This free Excel CFD trading journal template is built specifically for the four cost layers that make CFD tracking different from every other instrument: leverage, margin, overnight financing, and spread-embedded entry costs. Download the spreadsheet, enter your broker’s financing rate once, and every trade you log will show you true net P&L — not the distorted gross number that generic templates report.
What’s Included
- Trade log with leverage and margin columns — records actual leverage used per trade (e.g., 10:1 vs the 20:1 ESMA maximum for indices) and auto-calculates the margin locked based on position value and leverage ratio
- Spread cost capture at entry — multiplies bid-ask spread in points by contract size and point value to produce a pound or dollar cost; this is an immediate P&L debit, not a hidden rounding error
- Overnight financing calculator — uses the formula (position value × annual rate) ÷ 365 × nights held; enter your broker’s annualized rate once in the Settings sheet and the template handles every trade from there
- Adjusted net P&L column — deducts spread cost and cumulative financing charges from gross price movement to show what the trade actually returned after all fees
- Margin utilization tracker — shows each trade’s margin as a percentage of account equity, and aggregates open positions in the Summary sheet to reveal total exposure
- Hold duration flag — highlights any position held more than 3 nights in amber and more than 7 nights in red, prompting a financing cost review before the drag compounds further
- Asset class tabs — separate sheets for indices, FX, commodities, individual stocks, and crypto, pre-loaded with ESMA leverage caps (30:1 FX majors, 20:1 indices, 10:1 commodities, 5:1 stocks, 2:1 crypto) and ASIC equivalents
How to Use
Step 1: Enter Your Account Size and Leverage Limits
Open the Settings sheet and enter your total account equity in cell B2. In the leverage table (B5:C10), confirm or adjust the maximum leverage by asset class for your jurisdiction. ESMA-regulated brokers (UK, EU) cap retail traders at 20:1 for major indices; ASIC-regulated brokers (Australia) introduced matching limits in 2021. These values feed the leverage utilization column in the trade log.
Step 2: Log Each Trade on Entry
In the Trade Log sheet, fill columns A through H: date, instrument, direction (long/short), entry price, number of contracts, leverage ratio used, and your broker’s annualized overnight financing rate for that instrument. Cell I2 calculates position value automatically. Cell J2 calculates margin locked as position value ÷ leverage used. Do this at open — not after close — so the template can flag financing costs while the trade is live.
Step 3: Record Spread Cost at Entry
Enter the bid-ask spread in points in column K. Column L multiplies this by contracts and point value to show an immediate pound or dollar cost. On a Shell (SHEL.L) CFD with a 3-point spread, 20 contracts, and £1/point value, column L shows £60 — money paid the moment the position opens, before the market moves at all.
Step 4: Track Financing and Close the Trade
Each day the position remains open, update the nights held counter in column M. Column N recalculates the financing charge in real time using (position value × annual rate ÷ 365 × nights held). When you close, enter the exit price in column O. Columns P and R then show gross P&L and adjusted net P&L side by side.
Step 5: Analyze the Summary Sheet Weekly
Sort the Summary sheet by the Financing Cost % column to find trades where financing exceeded 10% of gross profit — a common pattern among traders who plan short-term entries but let positions drift for weeks. The 70–80% retail loss rate required on FCA and ESMA broker disclosures is driven in part by this exact cost erosion going untracked.
Key Benefits
- Full cost visibility — spread cost and overnight financing are first-class P&L line items, not footnotes
- Regulatory context built in — ESMA and ASIC leverage caps pre-loaded so you can track how aggressively you are using available leverage
- Hold duration early warning — the color-coded flag catches the most common CFD novice trap: a ‘short-term’ trade drifting for weeks while financing quietly eats the profit
- Accurate win rate — because adjusted net P&L is calculated per trade, your win rate and average winner reflect reality, not the inflated gross number
- No account required — download, open in Excel or Google Sheets, and start logging immediately
Template vs JournalPlus App
| Feature | This Template | JournalPlus App |
|---|---|---|
| Trade Import | Manual entry | Auto-import from IG Markets, Pepperstone, eToro, and 50+ brokers |
| Overnight Financing | Manual rate entry | Pulled from broker execution data |
| Spread Cost Capture | Manual spread entry at open | Captured from actual execution prices |
| Adjusted Net P&L | Formula-driven, requires correct inputs | Real-time with verified fee data |
| Margin Utilization | Manual account equity update | Live balance sync |
| Multi-Broker View | One broker per file | All accounts consolidated |
| Analytics | Summary sheet with basic aggregates | 30+ performance metrics including per-instrument fee analysis |
| Price | Free | $159 one-time, lifetime access |
This template is a complete, working CFD journal that handles every cost layer correctly. When trade volume grows and manual entry becomes the bottleneck, JournalPlus connects directly to your CFD broker and automates everything the spreadsheet calculates by hand.
The Real Cost of Ignoring Fees: A Worked Example
Consider a UK trader who buys 20 CFDs on Shell (SHEL.L) at 2,650p per share using 5:1 leverage. Position value: £5,300. Margin required: £1,060. The spread at entry is 3 points × 20 contracts = £60, which leaves the account immediately. The trader holds for 12 days while Shell moves to 2,710p — a gross gain of 60p × 20 contracts = £120. Overnight financing at 5.5% annualized adds (£5,300 × 5.5%) ÷ 365 × 12 = £9.59.
True net P&L: £120 − £60 spread − £9.59 financing = £50.41.
A generic stock trading journal template records this trade as a £120 winner. This CFD template records it as a £50.41 winner with a 57.9% cost drag — information that directly informs whether the trade setup was worth taking at all.
Download
Download the free CFD Trading Journal Template and start capturing the full cost picture on every trade. No account required — open in Excel 2016 or later, or import directly into Google Sheets.
Frequently Asked Questions
What makes a CFD trading journal different from a regular stock journal?
CFD trades carry costs that stock trades do not — overnight financing charges, spread-embedded entry costs, and leverage-amplified margin requirements. A CFD-specific journal template captures all four cost layers so your net P&L reflects what you actually made or lost, not just the price difference between entry and exit.
How do I calculate overnight financing costs for CFD trades?
The standard formula is (position value × annualized rate) ÷ 365 × number of nights held. For example, a £5,300 position at 5.5% annualized held for 12 nights costs (£5,300 × 0.055) ÷ 365 × 12 = £9.59. Most major CFD brokers charge SOFR or LIBOR plus a markup of 2–3%, resulting in total annualized rates of roughly 4.5–6% on long positions.
Is this CFD journal template suitable for UK and Australian traders?
Yes. The template includes pre-configured leverage cap columns for both ESMA (UK/EU) and ASIC (Australia) regulations. ESMA limits retail traders to 20:1 on major indices and 30:1 on major FX pairs; ASIC introduced matching caps in 2021. These limits are set in the Settings sheet and flag trades that approach or exceed the regulatory maximum.
Can I use this template for spread betting as well as CFDs?
The cost structure for spread betting is similar — you still pay a spread at entry and overnight financing on positions held past market close — so most columns map directly. The key difference is that spread betting uses stake-per-point rather than contract size, so you would need to adjust the position value formula in column I from (price × contracts × point value) to (price × stake-per-point).
How do I track margin utilization across multiple open CFD positions?
The Summary sheet aggregates margin locked across all open trades and divides by your account equity to show total margin utilization as a percentage. Update the account equity cell in Settings whenever you deposit, withdraw, or your balance changes materially. Keeping total margin utilization below 30–40% of account equity is a commonly cited risk management guideline for CFD traders.
