Day trading has become popular in the last decade. There are many people now who make a successful living by trading different markets. Day trading or swing trading which is better?
Day trading is often depicted in a glamorous manner in the trading literature. Do you know this that day trading is stressful and day traders are often referred to as the kings of stress. Now I am not saying that day trading is something you should avoid. There are people who are masters of day trading and this trading style suits their personality.
However, in my opinion swing trading is a much better option. In day trading you have to sit in front of your computer terminal watching the different charts and waiting for the trading signals. You can do that for a few days but after that fatigue and stress will overtake you especially if you have been making losing trades.
In day trading you open and close a trade within the same day and don't carry forward your trade overnight to the next morning. As compared to that in swing trading you can open a trade anytime of the day when the moment is right and can keep it open for days as long as your profit target is not met.
In swing trading the profit targets are also much higher as well as your stop loss is also more wide so you have more space. Swing trading depends on riding the trend at the right moment and continue riding it as long as it lasts. Day traders are looking for short term trends that may not last more than 24 hours but sometimes as a day trader if at the end of the day you have a profitable position and you feel that you should keep your trade open for a few more days you decide to carry it forward to the next few days.
So sometimes you start as a day trader but end up as a swing trader. In swing trading you don't need to monitor your trade all day. After opening your trade and putting your stop loss and take profit orders you are free as the market will take its own course after that. You only need to take a look at your trade for 10-15 minutes a day anytime of the day that suits you. As long as your technical analysis was correct, your trade will work. So you have much more freedom in swing trading specially for those who do a regular job and trade as well.