Nasdaq Spread Comparison UK: 10 Brokers Tested (2026)
Who is the lowest Nasdaq spread broker?
Nasdaq spreads: Ten UK brokers checked
Nasdaq or Tech100, Nas100 as some brokers call it is a real whippy market… love it or hate it no one can deny it has a lot of volatility and potential opportunity.
And trading is tough enough without having an unnecessary headwind in the form of a fat Nasdaq spread.
So, I want to find out which broker has the lowest spread on the Nasdaq.
Because every broker claims “tight spreads” on their home page…
I’m waiting for the day one broker honestly says, “Pretty poor spreads on most stuff actually, but we just hope you won’t notice… ooo look at this celebrity holding an iPhone with our app on!”
A bit harsh perhaps! But we just want nice low spreads on everything we trade, right?
So with that in mind, let me share my Nasdaq lowest spread findings.
Ok, so I picked ten CFD/spread betting brokers, they are:
- City Index
- IG
- CMC
- Plus 500
- Pepperstone
- Capital
- Forex
- FXCM
- SpreadEx
- Oanda
And my method for comparison is super simple but actually quite effective…because all we want to know is what spread will I pay when I want to trade?
So, I took a typical Friday evening, when the US stock market was open, and liquidity would be at it’s highest.
No data coming out, no headline news, just a standard Friday on the Nasdaq.
I put all those brokers on my screen and then on Friday, 24th April at 20:07 BST took a screenshot.
All the brokers, same time, same day.
In no particular order, these were the spreads on the Nasdaq:
- SpreadEx 1pt
- Capital 1.8pts
- Forex 1.5pts
- FXCM 1.3pts
- Plus 500 2.2pts
- IG 1pt
- Pepperstone 1pt
- CMC 1pt
- City Index 2.4pts
- Oanda 1.3pts
Lowest Nasdaq Spreads
Ok, so ranked from tightest Nasdaq spread to widest, this is what we have.
- CMC, Pepperstone, IG and SpreadEx 1pt
- FXCM and Oanda 1.3pts
- Forex 1.5pts
- Capital 1.8pts
- Plus 500 2.2pts
- City Index 2.4pts
Fair play, most of the brokers were 1.5pts or less.
Which I think is pretty decent for a market that was running at a 500pt daily range during April. That’s a heck of a lot cheaper than when I started in 2001!
Anyway, enough “back in my day, get out your violin”…
I watched the spreads for about a minute, and where I could, noted down any changes. At one point, Oanda went as low as 0.8pts.
Not for long… but that was the lowest spread I saw.
If you’ve got an active spread betting strategy and trade the Nasdaq a lot. Say £5pp twice a day, paying 1pt vs 2.4pts would save you £280 a month, or about £3,360 a year.
Even more if you’re very active or trade more size…
That’s no effort, money back in your pocket.
Morning Nasdaq spreads (US session closed)
Interesting note: I went to check the spreads again in the morning, just to see how things had changed when the US cash session was closed, and the underlying Nasdaq futures are less liquid.
- IG 2pts
- CMC 1pt
- Pepperstone 1.3pts
- SpreadEx 2.1pts
So CMC were holding the line at 1pt spread pre-market as well. Well done CMC.
Pepperstone added a 0.3pt premium. Not bad, still super low.
IG and SpreadEx doubled.
This is worth taking into account if you trade the Nasdaq in the morning.
When I checked Dow spreads, Capital and Pepperstone were the lowest… so it just goes to show no one broker is tightest on everything.
I also checked Gold, Dax and FTSE spreads too if you’re curious. (Same super scientific method worthy of an award…)
So, in summary, the results were this:
Pepperstone, IG, CMC and SpreadEx all had a 1pt spread.
My rules are: Random screenshot, at the same time.
If you’re a broker on variable spreads, you either get lucky or not.
Oanda just missed out this time, but it’s fair to give them a mention…
(Pepperstone just missed out on my Gold spread checker using this exact method)
Do your own due diligence; spreads can vary all the time. Things change with market conditions. So it’s best to visit the broker’s website and check for yourself.