What is a futures trading journal?
A contract-level record with multiplier, commissions, session, and setup so you can measure ES or NQ by hour and playbook — not only by the platform’s day P&L.
Futures
Futures trading journal for index and commodity contracts
ES, NQ, CL, and the rest of the book with the multiplier on the trade — then tag open-drive versus ORB and see which RTH and overnight hours actually pay.
Free forever planNo cardWeb, iOS & Android
What is a futures trading journal?
A futures trading journal records each contract fill with size, multiplier, commissions, session, and setup so P&L is in dollars — not ticks you still have to convert. TradeReview treats futures as their own type, accepts Tradovate, NinjaTrader, and Topstep file uploads on Basic and Pro, TradeLocker Auto Sync on Pro, and keeps a day/time report for RTH versus overnight.
What a futures journal has to calculate
Multiplier on the fill, not in a sidebar
Each futures trade stores contract size so ES, NQ, and a commodity are comparable in dollars without a spreadsheet of tick values.
Tradovate, NinjaTrader, and Topstep uploads
Paid plans take those platform exports. TradeLocker Auto Sync is on Pro when you want fills without the CSV step.
Open-drive versus ORB, in tags
Mark the session playbook so a morning drive in NQ is not averaged with a mean-reversion scalp on the same contract.
RTH and overnight on the same calendar
Daily P&L plus notes for CPI, FOMC, and the overnight hold you told yourself you would not take.
Which hour of the session pays
Day and time reports for index futures hours — not a generic “break it down any way” card reused from stocks.
Tick math before you size
The free futures calculator is for tick value and contract P&L *before* the trade. The journal stores the fill that actually happened.
How it works
Upload the platform export
Pull history from Tradovate, NinjaTrader, or Topstep and upload on Basic or Pro — or type a futures trade with the multiplier on Free.
Tag the session, not only the symbol
Open-drive, ORB, failed breakout, news fade. ES at 9:32 is not the same trade as ES at 14:50.
Read the hour that is quietly losing
Day/time and contract reports show which window survives commissions. Cut that window before you size up the one that only looks good on memory.
What you need for futures, by plan
Typing MES by hand is free. You pay to stop downloading Tradovate and Topstep reports every night.
- FreeManual futures with multipliers, 1 account, Review Sessions, calendar and day/time reports$0
- BasicTradovate, NinjaTrader, and Topstep file upload, 5 accounts$9.90/mo
- ProTradeLocker Auto Sync where you run futures there, 20 accounts (prop eval vs live)$19.90/mo
Futures brokers and platforms you can import from
See all supported brokers →Auto Sync
Pro plan · fills arrive on their own
File / CSV import
Basic and Pro · upload an export
Every futures-market broker TradeReview lists today. Import method varies by broker — the brokers page shows whether yours uses file import or Auto Sync.
Futures journal questions
Can I journal a Topstep or other prop evaluation?
If the firm exports a file TradeReview accepts (Topstep does), upload it on Basic or Pro and keep that account separate from live futures. The journal does not enforce the firm’s rules.
Does TradeReview import Tradovate and NinjaTrader?
Yes — file upload on paid plans for both. See supported brokers for the current method.
How do I check tick value before I journal the fill?
Use the free futures calculator for tick and contract estimates, then journal the actual fill so stats stay on real results.
Do overnight holds belong in a day-trading futures journal?
Yes, with a tag or a separate filter. Mixing untagged overnight CL with RTH scalps is how a “good” contract hides a bad habit.
Before the trade
Free calculators, no account
Tick value and contract P&L for the ES or NQ trade you will journal after RTH.
Still deciding
How TradeReview compares
Futures import and price versus TradeZella and TradesViz — last checked September 2026.
Journals for other markets
Stock trading journal
IB, Webull, and TradeZero imports — day trades and swings in one book.
Open →Options trading journal
Iron condors as one trade; Call/Put and DTE reports. No Greeks engine.
Open →Forex trading journal
Lots, swap, MT5 Auto Sync, London open vs NY overlap.
Open →Crypto trading journal
24/7 calendar and a leverage field. No Binance or Bybit sync yet.
Open →CFD trading journal
A first-class trade type alongside every other market.
Open →Upload tonight’s Tradovate or Topstep file.
Multipliers are free to type. Pay when you are done copying evaluation exports by hand.