Top picks for paper trading
Best for beginners - Webull
| Company |
Minimum Deposit |
Stock Trades |
Options (Per Contract) |
 Webull
|
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
Why Webull is best for beginners: Webull is an excellent choice for beginner traders, particularly due to its downloadable desktop and browser-based trading platforms being attractive, clear, and a joy to use. The layout is clean and simple, making it easy to navigate without feeling overwhelmed. You can have multiple charts on the screen at once and layer your workspace with tabs. For new traders, this ease of use is key, helping them focus on learning the markets rather than struggling with confusing tools as none of the tools are overly complicated.
One standout feature for beginners is Webull's paper trading, which allows users to practice risk-free. You can easily access this feature via the mobile app’s “paperTrade” button, located in the Shortcuts section of the account homepage. This makes it simple for new traders to build confidence before investing real money. Webull does charge $2.99 a month for real-time quotes if you need them, but for those just starting, the free delayed data is likely sufficient. Overall, Webull offers a solid, user-friendly platform for beginners to get started.
Explore my full review of Webull for more details on both their simulated and real account features.
Webull mobile gallery
Webull web platform
Best for complex trading layouts - Charles Schwab
| Company |
Minimum Deposit |
Stock Trades |
Options (Per Contract) |
 Charles Schwab
|
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.65 |
Why Charles Schwab is best for complex trading layouts: Charles Schwab's thinkorswim platform is an excellent choice for traders looking for a complex and feature-rich trading layout. It offers top-tier paper trading through its "paperMoney" feature, allowing users to simulate trades and refine strategies without risking real capital. Schwab also integrates live CNBC streaming and its proprietary market content, giving you a constant flow of information. The thinkorswim mobile app is packed with advanced tools that make it a favorite among active traders.
What makes Schwab stand out is the extensive educational content and personalized coaching available for all experience levels. The platform's integration of TD Ameritrade’s renowned trader education tools means that users have access to high-quality resources, from webinars to live trading sessions. If you’re serious about sharpening your skills with virtual trading or exploring deep market insights, Schwab’s thinkorswim platform delivers an unparalleled experience.
Read my complete review of Charles Schwab to learn more about every feature and fee on their platform.
Charles Schwab mobile app gallery
Charles Schwab thinkorswim desktop gallery
Best for foreign investing - Interactive Brokers
| Company |
Minimum Deposit |
Stock Trades |
Options (Per Contract) |
 Interactive Brokers
|
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.65 |
Why Interactive Brokers is best for foreign investing: Interactive Brokers can trade everything under the sun and probably the sun itself, if you could figure out its ticker symbol. Sure, that’s an exaggeration, but IBKR is known for its broad investment selection and global reach. While seasoned traders love the advanced features of its Trader Workstation, beginners can benefit from the IBKR Mobile app, which includes a paper trading option to help build confidence without risking real money. It’s an ideal choice for traders of all experience levels who are serious about expanding their skills on a platform plugged into a dizzying array of different markets.
For those new to investing, Interactive Brokers may feel overwhelming due to its vast array of choices and complex tools. However, I find the paper trading feature especially useful in this regard, as it allows users to test strategies and explore the platform without financial risk. With access to over 150 markets across 33 countries, IBKR offers something for everyone, but it particularly shines for those looking to diversify globally.
Check out my Interactive Brokers review to read more about its full range of offering.
IBKR Mobile app gallery
IBKR Trader Workstation (TWS) gallery
Best for new options traders - E*TRADE
| Company |
Minimum Deposit |
Stock Trades |
Options (Per Contract) |
 E*TRADE
|
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.65 |
Why E*TRADE is best for new options traders: If you already know the difference between a put and a call option but want to continue developing your options chops, Power E*TRADE is a winner. Though it’s also a perfectly fine platform for trading virtual stocks, the options tools will make you feel like you have a stock analyst next to you guiding your hand. It’s neither overly complicated nor so basic that it’s useless to experienced investors. Bloomberg video is free on Power E*TRADE and real-time quotes are free with a $1,000 balance.
E*TRADE offers mobile simulated trading on its Power E*TRADE mobile app, but not on its flagship mobile app, so make sure to download the correct app if you want to paper trade. Power E*TRADE app’s intuitive design and real-time data make it a solid choice for beginners exploring more advanced trading strategies anyway. With mobile charting that boasts over 100 indicators and customizable options screeners, it stands out for those wanting a more expert but still user-friendly paper trading experience.
Head over to my exhaustive review of E*TRADE to get my full thoughts on the rest of their platforms and offerings.
Power E*TRADE Mobile app gallery
Power E*TRADE web trading platform gallery
Best for automated trading - TradeStation
| Company |
Minimum Deposit |
Stock Trades |
Options (Per Contract) |
 TradeStation
|
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.60 |
Why TradeStation is best for automated trading: TradeStation distinguishes itself as the best paper trading platform for traders pursuing automated strategies, offering a seamless way to test and refine complex tactics without any financial risk. With real-time data and access to one of the industry’s largest historical market databases, you can seamlessly simulate live trading or back-test strategies with unlimited virtual dollars. Whether you’re new to investing or a seasoned trader fine-tuning advanced tactics, TradeStation’s paper trading platform provides a realistic trading experience without risking any capital.
For those ready to take things to the next level, TradeStation’s powerful desktop platform stands out with its proprietary EasyLanguage, used by many serious traders to automate trading strategies. While the desktop app’s complexity may feel overwhelming at first, the mobile app is much friendlier to newcomers. Combining cutting-edge tools with the flexibility of paper trading, TradeStation is ideal for traders who want to experiment with advanced strategies before going live.
Find out more about its platform and pricing at my complete review of TradeStation.
TradeStation mobile gallery
TradeStation trading platform
Best investment community - eToro
| Company |
Minimum Deposit |
Stock Trades |
Options (Per Contract) |
 eToro
|
$50.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
Why eToro is the best platform for joining an investment community: eToro offers the best investment community for a paper trading platform, combining ease of use with a Twitter-like news feed that makes it feel more interactive than most brokers. eToro provides almost the same simplicity as Robinhood (which doesn’t offer a stock market simulator) but goes a step further by integrating social investing. Instead of relying on traditional media outlets like CNBC or Bloomberg for ideas, you can read posts from fellow individual investors. Many are insightful and well-researched, but, as with any public platform, some aren’t.
On both eToro’s desktop and mobile app, you can paper trade in real-time, experimenting with virtual money in a risk-free environment while engaging with the community. Its CopyTrader feature, which allows you to mirror the trades of more experienced investors, is also available in the demo account, making it a great tool for those looking to learn from others while practicing their own strategies. This mix of social interaction and practical paper trading makes eToro a great option for beginners and intermediate traders alike.
Click on over to my full review of eToro for more information about its features and fees.
eToro mobile gallery
eToro web platform
FAQs
What is paper trading?
Paper trading is trading with a simulated portfolio instead of real money. It allows novices to become comfortable investing real money and helps experienced investors evaluate complex trading strategies before putting money at risk.
Are paper trading and stock simulators the same thing?
Yes, there are several names for practice investing. Whether it’s called virtual investing, a paper trading account, or a stock market simulator, they all refer to accounts that allow users to invest fake money using real market data.
Is paper trading good for beginners?
Yes, paper trading helps beginners become familiar with the mechanics of researching, buying and selling investments, and several brokers that offer simulated stock trading made our shortlist of best trading platforms for beginners. But investing fake money (and, especially, losing it) feels far different compared to investing your own money. You will learn more if you start off with paper trading before then investing small amounts of your own money by buying fractional shares.
Can you paper trade for free?
Yes. Paper trading is often bundled with other services in broker accounts. Most U.S. brokers do not charge monthly account fees or require minimum deposits, making paper trading essentially free. You will have to open a standard brokerage account, but you do not need to deposit anything into it. Some brokers may charge for real time data, but delayed data is fine for paper trading.
Can you make money paper trading?
You may make paper profits, but you will not be able to exchange them for real money. You may, however, look for stock picking contests that offer cash prizes.
Can I paper trade with options?
Brokers that allow options trading in live accounts and offer paper trading will likely allow you to trade options in the paper account for practice, a very good idea for new options traders. For example, Charles Schwab's thinkorswim platform allows you to trade any of its supported markets, including options, in the paper trading environment.
Does Fidelity offer simulated/paper trading?
At this time, Fidelity doesn’t offer paper trading, but beginners aren’t left in the cold. Fidelity offers fractional shares of stocks and ETFs, which still allows novices to get started without risking too much money.
Does Robinhood have paper trading?
At this time, Robinhood doesn’t offer paper trading. Beginners can get started by buying and selling fractional shares.
Will paper trading make me a better trader?
Paper trading is a good introduction to investing, and it’s very helpful for learning how to use a broker’s specialized tools. But you will experience investing differently when you have real money at risk. A $10 loss of real money feels vastly different than a $100,000 loss of nonexistent money.
Track your trades: Read about the best trading journals for keeping track of your trades to improve and fine-tune your investment strategy.
Our Research
Why you should trust us
Sam Levine, CFA, CMT, formerly a lead writer for StockBrokers.com, has over 30 years of investing experience and actively trades stocks, ETFs, options, futures, and options on futures. He's held roles as a portfolio manager, financial consultant, investment strategist and journalist. He holds the Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) and the Chartered Market Technician (CMT) designations and served on the board of directors of the CMT Association.
Blain Reinkensmeyer, head of research at StockBrokers.com, has been investing and trading for over 25 years. After having placed over 2,000 trades in his late teens and early 20s, he became one of the first in digital media to review online brokerages. Blain created the original scoring rubric for StockBrokers.com and oversees all testing and rating methodologies.
For this guide:
- Whenever possible, we used our own brokerage accounts for testing. For several brokers, we used a test account that was provided to us.
- Out of the tested brokers that offer paper trading, we evaluated the data, tools, education, and research.
- We used paper trading accounts to assess ease of enabling paper trading and overall ease of use.
- We considered the best use case for each broker.
How we tested
Because, ideally, paper trading accounts are virtually identical to live accounts, we tested brokers’ paper trading as if we were using live accounts. Admittedly, we may have taken more stock risk in these accounts, as there’s nothing to lose.
StockBrokers.com uses a variety of computing devices to evaluate trading platforms. Our reviews were conducted using the following devices: iPhone 12 Pro, iPhone 15 Pro Max, MacBook Pro M1 with 8 GB RAM running the current MacOS, and a Dell Vostro 5402 laptop i5 with 8 GB RAM running Windows 11 Pro. In testing platforms and apps, our reviewers place actual trades for a variety of instruments.
As part of our data check process, we sent a data profile link to each broker summarizing the data we had on file and the data they provided us last year, with a field for entering any data that had since changed. For the brokers that filled out these profiles, we audited the information for any discrepancies between our data and the broker’s data to ensure accuracy.
As part of our review process, all brokers had the opportunity to provide updates and key milestones in a live meeting that took place in the fall. Meetings with broker teams also took place throughout the year as new products rolled out. Insights gathered from these calls helped steer our testing efforts to ensure every feature and tool was assessed.
Trading platforms tested
We tested 17 online trading platforms for this guide:
Fidelity
Merrill Edge
E*TRADE
TradeStation
Interactive Brokers
Charles Schwab
tastytrade
eToro
