

ETF trading

Why trade ETFs with us?

ETF trading costs

What do our customers say about trading with us?