Online Stock Trading | How to Buy and Sell CFD Stocks (2024)

CFDs are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. 81% 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.

81% of retail CFD accounts lose money.

Plus500 trading platform allows you to trade shares from all popular markets such as USA, UK, Germany and more, with leverage and low spreads. Using our advanced trading tools, you can also control your profits and losses.

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Plus500UK Ltd is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FRN509909).
Based in London

Trade UK and Global Shares

Trade shares CFDs such as Meta and Apple. No stamp duty - SAVE 0.5% compared to a traditional UK share purchase! Take advantage of falling or rising markets by opening Sell or Buy positions.Discover our Sector Indices Check out our Cannabis Shares

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Trade Shares With Leverage

Flexible trading in shares CFDs. Leverage of up to 1:5 leverage allows you to start trading with as little as £100 to gain the effect of £500 capital!

Control Your Profits and Losses

Predefine Stops and Limits on the Plus500 platform to limit your losses and lock in profits. To avoid slippage, try our Guaranteed Stop feature.

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List of shares - click here Key Information Document US withholding tax - Section 871(m)

Why Plus500?

Online Stock Trading | How to Buy and Sell CFD Stocks (8)

Protected & secure

Your data is safe and your funds are kept in segregated bank accounts, in accordance with regulatory requirements.

Online Stock Trading | How to Buy and Sell CFD Stocks (10)

Regulated

Licensed and regulated by a variety of global leading regulators. Learn more.

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Recognised

Plus500 Ltd is a FTSE 250 company listed on the London Stock Exchange’s Main Market for Listed Companies.

What is Shares trading?

Shares CFD trading involves the buying and selling Contracts for Difference on stocks or shares. Traders can engage in trading shares CFDs by monitoring stock prices and using stock charts to analyze trends before buying or selling shares. This market allows investors to buy and sell CFDs based on the prices of stock exchange shares, participating in the ups and downs of the stock market without owning the underlying share.

How do I trade Shares?

Start trading Shares in 5 simple steps:

  1. Choose your Shares trading method
  2. Learn about the Shares market
  3. Open and verify your Plus500 account
  4. Plan your Shares trading strategy
  5. Start trading!

Learn More About Shares Trading

  • What Are Shares?
  • Trading Shares With CFDs
  • Stock Sectors
  • What Determines Share Prices?
  • Stock Market Trading Tips
  • Share Trading Strategies
  • Top European Stocks

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FAQ

Online stock trading means buying and selling shares of companies publicly traded on a stock exchange.

The price of a particular stock is determined by the total number of shares a company has created, usually measured in the currency of the stock market it is listed on, for example, pence (in the UK), euro (in Europe), yen (in Japan) and US dollars (in the US).

In line with the law of supply and demand, when there are more traders who want to buy a company than sell it, its stock price typically rises. Conversely, when there are more traders who want to sell a company than buy it, the stock price tends to decrease.

To see a full list of shares CFDs offered by Plus500, click here.

CFD trading on shares is a form of trading that enables you to speculate on prices of publicly-listed companies traded on exchanges such as the New York Stock Exchange, London Stock Exchange, NASDAQ and Tokyo Stock Exchange, without the need to own the underlying stocks.

Another unique feature of stock CFD trading is the ability to increase your market exposure through leverage (or margin). This means you only need a fraction of the total trade value.

The five main differences between trading shares and Forex are:

  • Trading volume – the Forex market has a larger trading volume than the stock market.
  • Instrument diversity – there are thousands of stocks to choose from, as opposed to several dozen currency pairs.
  • Price effect – stocks’ prices are mainly affected by 'internal factors’, such as financial reports and other corporate events (dividends, stock splits, etc.), whereas Forex pairs are mostly influenced by 'external factors', such as positive or negative political and economic developments between countries/regions.
  • Market volatility – stock prices can fluctuate wildly from one day to the next, and their fluctuations are generally sharper than the ones found in Forex markets.
  • Leverage ratios – the available leverage for Forex CFDs on the Plus500 platform is 1:30, while the leverage for shares CFDs is 1:5.

Please note that when trading Forex or shares CFDs you do not actually own the underlying instrument, but are rather trading on their anticipated price change.

Follow these steps to start trading stock CFDs with Plus500:

  1. If you don’t already have a Plus500 account, open a Trading Account Here.
  2. Complete your account registration and documents verification, then deposit funds.
  3. To search for a specific stock, click into the search bar and type the company’s name or symbol.
  4. Consider placing stop orders in advance: you can define the level of profit you would be happy with and/or the level at which you would like to close out the position should the trend turn against you.
  5. Open a trade.

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Online Stock Trading | How to Buy and Sell CFD Stocks (2024)

FAQs

How do I buy and sell CFD? ›

How to trade CFDs in six steps
  1. Learn how CFDs work. Understand the basics behind contracts for difference and how they differ from other financial products.
  2. Open a CFD account. ...
  3. Choose a CFD market. ...
  4. Decide to buy or sell. ...
  5. Set up and execute your trade. ...
  6. Monitor and close your trade.

How do you trade CFDs successfully? ›

CFD trading tips
  1. Build a trading plan and stick to it.
  2. Analyse the market that you are trading on or interested in before opening a position.
  3. Ease yourself into trading and know your limits.
  4. Build on your knowledge of CFDs and derivative products in general.
  5. Assess how much capital you are willing to risk.

How to make money with CFD? ›

You can open a position that will become profitable if one of your other positions begins to incur a loss. An example of this would be taking out a short position on a market that tracks the price of an asset you own. Any drop in the value of your asset would then be offset by the profit from your CFD trade.

Why is CFD trading illegal in US? ›

Why Are CFDs Illegal in the U.S.? Part of the reason why a CFD is illegal in the U.S. is that it is an over-the-counter (OTC) product, which means that it doesn't pass through regulated exchanges. Using leverage also allows for the possibility of larger losses and is a concern for regulators.

How to trade CFD for beginners? ›

If you're ready to embark on your CFD trading journey, follow this step-by-step guide to get started:
  1. Choosing a CFD Broker. The first step is to select a reputable CFD broker to open an account with. ...
  2. Opening and Funding a Trading Account. ...
  3. Choosing a CFD Market. ...
  4. Develop a Trading Plan. ...
  5. Placing a Trade.

Can US citizens buy CFDs? ›

No. CFD trading is illegal for US citizens and residents.

Why is CFD trading so hard? ›

This requires constant vigilance of the market and price movements. As well as the use of effective risk management to safeguard funds. Some of the most popular risk management tools used in CFD trading are stop-loss and take-profit orders.

Has anyone made money in CFD trading? ›

Yes, you can trade CFDs for a living but you will need a lot of risk capital and a good track record. I've been involved with CFD brokers for about 20 years and have seen all types of traders try and make a living from CFD trading.

How much money can you make trading CFDs? ›

So, even if you are a great trader, if you don't have enough funds in your account then you won't make a lot of money. Profitable CFD traders who pursue trading on a professional level aim to make around 10% to 20% of their annual salary.

Is CFD trading real or fake? ›

It is as real as any form of traditional investing or trading but has some unique aspects that set it apart from other forms of investing or trading. One of the reasons for CFDs' appeal is that a contract for difference (CFD) allows you to trade a currency pair, a stock, an index, or a commodity without owning it.

Is CFD trading good for beginners? ›

CFD trading can be attractive to beginner traders, but it also involves significant risk. First, beginner traders should make sure they understand the basics of CFD trading, including leverage, margin and stop-loss orders. It's also crucial to choose a reputable and regulated CFD broker.

What is an example of a CFD trade? ›

Share CFDs example

Microsoft is trading at $288.00 / $288.50. This means traders can buy Microsoft at 288.50 and they can sell it at 288.00. Microsoft has a margin requirement of 5%, meaning they will only have to set aside 5% of the position's value as a margin.

Is CFD just gambling? ›

CFD trading and gambling are two distinct activities. Whilst commonalities may exist as far as speculation is concerned, the one is not the same as the other. But to understand the differences requires having a fundamental understanding of both concept.

Why do so many people lose money with CFDs? ›

2. CFD Traders Reducing risk exposure. One of the main reasons many traders fail is the lack of risk management strategies. By failing to adopt certain risk management techniques and simply opening trades without protecting their trades with take-profit and stop-loss orders, they risk losing all their trading funds.

Can you lose money on CFD trading? ›

You can 'buy' an asset in the hope that its price will rise (going long), or 'sell' the asset in the hope that its price will fall (going short). Always take steps to manage your risk, as CFDs come with a high risk of losing money.

How do I buy CFD? ›

Create and fund a CFD trading account
  1. Fill in a simple form. We'll ask about your trading knowledge to ensure you get the best experience.
  2. Get verification. We'll verify your identity as soon as possible.
  3. Fund and start trading. Deposit funds into your CFD account. You can withdraw it whenever you want to.

Can you buy and hold a CFD? ›

CFDs don't have an expiry date and can be held indefinitely, however, due largely to the wide spreads and overnight fees for any position held overnight, holding a CFD for long periods can incur significant additional costs.

What is a buy and sell CFD? ›

A contract for differences (CFD) is an arrangement made in financial derivatives trading where the differences in the settlement between the open and closing trade prices are cash-settled. There is no delivery of physical goods or securities with CFDs.

Is CFD trading profitable? ›

CFD trading is a high-risk proposition with the majority of traders losing money. What many of these platforms don't tell you is that around 70% – 80% of all traders end up losing money with CFDs. It's a volatile market with whipsaw price movements all the time.

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