There are numerous CFD brokers in Australia to select from, meaning CFD traders have a series of choices, but choice can be confusing. Here we will provide you the CFD trader with an comparison of the key differences of each CFD provider being their software. Over and over again amateur traders become overwhelmed by the assortment of trading platforms to choose from and can often become confused by the huge array of financial products some brokers offer on their CFD platform and fail to think about whether or not the platform suits their trading strategy. This review will help you select the right CFD platform that fits your trading style without needing to install multiple demo trading platforms.
Deal book 360
Deal book 360 is the CFD and Foreign exchange trading software offered by GFT, the software is a downloadable application. Once you open the platform the original thing that you will notice are the graphs, this software has excellent charting features. I tested the charts for both Forex and CFDs and found the foreign exchange graphs to be accurate and consistent with those on other CFD platforms in the group. When comparing the CFD graphs to others in the group I observed that the prices did not always mirror what the others showed, this is almost certainly because GFT is a market marker and their quotes are not a true reflection of the underlying instrument on which the CFD is based. If you looking for a good Forex charting package that is free of charge GFT can offer you this in their deal book 360 software, however I recommend that you stay away from the CFDs on the trading platform.
Pure Deal
Pure deal is the on-line CFD trading platform used by IG Markets, the software is web based, straightforward and easy to use. I gave this platform a good test run, what I loved about this software was that there were so many financial products to trade, the downside of this however was that a lot of of them did not suit my trading plan and after a while the complicated instrument search tree grew to become annoying mainly when I wanted to get a CFD trade on quickly and the CFD was not in my watch list. The graphs on this trading platform are very plain and if you want more sophisticated graphs you have to pay for them. Aside from the trouble with the CFD instrument tree the software is a good all round platform for the amateur trader that wants web based software. For someone that desires that little extra in their platform Pure Deal would not be a wise selection.
Web IRESS
The web IRESS software is offered by Comsec and Etrade in Australia, this platform was one of most suitable in the group when it comes to trading DMA CFDs. The trading platform is web based and uncomplicated and easy to use, it has several sophisticated order varieties like trailing stop loss orders which are great for CFD trading. The draw back of this platform are its graphs, they are basic with very a small number of indicators. If graphs are not essential to you and you are searching for a CFD trading platform that will offer you DMA CFDs on ASX listed CFDs on-line this would be an exceptional choice, however it comes at a cost. Equally Comsec and Etrade will charge you around $55 per month to use this trading platform, this combined with $38.50 in exchange royalties makes this platform an expensive proposition given there are other trading platfroms out there can offer you the comparable and even better functionality for free.
Market Maker
The Market Maker trading platform is offered by CMC Markets, the platform is downloadable and has some good features like being able to back test on 10 years worth of past price data. This was the hardest software of those reviewed to install, the download file was enormous. Once I was up and running, I found the interface very user friendly and the graphs easy to use, however after being logged into the trading platform for 30 minutes the graphs froze. Once I was back up I checked the prices of some ASX CFDs against the other trading platforms and observed that price changes on the platform lagged by about 2 seconds. My experience with the market marker platform was less than pleasant and I can’t imagine that the troubles were isolated to my laptop. This is a platform that I suggest you stay away from, from my personal experience it is plagued with technical issues, the worst nightmare for any on-line CFD trader.
Pro Deal
The Pro Deal platform is offered by International Capital Markets (IC Markets), the software is downloadable but also has web and mobile versions. This was the easiest CFD trading software of the group to set up. Once the software was established the quick start video tutorials guided me through the workspace setup. The workspace was uncomplicated and easy to navigate and not cluttered with CFDs that I would never trade. The software has both DMA CFD as well as over-the-counter (OTC) CFDs, with both types I was able to invest in the ASX cash and day trade utilising DMA CFDs watching my orders flow onto the underlying market. The charts on the software have multiple indicators, and are not overly complex to use. The best thing about this platform is that it is free of charge.
So which CFD trading software is for you?
After my review all five trading platforms it is easy to see that every trading platform has their niche. If you invest in Forex Deal Book 360 would be the one for you, if you like straightforward web based software go for Pure Deal, if you just invest in ASX CFDs then web IRESS (although pricey) could be for you, but if you would like an easy to use and dependable all round online trading platform you cannot go past IC Markets Pro Deal software.
Author Resource:
John Masterton is a professional CFD trader trading on the Pro Deal CFD trading platfrom with Australia's largest and most popular CFD provider , IC Markets. John has published a number of articles on how to choose the right CFD software to suit your trading style including guides and ebooks which you can download for free.
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