Trading online is quite popular these days, to the point where the platform you use matters immensely. Every trader is different though, and that’s why you want to have access to very specific features, depending on the trading style and requirements. Hence the reason why we made a list with the top trading features every major trading platform needs to have.
A user-friendly interface
It’s the most basic thing that you want to have here, from clean navigation to a customizable dashboard, easy account management, responsive design and quick access to your favorite assets. Being able to access all the features you want in a single place is great, and adapting that to your specific requirements is only going to make things better in the end.
Reliable and fast trading
Speed can make a difference between success and failure, especially in the trading world. What you need to do is focus on low latency order execution, stable servers, minimal downtime, fast order confirmation, reliable execution during market volatility and so on.
Advanced charting tools
Modern trading platforms need to have great charts, especially if you want to focus on trading analysis. And thankfully, the top brokers tend to deliver this type of stuff. They usually give you multiple chart styles, line or bar charts, adjustable time frames, zoom functionality and split-screen analysis. Plus, many of these platforms will help you save chart layouts for future use, which is extremely helpful to keep in mind here.
A large library of technical indicators
Technical indicators are good if you want to identify volatility, trends and momentum. Plus, they help you identify exit and entry points. Modern platforms need to have dozens or even hundreds of these. Some of them even offer the means to create custom indicators. And that’s great, because the value is excellent and there are plenty of benefits to be had from having access to various indicators.
Real-time market data
Delayed pricing is not that accepted in the current markets. Hence the reason why you want to have accurate real-time data which allows traders to make informed decisions according to the market conditions. Platforms should offer live pricing, market depth, volume information, real-time news integration and so on. These updates help because active traders rely on timely information. And since you’re not always getting that, it makes sense to adjust and properly adapt to everything accordingly.
Multiple order types
That’s the thing, you want to have a variety of order types in there as well. some need market orders, others want limited orders or stop-loss and maybe even stop-limit orders. Having access to a variety of order types is important because it gives more control and flexibility to traders. And that does help quite a lot, especially for traders that have vast knowledge and unique strategies.
Risk management tools
The best trading platforms out there will always try to add some risk management tools. And that’s the thing, you will always have some type of risks related to trading. Knowing how to manage the risk is crucial, and that can help you quite a bit. You want to have position sizing calculators, margin monitoring, take-profit orders, maximum daily loss alerts, portfolio exposure analysis and so on. All of these features are good, because they help you make better trading decisions. And in doing so, the outcome is much better every time.
Multi-asset trading
Yes, trading various types of assets is a major part of the process, and it can indeed make a difference. Most investors are relying on the idea of using different asset types. And the truth is that it can be extremely useful, especially in the long term. Stocks, ETFs, options, futures, Forex, bonds, commodities and crypto, those are only a few of the many asset types that you want to focus on here.
Mobile app
We always think that having a mobile trading app is going to matter quite a lot. and that’s because people want to trade on the go, and they are trying to find new ways of doing that. It’s definitely not an easy thing, but once you start adjusting and implementing that properly, it’s only going to get better in the long term.
Custom watch list
You can’t expect yourself to manually watch hundreds of securities. The role of a watch list is to automate that for you. Some of the best trading platforms out there have multiple watch lists, custom categories, color coding, performance tracking, price alerts, volume and news alerts. They can help find opportunities more effectively.
Personalized notifications and alerts
The thing to consider with alerts and notifications is that they can keep you updated when it comes to a lot of important stuff. You can know when there are volume spikes, when there are price movements, news headlines, dividend dates, technical indicator signals and so on. Notifications have to be available via the desktop, email and mobile apps, too.
Portfolio analytics
Good investing requires you to do portfolio evaluation. That means you want to check the returns, asset allocation, sector exposure, geographic diversification, dividend income, risk metrics, historical performance and unrealized gains and losses.
Plus, the best trading platforms will always have things like educational resources. These resources, be it guides, tutorials, webinars, strategy guides, glossaries or demo accounts will help a whole lot more than expected. And it’s all in good fun, because it gives you tremendous value, and the experience as well as quality are among some of the best on the market.
Conclusion
We are always focused on using the best and most effective trading platforms out there. And the truth is that you can find a variety of options on the market. All the various trading platforms are great, but each has its own flair, feature set and benefits. Your focus is on assessing what features you are interested in, and then slowly adapt to it. Yes, it does take a little while until you can access what you are looking for, but in the end, having an excellent trading platform is only going to make things better!
