6 Best Trading Simulators: Top Demo Accounts to Get Started in Australia

At-a-Glance Platform List

🛡️ All listed platforms are licensed and regulated by ASIC. Demo accounts carry 0% financial risk.

Testing the waters before depositing money into a trading account is a wise choice if you are getting started in the markets.

In Australia, most trading platforms offer access to a demo account, which is a specific type of account that gives traders access to a simulated environment in which they have virtual money that they can use to place fictional trades.

Choosing the most realistic demo accounts, the ones that offer the closest experience to the real thing, can make a huge difference in your learning process.

To help our readers shortlist their candidates, this article provides a list of the 6 best trading simulators in Australia to get started.

A demo account, also known as paper trading, allows the user to interact with the broker’s trading interface and place trades in a simulated environment where their money is not at risk.

Its main purpose is to allow new users or beginner traders to practice before risking real money and even test different strategies and trading systems to analyze the results and verify their effectiveness.

How Does it Work?

• After completing the registration process, the user receives a certain amount of virtual funds to practice with. This balance can often be reset if the user incurs heavy losses.

• The platform aims to mirror live market conditions. However, there’s usually a small delay with live prices, while certain in-depth data might not be accessible.

• Trades are simulated instantly. The account’s balance changes dynamically as prices fluctuate. Also, it is commonly possible to use stop-loss and take-profit orders to simulate real strategies.

#1 - Mitrade

Mitrade is an ASIC-regulated trading platform that offers access to the financial markets via contracts for difference (CFDs).

Traders in Australia can use its demo account to practice and test their strategies before depositing real money.

What Does This Demo Account Offer?

• A demo account allows users to trade hundreds of supported financial instruments, including equity indexes, commodities, forex pairs, and cryptocurrencies.

• Users get USD 50,000 or AUD 50,000 worth of virtual money to execute trades via Mitrade’s proprietary trading interface.

• Traders are allowed to place take-profit and stop-loss orders to practice their risk management skills.

• If the equity balance falls below USD 200, the system will automatically replenish the account’s balance.

• Demo accounts can only be used for 90 days unless the user opens a live account, in which case the simulator will stay active.

• Mitrade’s simulator offers the same conditions and features as the live account including real-time price da0ta and technical tools.

What Users Can’t Do with a Mitrade Demo Account?

• Mitrade only offers access to CFDs, meaning that users cannot buy stocks or commodities directly.

• Connecting an automated trading software like a bot is not permitted.

What Makes Mitrade Stand Out?

Its highly-intuitive and user-friendly trading interface makes it a great alternative for novice traders who can rely on its simulator to practice their skills before risking real money.

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      “Practice CFD trading with up to $50,000 in virtual funds — 100% risk-free on an ASIC-regulated platform. ”  

#2 - Interactive Brokers

Interactive Brokers is one of the world’s largest online brokers with over 5 million customer accounts. This platform offers access to more than 170 markets and processes over 4 million trades per day.

Its IBKR trade station has earned multiple awards as it is considered one of the most sophisticated interfaces for advanced traders due to its technical analysis tools, fast transaction execution, and long list of supported assets.

What Does This Demo Account Offer?

• Interactive Brokers’ “paper trading” account can be accessed from any of these brokers’ trading interfaces, including its desktop and mobile app and the more advanced Trader Work Station (TWS) software.

• Users get $1 million in virtual funds to execute trades and interact with the platform and its supported assets.

• Practice with different order types and strategies and perform technical analysis via IB’s charting tools.

• Advanced analysis tools like the Fundamentals Explorer, Strategy Builder, and Options Analysis are accessible as well.

• Market data is simulated to reflect real market conditions, but there is commonly a delay compared to live price feeds.

What Users Can’t Do with an Interactive Brokers Demo Account?

• Beginners may find it difficult to navigate Interactive Brokers’ trading interfaces as they are less intuitive compared to other platforms like Mitrade and eToro.

• It is not possible to use third-party software like MetaTrader with this broker.

What Makes Interactive Brokers Stand Out?

Interactive Brokers is a great fit for sophisticated traders who may tap on their paper trading feature to test advanced strategies on instruments that may not be accessible through smaller brokers.

#3 - IC Markets

IC Markets stands out for its ample portfolio of more than 1,800 available instruments to trade and fast trade execution (under 40ms). This Australian broker processes over $29 billion worth of transactions per day, and it is primarily used by algo traders due to its low latency.

This broker supports the most popular third-party trading software out there, including MetaTrader 4 and 5, cTrader, and TradingView. This makes it one of the most versatile options in our list for traders who prefer these time-tested platforms instead of relying on proprietary systems.

What Does This Demo Account Offer?

• Traders get $100,000 worth of virtual funds to execute their orders in a simulated environment.

• The account’s balance can be replenished at any given point.

• Market data and prices are a bit delayed, but IC Markets aims to simulate real market conditions.

• Demo accounts only expire if they have been inactive for 30 days.

• Traders can use a demo account on any of the third-party software supported by IC Markets, including MetaTrader and cTrader.

• Users can test their bots by using solutions like MetaTrader’s Expert Advisors without risking real money.

What Users Can’t Do with an IC Markets Demo Account?

• The only difference between a live and demo account with IC Markets is that price feeds might not be updated in real-time. The rest of the features are the same as if the user was using a live account.

What Makes IC Markets Stand Out?

This broker stands out for its low-latency trades. This makes it a great fit for algorithmic traders and high-frequency traders (HFTs) who can use fast execution to front-run others.

#4 - CMC Markets

CMC Markets caters to over 1 million investors worldwide, providing access to the financial markets via CFD trading.

The platform supports over 12,000 different instruments and has received a 4-star rating on Trustpilot from over 3,300 registered users.

What Does This Demo Account Offer?

• Users get full access to CMC Markets’ proprietary trading platform or can also use any of this broker’s supported third-party interfaces like MetaTrader.

• The account is loaded up with $10,000 initially so traders can practice their strategies and learn how to use the different trading interfaces.

• All order types are available on demo accounts, including stop-loss, trailing stop-loss, and take-profit orders.

• This demo account does not expire. However, share CFDs will only be available for trading for a limited period due to exchange restrictions.

• Additional virtual funds can be added by simply tapping on the “Payments” menu.

• The account will still be active, even after a user opens a live account.

What Users Can’t Do with a CMC Markets Demo Account?

• This demo account primarily covers CFD trading, not direct share investing.

What Makes CMC Markets Stand Out?

• CMC Markets offers a wide range of financial assets that traders can experiment with via a demo account. This makes this broker a great alternative for beginner traders who might still be fine-tuning their strategy before testing it on a live account.

#5 - IG Markets

IG Markets has been around for 44 years and boasts a customer base of over 800,000 traders spread across the globe, offering access to more than 18,000 financial instruments through CFDs.

Same as CMC Markets and IB, this is a publicly listed company headquartered in the United Kingdom that has set a strong footprint in the Australian market via low-fee forex trading.

What Does This Demo Account Offer?

• Demo accounts get $20,000 in virtual funds for users to practice with the IG Markets platform and test their strategies in a simulated environment.

• All of the features that can be accessed on a live account are available in this paper trading experience.

• Traders can place orders for all of IG Markets’ 18,000 financial assets. 

• Users can either experiment with this broker’s proprietary trading platform or set up a MetaTrader 4 account.

• Market conditions in the demo account are exactly the same. Prices are updated in real time.

• Traders get access to ProRealTime, which is IG’s dedicated solution for algorithmic trading.

What Users Can’t Do with an IG Markets Demo Account?

• Trades don’t experience any slippage, are not closed if the minimum margin is crossed, and do not fluctuate outside of market hours. This makes the demo account conditions quite different from the live version.

What Makes IG Markets Stand Out?

IG Markets offers users the chance to swap between platforms with the same demo account, allowing them to test manual or passive strategies on their web-based interface and automated ones on third-party systems like MT4.

#6 - eToro

eToro is a social trading and investing platform that uses collective knowledge to help beginner traders make their first moves in the financial markets.

The platform has grown to become one of the largest in the world, serving more than 3.6 million active accounts and offering access to over 7,000 financial instruments. 

What Does This Demo Account Offer?

• Users get $100,000 in virtual funds that they can use to practice with any of the platform’s supported financial assets.

• eToro’s demo account allows users to test its proprietary trading interface and copy trading tools.

• Market conditions, prices, and order types are the same as on a live account. However, real money is not at risk.

• Users can switch between their real and demo accounts directly within the same interface.

• The account’s virtual funds can be replenished by sending a ticket to Customer Support.

What Users Can’t Do with an eToro Demo Account?

• eToro only supports trading via its proprietary platform. Third-party systems like MT4, MT5, cTrader, or TradingView are not available.

What Makes eToro Stand Out?

eToro allows users to test its popular copy trading tools and Smart Portfolios within the demo account without any restrictions or limitations. This is a great way to test the product and see if it is suitable for different types of traders and investors before risking real money.

Pros 

• Zero Financial Risk: Since no real funds are used, users can lose their entire simulated balance without risking a single dollar.

• Familiarizing with the Broker’s Platform: It allows traders to master the broker's software, mobile app, and shortcut keys. They can also learn how to set stop-loss and take-profit orders, and navigate charts without making costly operational mistakes.

• Backtesting Strategies: It serves as a live laboratory to test new trading systems, their win rate, and average profit ratio. In some cases, automated trading bots can also be tested in real market conditions before deploying any capital.

• Familiarizing with the Market: Users gain firsthand experience with asset volatility, leverage, and how different economic news and market events (like interest rate announcements) impact price action across multiple sessions.

Cons

• Limited Psychological Pressure: Dealing with the psychological side of trading is critical to succeed in the markets. Demo accounts don’t generate that kind of pressure as the funds used to place trades are not real.

• Unrealistic Execution: Price slippage does not occur in most demo trading accounts. Traders can’t expect perfect execution in a real environment. Hence, demo accounts don’t prepare traders for the impact of slippage.

• Developing Bad Habits: Since the money is not real, traders might develop bad habits like getting overconfident, risking more money than they should, or ignoring proper risk management altogether. In demo accounts, that has zero impact on a user’s money. However, in the real world, it can result in heavy losses.

Start Practicing in 3 Simple Steps

1

Open an Account

2

Claim Virtual Funds

3

Practice Trading

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