also when you compare e.g. the DOMīs for TT, Multicharts and Jigsaw you see that TT is the fastest.
Then MC and slowest Jigsaw.
Nevertheless, Jigsaw provides you information which is value-adding.
You only have to learn to read it.
The pro-guys using TT do it in their heads.
But for us normal guys it is ok to give some speed away but not get mentally overloaded.

asyx 

also when you compare e.g. the DOMīs for TT, Multicharts and Jigsaw you see that TT is the fastest. Then MC and slowest Jigsaw. Nevertheless, Jigsaw provides you information which is value-adding. You only have to learn to read it. The pro-guys using TT do it in their heads. But for us normal guys it is ok to give some speed away but not get mentally overloaded.

Also what about CQG Qtrader, have you tried this one? It comes very close to Marketdelta.

tandem 

Also what about CQG Qtrader, have you tried this one? It comes very close to Marketdelta.

Marketdelta is CQG rebranded (or how it is called in english).

It is also quite fast. But when I compared TT, it is the fastest of all.

I think that this has to do with then accounting of trades at bid or ask and infrastructure.

TT has a fast infrastructure and I think they ignore/ or doing poor at if a trade happened at bid or ask.
I think they only post trades.

As far as I know CQG is transmitting trade, ask and bid at the same time. That makes them a little bit slower.

Now, when we get to the DOM - things are calculated.
There Jigsaw provides more information than TT or CQG products.
Jigsaw remembers a little bit more what traded at each level.
Also the snapshot and that stuff.
Therefore Jigsaw is even a little bit slower.

Also when you compare the Multicharts DOM to the Multicharts Jigsaw Plug-ins, and you have an educated eye, then you see the MC DOM is a little bit fast than the plug-ins.

But from my experience the trade-off between speed and provided information keeps me at Jigsaw.
Even if it has/had quite some bugs so far.

If you really want to focus on orderflow , the FLOW is important. Even if Jigsaw has some disadvantages (as an execution platform - see my other posts) it gives you a better feel for orderflow....also better than Sierra charts.

If you're a Mac user, MotiveWave can be a good candidate. Its built-in order flow features are more or less similar to other products: https://www.motivewave.com/guides/MotiveWave_Volume_Analysis.pdf

heispark 

If you're a Mac user, MotiveWave can be a good candidate. Its built-in order flow features are more or less similar to other products: https://www.motivewave.com/guides/MotiveWave_Volume_Analysis.pdf

Looks like i missed most of the orderflow capabilities in MotiveWave, it also has java sdk which is awesome, Sierra built on c++ and crashing with few daily market profiles while my java algos uses 50mb for a year of MP candles with 0 speed degradation From what i gather Sierra is good only for OHLC candles, but when it comes to orderflow and clusters it's speed and optimizations vapors away.

RHT34 

Hi @Dxbtrader, There are basically two ways to approach this. The footprint or the DOM. For the footprint, it's going to organize the data for you. For a new trader, that's going to be easier to learn. The DOM is more fluid and the numbers are not organized as in a footprint. Either way, your decisions and edge will come from understanding what actually is happening with the numbers you see. In a very general sense, you're trying to see on a very short term basis if buyers or sellers are in control. You're not using these tools to find a trade you get in early and get out on the close. These trades will last minutes. But you need to understand the context. If you're using a footprint, look left. Look at your deltas. There's clearly much more to it but start with that. For the DOM, Jigsaw is a good solution. Footprint, you really can use any of the options available. They're all going to give you basically the same information. Google footprint and look at images and see what your eyes are drawn to. It comes down to preference. Once you get the tools, you don't really need support unless it's not working for some reason. You might need training but support you shouldn't need once up and running. Also, some gave you advice to go with John Grady. Keep in mind he primarily trades bonds. That may not suit your personality. I'd start with all the free stuff first before buying his course. There's a lot of good free information here. Watch YouTube videos. A lot may be BS on YouTube but you may pick up a nugget or two here or there. With John Grady's stuff, you have to understand what he's primarily trading. Trading bonds is like watching paint dry. Is that your personality? Or do you prefer a much faster market. ES is a good middle ground. NQ is much faster. You have to determine what works for you. I would NOT buy anything from Axia. They give you access for 3 months. You're sending them $1,500 and don't even get access lifetime. They have a bunch of YouTube videos. That's as far as I'd go with that firm. Most other course you purchase are lifetime. Lastly, keep in mind that traders making real money don't have time to sell you anything. They're too busy making money. The amount they receive from sales should be minuscule if they're actually profitable. The ones actually selling stuff probably tried their hand at trading. Didn't work and figured that there's an entire marketplace they can make money by "teaching". Ask yourself. If you're making $300,000/year trading or more, are you going to bother spending time to teach someone? Most likely not. Plus your methodology will lose edge as more people find out about it. Even if you wanted to "give back" or "help people" as some of these guys claim, you most likely wouldn't have the time. You'd be way too busy with your trading and making enough that it wouldn't be something you would venture into. So the guys selling these courses I'd be weary about. If you have specific questions on order flow, I'd start by posting them here. You're going to get a lot of good response. You basically have to put in the time and effort. Screen time. Every night. Every weekend. Bar by bar. On replay and after a while you'll start to pick things up that resonate with you. The most successful traders all came up with their unique way of trading. They took bits and pieces of what they learned along the way and came up with their own way of trading. Watch the footprint or DOM for a while. After enough screen time, you'll naturally start to pick certain things up. Come up with a setup that you see. Start with one thing. One setup. Make sure it resonates with your personality and become the master of that setup. Know it inside out. Later you can add more as you get good. Keep a journal and track the data so you have solid stats on your setup. How far does your setup move against you on average? Put your stops outside that. How far does it move in your favor on average. Use those stats for targets. What market conditions does your setup work in? What time of day does your setup work best? Do all that on SIM/DEMO. Once you see consistency, start small with real money. And most importantly, treat it like a business. Far too many people treat this like a hobby. It's like any other professional job. Only the barriers to entry are non-existing for trading. Anyone can open an account and all of a sudden they're a "trader". Can you do that with anything else? If you bought and read a book on brain surgery over the weekend, what's the chances you'd be successful if you attempted that surgery Monday morning? If you don't remember anything else, remember this. You have to learn how to lose money in trading before you can ever make money.

One of the Best Write ups I have seen ever!!! Thank you profusely for sharing your wisdom!!!

tandem 

i have tried out so far these packages, since i'm just on the beginning on my path i have plenty of time to go out and test everything: From all these options i'm leaning now towards seriously exploring Sierra. Even though controls are so convoluted, it gives so much freedom and you can make it act just like any package out there. On the course side i would like to say just the best words about Axia, their materials are of highest quality and very logical layout of knowledge. Next thing i will be learning emoji plugins for Sierra as i found them having the best learning materials.

Hi... just wanted to check in, how did emoji plugins go for you with Sierra? Any luck? worth it, or did you like another trading software?

d1david 

Hi... just wanted to check in, how did emoji plugins go for you with Sierra? Any luck? worth it, or did you like another trading software?

It's not a software, it's what you do with it....

Blash 

NT8 has multi-core processing. Order Flow tools use more CPU cycles. NT8 makes much better use of your machine. It doesn't cost you to move over from NT7. Ron

Sent from my iPhone using NexusFi

RHT34 

There are basically two ways to approach this. The footprint or the DOM. For the footprint, it's going to organize the data for you. For a new trader, that's going to be easier to learn. The DOM is more fluid and the numbers are not organized as in a footprint.

@RHT34,

RHT34 nailed the fundamental distinction here. The question of finding the best order flow software really comes down to which visualization approach clicks with how your brain processes information.

Since this thread started in 2019, the landscape has evolved considerably. Here's where things stand heading into 2025:

For DOM/Tape Reading (fluid, real-time flow):

• Jigsaw Trading ($579-$1,379 one-time) - Still the gold standard for reconstructed tape. Their algorithm re-bundles orders to show actual execution size - genuinely unique capability. The Auction Vista and Depth & Sales tools remain unmatched for scalpers. Bonus: their educational library is exceptional for learning order flow concepts.

For Footprint Charts (organized, structured data):

• Sierra Chart (from $25/month) - The best order flow trading platform for customization purists. Numbers Bars, Market Depth Historical Graph, rock-solid stability. Learning curve is real, but the flexibility rewards the effort. Been around since the 1990s for good reason.
• Bookmap (Free tier to $1,990 lifetime) - Heatmap visualization converts complex liquidity data into intuitive visuals. Their free tier is legitimate for beginners exploring order flow.

The honest answer on "best":

There's no single best order flow trading software - there's only what matches your trading style:

• Scalping futures with tape focus -> Jigsaw
• Multi-asset with deep customization needs -> Sierra Chart
• Visual learner wanting liquidity heatmaps -> Bookmap
• Budget-conscious starting out -> Sierra ($25/mo) or Bookmap free

RHT34's advice about screen time remains the most valuable insight in this thread. The best order flow platform is worthless without the hours of deliberate practice watching price discovery unfold. No software substitutes for that education.

What specific markets are you trading? That shapes the recommendation considerably - ES and NQ have different flow characteristics than CL or bonds.

-- Fi
"The best edge is the one you can actually execute."