Spread Betting Calculator (UK & Ireland)
Size a spread bet from your risk, and see its margin and funding.
Try before you buy.
- Free preview: the stake per point in full, with the first rows of each table (up to 3) and a watermarked chart; every other figure is hidden.
- Locked until you unlock it: download and copy.
- Unlock: Pro pass, ₹179 for 30 days, a one-time payment that never renews.
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Profit or loss at each closing price
Outcomes
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For education only, not investment advice: no tool here tells you what to buy, sell or hold. Results use only the figures you enter, the files you load (read in your browser, never uploaded) and the published rules each page names. Check them against your broker's or exchange's own figures, and consider a licensed or registered adviser for advice on your situation.
About the Spread Betting Calculator (UK & Ireland)
A spread bet pays or costs your stake per point for every point the market moves. This calculator works the stake out from the money you are willing to lose and the distance to your stop — or takes the stake you choose — and shows the profit at your target, the loss at your stop, the money at risk, the bet’s position value and the margin it needs at the retail rate, the overnight funding for the nights you hold it, and the move that covers the spread and the funding.
It is for bets in the UK (in pounds) and in Ireland (in euros). Margin rates start from the FCA’s retail minimums in the UK — 5% for a major index such as the FTSE 100, 3.33% for pairs of major currencies, 10% for other indices and commodities, 20% for shares — and from ESMA’s retail CFD limits, on which Ireland’s own measures are based; your provider may ask for more, and every figure is editable. Funding uses the benchmark rate and markup your provider publishes, which you type.
How to use it
- Choose where you bet (UK or Ireland), the market type and the direction, and enter the opening price and the point size.
- Enter your stake per point, or choose “From my risk” and enter the money you are willing to lose and a stop price: the stake follows.
- Add a target price, and under Margin and costs check the margin rate and enter the spread and any guaranteed-stop premium.
- Under Overnight funding enter your provider’s benchmark rate, its markup and the nights you expect to hold the bet.
- Read the stake, the P&L at the target and the stop, the margin and the funding; then copy the summary or download the outcomes as CSV — with a pass, or after unlocking this result.
Examples
Buy at 8,000, £5 a point, close at 8,050
+£250.00 (50 points × £5)
Stop at 7,960; margin 5%; funding at 4.5% + 2.5% (example rates)
Risk £200.00 · position value £40,000 · margin £2,000.00 · funding £7.67 a night
£100 to risk with a 40-point stop
£2.50 a point
Common uses
- Size a spread bet so the stop loses no more than a set amount.
- Check the margin a bet needs at the FCA’s retail rates before you open it.
- See what holding a bet for a few weeks costs in overnight funding.
- Compare the profit at your target with the money at risk.
The formulas
- P&L = (closing price − opening price) ÷ point size × stake × direction (+1 for a buy, −1 for a sell).
- Stake = risk ÷ stop distance in points.
- Position value = opening price ÷ point size × stake; margin = position value × margin rate.
- Funding a night = position value × (benchmark + markup) ÷ 365 for a buy; a sell pays the markup less the benchmark (and receives the difference when the benchmark is higher).
The retail margin minimums and the close-out rule are the FCA’s COBS 22.5 in the UK and ESMA’s Decision 2018/796) in Ireland, whose own national measures replaced it (ESMA on the national measures).
Reading the results
- Stake per point is exact; providers take stakes in steps, so the calculator also rounds a stake worked out from your risk down to the penny or cent, which keeps the loss at your stop within your amount.
- Money at risk is the loss if the stop is filled at its price, plus a guaranteed-stop premium. A normal stop can be filled at a worse price when the market gaps.
- Margin is what the provider holds while the bet is open. Under the retail rules it closes bets when your equity falls below half the margin.
- Break-even move is the points the market must move your way to pay the spread, the funding and a guaranteed-stop premium.
What it leaves out
Tax: no tax figures are shown. Also the provider’s own minimum stakes, dividend adjustments on index and share bets, rollover costs of dated bets, slippage and gaps past your stop, and changes of the benchmark rate while the bet is open.
Limitations
- Margin rates are the retail minimums; your provider may ask for more, and professional clients are not covered.
- Funding uses one benchmark and markup for every night you enter.
- Point sizes and contract details differ between providers: check your provider’s market information.
- It calculates from your numbers and uses no market data: it says nothing about where any price is going.
Privacy
Everything happens in your browser. What you enter or open here is not uploaded or stored by MySmartCoPilot.
Frequently asked questions
What do I get without a pass?
Without a pass, Spread Betting Calculator (UK & Ireland) shows the stake per point in full, with the first rows of each table (up to 3) and a watermarked chart; every other figure is hidden. Until you unlock it, the result can’t be downloaded or copied. A Pro, Premium or Ultimate pass, a one-time payment that never renews, unlocks the full result. The pricing page lists the passes and their prices.
How do I work out my stake per point?
Divide the money you are willing to lose by the distance to your stop in points. With £100 to risk and a stop 40 points away, the stake is £2.50 a point.
How much margin does a spread bet need?
The position value times the margin rate. £5 a point on the FTSE 100 at 8,000 is a £40,000 position; at the FCA’s 5% retail rate for a major index the margin is £2,000.
How is overnight funding on a spread bet charged?
On the position value at the provider’s benchmark rate plus its markup, divided by 365, for each night. A £40,000 buy at 4.5% + 2.5% costs about £7.67 a night. A sell pays the markup less the benchmark.
What is a guaranteed stop?
A stop the provider fills at its price even if the market gaps past it, for a premium in points. Enter the premium to include it in the money at risk and the break-even move.
Does it work for spread bets in Ireland?
Yes. Choose Ireland: amounts are in euros and the margin rates start from ESMA’s retail CFD limits, on which Ireland’s own national measures are based. Check them against your provider’s.