5 Best UK Brokers for Short Selling in 2025 – Top Platforms Reviewed • Benzinga

Traders in the U.K. who focus on high-frequency or short-term strategies, particularly those involving short selling, need a broker that caters to their particular needs. Exceptional order execution, precise control over trades and favorable margin conditions are key.

This guide evaluates five of the best U.K. brokers for short selling to help active short sellers make informed decisions.

Best U.K. Brokers For Short Selling

• Interactive Brokers — Best Professional and Active Short Sellers
• IG — Best for U.K.-Specific Short Selling
• XTB — Best for Cost-Effective CFD Short Selling
• TradeZero — Best for Dedicated Short-Selling Tools
• eToro — Best for Social and CFD Short Selling 

How We Chose The Best U.K. Brokers For Short Selling

We picked the best U.K. brokers for short selling by evaluating their order execution speed, access to real-time Level II market data, competitive margin rates and the availability of hard-to-borrow shares. We also considered advanced order types for risk management and active trader pricing to ensure cost-effectiveness for high-frequency strategies.

5 Best U.K. Brokers For Short Selling

Interactive Brokers — Best Overall

Interactive Brokers (IBKR) is a great choice for professional and active short sellers in the U.K. Its Trader Workstation (TWS) platform is designed for advanced traders, offering comprehensive tools and extensive market access for high-frequency and short-term strategies. IBKR’s liquidity and sophisticated routing capabilities are critical for rapid order execution and competitive pricing, while its transparent and often low margin rates cater to those leveraging their capital for short positions.

Key Features: 

• Fees: IBKR’s competitive pricing includes the Lite plan with zero commission on U.S. exchange-listed stocks and exchange-traded funds (ETFs). For more active traders on the Pro tier, trades range from $0.0005 to $0.005 per share. There are no account minimums. 

• Order Execution Speed and Reliability: IBKR is recognized for its Direct Market Access and SmartRouting technology, which identifies the best available prices and executes trades at the fastest speed across multiple exchanges. 

• Real-Time Data Access, Level II Market Depth: Offers extensive real-time data subscriptions, including Level II, for a range of global exchanges. This provides insights into supply and demand dynamics, essential for short-term and short-selling strategies.

• Margin Rates and Leverage Flexibility: IBKR offers some of the lowest margin rates in the industry, with tiered pricing that benefits larger accounts. It provides substantial leverage, which is regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) for retail clients. 

• Availability of Hard-to-Borrow Short shares: IBKR’s size and extensive securities lending desk often provide better access to a wider pool of hard-to-borrow shares compared to many other brokers. Its platforms display real-time availability and borrow fees. 

• Advanced Order Types and Risk Controls: TWS has a variety of advanced order types, including algorithmic orders, bracket orders (stop loss/take profit), trailing stops and one-cancels-other (OCO), which are important to automate risk management and complex strategies.

• Active Trader Pricing (Volume Discounts, Rebates): IBKR offers a Pro tier with competitive fixed or tiered commissions structures that benefit high-volume traders through volume discounts and potential market data rebates.

Who It’s Best For: Professional and active short sellers, day traders, and algorithmic traders who require institutional-grade tools, extensive market access, low margin rates and robust risk-management features. 

IG — Best for U.K.-Specific Short Selling

IG is a top choice for short selling in the U.K. because it offers spread betting, a form of derivative trading unique to the U.K. and Ireland. Profits from spread betting are generally exempt from capital gains tax and stamp duty in the U.K., providing a significant tax advantage for short sellers compared to trading CFDs or traditional share shorting where those taxes would typically apply.

While not providing direct stock short selling in the traditional sense, IG’s L2 Dealer platform offers direct market access for share CFDs and direct share dealing, making it a strong contender for traders who prioritize reliability, excellent execution and a range of leveraged products. 

Key Features: 

• Fees: Opening an account with IG is free. You’ll pay a small fee if your guaranteed stop is triggered. You’ll pay a commission for CFD trades. 

• Order Execution Speed and Reliability: IG offers strong execution capabilities, particularly for its leveraged products. Its L2 Dealer platform provides direct market access for share CFDs, allowing for quick order placement directly into exchange order books. 

• Real-Time Data Access, Level 2 Market Depth: IG’s L2 Dealer platform offers Level II market data, providing the full order book visibility essential for short-term and high-frequency strategies to gauge market sentiment and liquidity.

• Margin Rates and Leverage Flexibility: As a CFD and spread betting provider, IG offers significant leverage (up to 30:1 for major forex pairs for retail clients, higher for professional clients under FCA rules). Margin requirements vary by asset but are clearly outlined.

• Availability of Hard-to-Borrow Short Shares: With CFDs and spread betting, you’re not physically borrowing shares, which bypasses the “hard-to-borrow” issue. You’re speculating on price movements. For direct share dealing on L2 Dealer, short selling availability depends on the underlying market. 

• Advanced Order Types and Risk Controls: IG provides a comprehensive suite of order types, including limit, market, stop-loss (guaranteed stop-loss available for a premium), trailing stops and contingent orders that are crucial for managing risk in volatile short-term markets. 

• Active Trader Pricing (Volume Discounts, Rebates): IG’s pricing for CFDs and spread betting is primarily through the spread, though they offer competitive spreads. For frequent traders, there might be benefits to larger volumes or professional accounts. For direct share dealing, commission fees apply but can be reduced with frequent trades.

Who It’s Best For: U.K. traders who primarily use CFDs and spread betting for short-term strategies and short selling, prioritizing a reliable platform with excellent execution, good market data and robust risk-management tools. 

XTB — Best for Cost-Effective CFD Short Selling

XTB is known for its low costs and user-friendly xSTation 5 platform, making it a great choice for traders focused on CFD short selling. It doesn’t offer traditional direct stock shorting, but its competitive spreads and commission-free stock/ETF CFD trading appeal to high-frequency and short-term traders who want to minimize expenses without compromising on tools and fast execution. 

Key Features: 

• Fees: It’s free to open an account, and no minimum deposit is required. Withdrawals above $50 are free. There are no commissions for trading CFDs.

• Order Execution Speed and Reliability: XTB’s xStation 5 platform is fast and reliable, with reported execution fees often in milliseconds.

• Real-Time Data Access, Level II Market Depth: XTB provides real-time market data. While it may not always offer the same depth of Level II data as a direct stock broker for every underlying asset, it provides enough for CFD trading decisions.

• Margin Rates and Leverage Flexibility: XTB offers competitive leverage for its CFDs: up to 30:1 for retail clients on major forex pairs, with higher leverage for professional clients. Margin requirements are clear and generally favorable.

• Availability of Hard-to-Borrow Short Shares: As a CFD broker, XTB allows short selling through contracts for difference, eliminating the direct issue of borrowing shares. You’re speculating on the price movements of the underlying asset.

• Advanced Order Types and Risk Controls: xStation 5 includes various order types, such as limit, stop-loss, trailing stop and take-profit orders, providing essential risk-management tools for short-term trading.

• Active Trader Pricing (Volume Discounts, Rebates): XTB is known for its commission-free stock and ETF CFDs up to a certain monthly turnover, which can significantly benefit high-frequency traders. Beyond this threshold, competitive commissions apply. Spreads on other instruments like forex and indices are also tight.

Who It’s Best For: U.K. traders who engage in frequent CFD short selling across various asset classes who want a fast, reliable and user-friendly platform at a minimal cost. 

TradeZero — Best for Dedicated Short-Selling Tools

TradeZero is a specialized online broker that caters to active traders, particularly those focused on short selling in U.S. markets. While operating internationally, its strength is providing specific tools and features designed to help traders locate and short difficult-to-borrow shares. For U.K. traders looking for direct equity short selling with a focus on comprehensive borrow availability and competitive pricing for active strategies, TradeZero offers choices as well.

• Fees: TradeZero offers free limit and market orders for securities priced at $1 or greater on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE), NYSE American or NASDAQ. It offers free accounts both for mobile and desktop platforms and a $59 per month Pro account.

• Order Execution Speed and Reliability: TradeZero emphasizes fast execution, particularly on its ZeroPro desktop platform designed for active traders. Speed is crucial for capturing fleeting opportunities in short-term strategies. The system strives for near-instantaneous execution to minimize slippage. 

• Real-Time Data Access, Level II Market Depth: TradeZero provides access to real-time market data, including Level II market depth. This is an advantage for short sellers who need to understand the full order book to gauge liquidity and potential price movements before taking positions. 

• Margin Rates and Leverage Flexibility: TradeZero offers competitive margin rates for active traders, with tiered pricing depending on the account balance. It provides intraday leverage to facilitate short-term, high-volume strategies.

• Availability of Hard-to-Borrow Shares: TradeZero’s specialized tools include Shortlist Availability, Single Use Locates and Pre-Borrows to help traders find and secure hard-to-borrow shares.

• Advanced Order Types and Risk Controls: TradeZero platforms support a variety of advanced order types necessary for short-term and complex strategies, including bracket orders, trailing stops and time-in-force options. 

• Active Trader Pricing (Volume Discounts, Rebates): TradeZero offers commission-free trading on NYSE, NASDAQ and NYSE American-listed stocks priced over $1 when using limit orders, which can be beneficial for high-frequency traders. For other order types or stocks under $1, per-share commissions apply. 

Who It’s Best For: Experienced and active day traders or swing traders focused on direct equity short selling, particularly those who require specialized tools to locate and manage hard-to-borrow shares and benefit from competitive margin and execution speeds. 

eToro U.K. — Best for Social and CFD Short Selling

eToro caters to U.K. traders interested in short selling primarily through CFDs, offering a user-friendly platform with social trading features. While it doesn’t provide direct access to borrowing and selling traditional shares for shorting in the same ways as institutional brokers, its CFD offerings allow speculation on falling prices across various assets. Its intuitive interface and CopyTrader function are accessible for people who want to engage in short-term strategies and leverage the insights of a global trading community. 

Key Features: 

• Fees: eToro offers a range of trading services across different asset classes, each with its own fees. CFD trading on eToro incurs a spread fee and an overnight fee. The spread fee is the difference between the buy and sell prices and varies depending on the asset being traded. Overnight fees apply when positions are held past a specific time.

• Order Execution Speed and Reliability: eToro’s platform offers prompt execution for CFD trades. While not designed for ultra-high frequency, millisecond-level trading, it provides reliable execution for typical short-term CFD speculation.

• Real-Time Data Access, Level II Market Depth: eToro provides real-time pricing for the assets it offers. It does not typically provide Level II market depth data, which is a primary tool used by direct market access traders and is less relevant for CFD trading, where you are trading with the broker’s liquidity. 

• Margin Rates and Leverage Flexibility: eToro offers leverage in line with FCA regulations for retail clients. Margin requirements are clearly displayed when opening a leveraged position. 

• Availability of Hard-to-Borrow Short Shares: With CFDs, you are not borrowing and selling physical shares. You are entering into a contract with eToro to speculate on the price movement. This bypasses the issue of hard-to-borrow shares directly as the availability of the CFD is determined by eToro’s internal liquidity. 

• Advanced Order Types and Risk Controls: eToro offers risk-management tools like stop-loss and take-profit orders. Trailing stop loss is also available, allowing traders to automatically adjust their stop loss as a profitable trade moves in their favor. 

• Active Trader Pricing (Volume Discounts, Rebates): eToro offers commission-free trading on direct stock and ETF purchases. For CFDs, which are used for short selling on eToro, pricing is primarily via the spread, plus overnight fees. While there aren’t explicit volume discounts or rebates for active CFD trading, the competitive spreads keep costs low. Conversion fees apply for non-USD transactions. 

Who It’s Best For: U.K. traders who want to engage in short selling through CFDs, appreciate a user-friendly and social trading environment and are less reliant on direct market access or the lowest possible margin rates for extremely high-frequency strategies.

Choosing The Best U.K. Brokers for Short Selling

For U.K. traders, choosing the right short-selling broker boils down to strategy. 

Interactive Brokers is ideal for professionals seeking direct market access and low margin rates. If you prefer CFDs and spread betting, IG offers robust execution, while XTB stands out for cost-effectiveness. For specialized direct equity shorting, particularly for hard-to-borrow shares, TradeZero is a strong contender. EToro provides an intuitive platform for CFD short selling within a social trading environment. 

It’s important that the platform you choose aligns with your trading goals. 

Frequently Asked Questions