In short:The best day trading platforms are IG, AvaTrade, Capital.com and Spreadex, to name a few. You will find more detailed reviews below on what makes a good day trading platform and what to look out for.
Using day trading platforms is a popular investment and trading strategy for many individuals in the UK. While it may sound like a simple strategy, day trading can actually be highly complex.
That’s why most professional traders have often spent many years perfecting their day trading strategy so that they’re able to generate the kind of returns they want.
Also consider: Comparing Forex Brokers for Day Trading
7 of the best UK day trading platforms in September 2026
IG is my pick for day trading. The broker has been trading since 1974, is listed on the London Stock Exchange (LON: IGG) and is FCA authorised through IG Markets Ltd (FRN 195355) and IG Index Ltd (FRN 114059).
You can day trade spread bets or CFDs on more than 16,000 markets, including over 90 currency pairs.
On the standard account, EUR/USD spreads start from 0.6 points. Forex traders who want direct market access can use Forex Direct through the L2 Dealer platform, where EUR/USD averaged 0.55 with commission from about $6 per round-turn lot.
Platform choice is another strength: IG’s own web platform and app, MetaTrader 4, MetaTrader 5, TradingView, ProRealTime and L2 Dealer. Guaranteed stops and negative balance protection are available, and GBP/USD, EUR/USD and USD/JPY trade at the weekend.
The demo account is free with no time limit. Two points to weigh: the minimum first deposit by card is £250, and there is no copy trading.
Spread bets and CFDs are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. 69% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading spread bets and 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.
If you are looking for the right trading platform to suit your experience and prefer to trade forex or CFDs, then I suggest AvaTrade as an excellent option. The range of platforms available here is exceptional with the whole suite of MetaTrader platforms, as well as two proprietary platforms, a mobile app, a social trading platform, and a forex trading platform suited to professional traders.
The thriving community of traders also make AvaTrade an excellent option for copy trading. The AvaSocial mobile app allows you to research, copy, set budgets and limits, and access automated trading.
On the downside, the forex fees here are around average so you won’t save much in the way of costs and this isn’t a suitable platform for anyone looking for real stocks.
CFDs are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. 76% 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.
Capital.comkeeps the fixed costs of day trading close to zero. Trading is commission-free, there are no deposit, withdrawal or inactivity fees, and the minimum deposit is £20. EUR/USD spreads start from 0.6.
Day traders get more than 5,500 instruments as CFDs or UK spread bets, including over 4,000 share CFDs, 120+ forex pairs, indices, commodities, ETFs and bonds. Crypto is not offered to UK retail clients.
You can trade on the Capital.com web platform and app, which carries over 100 technical indicators, or on MetaTrader 4, MetaTrader 5 or TradingView. Algorithmic strategies can run through Expert Advisors on MT4 and MT5, though there is no built-in copy trading.
The demo account is free with no expiry, and the Investmate app, courses and webinars cover the basics if you are still learning. Capital Com (UK) Ltd is FCA authorised (FRN 793714) and scores 4.6 on Trustpilot. Overnight funding is charged on leveraged positions held overnight.
Spread bets and CFDs are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. 65% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading spread bets and 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.
Spreadex is the broker I would pick for day trading UK shares, and AIM and small-cap stocks in particular, where its coverage runs deeper than the other platforms here. It has been trading from St Albans since 1999, and Spreadex Ltd is FCA authorised (FRN 190941).
More than 10,000 markets are available as spread bets or CFDs: UK and US shares, global indices, hundreds of FX pairs, commodities, bonds and interest rates, ETFs and IPOs. There is no commission, indices start from 0.6 points and the FTSE 100 from 1 point.
No minimum deposit applies and card deposits start from £5. Charting runs through TradingView, integrated into the web platform and the iOS and Android apps, with Autochartist alongside. MetaTrader 4 and 5 are not available.
There is no standalone demo account; practice is through TradingView paper trading linked to a Spreadex account. UK-based support is open from 7:30am to 10pm on weekdays.
Spread bets and CFDs are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. 61% of retail investors lose money when trading spread bets and 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.
When it comes to fees, Pepperstone are leading the way with very tight spreads, no inactivity fees, no account fees, no commission on the standard account, and no minimum deposit. The Raw account here has average spreads of just 0.17 pips on the EUR/USD which is the lowest I have encountered to date from a forex broker.
There are a number of account options and trading platforms available here, making Pepperstone an option for most traders. In addition, customers will find over 1200 trading instruments including forex and CFDs.
Pepperstone have partnered with multiple social trading platforms in order to offer copy trading in an extensive community. Loyalists of the MetaTrader platform will also be happy to find both MetaTrader 4 and MetaTrader 5 available here as well as cTrader and TradingView.
Pepperstone are well known for their excellent customer service and my own experience was no exception. They have an impressive score of 4.7 out of 5 on Trustpilot. The only negative I can find here is that the demo account is only available for 30 days. Their stock trading platforms allow users to engage in share trading with ease.
For the latest Pepperstone products, fees, and platforms available, including stock and share trading, please read my detailed Pepperstone review.
Pepperstone Limited is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (Registration Number 684312).
Spread bets and CFDs are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. 72.9% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading spread bets and 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.
Tickmill is an excellent platform for day trading, and in particular for day trading futures. Day trading futures means you never miss an opportunity due to short selling restrictions that can end up costing you money.
There is no minimum account size for futures, and you can trade as frequently as you like. There are also no short sale restrictions, meaning you can take a short position as easily as a long position.
A short position allows you to take advantage of economic downturns in the market.
Tickmill is also a cost effective platform, especially for professional traders who can access some of the tightest spreads in the industry here.
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 Tickmill UK Ltd. You should consider whether you understand how CFDs or our other products work and whether you can afford to take the high risk of losing your money..
One of the things I really liked about the Plus500 trading platform was the recent addition of Insights; the Plus500 new analytical tool. It’s free of charge for Plus500 users and provides really useful analysis of millions of trades in real time. This is something I have not come across on other other platforms. Unlike copy trading which allows you to follow the trades of one individual, Insights allows you to identify the highest yielding trades and trader sentiment.
Another strong suit here was the excellent level of customer service on live chat. My experience was always positive and you can expect immediate responses from knowledgeable and helpful staff.
There is no MetaTrader platform available here so loyalists will be disappointed. In addition, education is very limited and there is an inactivity fee should your account lie dormant. However there is a demo account to test drive to hone your day trading skills.
Plus500UK Ltd is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FRN 509909).
CFDs are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. 76% 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.
What is day trading?
As a concept, day trading is extremely simple to understand.
Day trading involves buying and selling financial instruments, such as stocks and shares, and then selling and closing positions on them in the same day for a profit.
So, as an example day trade, you might buy shares in a company at the start of the day for £5 each, and then sell them in the afternoon for £5.50.
While this may be a small return, day traders make many trades in a single day so that cumulatively, small but frequent profits add up.
Of course, while this is true when day traders pick winning trades, it also puts them at risk of losing money rapidly if the assets they’ve bought fall in value.
Typically, day traders will close all their positions before the markets close at the end of the day. Otherwise, they may be exposed to changes in values overnight.
What are the pros of day trading?
- Fundamental data is readily available online through historical financial statements, ratios and balance sheets
- Day traders can benefit from down markets by utilising short-selling strategies
- The ability to work from home
- Buying and selling multiple times in a day could potentially lead to high profits for frequent, successful day traders
- No overnight risk as day traders don’t have open positions once the market closes
What are the cons of day trading?
- Research by eToro shows that over 80% of day traders lose money in their first year
- Unlike positional or long-term trading, day trading requires a higher amount of screentime
- Day traders incur higher transaction fees due to the volume of trades
Day Trading FAQs
Below are some of the most frequently asked questions about day trading platforms.
Is day trading a good idea?
Day trading isn’t always a good idea, not least because of the transaction fees can wipe out any profit or add to any losses made in a day. This can be made worse when looking directly at taxes on profits along with commissions on the transaction.
Is day trading gambling?
No day trading isn’t gambling in the purest sense, although you could say that day trading is betting on an outcome that a stock will either rise or fall is similar in a way to betting on red or black in a casino.
Is day trading legal in the UK?
Day trading is legal in the UK, and you can open as many trades as you like around the clock. In fact, the UK ranks highest in Europe with over 300,000 day traders, and according to World Finance, 65% of them are aged between 18-35.
However, you must file Self-Assessment tax return forms with HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) on the profits you make from your trades. For example, HMRC published a Cryptoassets Manual in 2021 that contained new guidance on the taxation of staking rewards and derivatives. As such, crypto day traders are subject to Capital Gains Tax (CGT) at a rate of up to 20%.
