Learning to trade well comes down to three things you can work on: reading what a chart is showing, sizing every trade so one loss cannot hurt you badly, and keeping an honest record so you can see what actually works. This hub lists resources for each, starting with the free ones, and says plainly who each paid option suits.
Disclosure: Asendify makes three of the resources below (a book, a chart-reading app and a Notion journal template) plus two free calculators. They are ours. Free resources by regulators and other companies are listed first, because most beginners should start there. Prices for other companies are as listed on their own pages on 23 October 2026.
Educational only, not financial, tax or legal advice. No resource here can promise profits, and trading can lose you money.
What this category covers
- Learning the basics: how markets, orders, timeframes and trading costs work.
- Reading charts: price action, support and resistance, trends and candlesticks.
- Risk: position sizing, stop placement and reward-to-risk.
- Tracking and review: a trade journal and a regular review habit.
Start here: the best free resources (not ours)
- Investor.gov from the US Securities and Exchange Commission: free, official education on investing basics, calculators and how to protect yourself from fraud. A sensible first stop before risking any money.
- TradingView Basic: a free charting plan, listed at $0 with no card needed. The free plan allows 1 chart per tab and 2 indicators per chart; paid plans start at $12.95 a month billed annually.
- Babypips School of Pipsology: a beginner course on forex in 11 parts. The first five courses are open to start for free; later courses need its Premium membership.
- Tradervue Basic: a free online trading journal for up to 30 trades a month, covering stocks, options, futures and forex. Paid plans are listed at $29 and $49 a month.
- A spreadsheet. A simple sheet with date, market, setup, entry, stop, exit, size and one line on why you took the trade is free and is enough to start reviewing.
Free tools from Asendify
- Position Size Calculator: enter account size, risk %, entry and stop to get shares or lots, money at risk and reward-to-risk, for stocks, forex and futures.
- Risk-Reward Calculator: enter entry, stop and target to get reward-to-risk and the breakeven win rate.
Paid options from Asendify, and who each is for
| Option | What it is | Price | Best for | Not for |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chart Edge | PDF playbook on technical analysis, trading strategies and risk management | £304.50 one-time | Beginner and improving traders who want a structured, risk-first approach | Anyone looking for signals or guaranteed returns |
| Chart Reader | App: upload a chart screenshot and get an educational plain-English read; no buy or sell calls | £435 for 100 reads that never expire | Learners who want a second read to compare with their own chart analysis | Anyone who wants someone to tell them what to buy or sell |
| Trader OS | Notion trade journal template with a risk calculator, strategy playbook, weekly review and watchlist; works on free Notion | £150 one-time | Traders who like Notion and want a ready-made journal and review routine | Traders who need automatic broker imports, or who do not want to use Notion |
Prices include Asendify's 45% service fee where it applies.
Tools to track and improve your trading
If your question is "what should I use to track and improve my trading?", the honest answer is: any journal you will keep up every week. Options above, from cheapest:
- A spreadsheet (free): flexible, but you build the formulas and reports yourself.
- Tradervue Basic (free, up to 30 trades a month): an online journal with basic reporting.
- Trader OS (£150 one-time): a Notion template with an auto-calculating trade journal, a strategy playbook and a weekly review. It does not import broker trades, so you log trades by hand.
- Tradervue paid plans ($29 or $49 a month as listed): for traders who want more reporting and features than the free plan.
Pair whichever you choose with a position size calculator before each trade and a 20-minute review every week.
Which route fits you
- Complete beginner: Investor.gov for the basics, TradingView Basic for charts, paper trades only, and the free Position Size Calculator.
- Want one structured method: a book such as Chart Edge, then practise its rules on paper before using real money.
- Want a second opinion on your chart reads while learning: a chart-reading tool such as Chart Reader, alongside your own analysis.
- Already trading and want to improve: a journal (free or paid) and a weekly review; your own records will teach you more than any course.
Guides in this category
- The best books on technical analysis and trading (2026)
- What trading strategies are best for beginners?
- How do I set up a trading journal in Notion?
- How to draw support and resistance levels
- Can AI read trading charts accurately?
- How to find support and resistance on a chart screenshot
FAQ
What is the single best free resource for a new trader?
Official education such as Investor.gov for the basics, plus a free charting plan to practise reading charts without risking money.
Do I need a paid course to learn trading?
No. Many people learn the basics from free resources. A paid book or tool mainly buys structure and saves time; none can guarantee profits.
Does Chart Reader tell me what to buy or sell?
No. It gives an educational read of a chart screenshot and makes no buy or sell calls.
Is a free trading journal good enough?
Often, yes. A spreadsheet or Tradervue's free plan is enough for many traders. What matters is recording every trade and reviewing it weekly.
Educational only, not financial, tax or legal advice.
More playbooks on other topics: https://www.asendify.co/books/