Free trading journals for MT5 and NT8.Compared fairly.
The short answer: the PFX journal is free and fills itself from MetaTrader 5 and NinjaTrader 8, with your prop-firm rules and payouts kept apart. TradesViz, Tradervue and TraderWaves have free plans with limits. TradeZella and Edgewonk are paid only, and the paid journals offer far more analysis, such as AI review and trade replay.
A journal you keep.Beats one you don't.
The PFX journal suits you if you trade MT5 or NT8, want it free and want your account figures to match your platform.
The paid journals suit you if you want AI review, backtesting, trade replay or many more reports.
Rivals' facts checked 4 Nov 2026
Six journals.The facts, side by side.
Prices, free-plan limits and platform support are from each company's own website, checked . They change, so check theirs before you decide.
| Journal | Free plan | Paid | MT5 | NinjaTrader 8 | Prop firms | Where it is stronger |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PFX journal | Free. No paid plan | None | Automatic: the free PFX Journal EA sends your history. It never trades, no password | Automatic: the free add-on sends every fill and your balance | Your copy of any firm's rules and phases, the firm's day start, payouts kept separate | Free for MT5 and NT8; account figures follow the platform balance |
| TradesViz | Stocks only, 3,000 executions a month, 1 account | Pro from £11.99/month, billed yearly (shown in GBP) | Auto-sync with an investor password | Auto-sync with a free NT8 indicator | Prop firm compliance tracking | Very deep analytics, simulator and AI tools |
| Tradervue | 30 trades a month; stock and ETF imports | Silver $29/month, Gold $49/month. 7-day trial | File import | File import; automatic through a third-party plugin | Not listed on its pricing page | Long-running, mentoring and trade sharing |
| TradeZella | No free plan listed | From $35/month, or $26/month billed yearly | Broker sync with an investor password | Through NinjaTrader's trade export | PropFirm Sync dashboard | AI review, backtesting and trade replay |
| Edgewonk | No free plan listed | $35/month or $197/year | Auto-sync | File import | Unlimited prop firm accounts | Psychology tracking, tiltmeter, edge finder |
| TraderWaves | 3 accounts, auto and CSV imports | Pro $19.99/month | Auto import (MetaTrader 4/5 listed) | Not named on its homepage | Account alerts on Pro | A free plan with auto import, plus charts |
Sources: TradesViz pricing · TradesViz NinjaTrader sync · TradesViz auto-sync (MT5) · Tradervue pricing · Tradervue MT5 · Tradervue NinjaTrader · TradeZella pricing · TradeZella MT5 · TradeZella supported platforms · Edgewonk pricing · Edgewonk import · TraderWaves pricing. PFX facts: the PFX journal page and its guides.
Know these first.Before you switch.
- Automatic only for MT5 and NT8. Any other platform is a manual account or a CSV import.
- Your terminal sends the trades. MT5 or NinjaTrader has to run for new trades to arrive.
- No AI coach, backtesting or trade replay. The paid journals have those.
- It does not connect to your prop firm. You keep your own copy of its rules; the firm's dashboard is the final word.
- Newer, and built by one person. The others have been running for years.
Matches your platform
Balance firstAccount figures come from the balance your platform reports, not a sum of trades. Payouts sit on their own line.
Your data, your call
ExportDownload a copy of your journal, or delete a trade or your whole account. See what is kept and why.
Three steps.About fifteen minutes.
Sign in
Create your account with a one-time code from your email. No password.
Add an account
Name it and choose how trades arrive: automatic from MT5 or NT8, or by hand.
Connect
Attach the free PFX Journal to MT5, or install the NT8 add-on. Your trades arrive on their own.
Good to know.
Is the PFX journal really free?
Yes. There is no paid plan. Donations are optional, by Ko-fi, and you get the same journal either way.
Do I need to give it my broker password?
No. On MT5 the free PFX Journal EA sends your history from your own terminal, and on NinjaTrader 8 the free add-on sends your fills. Neither one ever places a trade.
Why does my journal balance match my platform?
Account figures come from the balance your platform reports, not from adding up trades. Payouts are shown on their own line, so they never inflate your result.
Does it connect to my prop firm?
No. You keep your own copy of the firm's rules and phases, including when the firm's day starts. The journal checks your trades against your copy. Always confirm with the firm's own dashboard.
I trade on another platform. Can I still use it?
Yes. Add a manual account and type trades in, or import a CSV and check the rows and totals before anything is saved.
What does the PFX journal not do?
It has no AI coach, no backtesting or trade replay, and automatic sync only for MT5 and NT8. If you need those, the paid journals above do more.
Risk warning: Trading forex, CFDs and futures is high risk and most retail traders lose money. Nothing on this site is financial advice. Past results, including backtests, do not guarantee future results. A journal records what happened. It does not tell you what to trade. Read the full risk disclosure. TradesViz, Tradervue, TradeZella, Edgewonk and TraderWaves are trademarks of their owners; PrecisionFX is not connected to or endorsed by any of them. MetaTrader is a trademark of MetaQuotes Ltd. NinjaTrader® is a registered trademark of NinjaTrader Group, LLC.