The real cost of a CFD trade is the all-in cost: the spread (the gap between buy and sell price), plus any commission, plus overnight financing (swap) if you hold the position past the daily cut-off, plus any non-trading fees such as inactivity or currency conversion. A tight advertised spread alone does not tell you what trading will cost — you have to add every component for the instrument and account you actually use.
The spread: the most visible cost
The spread is the difference between the price at which you can buy an instrument and the price at which you can sell it at the same moment. It is the most visible cost of a CFD trade: you effectively start every position slightly behind, because you would buy at the higher 'ask' and sell at the lower 'bid'. Spreads are quoted in pips for forex and vary by instrument, by how liquid and volatile the market is, and by the time of day — a major pair like EUR/USD in active hours is typically tighter than an exotic pair or a thin market.
A 'spread-only' account folds the broker's charge into the spread, while a 'commission' or 'raw' account shows a tighter spread but adds a separate per-trade commission. Neither is automatically cheaper — you have to add the spread and the commission together to compare like for like. We deliberately do not publish specific spread figures for any broker until a hands-on review, because they change constantly; always read the broker's current pricing page for the instrument and account you will use.
Commission and account models
Many brokers offer more than one account model. A spread-only account charges nothing extra per trade but quotes a wider spread; a commission-based (often called 'raw' or 'razor') account quotes a much tighter spread but charges a fixed commission per lot traded each way. For a high-frequency trader moving large size, the commission model can work out cheaper; for an occasional trader placing small trades, the spread-only model can be simpler and sometimes cheaper overall.
The only way to know which is cheaper for you is to estimate your typical trade size and frequency, then add the spread cost and the commission together for each model. Do not assume the account with the tightest advertised spread is the cheapest — the commission can more than make up the difference. This is exactly why an honest comparison site refuses to reduce a broker to a single 'spread' number: the real answer depends on how you trade.
Overnight financing (swap)
Because a CFD is a leveraged position, holding it overnight usually incurs an overnight financing charge, often called a swap or rollover. In effect you are borrowing to hold a larger position than your deposit, and the financing reflects the cost of that borrowing, adjusted for the interest-rate difference between the two currencies in a forex pair. The charge is applied daily at a set cut-off time, and over several days or weeks it can become the dominant cost — far larger than the spread you paid to open.
Financing can occasionally be a small credit rather than a charge, depending on the direction of your trade and the interest-rate differential, but you should never count on that. The practical lesson is simple: if you intend to hold positions overnight or for several days, the swap is often the cost that matters most, and you must check the broker's current overnight financing rates for the specific instrument — not just the headline spread.
The fees that hide outside the headline
Beyond spread, commission and financing, brokers may charge several non-trading fees that are easy to overlook. Common ones include inactivity fees if you do not trade for a set period, currency-conversion fees when your trade or balance is in a different currency from your account base, and occasionally withdrawal fees. None of these appears in a headline spread, but all of them are part of the true cost of using a broker.
One thing that will not appear is a bonus: under ESMA and FCA rules, brokers cannot offer trading bonuses or cashback to retail clients in the EU or UK, so any 'bonus' is a red flag rather than a saving. To compare two brokers honestly, build the full picture — spread plus commission plus financing plus any non-trading fees for the way you actually trade — and read each broker's current fee schedule. The all-in cost is the only number that tells the truth.
Frequently asked questions
What is the spread in CFD trading?
The spread is the difference between the buy and sell price of an instrument at the same moment. It is the most visible cost of a CFD trade — you effectively start every position slightly behind. Spreads vary by instrument, liquidity, volatility and time of day.
What is overnight financing or swap?
Overnight financing (swap or rollover) is a daily charge for holding a leveraged CFD position past the broker's cut-off time. It reflects the cost of the borrowing implicit in leverage, adjusted for the interest-rate difference between the two currencies. Over several days it can become the dominant cost.
Is a tighter spread always cheaper?
No. A commission ('raw') account quotes a tighter spread but adds a per-trade commission, while a spread-only account is wider with no commission. You have to add spread and commission together — plus financing and any non-trading fees — to compare the true all-in cost for the way you trade.
Can a broker give me a bonus to lower my costs?
No. ESMA and FCA rules ban trading bonuses, cashback and other inducements to retail clients in the EU and UK. Any 'bonus' offer is a red flag — it is either non-compliant or routing you to an unregulated entity, not a genuine saving.
Sources & further reading
Spreadwise is an independent publisher comparing ESMA-regulated forex and CFD brokers across Europe and the UK. Our editorial desk verifies every regulatory claim against the regulator's own register and never accepts payment for a better review.