• Convenience.  The financial information you need for your trading decision - your outstanding futures positions, the amount of cash you have in your account, and the amount of margin required for your intended trade - can be found on your computer screen.
• Speed.  Futures prices can move quickly.  Once you have made your trading decision, you want to place your order ASAP.  Speed of the execution is especially important if you are placing a market order.  Online orders get to the trading floor faster than telephoned orders.
• Lower Commissions.  Brokerage firms usually charge less for handling an online transaction because fewer of their resource are tied up in executing a trade.
• Control.  When you trade online, you decide (no one else) what to do and when to do it.  
• Accuracy.  Occasionally, messages between you, your broker, and the trading floor can be mis-communicated.  Online trading reduces the number of steps in the order process, therefore reducing the chances of a misunderstanding.

Getting Started:

• Hardware - make sure you have a reliable computer.  Your broker should be able to tell you the minimum requirements (megabytes of RAM, megahertz speed and hard drive capacity of gigabytes) need to run their online trading program.
• Access - You can use a 56k (56-kilobyte) modem and connect from your home phone, however, this ties up your phone line and as you move around the web, a 56K modem will start to seem slow.  Other ways to connect are: DSL, satellite, or cable modem.  Again, your broker should be able to best describe which works best for the type of trading you are planning on doing.
• Trading Program/Software - generally this is provided by the firm you are trading through.  Usually you can go to their website and download the software directly to your computer.

Recommended Futures Trading Platforms:

Internet Order Express (IOXM) allows you to rapidly enter orders, receive fill prices, and interact securely directly to the floor of the exchange. Browser based. No downloading... (more)
J-Trader online trading platform brings "Level II" market access for electronically traded futures contracts for serious active traders... (more)
Vision Express One of the easiest, quickest, "no brainer" Internet platforms available today! Has practically all of PATS/J-Trader's features. Trades futures 24 hours a day in all electronic futures markets, selected active foreign markets, and ALL pit traded futures markets. Free to all users, without any volume requirements... (more)
New! : Vision Pro is a direct access ("level 2") trading platform with depth of the market capabilities. A trader can see all the volume and liquidity of the entire market at a single glance. Charting capabilities have numerous analytical studies and features... (more)