If you ask serious futures traders which platform has the best market replay feature, a lot of them will say NinjaTrader. Then, in the same breath, they'll mention that setting it up took them an afternoon, the data download process is confusing the first time, and they had to reinstall something at some point.
Both things are true. NinjaTrader's Market Replay is genuinely capable. It's also not something you download and start using in ten minutes. This guide walks through the actual setup, what the feature does well, and where it falls short compared to browser-based alternatives.
What NinjaTrader Market Replay actually does
Market Replay in NinjaTrader lets you download historical tick data and replay it as if the session were happening live. Not just candle-by-candle like basic replay tools, but tick-by-tick, with Level 2 depth-of-market data included if you have it.
That last part matters for futures traders specifically. If you trade the ES, NQ, or CL and want to practice reading the order book alongside price action, NinjaTrader is one of the few platforms that actually simulates that experience with real historical depth data. Most other replay tools only show you the OHLCV bars.
You can execute simulated trades during replay sessions with realistic order fills, including working limit orders that get filled based on the historical tick data, not just on whether price touched the level. That's meaningfully different from simulators that fill your limit order the moment price hits it. In NinjaTrader replay, your limit order only fills if enough volume traded at that price. If you're practicing futures scalping, this distinction changes everything.
The replay speed is adjustable. You can go as slow as 1x (real time, which is useful for studying specific high-volatility sessions minute by minute) up to several times speed for covering more ground.
What it costs
NinjaTrader itself is free to download. The replay feature is available in the free version, but with a catch: historical data.
NinjaTrader provides free historical data for some instruments through its Kinetick data service, but coverage is limited by lookback period and asset. For extensive historical replay, particularly going back more than a few months, most traders end up purchasing data from a third-party provider. Kinetick's paid plans start around $55/month for end-of-day data or $150+/month for tick data on futures.
If you already have a live NinjaTrader brokerage account, you typically get better data access included. But for someone who just wants to practice using historical replay without committing to a brokerage relationship, you're looking at either limited free data or paying for a data subscription.
This is one area where browser-based replay tools have a real advantage. Tools that stream historical data through a web browser generally include charts and replay in a flat monthly fee or even free tier, with no separate data subscription to manage.
Setting up Market Replay: step by step
Step 1: download and install NinjaTrader
Go to ninjatrader.com and download NinjaTrader 8. The installer is straightforward. Create a free account when prompted. You don't need a brokerage account for practice mode.
Step 2: download historical data
This is where most people get confused the first time.
In NinjaTrader, go to Tools > Historical Data Manager. Select the instrument you want (e.g., ES 12-26 for the December 2026 E-mini S&P contract), the data type (Minute or Tick), and the date range. Click Download.
For tick data, download sizes can be large. A single day of ES tick data is around 50-100 MB. A month is several gigabytes. Budget time for the download and make sure you have disk space.
If the download fails or returns incomplete data, it's usually a Kinetick connection issue. Go to Tools > Kinetick > Edit Account and verify your credentials are correct.
Step 3: connect to Market Replay
In NinjaTrader, click New > Market Replay Connection in the Connect menu. This creates a simulated market connection using your historical data rather than live feeds.
Step 4: open a chart in replay mode
With the Market Replay connection active, open a new chart for your instrument. Right-click the chart and select Market Replay > Load. Choose your date and time start point.
You'll see the replay controls appear at the bottom of the chart: play, pause, speed slider, and a timeline scrubber. The timeline shows where you are in the historical session.
Step 5: enable the simulator
To place trades during replay, open the Simulated Trading panel (Ctrl+Shift+S). Set your starting account balance. Now you can place orders just as you would in a live session, and they'll execute against the historical data.
What NinjaTrader replay does well
Order simulation fidelity. The tick-by-tick fill simulation is the best reason to use NinjaTrader for replay practice. If you're learning to trade ES futures or any other liquid futures contract, practicing with realistic fills matters. Your 100-lot limit order sitting one tick below the market is not guaranteed to fill just because price touched it. NinjaTrader models this correctly.
Full session replay. You can replay an entire trading session from market open to close. This is better than spot-practicing individual setups because it forces you to manage the full day's rhythm: the slow pre-market, the chaotic open, the midday grind, the late-day acceleration. Scalpers and day traders especially benefit from this.
Strategy testing integration. If you use NinjaScript (NinjaTrader's coding language) to build automated strategies, Market Replay lets you test them against historical data with much greater realism than standard backtesting. The strategy sees real tick-by-tick data rather than interpolated OHLCV.
DOM replay. If you've downloaded tick data with depth-of-market history, you can replay the actual order book. Watch how the DOM behaved on a specific high-volatility morning. This is genuinely rare in replay tools and worth a lot for traders focused on order flow.
Where it falls short
Setup friction. The download-then-replay workflow is clunky compared to tools that stream historical data on demand. First-time setup takes 1-3 hours if you hit any snags. The Historical Data Manager interface is not intuitive.
Windows only. NinjaTrader 8 runs on Windows. Mac users need a virtual machine, which most traders find annoying enough to rule the platform out.
No multi-timeframe replay. Like most desktop simulators, NinjaTrader's replay doesn't prevent you from viewing future data if you switch to a higher timeframe during replay. This is the same limitation most platforms have, and NinjaTrader hasn't addressed it.
Disk space requirements. Tick data for active instruments adds up fast. Practicing one month of ES sessions takes 3-5 GB of storage. Over time, this becomes a real consideration.
Futures-centric. NinjaTrader is built for futures and forex. If you trade stocks primarily, the platform feels mismatched. The data providers and workflow are optimized for CME futures, not equities.
Who should use it
NinjaTrader Market Replay makes sense if you trade ES, NQ, CL, or other CME futures on a Windows machine, you care about realistic order fill simulation, and you're willing to spend a few hours on initial setup. Specifically, if you're practicing scalping or short-term futures day trading where execution quality and Level 2 behavior matter, there isn't a better free option.
If you're trading stocks, ETFs, or crypto, or you primarily need straightforward chart replay across multiple sessions without the setup overhead, the platform is overkill. Browser-based simulators cover those use cases without the installation and data management overhead.
Practice with the right tool for your market
Open ChartMini TradeGame for browser-based replay that works on any device, any market, without setup. For futures traders who specifically want tick-level DOM replay, NinjaTrader is worth the setup investment. For everyone else, starting with a tool you can open right now and practice immediately tends to mean more actual practice sessions, which is what builds skill.
Common questions
Is NinjaTrader replay completely free? The software is free, and basic replay with limited historical data is available without cost. Extensive historical tick data requires a Kinetick subscription ($55-$150+/month) or a third-party data provider. For a quick trial, the free tier is enough to evaluate whether the platform suits your needs.
Can I replay Forex pairs in NinjaTrader? Yes. NinjaTrader supports forex through several data providers including Kinetick. The DOM replay feature applies to futures only, since forex doesn't have a centralized order book. Chart replay for forex pairs works well.
How far back does the historical data go? With Kinetick, you can typically access 1-2 years of tick data for major futures contracts. Some instruments have longer history. If you need data going back 5+ years, you'll need a premium data provider like CQG or Rithmic.
Does NinjaTrader replay work offline? Once you've downloaded the historical data to your local machine, replay works offline. The initial data download requires an internet connection, but the replay sessions themselves don't.