We all want the best charting platforms, but who provides the best free stock analysis software? If you are relatively new to trading the stock market, you are probably looking around for cheap or free analysis software before you drop big money into it.
You want or should want to experiment with technical analysis and plotting stock chart indicators to have a fighting chance at winning in this game. Anyone who’s ever bought stock off a random piece of advice is nodding their head right now, realizing there are better ways to trade…
What Is the Best Free Stock Analysis Software?
- ThinkorSwim has a great free paper trading platform.
- TradingView has all the tools you need to trade the market.
- StockCharts.com is a great teaching tool.
- Yahoo Finance has great fundamentals.
Who doesn’t want free stock analysis software? Free is always a great price, right? However, make sure your free stock analysis software is good.
Luckily for you, T.D. Ameritrade’s ThinkorSwim platform gives you all the powerful features you need for free! What’s the catch?
You need to open an account and fund it. Once you do that, you don’t need to trade or spend a dime. Open an account with at least 50 or 100 bucks! That’s it! It also works great for Mac computers.
Capabilities
With capabilities like backtesting, forecasting, screening, scanning the market live, news, and fundamentals, everything you need is in one spot. What more can a person want? Overall, ThinkorSwim is our favorite and most recommended platform.
ThinkorSwim Platform (Free)
ThinkorSwim stands head and shoulders above competitors because it was built for traders. Because of this, ThinkorSwim undoubtedly has the most sophisticated platform for charting, tools, and trading.
We like to think they are the gold standard for trading software. Unlike a website-based trading platform, ThinkorSwim is a software package specifically designed for traders who need to get lightning-fast prices and metrics and execute orders as quickly as possible.
TOS gives you access to over 400,000 economic data points from six continents. It has some of the most advanced trading tools you can find. The scanners for stocks, currencies, and options are also completely customizable.
Furthermore, the scanners for stocks, currencies, and options are also completely customizable.
To access trading software, you must sign up for an account through a brokerage firm. Of course, they hope you will eventually become a paying customer, but that doesn’t have to be the case.
What may surprise you is that you don’t need a brokerage account to sign up for ThinkorSwim; it’s a bonus, as there’s no pressure. Furthermore, when you open a with T.D. Ameritrade, you’re automatically registered for the paper money account.
Registration is simple: input your email address, download it, and open the platform.
ThinkorSwim Scanners
Considering the vast functionality of the platform, it’s no surprise that the list of stock scanners is endless. Based on your search criteria, you can filter through thousands of stocks, options, futures, and Forex products.
Here are just a few of the scanners available:
- Pre-market gappers
- Low-float scan
- RSI 25/75 scan
- MACD or an RSI scan
Fees to Trade
One shining feature of this broker is that it doesn’t have tiered commission rates. You pay the same for those with a smaller account or who don’t trade that much.
If it’s one trade or 100, it will cost you $9.95 per trade. Conversely, you can conduct trades at $.015 per share with a $5 minimum. For those of you who trade options, they are $.95 to $2.95 per contract.
Concerning mutual funds, your first three monthly trades are free; after that, it will cost you $15. Now I know some of you trade futures, which will cost $3.50 per contract.
Unfortunately, ThinkorSwim does have a minimum account requirement for access to live data, but it’s more affordable than most at only $500 for U.S. citizens.
For those of you from Canada, it will set you back USD 5,000 for access to live data.
ThinkorSwim Software Highlights
- A fully customizable trading platform
- Free, real-time streaming U.S. equity and option level I and II data
- Ability to trade multi-leg option strategies with up to four legs
- The ThinkorSwim app lets you keep an eye on your trades and positions
- Test with no risk using a paperMoney® account (also available on the app)
- Live CNBC news feeds to stay on top of the markets around the clock and the world
- Free access to chat rooms with other pro-level traders
- Real-time streaming updates on analyst up/downgrades, block trades, trade imbalances, and events on the trading floor through the Trade Flash gauge
- Obtain company statistics in the fundamental data tab, including earnings, probability analysis, and ratios
- You can apply 400+ technical studies and 50+ patterns to nail your entry and exit points
- Replay recorded market data and trade it in real-time with think OnDemand
- View an option’s theoretical price, implied volatility, or probability of hitting the strike or expiring
- Use the Sizzle Index™ to see the current day’s option volume and compare it to the past five-day average
Software Tools
- In-platform webcasts, virtual accounts, and immersive courses
- A virtual account to test your strategies risk-free. This means you can run through scenarios with up to $100,000 virtual dollars before putting them into practice for real
- Learning Center
- Daily live lessons give you a deep dive into ThinkorSwim. Demos and individual tutorials focus on each of the main platform sections.
- Wading Pool
Platform for Traders on Their A Game
With pro-grade trading tools and resources, the ThinkorSwim trading platform delivers a holistic, live Level II advantage when trading U.S. stocks and options.
The benefits don’t stop there, as ThinkorSwim has four trading platforms to fit various lifestyles. If you want to trade from your home office, you can.
What about a cyber cafe? What about on a hammock stretched between palm trees? With think Desktop, web-based trading, think anywhere, and think mobile, your trading locations are endless.
As mentioned above, ThinkorSwim has different platform options to suit your trading style. First is Think Desktop with charts, quotes, and alerts -this is the one to install on your home office computer or laptop.
Second is their Web Platform. Luckily, it has the same powerful features as Think Desktop and is available from any computer with an internet connection.
Thirdly is the Think Anywhere platform for handheld devices, which allows you to trade anywhere you have a cell phone signal.
Finally, Think Mobile is the wireless platform for mini web browsers that lets you monitor quotes and orders, create buy/sell orders, or cancel any working order from your cell phone.
Testing Stock Analysis Software
The best place to make all your rookie trading mistakes – think mistyping stock symbols (for the record, Coca-Cola is not CC) or misunderstanding order types (market order vs. limit order)- is where you’ll suffer the least financial damage. And that place is the simulator.
Regardless of the stock analysis software you use, you must test your strategies.
You want a safe space to learn the inner workings of placing trades and experiencing the emotions of losing trades.
There’s a reason new drivers head to abandoned parking lots and not busy malls to drive for the first time.
Most simulators are free but require you to set up an account. The best simulators give you access to a fully functioning setup with active traders’ tools: watch lists, stock screens, research, and live or slightly delayed data feeds. We have free trading courses to help you get started.
What’s the Best Stock Analysis Website?
- Motley Fool is a stock and investing advice service.
- Yahoo! Finance gives financial advice on the markets.
- Zacks is an investment research service.
- FinViz is a fantastic free scanner service.
- YCharts is another investment research service.
Final Thoughts on Free Stock Analysis Software
Unless you’re a trading prodigy, you must use a simulator to practice the art of trading while you learn the game. And most importantly, have the right trading community behind you to pick you up when you fall.
One thing I know for sure is this: Trading stock markets is a tricky business. Rarely is there a single trader – beginner or otherwise – who is widely successful. But your chances of success increase exponentially with the right free stock analysis software and training to back it up.
