Day trading doesn’t only require you to have the know-how; it as requires you to have the proper equipment and services to get started.
Modern-day day trading is almost 100% online and electronic. Here are the tools you need to perform day trading with ease.
Computer or Laptop
As we have mentioned, most of the trading nowadays happen electronically. Therefore, it’s pretty much a given that you should own a computer or at least a working laptop.
The device should have enough memory and be fast enough to serve you well. Lags are very unwelcome, as well as crashes and stalling.
If those things happen, it’s very easy to imagine you missing a very important move on the market and losing a lot of money in an instant.
Charting Software
Most online broker provide charting software that many come for free or with a fee. You can use the software to chart and monitor the price movements of the assets you’re trading.
Also, different software performs different functions, depending on the trader’s preferences. Being a day trader means you need a software that lets you trade very quickly.
Some brokers use the most popular open-source trading software, while other have their own ones that have been developed in-house.
Internet Connection
Of course, your computer and software are useless if you have no internet access. Your internet connection should be fast enough to load web pages quickly.
Remember, day trading means you open a lot of positions daily. Your internet speed should be fast to handle all that.
You will also be receiving streams of constant data. It will be extremely detrimental for you to have lagging data, meaning you’re viewing old information for your trade while the rest of the market is already moving on.
Backup Internet
If your internet speed is fast, it’s good. But it’s a whole other story if it’s prone to service interruptions. That can put a hiccup in whatever trading strategy you’re using.
Ideally, you should have another way to access the trading platform and the market should service outages occur.
Fortunately, nearly all smartphones today are internet-enabled. Software and platforms are also made to be mobile-friendly.
Telephone
If your internet is not available, and your backup access is also failing, you should at least have your telephone at the ready.
You need a way to contact your broker apart from email and phone. Landline works for you when you are trading and the power is interrupted. Just phone the broker and instruct them what to do.
One small detail many traders forget: their broker’s number. Make sure you have a copy of it, and not only on the computer.
Market Data
And last but certainly not the least, you should a channel from which you gain a steady stream of new data.
Remember that releases, updates, and data move the markets too. Your broker will usually provide you with the market data you need.
However, it’s also imperative that you have your own sources of information. This way, you can trade independently and see another side of the market that your broker may not be showing you.
