how long to stay on demo

[Carollynne]

Hi there.

I'm still a newbie. I've been reading through a lot of posts and the consensus is to definitely demo trade before even thinking about using or losing my cash. For those avid traders, how long did you trade on a demo account before moving over to a live account. I know I can't base my timeline on any other individual's experience....but would just like to hear a few suggestions

 

[WaveRider]

Hello. Some give hard times like at least 6 months. I don't think that's the right way of seeing it. Trade demo until you have developed a trusted method that is profitable for 30 or so trades and you can write your strategy out. Many trade demo for a long time and still have no idea what to do once they are finally live. Some pick it up quick and can start earlier. As a general guideline, trade demo until you are successful for 3-6 months, then trade a tiny live account until you are successful for 3-6 months, then fund a bigger account, if you have the funds for it. Trading live exponentially increases your fear and greed so you will need to get a handle on it before going to a big account. If you can't write out your trading plan or describe it in detail to someone, you aren't ready for a live account. If you can write it out and describe it but aren't making (virtual) money with it, you aren't ready for a live account.

FPA's school here is stellar. So is the babypips school. Good luck.

 

[Pharaoh]

6 months is a good general recommendation.

Definitely not until you have a system that makes reasonable returns. Even then, recalculate and see how much profit you would have made if every trade closed 2 pips more against you - that will show if your system has a good chance of surviving with real world slippage and requotes.

 

[Romeo]

Just make sure that when you are ready for it, you set up your live account with a safe broker. Imagine developing a great strategy, funding a 10.000 account, taking it to 30.000 and then realizing that your broker is a scam bucket shop and they disappear with your money. Will you want to continue trading Forex?

 

[Carollynne]

Romeo, thank you for the advice, but I was only thinking of starting with a 500 account lol, but I will continue doing my due diligence on brokers and hope to sign up with a rebate company before hand, just to cushion the blow if I lose the lot. lol

Carollynne

 

[f-man]

Romeo, thank you for the advice, but I was only thinking of starting with a 500 account lol, but I will continue doing my due diligence on brokers and hope to sign up with a rebate company before hand, just to cushion the blow if I lose the lot. lol

Carollynne

Very wise of you to trade a demo before going live, but the most important part of your strategy is that you are studying the brokers and you will not put your money in a dangerous bucket shop.
Statistics show that 95% of the forex traders lose their money. I wonder what part of that percentage is lost to scam brokers
If you need any information on your Due Diligence study, we at 4XAngels can help you.

 

[Onyebuchim C. Obike]

Well time is not actually the major factor but your learning curve matters. Some can catch up quite faster while others require more time to understand the market.

But experince in the market is gotten over a long period of time and thats why you cannot rule out being in the market for quite some good time.

6 months is ideal, however its still a bit dangerous bcos u have only 6 months knowledge of the forex and what if the market changes drastically in the next 6 months due to fundamental issues that you never experienced in the last 6 months?

I'll suggest you perfect your strategies. Open a new demo account and start all over each time you meet your demo account target to be sure you can do it again and again.

Simulation tools like Forex Tester Professional edition can help you quicken your learning time. Its one of the best forex simulation learning tools out there.

Finally 6 months of .........

1. Studying
2. Researching
3. Practicing
4. Forums
5. Offline learning charting tools
6. Analysing FPA's reviews and other good review sites
6. Learning and checking up economic news

is a must for any newbie before moving into a Live Account. If you cannot meet and master the above checklist in 6 months time, which is quite difficult, then be patient and continue a bit longer.

Wish ya the best.

 

[ammar19]

as long as it takes to make a steady profits for a while ! but first you must choose an honest broker !

 

[ilearn2t]

Hello Carollynne

Glad to see a lot of great advice has already been offered to yourself in this thread.

Hopefully by now you're well on your way as a professional trader, or at least 3 months into your "demo" trading.

But hope my wee bit of advice can also give you or others some food for thought before spending your own money.

Think about joining one or more free "demo" contests that offer the winners a few dollars or more into a "real" account.

That way you get to learn the basics and trading skills while getting close to the "real" action without having to invest any "real" money.

Some contests offer a good prize bonus for just making a profit on your trading in a week or more.

At way you don't need to compete against others to win, and don't lose anything by not winning

Good luck
ilearn2t

 

[Pharaoh]

The one thing I don't like about those demo contests is that they all seem to rank on profits only. This encourages people to try super-risky strategies.

I'd like to see a contest that ranks winners based more on profit vs. risks taken.