City Index vs CMC Markets

City Index or CMC Markets – which is better for UK traders 2025? Compare City Index and CMC Markets in this detailed breakdown of their platforms, features and fees.

City Index vs CMC Markets Comparison Table 2025

City Index	CMC Markets
4.4	4.7
City Index is ranked #18 among CFD brokers.	CMC Markets is ranked #3 among CFD brokers.
Review	Review
Founded in 1983, City Index is a prestigious broker, now under the Nasdaq-listed StoneX Group. It excels in forex, CFDs, and spread betting. With access to over 13,500 instruments, City Index provides a dynamic Web Trader platform, exceptional educational materials, and round-the-clock support five days a week, ensuring a thorough trading experience.	Founded in 1989, CMC Markets is a reputable broker publicly listed on the London Stock Exchange. It holds authorisation from top-tier regulators such as the FCA, ASIC, and CIRO. The brokerage, which has received multiple awards, boasts a global membership exceeding one million traders.
CFDs are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. 71% 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.	Spread bets and CFDs are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. 70% of retail investor accounts lose money when spread betting and/or trading CFDs with this provider. You should consider whether you understand how spread bets and CFDs work and whether you can afford to take the high risk of losing your money.
Pros
City Index is under the regulation of leading authorities, such as the FCA in the UK, ASIC in Australia, and MAS in Singapore. Its parent company, StoneX Group Inc., is publicly listed, which enhances its credibility. City Index has significantly improved the trading experience. In 2024, they introduced Performance Analytics, providing insights into trades and discipline. The revamped mobile app now includes integrated market research and swipe-access news. City Index offers access to over 13,500 markets, including forex, indices, shares, commodities, bonds, ETFs, and interest rates. The platform's inclusion of niche markets such as interest rates provides traders with unique opportunities not commonly available on other platforms. City Index offers adaptable trading platforms suited to every expertise level. For newcomers, the Web Trader platform is straightforward and user-friendly. For more in-depth analysis and automated features, MetaTrader 4 (MT4) and TradingView are supported, providing a comprehensive trading experience for all traders.	The CMC web platform offers an exceptional user experience with sophisticated charting tools for trading and customisable options, suitable for both novice and seasoned traders. It supports MT4 but not MT5, and TradingView will be available from 2025. We've upgraded the 'Assets & Markets' rating due to frequent product enhancements in early 2025. These include extended trading hours for US stocks and the introduction of new share CFDs. CMC provides competitive pricing with narrow spreads and low trading fees, except for stock CFDs. The Alpha and Price+ programmes offer additional benefits for active traders, including discounts on spreads of up to 40%. CMC Markets is well-regulated by respected financial authorities, ensuring a secure and reliable trading environment. It upholds a strong reputation, providing traders with confidence. The brokerage excels with an extensive array of valuable resources, such as pattern recognition scanners, webinars, tutorials, news feeds, and research from reputable sources like Morningstar.
Cons
Although many brokers, such as eToro, have broadened their crypto offerings, City Index restricts its clients to crypto CFDs. This limited selection may not meet the needs of traders seeking a wider variety of altcoins. Unlike brokers like AvaTrade and BlackBull, City Index lacks options for passive trading, such as social copy trading or real ownership of stocks and ETFs. This limitation may reduce its appeal to traders seeking a more hands-off approach. City Index does not offer an Islamic account with swap-free conditions, making it less attractive to Muslim traders than brokers such as Eightcap and Pepperstone.	Although there have been improvements, the online platform still needs further refinement to match the user-friendly trading experience offered by competitors such as IG. CMC provides a robust range of assets; however, it does not support trading actual stocks, and UK clients are unable to trade cryptocurrencies. Trading stock CFDs comes with a relatively high commission, particularly when compared to low-cost brokers such as IC Markets. A monthly inactivity charge of $10 is imposed after a year's inactivity, potentially discouraging occasional traders. The CMC Markets app provides a comprehensive trading package; however, its design and user experience lag behind market leaders such as eToro.
Awards
Best CFD Provider 2024 - ADVFN International Financial Awards Best Trading Platform 2022 - Online Money Awards	Best Trading App 2023 - DayTrading.com No.1 Platform Technology 2022 No.1 New Tool 2022 No.1 Most Currency Pairs 2022 Best Trade Execution 2021 Best Forex Broker For Beginners 2021 Most Transparent Forex Broker Europe 2020 Best Trading Platform 2020 Best Trading App 2019 Best Customer Service 2018
FCA Regulated
Yes	Yes
Instruments
CFDs, Forex, Stocks, Indices, Commodities, Crypto, Futures, Options, Bonds, Interest Rates,ETFs,Spread Betting	CFDs, Forex, Stocks, Indices, Commodities, ETFs, Treasuries, Custom Indices, Spread Betting
Demo Account
Yes	Yes
Minimum Deposit
$0	$0
Payment Methods
Credit Cards Debit Card Maestro Mastercard Visa Wire Transfer	Credit Cards Debit Card Mastercard PayPal Visa Wire Transfer
Minimum Trade
0.01 Lots	0.01 Lots
Regulator
FCA, ASIC, CySEC, MAS	FCA, ASIC, MAS, CIRO, BaFin, FMA, DFSA
Mobile Apps
iOS & Android	iOS & Android
Trading App
The City Index app delivers an accessible mobile trading experience with customised features such as one-swipe trading. Impressively, it includes full-screen TradingView charts with over 60 technical indicators for strategy planning, complemented by real-time price alerts. In 2024, Performance Analytics tools were launched, offering insights into trading metrics to enhance your strategies.	CMC Markets' award-winning app has revolutionised mobile trading. Its modern, customisable interface provides a unique user experience that sets it apart. Enhanced with 25 technical indicators, 15 drawing tools, and a swift, stable trading platform, it is an outstanding option for traders.
iOS App Rating
3.8	4.1
Android App Rating
3.1	3.7
Margin Trading
No	Yes
Margin Rate
2.5%	1%
MetaTrader 4
Yes	Yes
MetaTrader 5
No	No
cTrader
No	No
AlgoTrader
No	No
OmniTrader
No	No
TradingView
Yes	Yes
Autochartist
No	No
eSignal
No	No
Trading Central
Yes	No
STP Account
No	No
ECN Account
No	No
DMA Account
No	No
MAM Account
No	No
PAMM Account
No	No
LAMM Account
No	No
Demat Account
No	No
AI / Machine Learning
Yes	No
Robo Advisor
No	No
Negative Balance Protection
Yes	Yes
Market Maker
Yes	Yes
P2P Trading
No	No
Spot Trading
Yes	Yes
Auto Trading
Expert Advisors (EAs) on MetaTrader	Expert Advisors (EAs) on MetaTrader
Copy Trading
No	No
Social Trading
No	Yes
Trade Signals
SMART Signals	Yes
VPS Hosting
No	Yes
Tournaments
No	No
Demo Competitions
No	Yes
Ethical Investing
Yes	No
Custodial Account
No	No
Guaranteed Stop Loss
Yes	Yes
Inactivity Fee
£12	$10
Islamic Account
No	Yes
Account Currencies
USD EUR GBP AUD PLN CZK	USD EUR GBP CAD AUD NZD SEK NOK SGD PLN
Commodities
Gold Oil Silver Copper Livestock Platinum Natural Gas Soybeans Nickel Iron Orange Juice Cannabis Palladium Coffee Cotton Lean Hogs Sugar Wheat	Gold Oil Silver Copper Coffee Wheat Precious Metals Natural Gas Soybeans Orange Juice Nickel Palladium Steel Cannabis Platinum Livestock Sugar Gasoline
CFD
City Index offers a comprehensive range of CFDs, enabling traders to seize short-term opportunities across various assets, sectors, and regions. Its 'Trade Ideas' platform is particularly beneficial for active traders seeking data-driven insights. Additionally, the Web Trader platform features advanced charting tools with over 90 technical indicators.	CMC enables trading of CFDs on over 12,000 assets, including currencies, indices, commodities, shares, ETFs, and treasuries. In 2025, new equities will feature sectors like quantum computing, AI learning, and digital car sales. Enjoy competitive spreads without hidden fees, and leverage the renowned MetaTrader 4 platform. Consistently, CMC stands out as a leading CFD broker.
Leverage
1:30	1:30 (Retail), 1:500 (Pro)
FTSE Spread
1.0	1 pt
GBPUSD Spread<
1.1	0.9
Oil Spread
1.5	3.5
Stocks Spread
Variable	0.02
Forex
City Index is a highly respected forex broker, offering traders access to over 80 currency pairs. With tight spreads starting at 0.7 pips, it provides valuable trading alerts and excellent FX market insights. Moreover, 99.99% of trades are executed successfully.	CMC offers a broad selection of over 300 forex pairs, featuring tight spreads and quick execution. This exceeds many competitors in currency variety. Their forex indices provide a distinctive and comprehensive method to speculate on major currencies such as USD, EUR, and GBP.
Assets
84	300+
GBPUSD Spread
1.1	0.9
EURUSD Spread
0.8	0.7
EURGBP Spread
1.0	1.1
Currency Indices
USD	USD EUR GBP JPY CAD AUD NZD CHF
City Index	CMC Markets
Review	Review
CFDs are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. 71% 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.	Spread bets and CFDs are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. 70% of retail investor accounts lose money when spread betting and/or trading CFDs with this provider. You should consider whether you understand how spread bets and CFDs work and whether you can afford to take the high risk of losing your money.
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