Top 3 Best Platforms For Paper Trading In The UK

Stock trading offers great opportunities for both beginners and experienced traders, but it can be quite confusing at first, especially if you have no prior experience. That’s why many stock brokers in the UK offer special paper trading platforms that emulate real market conditions but allow you to buy and sell stocks with virtual money without any risks. In this article, we explain how paper trading works and tell you about the best brokerage services available in the UK offering such trading opportunities.

Paper trading basics

Paper trading options are also known as demo accounts: you can use them to trade real stocks with a huge sum of virtual money provided by your broker. Modern brokers make their paper trading features very realistic, so these accounts can really be used as a high-quality simulation. They are mostly used to practice trading skills or find and test new strategies, and these demo accounts are especially great when you also have a decent educational program at hand. Let’s take a look at the most popular and convenient services for paper trading in the UK.

eToro

Founded in 2007, eToro is simply one of the most well-known brokers in the world. While it’s definitely very popular for its social trading features, the company also has a free demo account that is notably novice-friendly: you get $100,000 for practice, and the limit can be increased further. There is no time limit, so you can really experiment with different strategies for several months. The broker also has at least some basic educational materials that can also be beneficial for beginners.

Interactive Brokers

A reputable US-based investment company, Interactive Brokers is quite popular in the UK. The broker has a paper trading account with a 30-day free trial period and up to $1,000,000 in virtual money. The simulated market is a precise copy of the real one, so you can be sure your practice will grant you just the right insights and skills for your future trading activities. The broker also has an extensive library of educational videos and webinars.

Saxo Bank

A relatively well-known Forex broker, Saxo Bank offers a free demo account that can be used to trade stocks and other financial instruments. The trial period is 14 days, and you get $100,000 as your first trading capital. It has convenient features for monitoring your progress and making notes.