It is a good time to start with real account if you have developed a consistent trading strategy on demo account and market analysis and decisions are making easily and naturally. It's best to start trading with tiny trades on real market.
When do you know you ready to go from demo to real trading?
I would like to share a slightly different perspective.
First, there is no precise period when one should switch from demo to live account. It has more to do with being comfortable rather than a certain amount of time or number of trades.
However, I believe there is value in switching to a live and start trading small.
The reason for this is the psychology. Depending on your demo software it might range from emotion-less to the kind of emotions when you win in a game (give or take
). But when trading with real money the emotion is different because you are losing or making money. And because emotion and psychology in general has a huge impact on a trading account, that needs training as well. My current strategy is to increase my size in the real account to "feel" the losing trades (for some that is the price of a coffee and a sandwich for others that is more or less) and make me thing just the right amount of time (not to be to eager but also not to over-think) before deciding to take a trade.
Nonetheless, this is more theory than practice. I catch myself taking out-of-strategy trades in my demo and also hurry up in decision making ... so yeah, there's a long way still. But I believe the combination of demo and small size live is the most helpful learning experience.
First, there is no precise period when one should switch from demo to live account. It has more to do with being comfortable rather than a certain amount of time or number of trades.
However, I believe there is value in switching to a live and start trading small.
The reason for this is the psychology. Depending on your demo software it might range from emotion-less to the kind of emotions when you win in a game (give or take
). But when trading with real money the emotion is different because you are losing or making money. And because emotion and psychology in general has a huge impact on a trading account, that needs training as well. My current strategy is to increase my size in the real account to "feel" the losing trades (for some that is the price of a coffee and a sandwich for others that is more or less) and make me thing just the right amount of time (not to be to eager but also not to over-think) before deciding to take a trade. Nonetheless, this is more theory than practice. I catch myself taking out-of-strategy trades in my demo and also hurry up in decision making ... so yeah, there's a long way still. But I believe the combination of demo and small size live is the most helpful learning experience.
Here's another place where i think the demo is useful: trading within several markets. By this I mean bearish and bullish markets as well as the transitions between them.
This is not quite a demo, more like a simulator that I'm using now. It integrates in Metatrader4, you download price data, adjust when to start, which time frames to look at, initial account size and some other things. So for example you can start in 2005 (assuming you have the price data) with USDJPY and trade on that market up to present days. You put on the trade and click on the 'Next' button to see the following candle. It automatically closes your trades based on stop loss and profit targets.
What I discovered while doing this is that I can make relatively easily money when the market trends well - no surprise here, I guess - but not so easily when the market is ranging or transitioning from bear to bull and the other way around. By using this kind of simulator your test your skills with real market data and for several years. Is like a very fast paced demo. This kind of experience is not possible with a real time demo unless you are very, very patient.
This is not quite a demo, more like a simulator that I'm using now. It integrates in Metatrader4, you download price data, adjust when to start, which time frames to look at, initial account size and some other things. So for example you can start in 2005 (assuming you have the price data) with USDJPY and trade on that market up to present days. You put on the trade and click on the 'Next' button to see the following candle. It automatically closes your trades based on stop loss and profit targets.
What I discovered while doing this is that I can make relatively easily money when the market trends well - no surprise here, I guess - but not so easily when the market is ranging or transitioning from bear to bull and the other way around. By using this kind of simulator your test your skills with real market data and for several years. Is like a very fast paced demo. This kind of experience is not possible with a real time demo unless you are very, very patient.
@LanaBanana, not sure if you are you asking me.
I am trading for a bit more than a year but not full-time. I am still finding my way. I started in crypto in late 2017 and moved on to forex during the bear crypto market.
I am a father since 2 months and now finding the way is even harder due to lack of time, but i'm determined to continue.
What about you? Full-time already?
I am trading for a bit more than a year but not full-time. I am still finding my way. I started in crypto in late 2017 and moved on to forex during the bear crypto market.
I am a father since 2 months and now finding the way is even harder due to lack of time, but i'm determined to continue.
What about you? Full-time already?
@LanaBanana, not sure if you are you asking me.