It can be intimidating to opt for a forex trading platform when you first start trading – here are some characteristics that any excellent forex trading platform need to have:
Safety
Does the forex broker give details about the security measures of its platform? Your trading and personal information should really be encrypted, so that your income and identity are secure, whether or not you are paying and getting paid by means of PayPal or on the internet bank transfers.
The forex broker ought to also offer suggestions on how to increase your on the net security – I’d be extremely suspicious of a single that did not since they could possibly be generating themselves liable if there are any troubles.
Also, are there backup systems where your information can be stored in case of an IT dilemma?
Reliability
When can you use the forex trading platform? As forex is a 24-hour a day market place, 5.five days a week, appear for anything that you can use constantly. Even when the market place is closed, you want to be able to location orders to open when the marketplace does.
The trading platform should also be efficient – if it is slow then the rates at which you are trading could possibly be out of date. A excellent forex trading platform must update many instances a second.
One-click trading
If a forex trading platform is unreliable, slow or prone to interruption, a trader can miss a speedy opportunity. A platform that presents a single-click trading will let you to acquire or sell forex contract with a single click, which indicates there is no need to have to deal a ticket, and you will not miss the price you want.
Trading style suitability
Does the trading platform suit your trading style?
Is it straightforward to comprehend, or can it only be interpreted by a Wall St retiree? Appear for a platform exactly where it is
uncomplicated to search for your marketplace, and, if you want to trade extra than forex, appear for one that also makes it possible for you to trade on shares, alternatives and indices.
Where are you trading from? If you use a Mac, can you use the platform on it? Likewise, can the plan be accessed working with different browsers and distinctive smart-phone handsets.
Generally, does it do what you want? A excellent forex trading platform need to be customisable to suit your trading method – does it permit automated trading, and does it allow you to micromanage each trade. The trading platform must be in a position to alert you to great trading opportunities, as effectively as accept complex orders, including the various stops and profits that the forex broker gives, so you can simply minimise your danger though maximising your earnings.
Charts
Does the forex trading platform have a separate charting platform, and how easy is it to navigate? And, if you want to trade from your iPhone or Blackberry, can you access these from your handset? And, can you trade directly from the charts, or do you need to have to deal a ticket?
Based on your level of experience, you may well want a charting package with a pattern recognition tool that will monitor the markets on your behalf, and could even let you know when the chart patterns are indicating trading opportunities.
And, if you want to trade forex all through the day, it is necessary that the charts are updated in actual-time.
Industry Evaluation
Does your forex broker offer you market place analyses, and is this readily available working with their trading platform or do you need to have to take a look at their internet site?
A superior forex trading platform must consist of market place evaluation tools, such as news feeds, in-residence investigation and third-celebration research. As facts is power, you want to be able to access as substantially of it as possible, and to have access to it without having crawling the internet for the information you have to have.
Any trading that gives market place evaluation really should also have historical information obtainable, so you can see how the forex was affected when a similar situation occurred.
Value
Is the platform no cost? A lot of on line forex trading platforms provided by trustworthy brokers are free, and your only costs will be if you make a loss.
If forex trading software program is not free, or if there is a nominal charge, come across out what the added positive aspects are. And, if it isn’t no cost, is there a dollars-back guarantee if you are not delighted with the software program?
Price tag, two
Does the trading platform present the very same pip spreads as the broker has advertised, or do you have to have to phone to get the very best deal?
A pip is a .0001 unit of currency, and the pip spread is the difference between the acquire and sell price of your currencies – so if the AUD/USD is quoted at 1.0578/1.0579, the sell cost is 1.0578 and the get value is 1.0579. For any spread, the price of the currency needs to make up the distinction of the spread ahead of you can make a profit. So, in the example, if you invest in at 1.0579, the AUD only requires to rise two pips from 1.0578 to 1.0560 for you to make a profit. If there is a three pip spread, the currency would have to move by four pips prior to you made a profit.
Is your forex broker just interested in getting you an account, or do they provide ongoing help for shoppers using the trading platform?
You must be in a position to email and/or telephone your broker with questions ranging from putting trades to the button on your trading platform that is not carrying out what you want.