Online Forex Trading Platform – What to Look For.

So you have discovered the wonderful, vibrant world of Forex trading. Now you want to know how it all gets done. Do you move to New York or Hong Kong to be close to the market information or is there an online trading platform I can use from home?

Well, truth be told, you could move to one of those places, but it wouldn’t make you a better trader. It might make you a "local" trader, at best. The answer is an online trading platform and they are ALL different in features and "user friendliness". Before you dive in head first, look for these aspects and features:

• Does the company offer a free trial period? Most reputable Forex companies will allow you to download the platform software at no charge and fund your account with "virtual money" to practice with. You should not be pressured to go live right away. Get to know the ins and outs first, then when you are comfortable, invest your own money and trade for real.

• Is the free trial period done in real time? This is critical so you can see precisely how you will do in a real time situation. Will you lose your shirt or will you make enough to buy that island you've dreamed of? The practice should be done using actual market values, ticks and indicators.

• What types of tools are offered? The crux of Forex trading is in the tools used. There are many different types of tools available to the trader. All of them are based on the tick of the currency pairing being evaluated. From bar graphs to line charts and everything in between, you can actually see the movement of a currency pairing by the minute, if you so desire.

• Terminology is also a key to success and any good online trading platform will define the terms used in plain English (or whatever language you prefer). Words like stochastics, PIPs, IRS points and leading indicators need to be understood to make smart, positive trades.

• Does the Forex company offer a strategy or strategies to it's users? A strategy is as important as knowing what you're doing. The better, more trustworthy online trading platforms will offer guidance to users in this area. A good strategy can make your Forex experience more enjoyable as well as profitable. Some examples would be swing trading, trending or forecasting futures.

• Be aware that investing money in Forex markets can be risky. Regardless of the situation, whatever strategy you employ, trading currencies ALWAYS involves a measure of risk. If the online trading platform company guarantees you a profit, look no further – run away. Reputable ones will warn you of the risks and allow you to choose to continue. That is what you want to look for.

Finally, when it is time to flip to a live account and trade for real, is the move a seamless one? This transition should be as seamless as possible so you don't have a lot of downloading, installing and tweaking to do. All that should have been done during the free trial. In other words, the lessons you learned in practice should be able to be applied to your new live account.