CMC Markets Review 2026: Spreads, Commissions, Platforms

CMC Markets is a global CFD and forex broker founded in 1989 and listed on the London Stock Exchange (LSE: CMCX), with more than two million clients worldwide. EU clients are served by CMC Markets Germany GmbH, authorised and supervised by Germany’s BaFin (no. 154814), including through local branches such as Warsaw. It offers 21,000+ instruments, its own web platform, mobile apps, MetaTrader 4 and TradingView.

In short: CMC Markets is a mature broker with tight spreads (EUR/USD from 0.5 pips), a powerful proprietary platform and a very wide range of markets. Share CFD commissions depend on the country site — on CMC’s Polish site European shares are commission-free, on the French site they cost 0.06% — and CMC’s Polish site states there is currently no inactivity fee. According to CMC’s EU entity, 70% of retail accounts lose money on CFDs and OTC options. We checked CMC’s EU websites on 25–26 October 2026.

1. Is CMC Markets safe?

Yes. In the EU, CMC Markets Germany GmbH is authorised and supervised by BaFin and serves other EU countries under the EU passport, in some of them through registered branches (for example in Warsaw). The parent company, CMC Markets plc, is listed in London.

• Negative balance protection and ESMA leverage limits for retail clients.
• The German investor compensation scheme covers eligible clients (90% of the claim, up to €20,000).
• CMC Markets is not on the Polish regulator KNF’s public warning list (checked 25 October 2026).

2. Trading costs

• Forex: EUR/USD spreads from 0.5 pips, no separate commission.
• Share CFDs — French site: 0.06% per opening and closing trade (minimum €5 for French shares, €9 for German, Spanish and UK shares); US shares 2 cents per share (minimum $10).
• Share CFDs — Polish site: 0% for French, German, Spanish and UK shares; US shares 2 cents per share (minimum $3). Check the price list for your own country before you trade.
• Holding costs: charged at the end of each trading day (5 pm New York time); they can be positive or negative depending on the direction of your trade and the financing rate.
• Rollover: rolling a forward position onto the next contract is done at the mid-price, saving 50% of the spread cost.
• Market data: some share CFDs require a market data subscription, which may carry a monthly fee.
• Inactivity fee: none at present, according to CMC’s Polish site.

Example: a CFD on 100 shares of a US company at $200. On the Polish price list the commission is 100 × $0.02 = $2, but the $3 minimum applies — so you pay $3 to open and $3 to close ($6 in total), plus the spread and a holding cost for each night. On the French price list the minimum is $10, so the same trade costs $20 in commission.

3. Platforms

• CMC web platform — advanced order types, 115+ indicators and drawing tools, a pattern recognition scanner, CMC client sentiment, Reuters news and Morningstar equity research; price alerts by push notification, SMS or email.
• Mobile app for iOS and Android with 40+ indicators and drawing tools, letting you open, close and modify positions on the go.
• MetaTrader 4 — tight spreads on 175 currency pairs (per the French site) plus indices, commodities and crypto; spreads from 0.5 pips on six major pairs; London-based server; no restrictions on scalping; free premium indicators and Expert Advisors.
• TradingView — analyse on TradingView and trade through your linked CMC account.

4. Guaranteed stop-loss orders

A guaranteed stop-loss order (GSLO) closes your position exactly at the level you set, even if the market gaps or slips. It costs a premium, calculated by multiplying the premium rate by your position size, and CMC refunds 100% of the premium if the GSLO is not triggered. For traders holding positions over weekends or around major news, it is a way to cap the maximum loss in advance.

5. Pros, cons and verdict

6. Alternatives

• Pepperstone — CySEC-regulated, Razor account from 0.0 pips, MT4/MT5, cTrader and TradingView.
• Tickmill — raw spreads and low commissions on MT4/MT5.
• XTB — listed broker supervised by the KNF: CFDs plus real stocks and ETFs.

7. How to open a CMC Markets account — step by step

1. Register on the CMC Markets website — EU clients should be served by an EU company: CMC Markets Germany GmbH — BaFin no. 154814. Check the company name in your client agreement before depositing.
2. Enter your personal details and complete the questionnaire. Before offering CFDs, an EU broker must assess your knowledge and experience (the MiFID II appropriateness test) and warn you if CFDs are not appropriate.
3. Verify your identity with a passport or ID card and a proof of address (e.g. a utility bill or bank statement), as required by anti-money-laundering rules.
4. Choose the account type and base currency. An account in the currency you deposit in saves conversion costs.
5. Fund the account. Deposits are accepted only from accounts or cards in your own name.
6. Install the platform (CMC web platform, mobile apps, MetaTrader 4, TradingView) or log in via your browser. Practise on a demo account first, if the broker offers one.

8. What trading with CMC Markets really costs

Below are the costs from the summary table above — taken from CMC Markets’s website and documents when we updated this review:

• EUR/USD spread: from 0.5 pips
• Share CFDs: commission depends on the country site (see costs below)

How to work it out: on EUR/USD one pip on a 1-lot position (€100,000) is worth about $10, so a 1-pip spread costs about $10 when you open the trade. A commission quoted “per lot per side” is charged twice — on opening and on closing. Add overnight swaps for every night the position stays open and any currency conversion if your account currency differs from the instrument’s. On 0.1 lot all these amounts are ten times smaller.

Inactivity fee: none currently (Polish site) — a break from investing costs nothing. Check the fee schedule from time to time, as the broker may change it.

9. Withdrawing money from CMC Markets — how it works

You request a withdrawal in the client area. Under anti-money-laundering rules, funds usually go back via the method used to deposit (e.g. to the card up to the amount deposited by card) and only to an account or card in your own name. The first withdrawal may require full account verification, so upload your documents right after registering. Only free funds that are not used as margin can be withdrawn.

10. CMC Markets compared with other brokers

For comparison, here is CMC Markets next to other brokers whose reviews we updated in October 2026. Figures come from their summary tables — see the full reviews for details.

11. Leverage and client protection in the EU (ESMA)

As an EU investment firm, CMC Markets applies the restrictions introduced by ESMA and adopted permanently by national regulators to retail clients:

• leverage up to 1:30 on major currency pairs, 1:20 on other pairs, gold and major indices, 1:10 on other commodities and indices, 1:5 on shares and 1:2 on crypto;
• margin close-out at 50% of required margin;
• negative balance protection — retail clients cannot lose more than they deposited;
• a ban on bonuses and trading incentives for retail CFD clients;
• a mandatory risk warning with the share of losing retail accounts — for CMC Markets: 70% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs and OTC options with this provider.

Higher leverage is only available to professional clients who meet the MiFID II criteria — at the cost of some protections, including negative balance protection.

12. Tax on profits from CMC Markets

Tax treatment depends on your country of residence. CMC Markets generally does not file tax returns for you, so keep the annual statement of trades from the client area. For Polish residents: profits from a foreign broker are reported in the PIT-38 return (19% tax), with foreign-currency amounts converted at the National Bank of Poland average rate from the business day before each trade.

13. Glossary: terms to know before opening a CMC Markets account

• Spread — the difference between the buy and sell price, paid on every trade.
• Pip — the smallest typical price move of a currency pair (0.0001 for EUR/USD).
• Lot — the standard position size: 1 forex lot is 100,000 units of the base currency; 0.01 lot (micro lot) is 1,000.
• Commission — a fixed fee per trade, usually on raw-spread (ECN/Raw) accounts.
• Swap — the daily cost or credit for holding a position overnight, based on the interest-rate differential.
• Margin — the part of the position value set aside as collateral; at 1:30 leverage about 3.33% of the position.
• Margin call and stop out — a warning and automatic closing of positions when equity falls relative to required margin.
• Slippage — execution at a different price than requested, common around news releases and price gaps.

14. FAQ – Frequently Asked Questions

Risk warning: CFDs and OTC options are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. 70% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs and OTC options with this provider. This review is for information only and is not investment advice.

Some links on this page may be affiliate links — if you open an account through such a link, ForexRev may receive a commission. This does not affect the content or rating of the review.