Scalpel is not a replacement for TWS: it runs on top of TWS or IB Gateway, through the API, on the same computer. You keep your Interactive Brokers account, SMART routing, fills, market data and commissions. What changes is the screen you trade from: one keyboard-first desk per stock, buys sized by risk, stops you drag on the chart that can exit in the pre-market, a momentum scanner with borrow and dilution reads, a SIM mode on the live book, and voice callouts. Everything outside long US stocks (shorting, options, futures, forex, bracket orders at the broker, mobile) stays in TWS.
Traders searching for a TWS alternative for day trading usually like Interactive Brokers and dislike Trader Workstation: the window juggling, the hotkey setup, sizing in shares by hand, stops that do nothing before 09:30 ET. This page compares TWS alone with TWS plus Scalpel, says plainly what Scalpel does not do, and lists who should stay on TWS alone.
Scalpel is independent and not affiliated with or endorsed by Interactive Brokers.
Scalpel vs TWS: it is TWS plus Scalpel
Scalpel has no route into your account of its own. Interactive Brokers only lets outside programs in through the API that TWS and IB Gateway serve, so one of the two must be running and logged in on the same machine, with the API switched on. IB Gateway is TWS without the trading screens: it uses far less memory and serves the same API (IB Gateway vs TWS for day trading).
IBKR allows one trading-platform session per username, so there are three ways to run:
Setup
What runs
Cost
Scalpel instead of the TWS screens
IB Gateway plus Scalpel
Nothing extra; the lightest setup
Scalpel alongside TWS
TWS with the API on, plus Scalpel
Nothing extra; you keep every TWS window
Both fully open at once
TWS on one username, IB Gateway for Scalpel on a second
Market data is billed per username, so the second login needs its own subscriptions
What you keep
Your account and your money. Scalpel never holds funds. LIVE orders go to your IBKR account and show in TWS like any other order.
Routing and fills. Every order goes to IBKR with SMART routing, which looks for the best price across venues. There is no route setting in Scalpel.
Commissions. IBKR charges its usual rates. In LIVE, Scalpel books the commission IBKR reports for each fill in its FEE column, so your P&L is net of real fees.
Market data. Scalpel uses the subscriptions already on your IBKR username: live US stock data for quotes, the tape and charts, and a depth feed such as NASDAQ TotalView-OpenView for Level 2. No extra feed, no charting subscription (which data you need).
Your positions. LIVE positions reconcile from IBKR when Scalpel connects. A position closed in TWS closes in Scalpel too, and the header can show either the whole account or only Scalpel's trades.
What changes
One keyboard-first desk per stock
TWS gives you separate windows (Level 2, time and sales, chart, order entry) that you link by color group and arrange yourself (a TWS day trading layout shows how). Scalpel gives you up to six desks side by side, each a complete station for one symbol: a DAS-style Level 2 montage with the tape beside it, a candlestick chart, an order bar, and orders and positions. One desk is focused at a time and takes your keys.
SCALPELIBKR Scalping Cockpit
VIEWTrade
MODESIM
09:41:07 ETRegular hours
ACCOUNTSIM
NET LIQ$25,312.40
MARGIN USED$2,200.008.7%
DAILY P&L$312.40
UNREAL P&L$80.00
Flatten All EscSettingsSystem
D1TRADERABCDRTHHide
FDA 4mAbcd Receives FDA Approval for Lead Candidate
Can diluteShelf on file (S-3)
Hard to shortFew shares left to borrow
LEVEL 2
-Tick+
ABCDAbcd Therapeutics Inc+0.42 +7.95%5.70
O5.21H5.84L5.12VWAP5.47VOL12.4M
BID VOL9,381
BEST BID5.69
SPREAD0.02 (0.35%)
BEST ASK5.71
ASK VOL7,345
IMBALANCE+34%DELTA10s +8501m +4.2K5m +18K
Hidden seller refilling at the offer
LONG 400@ 5.50+$80.00
MMIDSIZEPRICE
NSDQ1,2005.69
IEX6005.69
EDGX4005.69
MEMX2315.68
ARCA9005.68
BATS1,5005.67
NYSE3005.67
IEX8005.66
ARCA2,0005.65
NSDQ5005.65
EDGX7005.64
BYX2505.63
PRICESIZEMMID
5.71100DRCTEDGE
5.71145IEX
5.72700NSDQ
5.72300MEMX
5.732,000ARCA
5.74450EDGX
5.74600BATS
5.75200NYSE
5.76900IEX
5.771,100NSDQ
5.78350ARCA
5.79500MEMX
PRICESIZE
5.712,500
5.71400
5.70300
5.711,200
5.69800
5.71100
5.713,600
5.69200
5.70500
5.71900
5.691,500
5.71600
5.71300
5.68400
5.711,000
5.70200
CHART
10s1m5m1h1d
Above VWAP, EMAs upBroke the range high
BuyShares v$571100 sh$1.4k250 sh$2.9k500 sh$5.7k1000 sh
SellFull1/21/41/2 Ask1/2 MidB/ETrailCancel
ORDERS & POSITIONS
PositionsOrdersNET P&L +$121.20
OPEN
SYMBOLQTYAVGNOTIONALFEEUNREAL (R)
ABCD4005.50$2.2K1.40+80.00 (+1.7R)
D2TRADEREFGHRTHHide
Selling 21hSelling stock off its shelf (424B5)
Deal 2hEfgh Signs $40 Million Supply Agreement
LEVEL 2
-Tick+
EFGHEfgh Energy Corp+0.61 +23.70%3.18
O2.71H3.34L2.66VWAP3.02VOL28.1M
BID VOL13,200
BEST BID3.17
SPREAD0.01 (0.31%)
BEST ASK3.18
ASK VOL42,600
IMBALANCE-41%DELTA10s -2.1K1m -9.8K5m +6K
Ask-heavy book: offers tend to cap price
MMIDSIZEPRICE
EDGX3,0003.17
NSDQ1,1003.17
ARCA2,5003.16
IEX4003.15
MEMX9003.15
BATS1,8003.14
NYSE6003.13
EDGX1,2003.12
NSDQ3003.11
ARCA7003.10
BYX5003.10
IEX2003.09
PRICESIZEMMID
3.184,200NSDQ
3.196,100ARCA
3.195,300EDGX
3.202,400IEX
3.203,800MEMX
3.217,000BATS
3.221,500NYSE
3.232,600NSDQ
3.244,100ARCA
3.25900EDGX
3.253,000IEX
3.261,700MEMX
PRICESIZE
3.175,000
3.18800
3.171,200
3.17400
3.18300
3.172,200
3.17500
3.17900
3.181,000
3.173,100
3.17600
3.18200
3.171,500
3.16700
3.18400
3.17800
CHART
10s1m5m1h1d
Above VWAP2 red bars
BuyShares v$318100 sh$795250 sh$1.6k500 sh$3.2k1000 sh
SellFull1/21/41/2 Ask1/2 MidB/ETrail
ORDERS & POSITIONS
PositionsOrdersNET P&L $0.00
OPEN
SYMBOLQTYAVGNOTIONALFEEUNREAL (R)
Flat - no open positions
D3TRADERJKLMRTHHide
LEVEL 2
-Tick+
JKLMJklm Robotics Ltd+1.16 +15.98%8.42
O7.35H8.57L7.28VWAP7.96VOL9.7M
BID VOL7,800
BEST BID8.41
SPREAD0.02 (0.24%)
BEST ASK8.43
ASK VOL7,600
IMBALANCE+12%DELTA10s +3001m +1.9K5m +7.4K
Buyers lifting
MMIDSIZEPRICE
NSDQ8008.41
ARCA5008.41
IEX3008.40
EDGX1,2008.40
MEMX4008.39
BATS9008.38
NYSE2008.37
NSDQ1,5008.36
ARCA6008.35
EDGX3008.34
IEX7008.33
BYX4008.32
PRICESIZEMMID
8.43300ARCA
8.44600NSDQ
8.44200EDGX
8.45900IEX
8.46400MEMX
8.471,100BATS
8.48300NYSE
8.49700NSDQ
8.501,600ARCA
8.51500EDGX
8.52200IEX
8.53800MEMX
PRICESIZE
8.43600
8.431,500
8.41300
8.42200
8.43900
8.43400
8.41500
8.432,200
8.42100
8.41700
8.43300
8.43800
8.41200
8.431,100
8.42300
8.43500
CHART
10s1m5m1h1d
Above VWAP, EMAs up3 green bars
BuyShares v$843100 sh$2.1k250 sh$4.2k500 sh$8.4k1000 sh
SellFull1/21/41/2 Ask1/2 MidB/ETrail
ORDERS & POSITIONS
PositionsOrdersNET P&L $0.00
OPEN
SYMBOLQTYAVGNOTIONALFEEUNREAL (R)
Flat - no open positions
D4TRADERPQRSRTHHide
Can't shortShorts trapped
LEVEL 2
-Tick+
PQRSPqrs Biosciences Inc+0.39 +26.35%1.87
O1.52H2.04L1.49VWAP1.79VOL41.3M
BID VOL47,800
BEST BID1.86
SPREAD0.01 (0.53%)
BEST ASK1.87
ASK VOL56,500
IMBALANCE+8%DELTA10s +4.1K1m -1.2K5m +52K
Balanced book and flow
MMIDSIZEPRICE
NSDQ9,0001.86
EDGX4,5001.86
ARCA6,2001.85
IEX1,8001.85
MEMX3,3001.84
BATS7,6001.84
NYSE1,2001.83
NSDQ5,1001.82
ARCA2,4001.81
EDGX3,8001.80
IEX9001.80
BYX2,0001.79
PRICESIZEMMID
1.875,200ARCA
1.883,100NSDQ
1.888,400EDGX
1.892,200IEX
1.904,600MEMX
1.909,900BATS
1.911,600NYSE
1.927,300NSDQ
1.933,500ARCA
1.942,800EDGX
1.956,000IEX
1.951,900MEMX
PRICESIZE
1.8710,000
1.862,500
1.874,000
1.861,000
1.866,000
1.871,500
1.873,000
1.86800
1.8712,000
1.862,000
1.87900
1.865,000
1.872,200
1.86700
1.863,500
1.874,400
CHART
10s1m5m1h1d
Bull trapFalse break, closed back under: tends to dip in the next minute
BuyShares v$187100 sh$468250 sh$935500 sh$1.9k1000 sh
The cockpit in SIM: the header, four trader desks each with Level 2, the tape, a chart, an order bar and orders and positions, the + rail for more desks, and the status bar. Demo data.
The hotkeys work out of the box: Shift+1 to Shift+4 buy with your four presets, Ctrl+Z sells the whole position at the bid, Ctrl+X sells half, B moves the stop to breakeven, and Esc flattens everything. Every key is rebindable, and trading keys never fire while you type in a field.
Sizing by risk
TWS hotkeys send a share size from the order preset. Scalpel's buy presets can be shares, dollars or risk. With a risk preset, the share count is worked out when you press, from the live price and the stop distance: a $500 Risk (Cents) preset with a 30 cent stop buys 1,666 shares of ABCD, so a stop-out costs about $500 plus slippage and fees (sizing presets).
Stops that work in the pre-market
Before 09:30 ET and after 16:00 ET, US exchanges take limit orders only. A plain stop at IBKR becomes a market order when it triggers, so it cannot protect a pre-market trade, and a stop-limit can be jumped when price gaps through its limit.
Scalpel arms a working stop, a wider catastrophe net and a take-profit on every entry, drawn on the chart, where you drag them. They are watched by the app, not resting at IBKR. When price trades through the stop, Scalpel sends a sell limit 5 cents under the last trade, flagged for extended hours, and re-prices it if the market runs away (how stops work).
CHART
10s1m5m1h1d
Above VWAP, EMAs upBroke the range high
BuyShares v$571100 sh$1.4k250 sh$2.9k500 sh$5.7k1000 sh
Offset-10c+
SellFull1/21/41/2 Ask1/2 MidB/ETrailCancel
Offset-10c+
400 ABCD at 5.50: the stop at 5.38 reads -48.00 (-1.0R), the target at 5.74 reads +96.00 (+2.0R), and the entry line +80.00 (+1.7R) at a 5.70 last. Demo data.
Scanner and intel
TWS has a powerful Advanced Market Scanner you set up yourself. Scalpel runs five of IBKR's own scans over the API (top gainers, volume spikes, halts, hot by volume, gappers; pre-market included), merges them into one list ranked live, and adds high-of-day, running-up and setup scans on top. Next to each name it shows borrow, dilution and catalyst reads from free sources: IBKR's borrow file and news, SEC EDGAR filings, FINRA short interest and Nasdaq's Reg SHO list.
Practice, guards and sound
SIM against the live book. IBKR's paper account is a separate login with simulated fills. Scalpel's SIM fills against the live book you are watching, with IBKR-style commissions, and switches to LIVE without a restart.
Risk guards. A daily loss limit that blocks new entries, a fat-finger cap and a position cap in front of every order.
Voice and tape sound. Spoken callouts for fills, exits and stops, and an optional tape sound that plays the prints so you can hear the flow while you watch the book.
TWS alone vs TWS plus Scalpel
TWS alone
TWS plus Scalpel
Cost
Free with the account
$299 once, lifetime license
Account, routing, commissions
IBKR, SMART or a chosen exchange
IBKR, SMART only
Market data
Your IBKR subscriptions
The same subscriptions, nothing extra
Layout
Linked windows you arrange
Up to six desks, one symbol each
Hotkeys
Tied to order presets you configure
Defaults that work out of the box, rebindable
Size per press
Shares from the preset
Shares, dollars or risk at the instant you press
Stops
Orders resting at IBKR
App-monitored, dragged on the chart
Stops with the computer off
Yes, held by IBKR
No: Scalpel must be running
Pre-market stop exit
Stop-limit that can be jumped
Limit 5 cents under the last trade, re-priced
Practice
IBKR paper account
SIM on the live book, no restart
Audio
Alert sounds
Voice callouts and tape sound
Shorting
Yes
No: long only
Options, futures, forex, bonds
Yes
No: US stocks only
Platforms
Windows, Mac, Linux, mobile
Windows 10 and 11, and Macs with Apple silicon
What TWS does that Scalpel does not
Scalpel is specialized on purpose. Everything below stays in TWS:
Shorting. Scalpel is long only: every sell is capped to the shares you hold (long only).
Options, futures, forex, bonds and crypto. Scalpel trades US stocks only, and none of these are planned.
Orders held at the broker. Brackets, OCA groups, conditional orders and IBKR's algos rest on IBKR's side and keep working with your computer off.
Route choice. TWS lets you pick an exchange as the destination; Scalpel always uses SMART.
Portfolio and account tools. Risk analysis, reports, funding and everything else in TWS and Client Portal.
Mobile and other platforms. IBKR's mobile app, and TWS on Linux and Intel Macs. Scalpel runs on Windows and on Macs with Apple silicon only.
Automation. Scalpel has no auto trader and never trades for you.
Requirements
Before you start
An Interactive Brokers account with live US stock data, plus a depth subscription for Level 2.
TWS or IB Gateway running and logged in on the same computer as Scalpel.
The API switched on: in TWS, Configure > API > Settings > Enable ActiveX and Socket Clients; in IB Gateway, Configure > Settings > API.
The socket port in TWS or IB Gateway matching Settings > Connection > Port in Scalpel (7497 for TWS by default, 4001 for IB Gateway).
Short sellers, and anyone whose playbook includes shorts.
Options, futures and forex traders.
Swing traders and investors who want stops resting at the broker while the computer is off.
Traders who need Linux, an Intel Mac or mobile as their main screen today.
Traders who want direct routing to a chosen exchange.
Anyone who is happy with their TWS setup. If your hotkeys, layout and stops already work for you, there is nothing to fix.
TWS plus Scalpel is for one kind of trader: long-only, scalping US stocks, often small caps in the pre-market, who wants a keyboard-first desk, sizing by risk and pre-market stop exits on the IBKR account they already have. It is $299 once with a 7-day refund (pricing). Start in SIM and stay there until your results are consistent: this style of trading is hard, and most people who try it lose money.
Trading carries a significant risk of loss. Nothing here is financial advice.
Questions
Does Scalpel replace TWS?
No. Scalpel connects to your Interactive Brokers account through the API that TWS or IB Gateway serves, so one of them must be running and logged in on the same computer. With IB Gateway you can skip the TWS screens entirely.
What is a good TWS alternative for day trading?
It depends on what you trade. For long-only scalping of US stocks, a front end such as Scalpel runs on top of your IBKR account. For shorting, options or direct routing, TWS itself or a platform such as DAS Trader Pro fits better.
Do I need to pay for market data again to use Scalpel?
No. Scalpel uses the IBKR market data subscriptions already on your username. If you run TWS and IB Gateway at once on two usernames, the second username needs its own subscriptions.
Can I still use TWS while Scalpel is running?
Yes. Run TWS with the API on and Scalpel connects to it, so you keep every TWS window. Trades you place in TWS show up in your account as usual.
Are Scalpel's stops held at Interactive Brokers?
No. They are watched by Scalpel and fire a real exit order when price trades through, so they only work while Scalpel is running with a live feed. In return they can exit in the pre-market, where a plain stop at the broker cannot.
Can I short or trade options through Scalpel?
No. Scalpel is long only and trades US stocks only. Use TWS for shorts, options, futures and forex.