Are Demo Accounts Similar To Live Accounts?

Similar, but not the same. For the most part, demo accounts utilise the same functionality as their live counterparts, although this is by no means a guarantee. While the idea is generally to give trades an understanding of the platform and the basics of spread betting, some brokers build in slight differences to their free and real account versions, making the trading experience within demo account from time to time more restricted than trading for real.

But perhaps the main difference between demo accounts and live accounts is the learning experience they can offer. While most traders would tend to default to a demo account as the main source of their trading education, there really is no substitute for raw experience. Losing £10,000 virtually will never come close to losing £10 of real cash, and the distinction is an important one for helping to shape trading strategy and understanding.