City Index Review: Pros and Cons Uncovered 2025

City Index is a hugely experienced broker and part of the StoneX group. They were founded in 1983 in the UK making them one of the longest-serving brokers in the industry.

City Index also has trusted regulation in place from top-tier bodies including ASIC and the FCA as well as MAS in Singapore making them a broker with truly global reach. City Index with their decades of experience have picked up 26 awards, and their huge asset range of 12,000 CFDs only adds to their appeal among traders.

The InvestinGoal review team has carried out a detailed review of City Index covering  all key areas of the broker.

The main City Index strengths include:

• An established connection with other top international brokers
• Excellent regulation in place worldwide
• A huge range of more than 12,000 CFDs
• No minimum deposit requirement
• Low spreads available on most assets

What Is Our Opinion On City Index?

City Index is a Market Maker broker offering over 12,000 CFDs. A good broker choice for newer and experienced traders they offer an excellent range of tools and educational resources. No minimum depositis charged, and spreads are tight and commission-free.

Trading techniques are limited, however, Spread Betting is permitted and they have more than 35-years of trading experience.

Alongside this, the broker obviously has a very strong reputation in the industry thanks not only to their many years of experience but also as they are part of the Stonex Group which is listed on the NASDAQ. This, together with the many awards they have collected over the years, has really helped them build a trusted brand.

What are the City Index Pros and Cons?

Pros:

• The broker is extremely well-regulated around the world
• City Index is one of the longest operating brokers in the industry
• No deposit or withdrawal fees from the broker side
• Spread betting is available for UK traders

Cons:

• Negative Balance protection applies only under FCA and ASIC regulations
• No Islamic option is available
• There are relatively few payment choices to use
• No social or copy trading features are provided

The table below lays out some advantages and disadvantages in core broker areas.

If you want to expand your research, and evaluate some options similar to this broker, you can consult the alternatives to City Index.

Forex and CFDs Review

The first point to note about trading at City Index is that all of their assets are traded as CFDs. This range of assets in all categories is huge. They have more than 12,000 in total that you can trade.

Specific to forex, you will find a sizable total of 84 currency pairs available at the moment. These have a good value tight spread that starts from 0.5 pips depending on the pair you would like to trade.

Also on offer are CFDs in many other areas including Indices, Shares, Commodities, Bonds, Options, Interest Rates, Options, and Crypto.

Pros:

• The broker truly offers a huge range of assets for you to choose from
• Trading costs are always kept as low as possible

Cons:

• Crypto assets can only be traded by Australian traders

Spread Betting Review

City Index spread betting is available, though due to regulatory requirements, only UK-based traders can use this service. It also has no minimum deposit to worry about and you can rely on the same excellent spreads that are available on other types of trading with the broker also being available here.

Overall, spread betting is very well catered for by the broker and a popular choice for those interested in betting on more than 8,000 global markets offered, including 65 forex pairs for spread betting.

Pros:

• The minimum trade size starts low at 50p per point
• Spreads remain low as they do throughout the brokers offerings

Cons:

• Only UK traders can currently engage in spread betting here

Is City Index regulated and legit?

Regulation is something that City Index takes very seriously.

To this end, they ensure that you have the best possible trading environment. The company, under the name StoneX Financial Ltd. is regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) in the UK with the registration number #446717.

They are also regulated in Australia as StoneX Financial Pty Ltd regulated by the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) with the registration number AFSL 345646 and in Singapore as GAIN Capital Singapore Pte Ltd regulated by the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS), with registration number #200400922K.

They operate in the UAE as well under the name of Gain Capital Representative Office through a UAE Central Bank License.

These represent some of the most compliant, and well-respected top-tier regulators in the industry where you will be in safe hands.

Foundation and Offices

The broker has been around for very many years. They were founded in 1983 making them one of the longest-standing forex brokers in the entire industry. Having started in the UK, they now offer worldwide services and have a total of 4 physical office locations as listed below:

London

Devon House

58 St Katharine’s Way

London

E1W 1JP

Australia

Suite 7.03, Level 7

25 Bligh Street

Sydney NSW 2000

Australia

Singapore

168 Robinson Road

Capital Tower #20-01

Singapore 068912

United Arab Emirates

Level 28 | Unit 2802,

Boulevard Plaza Tower 1,

Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Boulevard,

Dubai

Money Protection

Beyond just the regulated environment, you can rely on great protection of your funds at the broker. They use segregated accounts to protect your money and also offer negative balance protection under FCA, and now under ASIC regulation since March 29th, 2021.

Furthermore, as a trader under the FCA rules, you are protected by the FSCS compensation scheme. This can provide up to £85,000 in compensation, in the very unlikely event of company liquidation from the broker.

Awards

As you would expect from such a reputed broker, City Index has collected many awards over the years. In the past year alone they have picked up a total of 26.

Of this haul, they have been selected as the best Spread Betting or CFD provider 5 times and won the Best Platform or App award 6 times.

In Which Countries is City Index not Available?

City Index is a global broker operation. This means they offer services in the majority of countries around the world. Even in the few countries where service is not available, you may still be able to open an account with another Stonex Group broker.

This can apply to countries like Canada, Japan, or the USA where you are obliged to register an account with Forex.com as your only choice. Below, the full country list is available.

What Are City Index Account Types?

There are several different account types available at the broker so there should be something to meet your needs when trading.

City Index Demo

A demo account is the best place you can get started either as a new trader trying to learn or as a new client checking out the broker. At City Index, you can choose between a demo account that replicates their CFD, spread betting, joint CFD, and MT4 accounts.

This demo account will be unlimited and available to you for 12 weeks with access to more than 12,000 assets and a virtual balance of £10,000 for you to trade risk-free. You can also access the account through Web Trader, iOS and Android mobile apps, and MT4 mobile on all devices.

While you cannot extend the demo account beyond the available period, you can apply for a new one if you feel you need it.

CFD Trading Account

The CFD trading Account at City Index is a very popular choice and grants you access to trade in more than 4,000 assets. This includes CFDs on shares, FX, commodities, indices, bonds, and more. All of this is brought to you with no minimum deposit required.

This ultimately makes it a very accessible account type and with excellent value spreads that stay tight and start from 0.5 pips on forex or 1 pip on major indices. The average spread on the EUR/USD with this account type is 0.8 pips and no commissions are charged with the exception of shares.

All of your trades with this account type can be done through MT4 or AT Pro trading platforms as well as the webtrader and with several trading techniques permitted, this is a common choice among those interested in hedging with a very small minimum trade size of 1 CFD and a customizable leverage amount up to 30:1, or 20:1 under MAS regulation.

FX on MT4 Account

Another excellent account type choice at the broker is their FX on MT4 Account. This account type is focused on forex trading as in the name and is built to work solely with the MT4 trading platform. Here you will also find that no minimum deposit is required.

You will have access to a great range of 81 forex currency pairs from around the world and you can also expect a tight, variable spread with the average again on the EUR/USD coming in at 1.6 pips on this type of account where you will also have access to a customizable leverage amount up to 30:1, or 20:1 under MAS regulation.

Spread Betting Account

Spread betting is possible with City Index and they do have a dedicated spread betting account type which is available to UK and Ireland traders only. Yet again there is no minimum deposit needed.

Spread betting here you will find more than 8,000 global markets available and a really competitive spread that starts from 0.5 pips on forex.

Given that it is spread betting you also will not have to pay UK Capital Gains Tax or Stamp Duty. The minimum trade size here is low and accessible at just 50p per point, and no commission is charged.

Professional Account

As a European or Australian trader only, you may have access to a professional account. This is provided you meet certain criteria with at least two of the following:

• Have made an average of 10 transactions of significant size per quarter in the past year.
• Maintain a financial instrument portfolio of over €500,000 (in your bank or trading account).
• Possess relevant experience in the financial services sector.

If you do meet these conditions and wish to apply, you will benefit from broker-assisted dealing and a dedicated Client Relationship Manager though you will no longer benefit from negative balance protection meaning that you may incur losses that exceed the amount you have deposited.

Magin and leverage limits with this account type remain the same as the other accounts.

How Can You Deposit And Withdraw With City Index?

Account Base Currency

Many City Index base currency choices are supported. These are the AUD, CAD, CHF, EUR, GBP, HKD, HUF, JPY, NZD, PLN, SGD, and USD. With such a great selection available you can likely avoid any conversion fees that would apply if you were to deposit in a non-base currency.

Deposit

Here is everything you need to know when it comes to making your City Index deposit:

City Index Minimum Deposit

City Index does not generally require any minimum deposit though this may change based on your location.

In the UK there is no minimum amount though there is a recommended amount of at least £100. In Australia, the amount is $150 and this is also the case in Singapore at $150.

City Index Deposit Methods

There are many deposit methods supported by the broker to fund your account as follows:

• Bank Wires

These are possible and can take around 3 business days to complete but can vary.

• Credit/Debit cards

Visa, MasterCard, Maestro, and Electron are all supported by the broker, and deposits using your credit or debit card are completed instantly.

• eWallets

eWallets are also broadly supported by the broker with PayPal catered for though not in Singapore. In Australia, you can use  EFT, BPAY, PayID, and PayPal while in Singapore you can use PayNow.

City Index Deposit Fees

The deposit fees at City Index are great value with all mentioned below:

• Bank Wires

Bank wires are free for your deposit from the broker side. Your bank may charge a fee though so you should double-check this.

• Credit/Debit cards

These types of deposits are also widely free.  In some cases though, your card issuer may charge a fee. This is 2% from Singapore card processors. There are no fees from the broker side.

• eWallets

Again eWallets are free from the City Index side. The only fee to consider may be a small conversion fee if you are depositing a non-base currency.

Withdrawals

Now let’s take a closer look at what you can expect from City Index when making a withdrawal.

City Index Withdrawal Methods

The withdrawal methods City Index make available are all the same as you will find when making your deposit. The point to note is that funds can only be returned to the original source they were deposited from.

This means, for example, if you deposited with a debit card, you may only withdraw back to that same card. The withdrawal method you choose must also be registered on your account.

With the time it takes, a wire transfer withdrawal takes up to 2 business days to complete while a credit or debit card can take as many as 3-5 business days.

City Index Withdrawal Fees

There are no withdrawal fees applied from City Index. There is however a minimum withdrawal limit of $100, and a maximum of $20,000 at any one time.

How Much Are Trading Fees With City Index?

At City Index, you will find both fixed and variable spreads available. Fixed spreads may be offered during defined periods of the day or certain trading hours. As an example of this, the UK 100 has a fixed spread of 1 pip between 8 am – 4:30 pm. Outside of these hours, the spread will widen to other fixed amounts.

Variable spreads can change throughout the day based on underlying factors as you would expect. These can include market liquidity, volatility, and other issues though tight spreads are generally on offer.

These spreads start from 0.5 pips on forex, and 1 pip on major indices with the average on the EUR/USD being 0.8 pips and as low as an average of 0.6 pips on the S&P 500 CFD. City Index also charges no commission besides on shares.

This CFD equity commission will vary depending on the market. For UK and most European equities, the charge is 0.08% while for the US this is 1.8CPS, and 0.2% for Asian shares. The minimum commission rates are £10, $10, or €10 depending on the area.

Overnight Fees

There is an overnight fee charged by City Index on CFDs as with every other broker. This applies when you hold positions overnight and there will be an according adjustment.

For long positions, they will be credited/debited by –1 x notional amount x swap points in the unit of the quote currency. For short positions, these will be debited/credited by a notional amount x swap points in the unit quote currency.

For updated rates, you can check with the broker at the time of your trade.

How Much Are Non-Trading Fees With City Index?

Inactivity Fees

City Index does charge an inactivity fee. This starts after 36 months of inactivity, or 12 months inactive as a professional trader.

A monthly inactivity fee of £12 is charged. If your account has been inactive for 3+ years (1+ years for professional traders) the broker will need to reassess your trading experience and ensure to have your up-to-date contact details. They also reserve the right to close your account if your funds cannot cover the inactivity fee.

Which Markets Does City Index Offer?

Taking a closer look at the markets offered by City Index. Here a point to note is that all assets are offered as CFDs only.

Forex

You can trade as many as 84 global FX pairs currently. The spread here remains tight and starts from only 0.5 pips with the average spreads being 0.8 pips on the EUR/USD, 0.9 pips on the AUD/USD, 0.8 pips on the USD/JPY, and 1.8 pips on the GBP/USD.

Commodities

There are more than 45 commodities in total to choose from. These include soft and hard commodities as well as energies with all available as CFDs. The spread on gold starts from 0.3 pips, silver from 2 pips, US Crude Oil from 0.4 pips, and UK Crude Oil from 5 pips.

Indices

Trading on a total of 21 major indices around the world is possible as CFDs. These include all of the global majors from the US, the UK 100, and Germany 30 as well as others.

Spreads remain low and start from a fixed 1 pip which is available on the UK 100, Germany 30, France 40, and Australia 200 during market hours on daily funded trades and CFDs, excluding futures.

The average spread on the US S&P 500 CFD is 0.6 pips.

Crypto

Crypto CFDs are available to Australian traders under ASIC only. There are 5 available. Bitcoin with a spread from 120 pips, Ethereum from 4 pips, Ripple from 0.6 pips, Bitcoin Cash from 2 pips, and Litecoin from 0.8 pips.

Stocks

There is a wonderful range of stock CFDs you can trade with City Index. In total there are more than 4,500 global shares from major companies available. The spreads here start from 0.1% on UK Shares with the following examples for cost comparison.

You can trade Barclays shares from 0.08% / £10, Amazon from 1.8CPS / $10, and Apple shares from 1.8CPS / $10.

Bonds

A total range of 12 bond markets can be traded as CFDs here. These include the UK Gilt from a spread of 0.03 pips, Euro Bond from 0.03 pips, and the US T-Bond, and US T-Note both with a spread from 0.02 pips.

Interest Rates

Three interest rate markets are available to be traded as CFDs. These are short sterling with a spread from 0.02 pips, Eurodollar from 0.02 pips, and Euribor from 0.02 pips.

Options

More than 20 options markets are available with daily, monthly, and quarterly options contracts tradable and low starting spreads. This spread can start from as low as 1 pip on options like the UK 100, Germany 30, and Australia 300, and from 1.6 pips on the S&P 500.

Knockout options are also available if you are outside the FCA area. These are unique as the price moves one-for-one with the underlying City Index price

How Are Execution, Leverage And Position Sizing With City Index?

There are several key trading features to mention, some of which help set this broker apart from others in the industry.

Executions

City Index is a well-known Market Maker broker. This can provide them some flexibility in what they offer that can be of benefit to you as a trader on occasion.

Leverage

City Index leverage is available. The amount will depend on where you are in the world. Traders from the EU and Australia have access to customizable leverage up to 30:1 on major forex pairs, while if you are trading in Singapore under MAS regulation, this will be 20:1 maximum.

The same leverage limits apply to professional traders even if you are using the professional account type.

Sizing

The minimum trade size at the broker is the same throughout each and every account type offered. This minimum size is 1 standard lot.

Risk Management

The broker makes available several key tools to help you with risk management. These are offered through your trading platform for the most part and include the ability to set stop losses to help you exit losing positions, and limit orders to help you lock in profits.

They also facilitate guaranteed stop-loss orders, trailing stops, and can make margin calls if your equity falls below a certain level when trading on leverage. All of these features help manage your risk and are in place to protect you as a trader.

Trading Hours

Trading hours vary depending on the exchange. For the forex market, this is 24 hours a day from 10 pm (UTC) on Sunday to 10 pm (UTC) on Friday. During Daylight Savings Time, these times are switched to one hour earlier.

Trading UK equities you have an opening time of 2.30 pm – 9 pm GMT while energies trade either 01:00-24:00 or 03:00-24:00, 5 days a week, and metals trade from 01:00-24:00 five days a week. Trading CFD indices will depend on the opening time of that local market.

Forbidden trading techniques

With trading techniques, you are allowed to engage in hedging, and City Index is a popular choice for this strategy. They also facilitate the use of auto trading features that you will find available with the MT4 trading platform.

Spread betting is also available though only to UK traders due to regulatory requirements.

What Platforms Does City Index Offer?

Trading at City Index here is what you can expect from the trading platforms and all of the features they have to offer.

Charting and Trading tools

The broker and their trading platforms, both proprietary and MT4 are stacked with trading tools, charting capabilities, and features.

This includes more than 100 technical and indicators amid a widely customizable experience and a variety of charting styles including Candlesticks, Heiken-Ashi, and Point & Figure to identify trends and key levels with drawing tools that can help along the way.

The broker also does well in offering broad technical and fundamental analysis through their portal which scans the markets for chart patterns and presents the best buy and sell opportunities and can provide real insight.

For advanced users, there is also AT Pro with more than 100 trading signals accessible, while for everyone there is a detailed economic calendar that can chart key economic events and keep you updated at all times even direct to your chart or app.

Proprietary (WebTrader)

The proprietary WebTrader found at the broker is very user-friendly and intuitive all-in.

This makes it really easy to start using and it operates with a host of advanced charts with custom indicators and is fast and reliable thanks to the HTML5 technology it employs.

The platform also offers an extremely customizable trading experience, and some of the most intelligent trading tools you will find.

MetaTrader4

MT4 is one of the best-known dedicated forex trading platforms in the industry around the world. They are the leader in terms of having a robust, easy-to-use, and customizable trading platform that is hugely reliable. As well as all of the custom indicators, professional charting capabilities, and more, you will have access to the Expert Advisors feature.

This can allow you to download and implement your own auto trading strategies, or import them from the wide community, and is a very popular feature among MT4 traders. On the platform, you can trade more than 80 Forex pairs, including majors, minors, and exotic pairs offered by City Index.

You can also access your Metatrader 4 account on the move through the MT4 trading apps on iOS and Android

Mobile

City Index accommodates mobile trading well too. This caters for you to trade more than 12,000 markets through advanced, but easy-to-understand and use apps for both iOS and Android.

You will be able to access live TradingView charts and more than 60 indicators with lightning-fast execution speeds and one swipe trading all on mobile with a highly customizable experience that can fit your needs.

Real-time price alerts mean you are always in the know, and updated news from Reuters within the app means you will be able to see the news that may move the market right away.

What Extra Trading Services does City Index Offer?

Here is a look at a few additional products you may encounter when trading at City Index:

Smart Signals

Smart Signals is one of the latest innovations from City Index. This allows you to automatically monitor 36 major global markets and identify trading opportunities that have been historically successful and based on other patterns that will be shown on the Smart Signal dashboard.

These potential opportunities will be ready to trade on a number of short timeframes from 4-12 hours and you can also utilize the suggested order details. Though many areas are automated, the position can only be closed by you. This feature is also available on mobile under the “more” tab, and as yet is not accessible for UAE clients.

Performance analytics

The performance analytics feature can help you in analyzing your trading history and provides insight based on three elements.

The feature is free for new City Index clients and can analyze your trading bases on psychological edges to identify how both winning and losing streaks impact your next trade, strategy edges that show your most traded products, and help identify any weakness this may cause, and finally, timing edges that can help you identify your best times to trade.

This feature again can be applied across any timeframe you want to look at and is also available on mobile under the “my trading history” tab. This feature is also not available for UAE clients

WSJ free for 1 year

Trading under MAS regulation only you may redeem 1 year of free access to The Wall Street Journal. This includes WSJ.com on any device and includes WSJ+ premium benefits program with fantastic additional events and offers. To qualify, you must open an account and meet the minimum deposit of $6,500.

Cash Rebates

These are also available under MAS regulation in Singapore and can be earned in cash monthly when you trade shares, forex, and indices.

When you trade at least the minimum volumes the rebates will be deposited in your account during the first week of each calendar month. The more you trade, the bigger the rebate.

Wallet

The broker does offer crypto trading but this is only available within Australia. Since they are also only traded as CFDs no wallet is required since you never own the underlying asset so you don’t need to store them.

Social Trading – Copy Trading

At the moment, City Index does not provide any features for Social-Copy trading although this could always change in the future.

How Is City Index Customer Service?

Languages

The City Index website itself is available in English. With that said, the broker is a worldwide operation and they also do have 4 physical locations in different parts of the world.

This means that the broker support team is available and can be contacted in different languages depending on both your needs and where they operate geographically.

There are separate phone numbers on which you can contact the broker support team. These correspond with your own trading location around the world.

Customer Service

The customer support team at City Index is very helpful, professional, and quick to reply to all of your questions. They can be contacted in a number of ways. These include through the live chat service hosted on their website, through email, or by phone that is specific to your location.

Of course, you also have the option of stopping by one of their physical office locations if you wish.

Does City Index Have Research And Education Services?

Research

Certain research tools are made available by the broker through their site. These include a detailed economic calendar that can help you stay up to date with any major events happening at the time. These can often move the market so it is useful to know.

They also provide for a good range of market news so you can be aware of the latest developments.

Webinars may also be scheduled that you can attend. These happen periodically and can feature insightful hosts, information, and more to provide you with the best possible information and opportunities to make your trades successful.

Education

In terms of educational content, City Index does well. They have an informative section dedicated to training that contains helpful information and guidance both for newer, and more experienced traders.

This range includes a variety of educational videos, articles, and practical examples on a wide range of trading topics.

The content can be very detailed and is in particular excellent when it comes to learning to trade with a focus on areas like an introduction to financial markets, optimizing your trade entries, and actually getting to grips with the City Index research tools and other elements of the broker.