Searching for a free trading journal returns a lot of pages written by the vendors, including this one. So this comparison sticks to facts you can verify on each product's own pricing page, says when it was checked (17 October 2026), and includes the honest option most lists leave out: a spreadsheet. Prices and limits change often; treat the table as a starting point and confirm before you commit a year of trades to anything.
What "free" means in this category
There are four different things a trading journal can mean by free:
- A free plan with a cap. Usually a number of trades per month, or one market only. Everything works until you cross the line.
- Free manual entry, paid import. Typing trades is free; bringing in a broker file or syncing an account costs money.
- A free trial. Seven to fourteen days, then a subscription. Useful for evaluation, not for keeping a journal.
- Free, full product. Everything included, with no card; the maker earns elsewhere or later.
Knowing which one you are looking at saves the common disappointment: a month of journaling, then a paywall exactly where the history starts to be valuable.
The journals, as of October 2026
| Journal | Free plan | Limits of the free plan | Import or sync | Paid starts at |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tradervue | yes | capped by a monthly trade count; equities focus | broker import on paid tiers | about $30 per month |
| TradesViz | yes | stocks only; crypto, futures and options need a paid plan | auto-sync included | about $13 to $20 per month |
| StonkJournal | yes | unlimited manual entry | CSV "smart import" on Pro | $10 per month |
| TraderWaves | yes | notes and screenshots unlimited; forex and prop focus | MT4, MT5, cTrader, TradeLocker, Tradovate sync free | about $20 per month |
| SetupBook | yes, the whole product | none; no card asked | MetaTrader 4 and 5, Binance, TradingView, CSV import included | no paid plan today |
| TradeZella | no (trial only) | 500+ brokers | about $35 per month | |
| TraderSync | no (trial only) | 700+ brokers; native mobile apps | about $30 per month | |
| Edgewonk | no (14-day refund) | automated import | about $170 to $200 per year | |
| Spreadsheet | yes | whatever you build | by hand | free |
A short note on each, so the table is not misread.
Tradervue is the oldest journal in the category and the deepest for US stocks and options, with reports such as MFE/MAE and exit analysis on the paid tiers. The free plan is real but small, and the interface shows its age.
TradesViz has the most generous free plan for stock traders, including automatic sync, and the largest library of statistics. The catch for forex, futures and crypto traders is that those markets are paid, and the interface is dense.
StonkJournal is free for unlimited manual entry and keeps the core free by charging for AI and import. A good match if you type your trades and want a simple dashboard.
TraderWaves stands out for giving forex and prop-firm traders live sync from MetaTrader, cTrader and TradeLocker on the free plan. Stocks and crypto are weaker, and the product is young.
SetupBook is free in the fourth sense: unlimited trades and accounts, every metric, file import from MetaTrader 4 and 5 reports, Binance and TradingView exports and any CSV, prop-firm limits, weekly PNG reports, a morning check-in with four psychology charts (sleep, energy, mood and calm at entry read against your results), CSV and JSON export, in English and Turkish, with no card. It has no live broker sync, no AI and no native mobile app; it is a web app that installs to the home screen. If paid extras come later, the stated plan is that they will be things that cost money to run, not the journal itself. We make it, so weigh that sentence accordingly.
TradeZella, TraderSync and Edgewonk are the paid leaders: broker sync at scale, AI review, trade replay or backtesting, and in TraderSync's case the best mobile app in the category. None of them has a free plan; all of them are worth their price for the traders who use those features daily.
A spreadsheet is free and flexible, and stops being correct at your first partial exit or imported report. Where the spreadsheet breaks lists the exact moments.
How to choose
Answer three questions and the table collapses to one or two rows.
- Do you need automatic sync, or is a file import enough? Sync is convenient and, except for TraderWaves and TradesViz's stock plan, paid. Import once a week covers most traders who are not scalping hundreds of trades.
- Which markets? Stocks and options point to Tradervue or TradesViz. Forex and prop firms point to TraderWaves or SetupBook. Crypto and futures on a free plan narrow the field to SetupBook and a spreadsheet.
- Will you actually fill it in? The journal with the fastest manual entry is the one you will still be using in March. Test each one by logging five real trades, with the clock running.
Try before you decide
Every product above can be tried in an afternoon. For SetupBook, the demo account in the user guide has five accounts, three months of trades and every screen filled in, so you can judge the numbers before you type a single trade of your own. A free account takes a minute and asks for no card.