Trading Demo Account

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Will Kenton
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Will Kenton is an expert on the economy and investing laws and regulations. He previously held senior editorial roles at Investopedia and Kapitall Wire and holds a MA in Economics from The New School for Social Research and Doctor of Philosophy in English literature from NYU.
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Updated July 19, 2022
Reviewed by
Thomas Brock
Thomas Brock
Reviewed by Thomas Brock
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Thomas J. Brock is a CFA and CPA with more than 20 years of experience in various areas including investing, insurance portfolio management, finance and accounting, personal investment and financial planning advice, and development of educational materials about life insurance and annuities.
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Fact checked by Kirsten Rohrs Schmitt

What Is a Trading Demo Account?

A trading demo account, or demonstration account, is a type of account offered by trading platforms and enables a prospective customer to experiment with the trading platform and its various features before deciding to activate a live account.

Demo accounts are offered by a wide variety of online trading platforms, including stock trading platforms, foreign exchange trading venues, and commodities exchanges.

Key Takeaways

  • A trading demo account is a type of account offered by trading platforms that allows a prospective customer to experiment with the trading platform before activating an account.
  • Demo accounts are used by stock trading platforms, foreign exchange trading venues, and commodities exchanges.
  • Trading demo accounts help experienced traders test new strategies.

How Does a Trading Demo Account Work?

Demo accounts became popular with the inception of online trading and are marketed to customers as a way to test a platform’s user experience. A demo account allows users to buy and sell stocks using paper trading, but test those trades under real, live market situations.

According to TD Ameritrade, their proprietary platform, "TickerTape", is a trading simulator from which an interested investor can trade without risking a dime, in a real-time environment. It also allows investors to try a new strategy like options trading.

Investors may want to try a demo account before they start investing in futures, commodities, or currencies, even if they already have experience investing in stocks. These markets are subject to different influences, allow different kinds of market orders, and feature varying margin requirements than stock markets.

Trading demo accounts were not feasible before the widespread use of electronic trading. Demo accounts began to be offered by online brokerages in the 2000s, as high-speed internet was adopted.

How to Choose a Trading Demo Account

Simulated or paper trading allows investors to practice buying and selling securities or try trading in crypto or foreign exchange currencies. Popular trading demo platforms include:

Webull: Offering zero risk, Webull allows investors to access real-time stock quotes, explore integrated charts with indicators, and set up price alerts.

OKX: Features a step-by-step tutorial on how to try crypto trading risk-free with OKX’s demo trading feature.

IG: Introduces would-be investors to forex trading through simulations.

Can an Investor Earn Money With a Trading Demo Account?

An investor cannot earn money from a trading demo account as it is a demonstration platform that uses simulated paper trading to introduce trading to a would-be investor.

How Does an Investor Get a Trading Demo Account?

Many trading platforms offer investors the opportunity to open a demo account. The accounts are accessed online, are free, and are automatically funded with virtual cash.

Is Trading on a Demo Account Useful?

For new traders, a demo account is an introduction to the financial market and see how the market works. Most traders decide whether to move to a live account by observing the performance of the demo account. Demo accounts often offer the option of unlimited virtual funding but investors benefit most when they open a trading demo account with the amount of money that you plan to start trading with, providing a sense of the amount of money you would earn or lose.

Article Sources
Investopedia requires writers to use primary sources to support their work. These include white papers, government data, original reporting, and interviews with industry experts. We also reference original research from other reputable publishers where appropriate. You can learn more about the standards we follow in producing accurate, unbiased content in our editorial policy.

  1. TD Ameritrade. "Paper Trading."

  2. DTTW. "The Importance of a Demo Account For Day Traders."

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