Option simulators in India: eight tools, grouped by what you want to do

What a simulator does, and what it does not

A simulator replays past market prices so you can place trades by hand and watch them play out. You decide each step while the clock moves. That makes it a place to practise and to rehearse an idea.

It is not a backtest. A backtest runs written rules over months or years of history in one go and reports the result. A simulator shows you one day at a time, and you are the one making decisions. Some providers sell both, and we name that where it matters. On Tradetron, backtesting is a separate feature that comes after the replay, once your idea is a set of rules.

Nothing in this roundup is a forecast. A replay shows what prices did, not what they will do. If you want the longer version of that point, our guide on practising options trading with replay covers how to use a replay without fooling yourself.

How we chose the eight

We started with the tools that rank for simulator searches in India, then kept the ones where we could check the facts on the provider's own site, logged out, on one evening: 15 Oct 2026. Prices are what each page showed that day. Where a provider's own pages disagreed with each other, we did not pick a side. Where a fact sat behind a login, we left it out.

That is why some cells in the table say less than you might want. Replay step size and the first available date are missing for several tools because their public pages do not state them. If you need those, ask the provider or open the tool.

We do not link to the other providers. Search for them by name and read their pages yourself; prices and plans change often.

Use case: you want to try a replay before paying for anything

Tradetron. Who it is for: someone who wants to replay a real day today and decide later. The preset days on our option simulator page open without an account. A free Tradetron account opens every trading day in the data and lets you hold a position across days. History runs from Jan 2020 for NIFTY and BANKNIFTY, Feb 2021 for FINNIFTY, and 2023 for SENSEX and MIDCPNIFTY, in 1-minute steps. We never fill a missing price with a model: a strike that did not trade shows its last price in grey. Replay data runs with a 35-day lag; SEBI requires 30. SENSEX runs on approximations, because there is no BSE settlement or margin file in our data and its chain is thinner.

Where others are stronger: there is no save, share or import in the public tool yet, five indices with no BANKEX, and no stocks. If you need the current trading day, we do not offer it by design.

StockMojo. Who it is for: a trader who wants a free simulator with wide coverage and a lot of option analytics around it. StockMojo says its core simulator is free and needs no broker connection or signup for basic use. It lists seven indices plus 200+ NSE F&O stocks, steps from 1 minute to a day with autoplay, shows Greeks per strike and for the whole position, and supports stop-loss and target on each leg or the portfolio, with alert-only or automatic square-off. It also has a Timeseries Option Chain that replays the full chain minute by minute.

Where it is stronger than us: coverage (BANKEX, NIFTY NEXT 50 and stocks), stop-loss automation inside the simulator, and the surrounding toolset. What to check: extended history and saved strategies sit in the paid plan, and StockMojo does not state a start date for its NIFTY history, "multiple years". It also says its simulated results exclude brokerage, taxes and slippage, which is a fair thing to say and worth checking in any tool.

NiftyTrader. Who it is for: a trader who wants to start without signing up and may want a mobile app later. NiftyTrader says its simulator is free for the current month's historical data. Its paid Prime tier adds longer history, save and share by link, and PDF or CSV export, and it promotes 4+ years of data. It covers five indices, lets you set slippage and brokerage assumptions, and shows a live payoff chart and position Greeks during replay. It has Android and iOS apps.

Where it is stronger than us: saving, sharing and exporting, cost settings, and the apps. What to check: the free tier covers the current month's data, and its replay steps run from 5 minutes to a day.

Use case: you want to go from practice to rules to a live algo

Tradetron, for this job. The idea is one path on one platform. You replay a day and trade by hand. Then you tell Cookie, Tradetron's AI, what you did: your entry time, your strikes as distance from ATM, and where and why you got out. Cookie writes it as an algo with an entry rule and a stop-loss or time exit. You backtest it over years, and when you are ready, you deploy it with your broker. The steps are laid out in from a manual replay to an algo. Algo trading carries risk, and a backtest describes the past, not the future.

AlgoTest. Who it is for: a retail options trader who wants testing and automated execution under one roof. AlgoTest says its simulator replays a past session in 1-minute steps with jumps up to a day and autoplay. It shows an option chain with Delta and IV, a payoff graph with breakevens, and Greeks. It can import a strategy from its Strategy Builder, replay trades you took through the builder, and set alerts on leg stop-loss, targets, the underlying and position delta. It publishes simulator pages for six indices, links to its backtester, forward test and live execution, and reports 30,000+ traders and Y Combinator backing.

Where it is stronger than us: scale, alerts, import from the builder, BANKEX, and a longer public record. What to check: we could not confirm a single simulator price from its own pages, so read its pricing page the day you buy. It also opened on the current trading day when we checked, which some traders prefer.

The difference between the two is mostly in how the hand-off works and what you get for free. Our own head-to-head, with the same dated checks, is on the AlgoTest and Tradetron simulator comparison, and we have a longer older post on the platforms as a whole.

Use case: you think in volatility, Greeks and saved portfolios

Opstra. Who it is for: a volatility-minded options trader, especially a positional one, who wants analytics next to the simulator. Opstra describes its Options Simulator as a way to simulate and backtest option trades on past expiries to practise and learn. The simulator is in the Premium plan, not Basic, at Rs 1,300 a month plus 18% GST, with a 6-month plan at Rs 6,000 and an annual plan at Rs 11,000, all plus GST and non-refundable. The Basic plan is free but does not include it.

Where it is stronger than us: depth of volatility analytics (IV charts, surface and skew), saved portfolios, and an options backtester next to the simulator, and a freemium plan since 2020. What to check: Opstra does not state the simulator's step size, start date or index list on its public pages, so we have not listed them. Its main site carries NSE F&O data, with BSE and MCX on a separate site. Our Opstra simulator comparison goes through the same facts in more detail.

Use case: you already live in a backtester

StockMock. Who it is for: an index options trader who tests intraday and expiry strategies, usually as a seller, and wants a simulator alongside a long-running backtester. The Simulator is sold inside the Analytics Plan, with the Strategy Builder, Charts and Option Chain: Rs 349 for 30 days, Rs 1,599 for 180 days or Rs 2,599 for 360 days, plus 18% GST. Its Backtesting Plans do not include the Simulator. The Analytics Plan covers six indices, and the Strategy Builder tracks a simulated portfolio against live prices with real-time P&L.

Where it is stronger than us: a long track record in backtesting that models slippage, brokerage and taxes, the live-price builder, and BANKEX coverage. What to check: StockMock does not state the simulator's data start date or replay step on its own pages, and its support is by email. For a side-by-side with the same dated checks, see the StockMock simulator comparison.

Use case: you want a low monthly price

Opify. Who it is for: a trader who wants a simple simulator for NIFTY, BANKNIFTY or SENSEX at a small monthly price. Opify's free plan includes basic simulations and live strategy simulation. Its Premium plan, shown at Rs 249 a month, adds the historical, live and intraday simulator with intraday and bar replay. It advertises 150+ past expiries and 3+ years of data, and says its subscriptions do not auto-renew.

Where it is stronger than us: the price point, the live plus historical combination, and bar replay. What to check: it covers three indices, and prices change, so confirm the plan on its site before you pay.

Use case: you want to practise at live prices, not past ones

Sensibull. Who it is for: a trader, especially a Zerodha user, who wants to track a hypothetical trade at today's prices before placing it. Sensibull calls this feature Draft Portfolios. You build a position, see option prices, P&L and Greeks, and follow it as the market moves, with a one-minute data delay. Draft Portfolios and the Strategy Builder are Pro features. Sensibull is free for Zerodha users; for others, the one-month Pro plan was shown at Rs 800 a month. New non-Zerodha users get a 3-day mini-trial and then a 7-day free Pro trial.

It is not a historical simulator: its help centre says it does not have a simulator based on historical data. That makes it a different tool for a different job, with iOS and Android apps and links to four brokers, which we do not have. The difference between watching a trade at live prices and replaying a day that already happened is the subject of live virtual trading vs historical replay. That statement comes from a help article dated 1 Jan 2024, so check Sensibull's site for anything newer.

How to choose between them

Ask five questions, in this order.

1. How far back do I need to go? If you want to practise on 2020 or 2022 days, check each provider's first available date for your index. Ours are Jan 2020 for NIFTY and BANKNIFTY. Several providers do not publish theirs.
2. Which index? If you trade BANKEX or stock options, the tools that list them are in the table. If you trade NIFTY, Bank Nifty or SENSEX, most of the tools that publish an index list include all three. Opstra's page for the simulator does not state one.
3. What step size and controls? Most step in 1 minute or more. Some offer alerts or automatic square-off. Decide whether you need them for practice.
4. What does it cost over a year, with GST? Some prices include GST and some add 18%. Compare like with like.
5. What happens after the practice? If the answer is "nothing", a free or cheap tool is enough. If you want to turn a setup into rules, check whether the same platform can do it.

Also check whether the tool states what it leaves out. Costs, slippage and the gap between a replayed price and a real fill are never fully captured in a replay. Our own gaps are plain: no save, share or import in the public tool, a 35-day lag, and SENSEX approximations.

A short note on data

Two things separate trustworthy replay data from decoration. The first is how a tool treats a price that did not exist. Strikes far from the money often do not trade for minutes. A tool can show the last price that did trade, or it can invent one from a model. We show the last price, greyed, with the minute it traded. The second is recency. Some providers show the current day; ours runs 35 days behind, because SEBI requires a 30-day gap. Neither is wrong, but you should know which one you are using. More on this in historical option chain data, explained.

Questions traders ask

Keep reading

• Free NIFTY & Bank Nifty option simulator: replay a real day
• NIFTY option simulator
• StockMock simulator compared
• Opstra simulator compared
• AlgoTest and Tradetron simulators compared
• Live virtual trading vs historical replay
• Historical option chain data, explained
• From a manual replay to an algo

Historical replay for education and analysis. Past prices; not investment advice. Nothing here places orders. Algo trading carries risk.