Connect cTrader accounts and use account-specific markets

Choose an identity and an account#

A cTrader ID can expose several broker accounts. The same numeric symbol or familiar market label can have different contract sizes, spreads and trading hours on different accounts. AMM keeps those sources separate. Start in Data › Brokers & feeds › cTrader and identify the account by its account ID, broker and Demo/Live environment. A broker login number and a cTrader Open API account ID are different identifiers.

The configured identity and any linked cTrader IDs appear in the cTrader IDs tab. To link another identity, choose Open cTrader sign-in, grant access in the browser, paste the address returned after authorization, optionally name the identity, and choose Link cTrader ID. The final browser page can display an application-access error even when its redirect address contains the authorization result; use the app's linking response to establish success. Never share the authorization address or tokens in support material.

After linking, refresh the account list. The cTrader ID column identifies the identity that discovered each account. An account is identified by its ID and Demo/Live state. Unlinking an identity removes that saved authorization; it does not close broker positions.

Inspect account details#

Open the account menu or cTrader drawer to load balances and other details. Account-list discovery is intentionally lightweight: a balance can show loading or not yet loaded until its details are requested. This is different from a zero balance. The app reuses recently loaded account details rather than opening every account at startup.

Check broker name, account currency, leverage, netting/hedging type and access scope before selecting the default. Making a LIVE account the default changes it immediately and shows Now using a LIVE account with Undo. Launching a trading session performs separate preflight and live confirmation. When learning the platform, choose the clearly labeled Demo account explicitly instead of relying on a previous default.

Open a chart for an exact broker instrument#

1. Open a new chart from Manual Trading or your workspace.
2. Select the cTrader account as the broker/source. Use the instrument picker's Brokers filter when several sources are listed.
3. Search the exact available symbol, such as the broker's FX pair, index CFD or gold contract. A suffix such as _SB is part of the instrument identity.
4. Check its contract size, quantity step, minimum size and quote currency. A spread-bet FX lot can differ from a standard FX lot.
5. Select timeframe and indicators, then wait for history and a live quote. Review an order estimate before any manual order.

The picker retains one row per broker/source when several accounts offer the same symbol. Keep the correct row instead of treating the entries as duplicates. Broker filtering and asset-class filtering combine, so an overly restrictive saved filter can hide an otherwise available symbol.

Acquire historical data#

Use Data Download with cTrader, the exact account and symbol. Download the needed resolution and a bounded UTC date range. cTrader supports daily/minute history and historical quote ticks; second bars are produced through supported lower-resolution history/consolidation paths. Inspect the requested job's actual per-symbol results rather than assuming a submitted job is complete.

AMM stores account-specific .ammbin archives and security-master data. Downloaded minute quote bars can contain synthetic equal bid/ask values. They are useful for chart history, but their zero spread is not evidence that executable historical bid/ask was free. Use raw quote ticks when the research question needs recorded spread, and inspect provenance and coverage. A bar replay cannot manufacture missing intrabar execution details.

Charts automatically reuse local history and request older pages as you scroll. Scheduled market closures can explain gaps. A successful query proving an empty interval is different from an unexplained missing interval. See Historical data.

Execution and protection#

cTrader can expose hedging or netting accounts. Broker position IDs own the positions, and authoritative closing deals carry close economics. Position stop loss and take profit are broker-native and can be amended in place when supported by the account and instrument. Use the actual Positions & orders panel to inspect accepted protection; a submitted command is not proof that the broker applied it.

Manual equal-order splitting is restricted to a verified hedging execution account and exact size rules. Do not assume that a netting account will produce independently managed positions. Account history, chart markers and strategy session history also serve different scopes: account history can include other activity, while a strategy session only owns its own mapped trades.

Recovery and limitations#

If authorization expires, reconnect the correct cTrader identity. If an account is disabled, resolve that account issue rather than repeatedly retrying detail loads. If history is incomplete, inspect the selected account and exact symbol, requested range and downloader results. Keep broker/feed/history aliases separate when combining cTrader with another provider: similar index or FX names do not guarantee an equivalent price basis.

cTrader-protocol volume uses hundredths of a native unit internally; the UI's lots, units and estimates already apply the contract conversion. Do not manually multiply a UI quantity by 100. Use Instruments and groups for contract inspection and Brokers and feeds for independent role routing.