# Tradovate

Cloud-based US futures broker with plan-based commissions and built-in TradingView

Source page: https://trust.chartnaut.com/brokers/tradovate  
Website: https://www.tradovate.com  
Type: Futures  
Founded: 2014  
Based in: —  
Minimum deposit: None  
Markets: Indices, Commodities, Options, Futures  
Platforms: TradingView, NinjaTrader, Tradovate  
Deposits and withdrawals: Bank transfer, Card

## Overview

Tradovate is a US futures broker built around a cloud platform, so your charts, workspaces and orders follow you between devices. It's popular with day traders on micro contracts and with prop firm traders, since plenty of funded programmes run on it. Since 2025 it's part of the NinjaTrader group, which Kraken's parent bought, and brokerage accounts are held by NinjaTrader Clearing, LLC, a CFTC-registered futures commission merchant and NFA member (ID 0309379).

### Accounts and costs

There's no minimum deposit, and you pick a pricing plan rather than an account type. The **Free** plan charges $0.39 per side on micros and $1.29 on standard futures. The **Monthly** plan adds a subscription and cuts that to $0.29 and $0.99, and the **Lifetime** plan is a one-off licence with the lowest rates, $0.09 and $0.59. Exchange, clearing and NFA fees come on top, and you'll pay exchange fees for real-time data. Day-trading margins start from $10, though overnight margins are set by the exchange.

### Platforms and markets

The Tradovate platform runs on Mac, PC, web, iPhone, iPad and Android, and every plan now includes NinjaTrader Desktop, Web and Mobile too. You can trade straight from TradingView charts, and Market Replay lets you rerun past sessions in simulation. Markets cover CME futures and options on indices, interest rates, metals, energy, grains and currencies, in standard, mini, micro and nano sizes. There's free simulated trading to learn on.

### Money in and out

You can fund by ACH, wire or debit card, and Tradovate doesn't charge for card deposits. Withdrawals go out by ACH (US residents) or wire, never back to a card. A US wire costs $30, and card deposits are held for five days before they can go out by ACH.

## Good

- No minimum deposit and day-trading margins from $10
- Micro commissions as low as $0.09 per side on the Lifetime plan
- Cloud platform on desktop, web and mobile, plus NinjaTrader platforms at no licence fee
- TradingView integration and built-in Market Replay
- Free simulated trading

## Watch for

- Exchange, clearing, NFA and market data fees come on top of commissions
- $30 fee for US wire withdrawals and card deposits can't be withdrawn back to the card
- Past CFTC and NFA actions over supervision and anti-money-laundering controls
- Customer reviews complain about onboarding and platform lag

## Regulation

- CFTC / NFA: NinjaTrader Clearing, LLC (d/b/a Tradovate), licence NFA ID 0309379

Investor protection: Futures accounts are not covered by SIPC

- Demo account: yes

## Accounts and costs

| Account | Min deposit | Pricing | Max leverage |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Free plan | None | No monthly fee; $0.39 per side on micros, $1.29 on standard futures, $0.20 on nano and event contracts | Day-trading margins from $10 |
| Monthly plan | None | Subscription; $0.29 per side on micros, $0.99 on standard futures, $0.15 on nano and event contracts | Day-trading margins from $10 |
| Lifetime plan | None | One-off licence; $0.09 per side on micros, $0.59 on standard futures, $0.05 on nano and event contracts | Day-trading margins from $10 |

## What traders say

Checked 2026-10-06.

- Trustpilot: 1.6 / 5 from 1,901 reviews (https://www.trustpilot.com/review/tradovate.com)
- TradingView: no score (https://www.tradingview.com/broker/Tradovate/reviews/)
- RealReviews: 4.1 / 5 from 15 reviews (https://realreviews.io/reviews/tradovate.com)
- Reddit: no score (https://www.reddit.com/r/FuturesTrading/comments/137rzsl/experiences_with_tradovate/)

Tradovate's reviews have fallen a long way. Reddit users in 2020 pointed to a 4.5-star Trustpilot page; it now sits at 1.6 from about 1,900 reviews. RealReviews shows 4.1, but from only 15 reviews. Many reviewers date the slide to the NinjaTrader takeover in 2022, and much of the anger is about support and getting money out. Futures traders on Reddit are more divided, and several still use it for its low margins and TradingView link.

### What traders like

- **Low day margins and costs.** Reddit users often name low intraday margins and competitive commission plans as the reason they chose Tradovate.
- **Cloud platform and TradingView.** Reviewers on TradingView and Reddit like that the web, desktop and mobile apps share one layout, and that the TradingView integration works.
- **Good for beginners.** Some TradingView reviewers say it is easy to start with, and App Store users praise a demo that behaves like a live account.

### Common complaints

- **Withdrawals.** Several reviewers on Trustpilot, Reddit and Tradovate's own forum describe withdrawals that took weeks, refunds paid in the wrong amount, or international clients told they need a US bank account or ACH. Tradovate's help pages describe hold periods on recently deposited funds.
- **Support since the takeover.** Many Reddit and Trustpilot reviewers say support became slow or unhelpful after NinjaTrader bought the firm, with emails to compliance going unanswered.
- **Bugs and lag.** Some describe the desktop app as buggy, with order delays, freezes, bracket orders failing, and positions auto-liquidated without warning.
- **Hidden costs.** Some Reddit users say market data fees, data commissions and a 30 USD outgoing wire fee make it dearer than it looks.
- **Slow account opening.** One TradingView reviewer says their funds sat for almost two months waiting for account approval.

### Recently

- **September 2026:** a review site recorded the Trustpilot score at 1.6, and one of the newest Trustpilot reviews defends Tradovate against the negative ones. No other dated reviews from the last 90 days are in the evidence.

### Where this comes from

- [Trustpilot](https://www.trustpilot.com/review/tradovate.com): Tradovate's main review page.
- [TradingView](https://www.tradingview.com/broker/Tradovate/reviews/): reviews from verified TradingView users with linked accounts.
- [RealReviews](https://realreviews.io/reviews/tradovate.com): a small set of customer reviews.
- [Reddit](https://www.reddit.com/r/FuturesTrading/comments/137rzsl/experiences_with_tradovate/): futures traders comparing experiences.
- [Tradovate forum](https://community.tradovate.com/t/withdrawl-request-refund-tradeovate/10495): a user thread on a delayed refund.

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Information gathered from public sources (company websites, regulator registers, third-party review sites). Ratings are quoted from those sources and are not the opinion of Chartnaut.com. Not financial advice. Trading carries a high risk of loss. Questions or corrections: help@chartnaut.com. Methodology: https://trust.chartnaut.com/methodology
