SimpleTrade
SimpleTrade is a trend-following Expert Advisor that uses moving average crossover signals to enter trades in the direction of the prevailing trend. It opens positions when a fast moving average crosses above or below a slow moving average, with basic stop loss and take profit management. The EA is designed for simplicity and operates on a single timeframe without complex filtering conditions.
Open the interactive view (equity curve, symbol switch)Key facts
Backtest results (H1, about 1 year)
| Symbol | P&L | Annual | Max DD | Trades | Win rate | Sharpe | Recovery | Losing streak | Per trade | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| EURUSD | -0.27% | -0.24% | 3.79% | 110 | 48.60% | — | — | — | — | Same as other EAs |
| GBPUSD | +6.63% | +5.74% | 3.89% | 108 | 51.90% | — | — | — | — | Same as other EAs |
| USDJPY | +2.10% | +1.82% | 4.75% | 99 | 49.50% | — | — | — | — | Same as other EAs |
| XAUUSD | +1.98% | +1.63% | 52.23% | 105 | 50.00% | — | — | — | — | Same as other EAs |
On every market this backtest is identical to EA-16787, EA-16877, EA-17489, EA-17741, EA-19089, EA-20222, EA-20527, EA-22465 and others. The automatic conversion almost certainly lost what makes this EA different (a custom indicator, a filter or the money management), so these results are not ranked or counted.
Converted from MQL5 to Python and run with the same rules for every EA. Positions use MT5 lot sizes (100,000 units per FX lot, 100 oz per gold lot) with 1:100 leverage, one order at a time, and a stop-out below 10% of the starting balance. Sharpe is computed from the equity curve. Results marked as unreliable are shown for completeness only.
Blow-up risk: No blow-up pattern found
None of the usual blow-up patterns were found in the code, and the account was not stopped out in our backtests. That is not a guarantee: any EA can lose money.
High: stopped out in our backtest, or martingale/grid sizing without a stop loss. Elevated: martingale or grid sizing with a stop loss, or several positions at once without a stop loss. What the label means and what we found →
Strategy analysis
This EA employs a dual moving average crossover strategy as its core trading logic, going long when the fast MA crosses above the slow MA and going short on the opposite crossover. Entry conditions rely solely on the MA crossover signal without additional trend confirmation filters, making it susceptible to false signals during ranging markets. Exit conditions depend on fixed pip-based stop loss and take profit levels, with no trailing stop or dynamic exit mechanism. Position sizing uses a fixed lot approach without dynamic adjustment based on account equity or market volatility. Money management is limited to setting a stop loss distance in pips, without maximum drawdown limits or per-trade risk percentage controls. The overall strategy design is simple and intuitive but lacks market state identification (trend vs. range), leading to frequent losses during sideways market conditions.
Strengths
- Simple and clear strategy logic that is easy to understand and verify
- Effectively captures medium-to-long-term directional opportunities in trending markets
- Few parameters result in low optimization and backtesting costs
- Fixed stop loss and take profit provide a basic risk control framework
- Clean codebase makes it easy for further development and feature extension
Weaknesses
- Lacks market state identification, generating frequent false signals and consecutive losses in ranging markets
- Fixed lot size does not dynamically adjust based on account risk, resulting in crude money management
- No trailing stop mechanism means profitable trades can give back significant gains
- Relies solely on MA crossover as a single indicator without multi-dimensional signal confirmation
- Does not account for spread and slippage impact on short-term trades
Possible improvements
- Add ADX or volatility filter to suppress trading signals during ranging market conditions
- Introduce ATR-based dynamic stop loss/take profit and position sizing to adapt risk management to market volatility
- Add trailing stop functionality to automatically protect profits once a gain threshold is reached
Risk assessment
Overall risk: Medium
- MA crossover frequently triggers false signals in ranging markets leading to consecutive losses
- Fixed lot size does not adjust with account equity, creating excessive risk exposure during large drawdowns
- No maximum position limit or maximum drawdown control
Evaluation scores
Parameters
| Parameter | Default | Description |
|---|---|---|
FastMA_Period | 10 | Fast MA period |
SlowMA_Period | 50 | Slow MA period |
MA_Method | MODE_SMA | MA calculation method |
StopLoss | 500 | Stop loss in points |
TakeProfit | 1000 | Take profit in points |
LotSize | 0.1 | Fixed trading lot size |
MA_Applied_Price | PRICE_CLOSE | MA applied price type |
Similar Trend Following EAs
Backtests are historical simulations and do not guarantee future results. Not financial advice.