Looking to get better at trading? Want to optimize your trades and make better decisions? The answer is simple: start keeping a trading journal!
It’s a tool that is often overlooked by beginner traders, but the truth is that it can be one of the most powerful tools in your arsenal.
With so many trading journal options available today, it can be overwhelming for newer traders to choose the right one. But fear not, we’ve done the research for you and compiled a list of the best trading journal apps available. From analyzing stocks, options, futures, forex, and cryptocurrency trades, these apps have got you covered.
So if you’re serious about improving your trading game and making better decisions, read on to discover the best trading journal apps and learn how to make the most of them.
We only cover our 3 favorites, if you want a list with more options, read this best trading journals article.
What Makes A Good Trading Journal?
A trading journal is simply a log that records details about each trade, including what was traded, when, why, and how much money was made or lost. And while you can manually keep a trading journal, using online journal apps can make the process easier and provide valuable insights.
By maintaining a trading journal, you can strategically manage your trades by analyzing the effectiveness of your techniques over time. It can also help you manage your emotions, ensuring you keep a cool head and avoid making impulsive decisions based on fear or greed. Plus, with the automated statistical and analytical tools offered by online journal apps, it’s easier to identify key trends and patterns in your trading history.
So, whether you’re a beginner or experienced trader, a trading journal can be an invaluable tool to help you succeed in the market. In the following sections, we’ll explore some of the best trading journal options available and their unique pros and cons to help you find the best fit for your trading style.
Best Trading Journals: The Top 3
Trademetria
Trademetria is a trading journal platform that is well-suited for beginner and advanced traders who want to take a deep dive into the data and statistics behind their past trades.
Although it lacks some of the forecasting features of other platforms, Trademetria compensates for this by providing detailed analytics that can inform future strategies.
Trademetria doesn’t offer an automated option to track trades in real-time, which may be a downside for active traders. Instead, it only allows manual entry of previous trades. The platform’s analytical tools, such as backtesting and the trade simulator, can help you better navigate the financial markets and improve your trading style.
While it may not be the best fit for everyone, the advanced features of Trademetria make it worth considering for traders who value detailed analytics and insights to help form their trading decisions.
Tradervue
Tradervue is a robust trading journal that was launched in 2011, making it one of the earliest available. It offers excellent broker importing support for widely used platforms like Interactive Brokers, Fidelity, and E*TRADE.
Tradervue’s features, including automatic trade marking on charts, fee tracking, and community sharing, have made it popular among hedge funds as well as professional institutions. The platform is suitable for traders of stocks, options, futures, and forex.
The major drawback is that it does not provide real-time data. Tradervue’s strength lies in its reporting features, including its risk analysis reports. With these reports, traders can quickly identify areas for improvement in their trading strategy, and adjust their approach for future success.
Tradervue also offers loss charts, which allow traders to identify patterns in their trading techniques that are either positive or negative.
The platform can be used for free, but with some limitations. Subscribing to its monthly plans, which range from $29 to $49 per month, is recommended to take advantage of its full capabilities. Overall, Tradervue is a great trading journal with advanced features available at an affordable price.
Edgewonk
Edgewonk is a trading journal platform and educational resource that offers logging tools for all major markets, including forex, stocks, futures, CFDs, crypto, and commodities.
The platform adds a “gamification” element to trading, making it unique compared to other trading journals. Edgewonk offers a flat annual fee of $169 for users outside the European Union. For EU users, the pricing is a bit higher due to VAT inclusion.
One of the standout features of Edgewonk is its AI testing tools, which include strategic backtesting and future account projections based on your trading strategy. Users can even input trades they chose not to take and see how they would have performed if they had.
This feature helps refine trading strategies by showing what might have happened and what could happen in the future. Edgewonk’s website also offers a free, robust blog section to educate traders on markets, trading strategies, and the platform itself.
While there is a bit of a learning curve to using Edgewonk, the platform is highly customizable and perfect for those with high volumes of trading activity. The yearly payment allows for tracking unlimited trades, running custom statistics, using a trade simulator, and creating new trading strategies in the Trade Planner.
Final Thoughts
Using a trading journal is an essential part of becoming a successful trader. It allows you to analyze your trades and refine your strategy over time. While there are many trading journal options available, it’s important to choose one that best fits your needs and trading style.
Whether you decide to use a free option or invest in a paid platform with more advanced features, the most important thing is that you commit to using and maintaining your journal regularly.
Remember, a trading journal is just one tool in your trading toolbox. To maximize your success, you should also utilize other resources such as stock research websites and stock screeners to supplement your analysis. By using all of the available resources at your disposal, you can gain a significant edge in the financial markets and achieve your trading goals.
