One of the crucial factors that play a vital role in a stock trader's success is his/her ability to access real-time online stock quotes. This is particularly true for those traders who prefer to buy and sell stocks quickly. However, here, it is very important for you to understand that there is a world of difference between streaming quotes and real-time quotes. Streaming quotes are published with a delay of fifteen minutes. It means they provide you the 15-minutes old data about stocks. On the other hand, real time quotes provide you access to live data - they have extremely accurate information. We all know that, 15 minutes is a very long time in stock marketing and the world here can completely change with such a small period. So, don't confuse the two terms with each other. You want real-time quotes, not the streaming ones.

Search On Internet
When it comes to finding real-time online stock quotes, you can start by doing a thorough research on Internet. There are many websites that offer (or at least claim to offer) real-time quotes. You will have to be very careful in choosing the one. However, to start with, you may like to try searching for such quotes at Yahoo!Finance and CNNMoney.

Don't Look For Just Quotes
Though having access to real-time quotes can be very helpful, but you will be able to make an informed decision about your investments only when you have access to up-to-the-minute news of what is happening in the market and what economic indicators are telling. Therefore, while you are searching for a website to get real-time online stock quotes, you should focus your search on finding the site that also keeps you up-to-date with the latest developments in the market.

Don't Go For Free Web Sites
There are hundreds of websites on Internet that claim to offer real-time quotes free of cost. You may be tempted to go for them, but it is very important for you to keep in mind that if it is free, it cannot be real-time quotes. Free websites offer streaming quotes. In order to be eligible to get access to real-time quotes and other additional crucial updates about the market, most websites will require you to subscribe by paying a certain amount of fee.

However, before you sign up for a paid subscription, you are recommended to do a thorough comparison-shopping first. There might be other websites that are providing access to real-time online stock quotes at much lower fee. Besides that, don't forget to read the fine prints. It will get you a good idea about how much you are expected to pay and what you will be getting in return. Most importantly, make sure that the site you have chosen is a highly reputed one.