Welcome to NexusFi: the best trading community on the planet, with over 150,000 members Sign Up Now for Free
Genuine reviews from real traders, not fake reviews from stealth vendors
Quality education from leading professional traders
We are a friendly, helpful, and positive community
We do not tolerate rude behavior, trolling, or vendors advertising in posts
We are here to help, just let us know what you need
You'll need to register in order to view the content of the threads and start contributing to our community. It's free for basic access, or support us by becoming an Elite Member -- see if you qualify for a discount below.
-- Big Mike, Site Administrator
(If you already have an account, login at the top of the page)
Honestly, I've given up on NinjaTrader. Its connection handling is just really poor. I have found it hard to keep it running smoothly for 24 hours at a go. I estimate that 20% of the time, my overnight strategy doesn't fire for one reason or the other. On top of that I've noticed odd bugs or behavior that is confusing in the API that I have had to work around (eg. it wouldn't handle the number of orders correctly in stops/profit targets after closing a partial position. The main thing is the reliability though. I just cannot keep it running!
And as for live trading, I much prefer the GUI in ThinkOrSwim. Has everything NT has and more builtin, and it looks better and is easier to configure. I think people say the main prob with TOS is bad fills, but perhaps if you aren't trading very high frequency, it doesn't matter as much.
1) How long have you been using NinjaTrader?
4 Months
2) What are your favorite features of NinjaTrader?
It's one of the few automated trading platforms out there.
3) What are some must-have deal breaker features in NinjaTrader that you could not do without?
Automated trading
4) Do you use NinjaTrader in simulation mode only, or do you place live trades with it?
Live Trades
5) Are you a discretionary trader or an algorithmic trader? How does NinjaTrader help you with this?
Algo
6) How easy/hard was it for you to learn to use NinjaTrader?
Not that hard, especially since I came from a Java/C++ programming background
7) How do you rate NinjaTrader's customer service/support, assuming you have needed to use it?
Shitty. I contacted them, and it was clear that they didn't read my whole message, or the logs I sent, and
gave me a stock entry-level beginners level startup instruction. Wouldn't acknowledge that they had a bug.
8) Do you believe NinjaTrader is competitively priced?
Yes, but I honestly wish I had gone with something else. I've lost out on 1500 ticks of profit in the last 4 months due to problems with NT. That
9) How do you rate the community support that exists for NinjaTrader?
Good, but it's limited. I think a lot of the quants who have tried it, have given up on it, and transitioned to something else.
Having lots of frustration with NT. But I am brand new, green. Connectivity is poor. Was told it was a great program... have spent hours trying to get true open interest to show intraday... platform support said it was not available. Poor web reports on Kinetick. Historical data very poor. Found better data with Think or Swim. So after spending $995.00 for a platform with the limitations I am running into, I have regrets in purchasing it--but these are the type of mistakes that beginners make as they are naïve. Tired of hearing about NT8...its been advertised for about ten years now...either put up or move on and just admit your only going to have NT7
2) What are your favorite features of NinjaTrader?
I like the clean look of a white background and candles... they surround the candle with a thin black line... which gives a balanced effect.
3) What are some must-have deal breaker features in NinjaTrader that you could not do without?
intraday open interest
4) Do you use NinjaTrader in simulation mode only, or do you place live trades with it?
Not there yet
5) Are you a discretionary trader or an algorithmic trader? How does NinjaTrader help you with this?
Discretionary
6) How easy/hard was it for you to learn to use NinjaTrader?
hard, the demos seem to be done on a mac, I use pc??
7) How do you rate NinjaTrader's customer service/support, assuming you have needed to use it?
No phone access, emails may go a couple days before being answered.
Called the emergency desk number at 2 am to test it out ... no one answered after 20 minutes. Double checked my dialing and did it again, no answer.
Also, some individuals seem very knowledge-able. Other seem to be out of the skill set???
8) Do you believe NinjaTrader is competitively priced?
Think or Swim is Free
9) How do you rate the community support that exists for NinjaTrader?
1) How long have you been using NinjaTrader?
6 years
2) What are your favorite features of NinjaTrader?
Chart Trader and ATM
3) What are some must-have deal breaker features in NinjaTrader that you could not do without?
On chart trading.
4) Do you use NinjaTrader in simulation mode only, or do you place live trades with it?
Both.
5) Are you a discretionary trader or an algorithmic trader? How does NinjaTrader help you with this?
Algo trader. It is fast.
6) How easy/hard was it for you to learn to use NinjaTrader?
Learning the overall platform and functions was easy. Community support has helped a great deal, too.
7) How do you rate NinjaTrader's customer service/support, assuming you have needed to use it?
They do answer emails, even though, in some cases, you need a little patience or persistence.
8) Do you believe NinjaTrader is competitively priced?
Very nice retail platform that is only getting better with time.
9) How do you rate the community support that exists for NinjaTrader?
Very helpful.
I downloaded it their free demo and couldn't make anything of it. The interface isn't uninitiated friendly IMO. Meta 4 is okay I'd like to try meta 5 someday.
1) How long have you been using NinjaTrader?
Since 2011
2) What are your favorite features of NinjaTrader?
Ninjascript and ability to make powerful strategies that can reference anything you can implement in C#
3) What are some must-have deal breaker features in NinjaTrader that you could not do without?
Must have is a solution to set up automated strategies that can run largely on their own and can be monitored as they do so. VIX futures on Interactive Brokers. Worked up until July then abruptly stopped with the implementation of weekly contracts. NT not particularly interested in fixing that.
4) Do you use NinjaTrader in simulation mode only, or do you place live trades with it?
Live trades (about 300 per month on average, though can be concentrated on a few days)
5) Are you a discretionary trader or an algorithmic trader? How does NinjaTrader help you with this?
Algorithmic - easy framework for implementing strategies and once you figured out the various eccentricities of the system it's reasonably workable.
6) How easy/hard was it for you to learn to use NinjaTrader?
Moderate - the concepts are simple but the details are not trivial. Especially figuring out how to sensibly monitor strategies that are running all day.
7) How do you rate NinjaTrader's customer service/support, assuming you have needed to use it?
Usually good. Sometimes feel they aren't clear about what can be done/fixed when.
8) Do you believe NinjaTrader is competitively priced?
When I bought it yes. Now that it doesn't support the instrument that I want to trade the most, not so much.
9) How do you rate the community support that exists for NinjaTrader?
generally pretty good.
I'm looking for alternatives because of the VIX issue. Both because of missing out on trades that would have been quite favorable as well as finding their attitude towards this troubling (suggestion on the support forum was to switch to a different brokerage and blamed IB without being willing to make a fix on their back end for current users, just implying that it might at some point be supported in the next version).
Currently trying to implement the same strategy working on the IB platform rather than through NT but haven't yet gotten it reliable enough to be comfortable yet.
I'm not really happy with the fact that they are whitelabeling NinjaTrader Brokerage and the conflicts of interest between supporting that brokerage and contracts on its exchanges as opposed to the brokerage that I use and the products that I actually focus upon.
1) How long have you been using NinjaTrader? - 4 years
2) What are your favorite features of NinjaTrader? - Easy development / customisation of indicators through C#.
3) What are some must-have deal breaker features in NinjaTrader that you could not do without? - None.
4) Do you use NinjaTrader in simulation mode only, or do you place live trades with it? - Live.
5) Are you a discretionary trader or an algorithmic trader? - Discretionary. How does NinjaTrader help you with this? - Add ons MP (Market Profit Pack) and order flow platform (Jigsaw).
6) How easy/hard was it for you to learn to use NinjaTrader? - Hard - I had to learn to code to make the best use of it !
7) How do you rate NinjaTrader's customer service/support, assuming you have needed to use it? - 10/10.
8) Do you believe NinjaTrader is competitively priced? - Never really gave it any thought, probably; as the alternative I am moving too doesn't offer a lifetime licence. Yes I have given up with NT despite all the pro's. **
9) How do you rate the community support that exists for NinjaTrader? - Excellent with mostly well meaning and helpful members.
** NT8 has been coming for 3 years and will still be an age behind TOS (platform wise) and still no native MP or VP - I am moving to LinnSoft's IRT Pro.
@Big Mike - I quote ".... I am gauging response by popularity ...." If this relates to number of respondents then fair enough but the way the questions have been phrased does not allow much scope for expression of satisfaction/popularity or otherwise with NT.
Again I quote "If you have any other thoughts to add please do so."
In the context of "Where to start as a trader" I would suggest that there are better alternatives for beginners than NT. For a few hundred bucks deposit - that you get to keep or use - open an account with TOS and learn for free with full access to all features and markets eg level 2 quotes, news feeds, stocks/forex/commodities, scanning, basic indicator coding/enhancements etc They offer everything and once you have found your niche / edge, whatever --- then look for a more specialist provider that won't clutter the platform trying to be all things to all people.
If "Where to start as a trader" is aimed at someone who is one step ahead of a beginner and is now looking to trade purposefully then NT can be as simple or complex as you need it to be, with the caveat that you will need to master C# / HTML5 before you can do anything with it. As I stated above NT has served my purpose but has now become clunky with 3rd party add-ons - I am fed up with hearing about NT8 (for 3+ years now) and know it will not natively offer facilities that I use trading every day and I still have to export data to get any meaningful results as NT's native analysers are woeful - 'general' would be a compliment !!
In short use TOS or TWS etc to 'discover' yourself as a trader for nothing more than a savings deposit then look for a platform that best meets your needs.
For your webinar I would suggest you focus on identifying these needs (using a free but comprehensive platform) and then encourage the listener to do his/her own research - almost all platforms offer a free demo now - as I'm sure you are aware.
Good luck with the webinar - I will look forward to it.
PS Why do I use NT ? - I won't be for much longer - as soon as I am comfortable with IRT. Why did I stay with NT ? - I had invested so much into it I was loath to do it all again. Why did I pick NT to start with ? Good feed back from forums like futures.io (formerly BMT) - I could develop my own strategies - cheaper than others as it was a one off fee, no flashy lights and shiny beads cluttering up my platform. (I still use TOS for equities / etfs - though I wear sunglasses when using it).
1) How long have you been using NinjaTrader? 2 years.
2) What are your favorite features of NinjaTrader? Chart trading.
3) What are some must-have deal breaker features in NinjaTrader that you could not do without? Ability to optimize, backtest and strategies.
4) Do you use NinjaTrader in simulation mode only, or do you place live trades with it? Live.
5) Are you a discretionary trader or an algorithmic trader? How does NinjaTrader help you with this?Discretinary, chart trading, DOM is nice but I am not use it)
6) How easy/hard was it for you to learn to use NinjaTrader? Easy.
7) How do you rate NinjaTrader's customer service/support, assuming you have needed to use it?
Sometimes I don´t like are slowly and they are very busy when I called them.
8) Do you believe NinjaTrader is competitively priced? Not.
9) How do you rate the community support that exists for NinjaTrader? Obsolete, I think needs to be updated somes things.
Been live on Ninja 7. It's the direct licence where stops need to be managed and does not have Stop loss. Not a licence for the faint of heart. Clarifying Direct does not have OCO functionality. Stops can always be put in after.
Had it on Sim for 2months serious watching before Live since 1month. Its setup on a PC with 7monitors..multiple charts.no issues...
I have had a feel for ninja however for last 2 years whenever I was evaluating a OF tool. I must thank Ninja for allowing me to do that..without any red tape. I would not arrived at my Of tools without this..
Ninja is super easy and intuitive
Best feature I like is the way they handle bid..ask. it helps me in order flow.I do not have that on my TS platform hence wiil use ninja and ts till I trade. I also have serious of on ts which does not need bid..ask.
Support is super responsive. Have had support for critical questions for me answered on saturday and sunday. If had any issues have reached out to ninja thread or DM Ray @NinjaTrader and it got resolved. Thanks Ray.
Dom is super easy. I use market in market out so it's never been a problem.
The best feature since I have platform running even if not in front of it...one click to go from live to sim. I do this as am in earthquake country and do not want a bunch of keyboard strokes pressed at time if one strikes. Lol on a diff note I took few great trades and realized shucks was on the sim mode..but that was user error. I trade mostly 1st 2 hrs or so hence to move it to sim when I leave is most imp without hassle of logging out and log back in.
Anyways ninja feature I do not use any. Since am interested in OF all my indicators use inherent functionality of Ninja.
Ninja community. I have not needed to use as I get info from here itself and or reach out to Ray or Ninja support.
I have compared and constantly compare rythmic feed and current cqg continuum which i use with ninja. Results are solid. No feed issues or platform freezes. Was not there for Aug timeframe trades but saw it handled fomc in Oct like a charm where I was live.
Ninja 8. I am not sure if I need to move or probably have not delved into it. Since am a dinosaur I am happy with 7. I get ms timestamps for my TS and ninja7. If there is something more I can glean into in the hft world then I may move to 8..else am good. Else an OF tool I use tells me to move.
So basically am a satisfied ninja cust. Am in process of setting up 2nd ninja platform though from a backup perspective. But wouldn't have done it if did not give value.
