So you want to learn how to trade?

Most trading sites throw a wall of jargon at you. This one shows you. Every idea on this page comes with a live chart that moves while we explain it, starting from what a stock even is.

Start from zero I know the basics, pick a path

No account. No credit card. Just scroll.

4.12 +0.00% Live practice chart

Step 1

What is a stock, actually?

A company is worth something. Cut that value into millions of tiny slices and let anyone buy one. Each slice is a stock. Own one and you own a piece of that company.

The whole circle is the company. The red slice is what you'd own after buying a few shares. Small, but real.

So what makes the price move? Only one thing. More people wanting to buy than sell pushes it up. More wanting to sell pushes it down. That's it. Try it.

Tap a button. Every tap is a crowd of people placing orders.

Step 2

How to read a chart

Traders don't stare at a line. They use candles. One candle is one chunk of time, and it tells you four things at once.

A green candle: it closed higher than it opened

The thick part (the body) is open to close. The thin lines (wicks) show how far it stretched before settling. Green means the buyers won that round.

One candle on a daily chart is one day. On a 5-minute chart, it's five minutes. Same shape, different zoom. Day traders live on the fast ones. Swing traders read the slow ones.

Step 3

Indicators, drawn as we explain them

An indicator is just math laid over the price so you can see something the raw candles hide. Pick one and watch it get drawn on the chart.

Support & resistance

Step 4

What is an option?

An option is a bet on where a stock is going, with a deadline. You pay a small fee up front. If you're right, the payoff can be many times that fee. If you're wrong, the fee is all you lose.

You buy a call on a $10 stock. It costs you $1 (the premium). It lets you buy the stock at $10 (the strike) any time before it expires, no matter how high it goes.

Drag: where does the stock end up?

Stock price$10.00

You paid$1.00

Your result−$1.00

Step 5

The three speeds of trading

Same stock, same chart. The only real difference between trading styles is how long you hold and how fast you have to think.

Day trading

In and out the same day. Never sleep on a position. Fast, intense, and where penny stocks live.

Hold timeminutes to hoursScreen timethe whole morning

Swing trading

Catch a move that takes days or weeks. Check charts after work, place the trade, let it play out.

Hold timedays to weeksScreen time20 min a day

Investing

Buy something you believe in and hold it for years. Boring on purpose. Where most people should start with real money.

Hold timemonths to yearsScreen timeonce a month

Choose

Pick where you want to go

Every path starts at beginner and takes you to intermediate. You can switch any time. If you don't know, take the first one.

Start here

Trading foundations

Orders, charts, risk, and the habits that keep your account alive. Required before anything else.

For you if: you've never placed a trade, or you have and it went badly.

Options day trading

Use calls and puts on big, liquid stocks for same-day moves. Small money in, big swings out, and a clock that's always running against you.

For you if: you've done foundations and want leverage without a margin account.

Options swing trading

Buy an option and hold it for a week or a month to ride a bigger trend. Learn how time and volatility eat or feed your position.

For you if: you like swing trading but want to control more shares with less cash.

Penny stock day trading

Cheap, wild, fast-moving stocks. Learn to spot the ones about to move, read Level 2, and get out before the crowd does.

For you if: you can be at a screen from 9:30 to 11 a.m. and you like adrenaline.

Swing trading stocks

Hold for days or weeks. Read daily charts, find trends and pullbacks, set your stop, and let it work while you live your life.

For you if: you have a job and 20 minutes a night.

Long-term investing

Build a position over years. Understand what makes a company worth more, and why slow money is usually the most money.

For you if: you want your money to grow and you'd rather not watch it every day.