The right way to download MetaStock

Step by step

Downloading and installing

1. Start the trial signup at the official page (that is where the button above goes). You choose your edition, D/C or R/T, during signup.
2. Download the installer from the link MetaStock provides. Modern versions are download-only; nothing ships in the post.
3. Install on a Windows PC that meets the system requirements. Mac users: set up Parallels or a Windows VM first.
4. Sign in and connect your data, then load your watchlist. From first click to first chart is usually well under half an hour.

The download traps

Search for "metastock download" and file-hosting sites will offer you MetaStock 11, 13 or 15 installers from a decade ago. Skip them, for three reasons: old versions cannot connect to current data feeds, which makes them ornaments; installers from file sites are a classic malware channel, and this software will sit next to your trading accounts; and everything those versions did, the current version does better.

The same goes for cracked copies. A trading platform is the last software category on earth to run from an untrusted source.

After the download

Do not let it sit in the taskbar. The 30-day evaluation plan turns the trial month into a real decision, and the free training videos shortcut the learning curve.