11 Best Trading Platforms for Day Trading of March 2024 - NerdWallet (2024)

FAQs

What platform is best for day trading? ›

With a $10,000 account, a good day might bring in a five percent gain, which is $500. However, day traders also need to consider fixed costs such as commissions charged by brokers. These commissions can eat into profits, and day traders need to earn enough to overcome these fees [2].

Liquid stocks are more easily day-traded and tend to be more discounted than other stocks, making them cheaper. In addition, equity offered by corporations with higher market capitalizations is often more liquid than corporations with lower market caps.

Leverage. Day traders often use leverage for their investments. This means trading with borrowed money, using margin. Margin trading has the chance for much higher gains if your trades go well, but you can lose money much more quickly too.

Overview: Swing trading is an excellent starting point for beginners. It strikes a balance between the fast-paced day trading and long-term investing.

A common approach for new day traders is to start with a goal of $200 per day and work up to $800-$1000 over time. Small winners are better than home runs because it forces you to stay on your plan and use discipline. Sure, you'll hit a big winner every now and then, but consistency is the real key to day trading.

You're really probably going to need closer to 4,000 or $5,000 in order to make that $100 a day consistently. And ultimately it's going to be a couple of trades a week where you total $500 a week, so it's going to take a little bit more work.

Conclusion. The most profitable form of trading varies based on individual preferences, risk tolerance, and market conditions. Day trading offers rapid profits but demands quick decision-making, while position trading requires patience for long-term gains.

4% of people were able to make a living with adequate capital, access to mentors, and practicing multiple hours every day during the week. Roughly 10% to 15% could make some money, but not enough to make it worth their while to continue trying to do it for a career.

Who is the number one day trader? ›

George Soros - earned $1 billion in 1 day. Of course, George Soros is one of the top Forex traders. Perhaps, he is the best Forex trader in the world, and, for sure, he is the best day trader in the world.

Summary of the best trading platforms:

Interactive Brokers. SoFi Active Investing. E*TRADE. TradeStation.

Let profits run and cut losses short Stop losses should never be moved away from the market. Be disciplined with yourself, when your stop loss level is touched, get out. If a trade is proving profitable, don't be afraid to track the market.

You can day trade without $25k in accounts with brokers that do not enforce the Pattern Day Trader rule, which typically applies to U.S. stock markets. Consider forex or futures markets, which have different regulations and often lower entry barriers for day trading. Swing trading is another option.

Start with small trades

With $500, ensure that your trades make you just a few dollars each. As We wrote above, a strategy that makes you $10 per day will be a good one. Doing the opposite will expose you to significant risks since it will increase the potential loss that you can make.

If you're starting with just $1,000, focus on one or two stocks. Only trade these stocks. Another option is to do research every day on what stocks are going to do well. If you're just starting out, trying to take in that much information can be overwhelming.

Day trading on Robinhood can be an exciting way to potentially profit from short-term market movements. However, the Pattern Day Trader (PDT) rule requires traders to maintain a minimum account balance of $25,000.