NASDAQ opening and closing times: when can you trade?

What are the trading hours of the NASDAQ?

Want to get exposure to the NASDAQ? The US index is a popular trade for investors to get exposure to stocks in 100 major tech businesses, such as Tesla, Microsoft and Nvdia.

Australian investors can get exposure to the NASDAQ by buying an exchange-traded fund (ETF) that tracks it or by trading contract for differences (CFDs).

The NASDAQ is open for six and a half hours a day. The index opens at 9.30am Eastern Standard Time (EST) – which is 11.30pm Australian Eastern Standard Time (AEST), and closes at 4pm EST – that's 6am AEST time.¹

You can trade our exclusive US Tech 100 product with CFDs, with CFDs, that tracks the price of the index 24 hours a day, Monday to Friday and until 7am Saturday AEST.

We also support out-of-hours trading and weekend trading of specific assets.. For NASDAQ shares and ETFs, trading times are 9pm to 7.30am (next day) Monday to Thursday, and 9pm Friday to 7am Saturday AEST. For CFDs, you can trade from 6pm to 10am (next day) Monday to Thursday, and 6pm Friday to 7am Saturday AEST.

NASDAQ trading hours at a glance

US holidays

The index is closed for trading during the various US holidays. These include President's Day, Martin Luther King Day, Labor Day, Thanksgiving and Christmas.

However, with us, you can continue to trade out-of-hours on most days.

Pre and post market hours of the NASDAQ

With us, you can get exposure to the NASDAQ out-of-hours during the week and on the weekend. This enables you to react more quickly to major economic announcements, such as GDP growth figures, non-farm payroll data or breaking news on certain tech shares.

Share trading on All Session US shares is offered from 9pm to 7.30am Monday to Thursday, and 9pm Friday to 7am Saturday AEST. Clients can take a position on over 70 key US stocks over these extended hours. We also offer CFD (contracts for difference) trading on All Session US shares from 6pm to 10am (next day) Monday to Thursday, and 6pm Friday to 7am Saturday AEST.

The NASDAQ offers pre and post market hours on stocks. As mentioned above, we offer extended hours on our US Tech 100 index through CFDs, giving you more opportunity to trade.

When is the best time to trade the NASDAQ?

So, what is the best time of day to trade on the index? Analysts say there is no specific period of time that is better than others, but there are certain times you may want to be more cautious, especially if you are new to trading the NASDAQ.

’There’s no 'best' time to trade the NASDAQ, but many Europeans like to trade just after it opens (at 11.30pm AEST) since the first hour can be volatile’, explains our Senior Financial Analyst, Axel Rudolph.

’The open is often volatile as it can coincide with US data releases such as non-farm payrolls and CPI (consumer price index figures),’ he says. ‘Less experienced traders may want to stand aside around those potentially highly volatile periods and, instead, trade once an intraday trend has been established.’

Learn how to take a position on the NASDAQ and how to trade individual indices.

How to take a position on the NASDAQ

Learn more about the NASDAQ

Do your own research to find out more about the NASDAQ, its trends and different ways of trading the index and whether it’s something you want to trade or invest in. Follow industry news and economic data to decide when to make a trade.

Open an account or practise on a demo

Open an account with us or practise trading the index on our demo account.

Select your opportunity

Decide how and when you plan to take a position on the NASDAQ. If you want to invest in physical shares or ETFs, you can do so on a share trading account. If you want to trade indices, or trade shares and ETFs with leverage, you can do so on a CFD account. Note that CFDs are complex instruments and may not be suitable for everyone.

Find out more about CFD trading with us.

You can also sign up for our trading alerts to help you find potential trading opportunities.

Choose your position size and manage your risk

Decide how much money you want to use towards trading or investing and for how long you want to keep your positions open. It's important to think about your risk profile and calculate how much you can afford to lose. You can use our risk management tools, eg set up stop-losses, where you need them.

Place your deal and monitor your trade

You can trade our US Tech 100 index on our CFD account, which aims to replicate the price of the NASDAQ. Alternatively, you can buy shares in NASDAQ-listed technology companies such as Apple, Alphabet or Nvidia through our share trading platform.

You can also invest in exchange-traded funds (ETFs) that track the NASDAQ price. These funds are designed to imitate the movements of the exchange, and they may also be a more cost-effective way of investing and gaining exposure to US technology firms. Some ETFs that track the NASDAQ include the Invesco QQQ Trust, the iShares NASDAQ 100 UCITS ETF and the Vanguard Growth ETF. Before you invest in an ETF, it's important to consider the relevant target market determination available from the ETF issuer to decide whether the ETF is consistent with your objective, financial situations and needs.

Find out more about how you can start investing in the NASDAQ, and learn about share trading and CFD trading with us.

¹ Stock Market Trading Hours for Nasdaq – Nasdaq, 2024