Other tools you may not have yet. These include a direct access brokerage, real-time market data, and a trading-charting platform. All these tools and services are broken down in greater detail below, so you can see what you need, and get your day trading career started on the right path. Traders need many tools for their active trading lifestyle. These include the basics of hardware, software, and other more standard physical desk items.
Computer or Laptop for Day Trading
Technology is constantly changing, so make sure you have a computer with enough memory and a fast enough processor that it isn’t constantly lagging, crashing or stalling (taking forever to load). Most trading and charting software require memory and processors that are fast and up to date. You may be jumping between company and broker websites and your charting software screens as you analyze a trade. Having two monitors is preferred, but not a necessity.
Day Trading Charting Software
Most brokers (discussed below) provide a number of software options that traders can use to trade and monitor the price charts of financial assets. Day traders want to use trading software that allows them to easily pull up price charts, with an option to view tick charts and timed charts (1-minute, 5-minute, hourly, etc). Different software is designed for different types of traders. Day traders need software that allows them to make trades quickly, without a lot of redundant or unnecessary steps. NinjaTrader is a popular software that allows for trading and charting. Overall, the software can be utilized in multiple ways. Some software programs are compatible with certain brokerages. Some brokerages have software for all in one access. In some cases, you may have software add-ins that can connect with your trading systems in different ways to support your trading efforts. Finding the best software for your trading needs and connecting it with your trading service is important for the success of your trading activities.
Telephone
If your internet isn’t available, you need a way to contact your broker other than email or online support. Have a landline, cell phone, or both available to you whenever you are trading. Have your broker’s phone number programmed into your phone in case you need to call them. Remember, you may not be able to look up their number if you don’t have internet access or your computer crashes.
Internet Access
Your internet should be fast enough that you can load web pages instantaneously. If it can’t do that, your internet connection may be too slow for day trading. When you day trade thousands of data points are streaming to your computer each second, as asset prices move. Your internet needs to keep up with that stream of constant data. If it can’t (or if your computer is too slow to process the data), you will experience lag. Lag is when you are receiving old data instead of the newest data…basically, you have a data backlog and can’t see current prices. Test out the different internet speeds offered by your internet service provider. Choose the one which provides fast webpage load-times and doesn’t cause your trading software to lag.
Backup Internet Access
Services outages occasionally occur. Ideally, you want to be able to access your trading platform if an internet service outage occurs. A convenient way to do this is through a smartphone, which has internet access through a mobile data plan or hot spot. The plan should be provided by a different company than your internet service provider. That way, if your normal internet goes down, you can access the internet and your broker through your Smart Phone plan.
Day Trading Brokerage
To be a day trader you need a broker—a company that facilitates your trades. Not all brokers are created equal, and some cater to day traders more than others. Day traders who make a lot of trades have benefited greatly from the switch to zero-commission trading that most U.S.-based stockbrokers undertook in late 2019. Some brokers’ trading platforms work better for day trading than others, but this is largely dependent on the trader’s preferences. Major banks offer brokerage services, but typically their commissions are high and they don’t offer customized solutions to day traders. Therefore, smaller but regulated brokers are recommended for day traders. If you have trading software that you like to use, then search for brokers that allow their traders to use that software. That will narrow down the number of brokers you need to research and choose from. Different brokerages also have different access levels to markets. If you trade stocks, options, futures, and forex, you may need to use different brokers.
Timely Market Data
Trading requires a constant stream of financial data, created by the movement of prices in the assets and markets you are trading. Your broker will provide you with market data, but you need to request the type of data you want. If you want to trade stocks, you need stock market data. You must specify if you want data for the NYSE or NASDAQ stock exchange, for example, if you want to see Level II data. If you trade futures, you need to specify which contracts you are trading so you can see the pricing information for that specific contract. With many brokers you pay for stock and futures market data, so only subscribe to data you need. Some brokers give you all market data for free, but typically their commissions are higher in exchange. Forex brokers typically provide data for all forex pairs for free, so you just need to open a chart to see the price data.
A Final Word on Day Trading Tools and Services
These are the basic tools you need for day trading. A reliable and quick computer or laptop is a must, along with a telephone and trading-charting software. You also need a quick and reliable internet connection. Also, consider getting a smartphone with a plan that you can use as a backup internet source. Find a broker you like, that is regulated, offers low commissions and provides a trading/charting software you like. Once that is all in place, then subscribe to the market data you want, based on which markets you will be trading.
