Options trading has grown enormously in popularity over the past few years, as investors look for new ways to generate income, hedge their portfolios, or take leveraged exposure to specific market views.
An option is a contract linked to an underlying asset. If you’re more familiar with trading stocks or ETFs (where you buy in units of shares), options work differently – a single contract typically represents 100 shares of the underlying stock, which means options give you leveraged exposure relative to the same dollar amount in shares.
Unfortunately, the number of brokers offering proper options trading is still limited for UK investors. Most of the well-known UK platforms either don’t offer options at all, or only offer them via CFDs rather than real listed contracts.
In this article, we review the leading options brokers available in the UK to help you choose the right platform. Our criteria include the trading platform, regulation, number of options contracts available, minimum deposits, and customer service.
Video breakdown
Best Options trading platforms in the UK
Options brokers are what you came looking for, so here are our top picks:
Interactive Brokers
Founded in 1978, IBKR is one of the world’s most trustworthy brokers worldwide. The minimum commission for US options is just $1 per trade. You have access to options trading in North America, Europe and the Asia Pacific.
💡 Interactive Brokers also launched IBKR GlobalTrader, a modern mobile trading app to trade Stocks, Options and ETFs, ideal for novice investors.
Firstrade
A US-based broker offering commission-free US options trading (only) to all its users worldwide. For European investors, an outgoing wire transfer costs $25.
tastytrade
A brokerage firm dedicated to stocks, ETFs, cryptocurrencies, futures and options trading. The option pricing starts at $1 to open a contract with a $10 cap per trade ($0 to close a contract).
TradeStation
A broker offering a wide range of products, including US options from $0.60 per contract.
#1 Interactive Brokers
IB at a glance
Founded in 1978 and publicly listed on NASDAQ (ticker: IBKR), Interactive Brokers is a global online broker that has weathered multiple major financial crises while maintaining a rigorous risk management process. The firm joined the S&P 500 in 2024, marking its arrival as a true large-cap company.
IBKR is designed for individuals and institutions alike, offering global access to stocks, ETFs, options, futures, currencies, bonds, mutual funds, and real cryptocurrencies across 170+ markets in 36+ countries – all accessible from a single, integrated account.
Options trading is offered on 30+ market centres globally, with US options pricing starting at $0.65 per contract on the tiered plan (or $1 per contract on the fixed plan, depending on which structure suits your trading style). The platform includes advanced options tools such as OptionTrader, Option Analytics, Strategy Builder, and the Rollover Options Tool – covering everything from position management to multi-leg strategy construction and Greeks-based risk analysis. IBKR Campus (formerly Traders’ Academy) provides extensive educational material to help deepen your knowledge of options trading.
As a separate offering, Interactive Brokers also owns IBKR GlobalTrader, a mobile-first app aimed at newcomers to investing. The app supports stock, options, and ETF trading with a simplified interface, alongside features such as automatic currency conversions, fractional shares, and a demo account.
Want to know more about Interactive Brokers? Check our Interactive Brokers review.
#2 Firstrade
Firstrade at a glance
Founded in 1985 and based in the US, Firstrade is a discount broker offering commission-free trading on stocks, ETFs, options, mutual funds, and crypto, with solid order execution, a long track record, and a strong reputation. Firstrade is regulated by the SEC and FINRA and is a member of SIPC (protecting customer accounts up to $500,000, including $250,000 in cash).
While Firstrade accepts clients from around 30 countries (including the UK, Germany, France, Italy, Hong Kong, and Singapore), its product portfolio is limited to US-listed financial products. The platform also lacks some features that more advanced investors value: fractional shares trading, forex, futures, and CFDs are not available.
Options trading on Firstrade is competitively priced: $0 commission per trade and $0 per contract, with no exchange, exercise, or assignment fees. The options trading platform is at a mid-to-advanced level, offering access to options chains, risk/reward profiles for each trade, and a fully integrated OptionsPlay strategy analysis tool. The platform also provides free options courses for self-education.
Finally, Firstrade’s base currency is USD. If you deposit in pound sterling (GBP), you will incur currency conversion fees on both deposit and withdrawal. A practical workaround is to convert your GBP to USD beforehand using a low-cost currency service such as Wise or Revolut, and then send USD directly to your Firstrade account.
#3 Tastytrade
tastytrade at a glance
Tastytrade, formerly known as Tastyworks, is a US-based online brokerage firm focused on options trading, with additional access to stocks, ETFs, futures, and crypto. The platform was built by Tom Sosnoff and Scott Sheridan – the same team behind the original thinkorswim trading platform (now part of Charles Schwab following the TD Ameritrade integration in 2023).
Tastytrade offers competitive options pricing: $1 per contract to open (with a $10 cap per leg) on stock and ETF options, $2.50 per contract on futures options, and $1.50 per contract on micro futures options. No commission is charged to close any options position, which is genuinely useful for active strategies that involve frequent rolling and closing.
Note that direct tastytrade accounts are available primarily to US residents and (via tastytrade UK) to UK residents – so UK readers can access the platform through the FCA-regulated tastytrade UK entity.
On the downside, tastytrade’s low options fees don’t make up for the limited product range for casual traders or passive investors – no mutual funds, no bonds, and no fractional shares. Wire transfer fees can also reach $75 per outbound transfer, which is steep if you withdraw funds frequently.
Although tastytrade can feel intimidating for beginners, it offers an extensive ecosystem of educational materials and research tools through tastylive, the firm’s daily live programming and content network, which is one of the strongest options-focused educational ecosystems available online.
#4 TradeStation
Tradestation at a glance
Founded in 1982, TradeStation is a US broker with over 40+ years of experience, committed to delivering an institutional-grade trading experience to active traders. You can trade stocks, ETFs, options, futures, and crypto with competitive pricing across the board.
Options pricing on TradeStation starts at $0.60 per contract on the standard plan (with no flat per-trade fee on most accounts, as the older $5 ticket charge was phased out for retail clients), with full access to real-time market data included. The platform is built with powerful and intuitive tools designed for both intermediate and advanced traders. The in-house OptionStation Pro module lets you quickly build and visualise options chains, analyse multi-leg strategy scenarios with payoff diagrams and Greeks, and execute trades directly to market – all without leaving the analysis view.
TradeStation also offers a substantial library of multimedia educational and training resources – including video tutorials, webinars, and live trading workshops – designed to help traders continuously sharpen their skills. Note, however, that TradeStation primarily serves US residents, so UK readers should verify account eligibility before applying.
What makes a good broker for options trading
When choosing an online broker, several factors should be considered. For options trading in particular, some factors play a more important role than others:
- 📈 Trading platform: there are plenty of brokers that let you buy stocks or ETFs, but options trading requires a more sophisticated platform. To assess the right strategy for your market view, you need to monitor key inputs such as call and put prices, time to expiration, strike prices, implied volatility, and the Greeks (delta, gamma, theta, vega). Having an intuitive platform that surfaces this information clearly – and ideally offers multi-leg strategy builders and payoff diagrams – is essential.
- 💰 Fees: options trading is typically a more frequent activity than buy-and-hold investing because of the finite life of each contract, meaning transaction costs add up quickly. Lower per-contract commissions (and ideally $0 to close) give you more flexibility to enter, adjust, and exit positions without fees eating into your edge.
- 📥 Real-time notifications and alerts: timely updates on price moves, news, and corporate events affecting the underlying asset are critical for options traders. For example, if you hold a call option on Apple expiring shortly after an earnings release, the post-earnings move could materially change your position – and you may want to act before or immediately after the announcement.
- 📚 Education and research: options strategies involve concepts (volatility, Greeks, multi-leg structures) that genuinely benefit from quality educational material. A broker that invests in tutorials, webinars, and strategy walkthroughs gives you a meaningful edge – particularly when you’re still developing your approach.
- 🌍 UK availability and regulation: not every US options broker accepts UK residents, and the ones that do may operate through different entities with different regulatory protections. Confirm that the broker (a) accepts UK clients, (b) supports the option products you want, and (c) provides clear regulatory protections under FCA, SIPC, or equivalent frameworks.
Other resources
If you’re still unsure which platform to choose, feel free to explore our website and our YouTube channel, where we cover the best brokers across several regions, alongside step-by-step guides for getting started on each platform.
If you’d like personalised guidance, you can contact us or book a meeting.
Bottom line
Options trading can feel intimidating at first, but once you understand the mechanics, it opens up strategies and exposures that mainstream investments like stocks and ETFs simply don’t offer. With options, you can pre-define your maximum risk going into a trade, control a larger notional position with a smaller capital outlay, generate income through covered strategies, and hedge existing positions – capabilities that single-name stock investing alone can’t replicate.
That said, there are caveats specific to options trading in the UK that you should be aware of. Some platforms advertise pricing structures aimed primarily at the US market – and the headline fees may not fully reflect what UK residents will pay (e.g. currency conversion fees, regulatory differences, higher minimum charges, etc.). We’ve flagged these instances in the platform breakdowns above.
Options trading also carries genuine risk: while you can limit your downside on long options to the premium paid, short option strategies can produce significant losses, and even buying options can result in the entire premium being lost if the trade moves against you or simply expires worthless. Start small, use limit orders, and consider paper trading first before deploying real capital.
We hope this article has been useful in narrowing your options.
FAQs
Can you buy Options in the UK?
Yes, UK traders can also trade options.
Can you trade Options on Trading 212?
No, you can’t trade Options in Trading 212.
Can you trade options on Stake?
No, you can’t trade Options in Stake.
Can you trade Options on Revolut?
No, you can’t trade Options in Revolut.
