License & Deployment Mix: 12 tools – 6 OSS, 3 SaaS. (OSS and SaaS counts can overlap when an open-source tool also offers a vendor-hosted edition.)
What Is Trading & Investment Tooling?
Platforms and tools for trading and investing – charting and order entry, brokerage access, portfolio tracking, and open-source algorithmic / backtesting frameworks. These are tools; actual execution happens at a broker or exchange they connect to.
Boundaries
- Crypto exchanges and the chains themselves ->
crypto-blockchain. - Market-data feeds and fundamentals ->
financial-data. - Corporate cash / treasury ->
treasury-mgmt.
The information on these pages was researched by a combination of human review and large language models. To suggest an addition or correction, please contact us. Prepared by Rhodium Systems Inc., author of the ResorsIT platform — a unified IT operations management platform for IT teams and MSPs that integrates a curated suite of open-source, commercial, and SaaS applications into a single system with shared identity, single sign-on, access control, and a common audit trail. Use this catalogue only as a starting point for your own research, and review any tool carefully against your own requirements before relying on it. Catalogue data version 2026.197.
Comparison
At a glance
| Tool | Type | Self-host | Automation / API | License |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Freqtrade | Crypto algo bot | Yes | Python strategies, REST/UI | GPL-3.0 |
| Hummingbot | Market-making bot | Yes | Strategy configs, connectors | Apache-2.0 |
| QuantConnect LEAN | Algo engine | Yes | C#/Python algos | Apache-2.0 |
| Backtrader | Backtesting | Yes | Python | GPL-3.0 |
| Jesse | Crypto algo | Yes | Python | MIT |
| Portfolio Performance | Portfolio tracker | Yes (desktop) | Import/CSV | EPL-1.0 |
| MetaTrader | Retail FX/CFD | Desktop | MQL4/5 EAs | Proprietary |
| TradingView | Charting/social | No (SaaS) | Pine Script, webhooks | Proprietary |
| Interactive Brokers | Pro brokerage | Desktop + API | TWS API, FIX, REST | Proprietary |
| NinjaTrader | Futures | Desktop | NinjaScript (C#) | Proprietary |
| eToro | Social broker | No (SaaS) | Limited | Proprietary |
| Sharesight | Portfolio tracker | No (SaaS) | OAuth2 REST API | Proprietary |
How to choose
- Automate a crypto strategy, self-hosted – Freqtrade, Hummingbot, or Jesse.
- Backtest / research multi-asset algos – QuantConnect LEAN or Backtrader.
- Track a portfolio – Portfolio Performance (OSS desktop) or Sharesight (SaaS).
- Charting + broker execution – TradingView (+ a broker); pro traders -> Interactive Brokers; futures -> NinjaTrader; retail FX -> MetaTrader.
Boundaries
- Crypto exchanges/chains ->
crypto-blockchain; market data ->financial-data; treasury ->treasury-mgmt.
Tools
12 tools.
Backtrader
Backtrader is an open-source Python framework for backtesting and live trading with 122+ indicators, multiple data feeds and timeframes, and Interactive Brokers/OANDA brokers.
License: GPL-3.0 (OSS) · Kind: library · Deploy: native · SSO: none
eToro
eToro is a multi-asset social-trading brokerage for stocks, ETFs, and crypto, known for CopyTrader and Smart Portfolios that let users mirror other investors.
License: Proprietary (proprietary) · Kind: web · Deploy: saas · SSO: none
Freqtrade
Freqtrade is an open-source crypto algorithmic trading bot in Python with backtesting, hyperopt, ML (FreqAI), and a web UI, controllable via Telegram and REST.
License: GPL-3.0 (OSS) · Kind: cli · Deploy: native, docker · SSO: none
Hummingbot
Hummingbot is an open-source crypto trading bot for market making and algorithmic strategies across centralized and decentralized exchanges via standardized connectors.
License: Apache-2.0 (OSS) · Kind: cli · Deploy: native, docker · SSO: none
Interactive Brokers
Interactive Brokers is a professional multi-asset brokerage whose Trader Workstation desktop platform and TWS/Client Portal APIs serve active and algorithmic traders.
License: Proprietary (proprietary) · Kind: desktop · Deploy: native · SSO: none
Jesse
Jesse is an open-source Python framework for crypto algo trading with fast look-ahead-bias-free backtesting, 300+ indicators, optimization, a web dashboard, and live trading.
License: MIT (OSS) · Kind: cli · Deploy: native, docker · SSO: none
MetaTrader
MetaTrader 4/5 by MetaQuotes is the dominant retail forex and CFD trading platform, licensed to brokers and free for traders, with MQL-scripted automation.
License: Proprietary (proprietary) · Kind: desktop · Deploy: native · SSO: none
NinjaTrader
NinjaTrader is a futures-focused trading platform and brokerage with advanced charting and NinjaScript (C#) strategy automation, free for charting/backtesting.
License: Proprietary (proprietary) · Kind: desktop · Deploy: native · SSO: none
Portfolio Performance
Portfolio Performance is an open-source desktop app (Java/Eclipse RCP) for tracking and evaluating investment portfolios across stocks, ETFs, crypto, and other assets.
License: EPL-1.0 (OSS) · Kind: desktop · Deploy: native · SSO: none
QuantConnect LEAN
QuantConnect LEAN is an open-source, event-driven algorithmic trading engine for backtesting and live trading across equities, forex, options, futures, and crypto in C# and Python.
License: Apache-2.0 (OSS) · Kind: library · Deploy: native, docker · SSO: none
Sharesight
Sharesight is a web-based investment portfolio tracker and performance/tax reporting tool that consolidates holdings across hundreds of brokers with a developer API.
License: Proprietary (proprietary) · Kind: web · Deploy: saas · SSO: none
TradingView
TradingView is a web-based charting, technical-analysis, and social platform with Pine Script strategies, price/webhook alerts, and broker integrations.
License: Proprietary (proprietary) · Kind: web · Deploy: saas · SSO: none
