Successful day traders practice to develop a strategy and take time to learn what works — and what doesn’t — when trading.
Part of that strategy is choosing a broker that offers a suitable trading platform for frequent trading. Not all brokers are created equal, and not all offer the same level of trading tools. The best day trading platforms should offer adequate tools and ample resources to help you learn and grow as a day trader.
We analyzed 18 brokers and put together a list of the best platforms for day trading to help you figure out which broker might be right for you as you look to capitalize on intraday market movements. From traditional brokers to mobile-first trading apps, here are the best day trading platforms for beginners, trading crypto and more.
7 best day trading apps & platforms of 2024
- Best overall: Interactive Brokers (IBKR)
- Best for beginners: Robinhood
- Best for day trading options: tastytrade
- Best crypto day trading platform: eToro
- Best mobile app for day trading: Moomoo
- Best for day trading practice: TradeStation
- Best for day trading information: Charles Schwab
Best overall
Interactive Brokers
4.3
★★★★★
Finder score
With its combination of investment choices, low costs and powerful trading tools, Interactive Brokers stands out as the best day trading platform overall. Trade everything from stocks and exchange-traded funds (ETFs) to options, futures, currencies, bonds and crypto, with access to some of the lowest margin rates in the industry. Its desktop platform, Trader Workstation, is available to both IBKR Pro and IBKR Lite users and offers traders the flexibility to customize their trading strategies and pinpoint buying opportunities — event calendars, alerts, watchlists and over 100 order types and algorithms. Other advanced trading tools include IBKR's fundamentals explorer, a multi-leg options strategy builder, a real-time risk navigator and a paper trading account. IBKR also stands out as one of the best forex day trading platforms for its dedicated currency trading tools and access to over 100 currency pairs.
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Pros
- Commission-free stock and ETF trades
- Expansive offering of powerful trading tools and functions
- Trade a wide range of assets from over 150 global markets on one platform
- Fractional shares
- Paper trading with $1 million in virtual currency
Cons
- Unreliable live chat support
- Cash sweep available to IBKR Pro accounts only, with minimum balance requirements
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Retirement account types Roth, Traditional, SEP, Rollover Available asset types Stocks, Bonds, Options, Mutual funds, ETFs, Cryptocurrency, Futures, Forex, Treasury Bills Annual fee 0% Minimum deposit $0 Signup bonus N/A Cash sweep APY 3.83% Lite
4.83% ProCash sweep insured FDIC Cash sweep insurance amount $250,000
| Stock trade fee | $0 |
|---|---|
| Minimum deposit | $0 |
| Cash sweep APY | 3.83% Lite 4.83% Pro |
| Signup bonus | N/A |
Best for beginners
Robinhood
4.2
★★★★★
Finder score
3% IRA match with Robinhood Gold
Recognized for its distinctive, user-friendly platform and no commissions on stocks, ETFs, options or crypto, Robinhood delivers an intuitive trading experience that isn't bogged down by an abundance of complex features. Beginner day traders will find standard market and limit orders, fractional shares and pattern day trade protection. This feature alerts you as you place your second, third and fourth day trades in a five trading day period to help you avoid being flagged as a pattern day trader (PDT). Upgrading to Robinhood Gold unlocks margin investing at 8%, instant deposits up to $50,000, advanced market data and 5% APY on your uninvested cash.
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Pros
See Also6 Best Online Brokers For Day Trading Of March 2024Daytrading Broker: 8 besten Plattformen für den Intraday-Handel5 Best Day Trading Platforms of 2024Die 5 besten Daytrading Broker im Vergleich & Test 2024- Commission-free stock, ETF, options and crypto trades
- Highly rated, user-friendly platform
- Fractional shares
- Pattern day trade protection
- Earn 5% on your uninvested cash with Robinhood Gold
Cons
- Limited advanced tools unless you upgrade to Robinhood Gold
- Limited tradable assets
- No paper trading
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Retirement account types Roth, Traditional Available asset types Stocks, Options, ETFs, Cryptocurrency Annual fee 0% Minimum deposit $0 Signup bonus Get a free stock when you successfully sign up and link your bank account. Cash sweep APY 1.5%, or 5.25% with Robinhood Gold
| Stock trade fee | $0 |
|---|---|
| Minimum deposit | $0 |
| Cash sweep APY | 1.5%, or 5.25% with Robinhood Gold |
| Signup bonus | Get a free stock when you successfully sign up and link your bank account. |
Best for day trading options
Tastytrade
4.6
★★★★★
Finder score
Designed primarily for derivatives trading, tastytrade boasts an impressive collection of trading products and some of the best pricing on options and futures contracts in the industry. Stocks and ETFs are commission-free, options have no closing commissions and its trading platforms are equipped with an impressive array of advanced trading and analysis tools — customizable alerts, a follow feed to see trade activity from other tastytrade users, profit and loss visualizations and a quick roll feature to roll your option position into the future, to name a few.
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Pros
- Trade options, futures and futures options, along with stocks, ETFs and crypto
- $1 per options contract to open, $0 to close
- Robust offering of trading tools
Cons
- Complex trading platform
- No paper trading
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Retirement account types Roth, Traditional, SEP Available asset types Stocks, Options, ETFs, Cryptocurrency, Futures, Treasury Bills Annual fee 0% Minimum deposit $0 Signup bonus Get $100-$5,000 when you open and fund an account with $5,000 to $1,000,000+ Cash sweep APY N/A Cash sweep insurance amount N/A
| Stock trade fee | $0 |
|---|---|
| Minimum deposit | $0 |
| Cash sweep APY | N/A |
| Signup bonus | Get $100-$5,000 when you open and fund an account with $5,000 to $1,000,000+ |
Best crypto day trading platform
eToro
4.2
★★★★★
Finder score
Copy crypto picks from top traders
Trade 21 cryptos including bitcoin (BTC), ether (ETH) and more with eToro's easy-to-use web and mobile trading platforms. Advanced charts with over 100 indicators, a technical analysis indicator with quick-view buy and sell signals and a $100,000 demo account are what make eToro stand out as the best crypto day trading platform.
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Pros
- Trade 21 cryptos
- Paper trading account with $100,000 in virtual currency
- Fractional shares
- Advanced trading tools and features on an intuitive trading platform
Cons
- Limited tradable assets
- No live chat feature
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Available asset types Stocks, Options, ETFs, Cryptocurrency Annual fee 0% Minimum deposit $0 Signup bonus FINDER EXCLUSIVE: Get a guaranteed $15 bonus when you sign up and deposit $100 Cash sweep APY 4.9% Cash sweep insured FDIC Cash sweep insurance amount $5 million
| Stock trade fee | $0 |
|---|---|
| Minimum deposit | $0 |
| Cash sweep APY | 4.9% |
| Signup bonus | FINDER EXCLUSIVE: Get a guaranteed $15 bonus when you sign up and deposit $100 |
Best mobile app for day trading
Moomoo
4.7
★★★★★
Finder score
Moomoo's one of the most capable trading apps on the market, offering advanced, customizable charting and free access to pro-grade tools such as analyst ratings, real-time Level 2 market data and short sale analysis. Track market capital flow to help time transactions, view position cost distribution and other technical indicators and use Moomoo's Indicator Sentiment for a quick view of the overall status of all technical indicators. Choose from over 63 indicators and 38 drawing tools or customize technical indicators with over 190 pre-set functions, all on Moomoo's user-friendly mobile app. You'll also find a dedicated desktop trading platform and paper trading so you can practice and test your strategies before going live.
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Pros
- Commission-free stock, ETF and options trades
- Paper trading with $1 million in virtual currency
- Advanced trading tools and features on an intuitive trading platform
- Earn 5.1% APY on your uninvested cash with no balance requirements
Cons
- No fractional shares
- No crypto
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Available asset types Stocks, Options, ETFs Minimum deposit $0 Signup bonus Get 5 or 15 free stocks when you open and fund an account with $100 or $1,000 Cash sweep APY 5.10% Cash sweep insured FDIC Cash sweep insurance amount $500,000
| Stock trade fee | $0 |
|---|---|
| Minimum deposit | $0 |
| Cash sweep APY | 5.10% |
| Signup bonus | Get 5 or 15 free stocks when you open and fund an account with $100 or $1,000 |
Best for day trading practice
TradeStation
4.2
★★★★★
Finder score
Suitable for day trading stocks, ETFs, crypto, futures and options, TradeStation stands out for its trading simulator, where traders can back-test trading strategies and practice advanced tactics without the risk of losing real money. Practice trading stocks, options and futures, with unlimited simulated dollars and access to real-time market data. Plus, access TradeStation's trading simulator on desktop, web and mobile devices, so you can practice your trading on your platform of choice.
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Pros
- Paper trading with unlimited virtual funds
- Trade stocks, options, futures, ETFs, crypto and more
- Web, mobile and desktop platforms
Cons
- Account fees are on the high end
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Retirement account types Roth, Traditional, SEP, SIMPLE Available asset types Stocks, Bonds, Options, Mutual funds, ETFs, Cryptocurrency, Futures Annual fee 0% Minimum deposit $0 Signup bonus Get $50 - $5,000 when you open an account with minimum $5,000 using the promo code TSTVAFYB
| Stock trade fee | $0 |
|---|---|
| Minimum deposit | $0 |
| Signup bonus | Get $50 - $5,000 when you open an account with minimum $5,000 using the promo code TSTVAFYB |
Best for day trading information
Charles Schwab
4.2
★★★★★
Finder score
With its acquisition of TD Ameritrade, Charles Schwab now boasts the popular Thinkorswim trading platform, making it a standout broker for day trading. Available for web, desktop and mobile, the powerful Thinkorswim trading platform offers highly customizable charts with over 400 technical studies and 20 drawings, live news, scanner tools, screeners and watchlists and complex trading instruments — such as multi-leg options. In-platform gadgets like Trade Flash displays third-party analyst up/downgrades, block trades, trade imbalances, trading floor events and more, and a paper trading account with $100,000 of virtual currency is available to practice and refine your trading strategies.
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Pros
- Powerful Thinkorswim trading platform for web, desktop and mobile
- Expansive trading education library
- Paper trading with $100,000 in virtual currency
- Trade stocks, ETFs, options and futures
Cons
- No crypto
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Retirement account types Roth, Traditional, SEP, Rollover, Custodial, SIMPLE Available asset types Stocks, Bonds, Options, Mutual funds, ETFs, Futures, Treasury Bills Annual fee 0% Minimum deposit $0 Signup bonus Get $101 when you open and fund an account with a minimum of $50 Cash sweep APY 0.45% Cash sweep insured FDIC
| Stock trade fee | $0 |
|---|---|
| Minimum deposit | $0 |
| Cash sweep APY | 0.45% |
| Signup bonus | Get $101 when you open and fund an account with a minimum of $50 |
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Finder is not an adviser or brokerage service. Information on this page is for educational purposes only and not a recommendation to invest with any one company, trade specific stocks or fund specific investments. All editorial opinions are our own.
Methodology: How we choose the best day trading platforms
Finder’s investments experts review 18 brokers available on the market to narrow down the best platforms for day trading.
We analyze each broker based on 147 key metrics we collect directly from brokers and assess each provider’s performance based on eight different categories, weighing each metric based on the expertise and insights of Finder’s investment experts. We then score and rank each provider depending on how it performs
See how we weigh the overall rating
| Investment options | Trading platforms | Trading costs | Account fees | Account types | Customer support | Mobile app reviews | Features |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 15% | 37% | 7% | 8% | 0% | 5% | 8% | 20% |
We update our best picks as products change, disappear or emerge in the market. We also regularly review and revise our selections to ensure our best provider lists reflect the most competitive available.
What is day trading?
Day trading is a trading strategy that involves buying and selling the same security within the same trading day. Using various techniques, primarily technical analysis, day traders aim to profit from short-term fluctuations in a security’s price. Day traders typically close their positions before the end of the trading day and never hold a security overnight.
How to choose the best day trading platform
Choosing the best day trading platform isn’t a one-size-fits-all decision. Along with costs and investment options, you’ll want to know how the broker’s platforms perform. Insightful trading tools and an intuitive platform can help you make the most of your trades.
Factors you should consider when choosing the best day trading platform include:
- Costs and fees. Most brokers on the market today are free to sign up, free to use and offer commission-free stock and ETF trading. However, many brokers still charge for options trading and charge miscellaneous fees for various account activities. For example, some brokers charge a fee to transfer your account to another broker.
- Investment options. A key part of choosing a day trading app is determining which securities you want to trade. While the big brokers like Fidelity Investments, Charles Schwab and Interactive Brokers offer the most traditional investment options, mobile-first trading apps are starting to step up their game when it comes to asset offerings. Most of the big brokers still don’t offer access to crypto. Choose a platform that offers tradable assets that align with your strategy and goals.
- Platform availability. Mobile trading apps are growing in popularity for several reasons: time spent on mobile devices is increasing; mobile apps tend to offer a better user-experience; and mobile trading apps are increasingly becoming more powerful and are starting to include many of the same features you’d find on browser and, sometimes, desktop versions of the trading platform.
- Reliability, security and customer reviews. Review the app’s security features, regulatory status and history of outages. Consider the number of reviews and how existing and previous users rate the app and platform.
Is day trading a good idea?
Despite the enticing and hyped-up claims of making millions day trading, in reality, most people lose money. A study published in 2019 of 1,551 Brazilian day traders that traded for nearly a year showed that 97% lost money.(1)
The risk of losing money is incredibly high, so it’s important to not commit money you can’t afford to lose.
Frequently asked questions
What platform do most day traders use?
Day traders typically choose platforms that offer fast trade execution speeds, low trading costs and a trading platform that they can customize to their trading strategy and needs.
Can I make $1,000 a day, day trading?
While it’s possible to make $1,000 daily with day trading, a day trader’s income depends on their specific trading strategies and the amount of capital available. However, day trading is very risky, and there’s no guarantee you’ll make any money.
Is day trading really that profitable?
There’s no guarantee day trading will be profitable, and most of the time, it probably won’t be. A study by the US Securities and Exchange Commission, for instance, found that roughly 70% of forex traders lose money every quarter and 100% of their money in less than 12 months.
