Your first week on a demo account: a checklist

Why a demo account is useful, and where it misleads

A demo account lets you learn the platform, order tickets and the rhythm of the market without risking money. It can mislead, though: demo fills are often more favourable than live ones, emotions are muted when nothing real is at stake, and some demos do not model slippage or a realistic spread. Treat demo results as practice, not as a forecast.

The checklist

• Day 1: place one market order, one limit order and one stop-loss, and confirm each one in the trade history.
• Day 2: practise changing and cancelling pending orders, and note how the platform shows the spread.
• Day 3: measure the spread on your chosen pairs at three times of day, including the quietest session.
• Day 4: write a one-page plan with pairs, timeframe, entry rules, exit rules and maximum risk per trade.
• Day 5: follow the plan on every trade and record why you took each one.
• Day 6: review the week: how many trades followed the plan, and what you did when you were tempted not to.
• Day 7: decide whether you are ready for a small live account, and if not, what you need to practise more.

Key takeaways

• Use the demo to learn the mechanics, not to prove a strategy.
• Write your plan before the first trade and follow it.
• Measure real spreads and keep a record of every decision.