How to Trade Futures in the US with Plus500

Futures are popular among traders thanks to the diversity of assets, ample leverage, absence of short-sale restrictions, and deep liquidity. Once the domain of professional hedgers and speculators, recent advances have made the futures market far more accessible to retail traders.

In 2023, Plus500 launched in the United States, offering US residents futures trading via its state-of-the-art platform. Plus500 has offered CFD trading in 60 countries since 2008. The fintech giant is listed on the London Stock Exchange (LSE: PLUS) and is part of the FTSE 250 index.

The US subsidiary, Plus500 US, is a member of the National Futures Association (NFA) and acquired Cunningham Commodities, a futures commission merchant registered with the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC). When you open an account with Plus500 US, Cunningham Commodities holds your funds in a segregated bank account, ensuring that customer funds are separated from the company’s funds.

With the combination of a minimum deposit of just $100, mini and micro futures contracts, and an ultra-intuitive platform, Plus500 US has opened up the world of futures to a broader range of traders.

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What Futures Contracts Can You Trade at Plus500?

Plus500 US offers a selection of the most popular futures contracts, including forex, equity indices, agriculture, metals, energy, interest rates, and cryptocurrencies. Here are the contracts traders can access at Plus500 US:

The range of available instruments at Plus500 US opens the door to the world’s financial markets. Whether you prefer highly volatile assets like gold or slow-moving instruments like the US T-Bond, there is a diverse range of assets at your fingertips.

E-Mini and Micro Futures Contracts

Mini and micro contracts allow traders to participate in future markets with very little capital. For example, the required intraday margin to trade the micro version of the popular E-mini S&P 500 is only $50 per contract. This means that with just $50, a trader can access a contract currently valued at $‪26,641.

The Plus500 Trading Platform

Plus500 platform developed its proprietary WebTrader platform, which excels in usability and intuitive design.

WebTrader enables users to smoothly create watchlists, analyze charts, enter trades, and track their positions in the market. A free demo account allows you to test your strategies risk-free, and you can toggle between demo and live trading with a single click. A dark mode option helps make the screen gentle on your eyes at night.

Sometimes, you need to pull up an instrument quickly, and WebTrader’s great search tool at the top of the screen makes it easy to find whatever asset you want to access.

Traders have the flexibility to use all standard order types: market orders, limit orders, and stop-loss orders. The order panel on the platform includes a handy feature that lets you set take profit and stop loss orders simultaneously with your initial order, enabling you to place all three orders at once.

Advanced Charts and Indicators

Charting capabilities are robust within the WebTrader platform. Traders can access multiple chart types, such as Candles, Renko, and Range Bars, across 11 different time frames.

Over 100 technical indicators are available – from momentum oscillators like MACD to trend analysis indicators like ADX. You’ll also find a treasure trove of unique indicators named after celebrated market technicians, like the Chande Forecast Oscillator, Darvas Box, and Guppy Multiple Moving Average, to name a few.

Classic drawing tools and overlays like Fibonacci retracement levels and Gann Fans provide technical analysts with a wealth of options to work with.

The platform layout is customizable, and a helpful feature called ‘multiple charts view’ allows you to see different charts laid out to your preference on the same screen. I find this an essential feature if you are doing any kind of intermarket analysis – for example, keeping an eye on crude oil while you are trading a commodity-correlated currency like the Canadian dollar.

Commissions and Fees

The costs of trading are very competitive at Plus500 US. Traders pay a commission, along with exchange and NFA fees. Standard contract commissions are $0.89, and Micro contract commissions are $0.49 per contract. Exchange and NFA Fees vary by contract.

Let’s take Euro FX as an example. The commission, along with exchange and NFA fees, add up to $‪2.51‬ per contract – a competitive rate in relation to the futures brokerage industry as a whole.

Plus500 US also keeps account-related fees to a minimum. There are no account maintenance or inactivity fees. The broker also doesn’t charge any fee for deposits and withdrawals.

Account Funding and Withdrawals

At Plus500 US, deposits and withdrawals are processed fast and securely without any unnecessary delays or hidden fees. There are no fees for deposits and withdrawals, including bank transfer and credit card.

Plus500 US supports popular payment providers, so clients can easily deposit and withdraw funds. Traders can transfer money via Visa, Mastercard, bank wire, or ACH bank transfer. In addition, the Plus500 Futures platform now supports Apple Pay – the first US trading platform to incorporate this payment method.

How Futures Trading Works

The futures market is made up of two main groups: hedgers and speculators. Futures contracts enable hedgers to manage risk. Individuals and businesses can manage the risk created by constantly fluctuating prices by using futures contracts to lock in a fixed price to buy or sell at a future date.

Check out our dedicated guide on Best forex broker for futures trading.

Meanwhile, speculators aim to profit from price swings in future markets (note that a loss could also occur). Speculators provide the market with liquidity and effectively take on the risk that the hedgers wish to offload.

Unlike over-the-counter derivatives like CFDs, futures are bought and sold via centralized exchanges like the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME). The Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) promotes the integrity of the US futures markets through careful regulation.

Benefits of Futures Trading

The futures market has several important advantages, especially when it comes to short-term trading.

• No restriction on day trading. In the US, ‘pattern’ day traders in the stock market must maintain a minimum balance of at least $25,000 when using a margin account. There is no such condition when day trading futures.
• Around-the-clock access. Futures markets are open nearly 24 hours a day, six days a week. This allows traders to speculate in a variety of markets outside US stock market hours.
• Deeply liquid markets. Liquidity ensures that orders can be executed fast and at stable prices, reducing the risk of slippage (when the execution price of a trade is different from its requested price).
• Ease of going short. Unlike in the stock market, you can take short positions as easily as long positions when trading futures. This means that traders have an unrestricted opportunity to profit, being aware of the risk from both rising and falling markets.
• Diverse asset classes. Futures contracts cover a wide range of assets, including stocks, commodities, currencies, interest rates, and indices.
• Transparent and regulated markets. Futures markets are transparent, with prices and trading volumes readily available to all traders. Regulators like the CFTC in the United States foster open, competitive, and financially sound markets and protect traders from fraud, manipulation, abusive practices, and systemic risk.
• Substantial leverage. When trading futures, you can make the most of the funds you have available. Futures contracts allow traders to control sizable amounts of an asset with a relatively small amount of capital. It’s a double-edged sword: leverage can amplify both gains and losses.

The Bottom Line

The futures market has several important advantages in relation to stocks: access to greater leverage, ease of going short, and the ability to day trade using margin with a relatively small account balance.

Plus500 US provides great conditions for new traders with a small minimum deposit of $100, mini and micro contracts, and low commissions. Often complex and cumbersome, futures trading platforms have, up until now, been mostly geared towards experienced traders. What really differentiates Plus500 US is its unique, beginner-friendly platform, which has taken the friction out of getting started in futures trading.

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FAQ

Does Plus500 US offer a demo account?

Yes, you can access a free demo account and test your trading strategies using live market data.

What are the hours for futures trading?

Futures markets trade nearly 24 hours a day, 6 days a week. Each futures contract has its own schedule.

How much money do I need to start trading?

In the case of Plus500 US, you can get started with as little as $100.

How can I deposit and withdraw funds at Plus500 US?

You can fund your account and make withdrawals via debit card or bank transfer.