LarryConnersRSI2
This EA implements Larry Connors' RSI-2 strategy, a well-known mean reversion system. It enters long when RSI(2) is oversold below 6 while price is above the 200 SMA, and enters short when RSI(2) is overbought above 95 while price is below the 200 SMA. Exits are triggered when price crosses above or below the 5-period SMA, providing a quick mean-reversion exit.
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 | 0.00% | 0.00% | 0.00% | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | No trades |
| GBPUSD | +8.23% | +7.11% | 49.08% | 133 | 45.10% | 0.40 | 0.17 | 11 | +$6.19 | Reliable |
| USDJPY | -87.16% | -83.19% | 92.45% | 134 | 43.30% | -0.97 | -0.94 | 5 | −$65.04 | Reliable |
| XAUUSD | 0.00% | 0.00% | 0.00% | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | No trades |
Profitable on 1 of 2 markets with reliable results.
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.
Against the other Mean Reversion EAs with a reliable result on the same market: GBPUSD: better than 94% of 32 · USDJPY: better than 0% of 32
Month by month
| Market | Months with a gain | Best month | Worst month |
|---|---|---|---|
| GBPUSD | 54% | +43.71% 2026-01 | -27.39% 2026-06 |
| USDJPY | 31% | +19.24% 2026-03 | -35.52% 2026-08 |
From the backtest equity curve, sampled about every two days; only reliable results.
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 strategy implements Larry Connors' RSI-2 mean reversion system, whose core concept is to capture short-term oversold/overbought pullback entries in the direction of the major trend. Entry conditions: long requires RSI(2) below 6 (extremely oversold) with close above the 200 SMA (confirming long-term uptrend); short requires RSI(2) above 95 (extremely overbought) with close below the 200 SMA (confirming long-term downtrend). Exit conditions: for long positions, close when the close price crosses above the 5-period SMA; for short positions, close when the close price crosses below the 5-period SMA. Position sizing uses a fixed lot size with no dynamic adjustment based on account equity or volatility. Money management provides optional stop loss and take profit with defaults of 30 and 60 pips respectively, though the fixed take-profit logic conflicts with the strategy's mean-reversion nature—Connors' original design relies on SMA crossover exits rather than fixed targets. Additionally, the EA lacks a new-bar check mechanism, risking repeated signal triggers within the same candle.
Strengths
- Strategy is based on Larry Connors' quantitative research with historical backtesting support and clear logic
- Uses 200 SMA as trend filter, effectively avoiding counter-trend trades and improving win rate
- Exit logic based on price crossing the short SMA aligns with mean reversion's quick-exit principle
- Provides stop loss and take profit options with a basic risk control framework
- Clean code structure with separated entry and exit rules, easy to understand and modify
Weaknesses
- Missing new-bar check mechanism—every tick within the same candle can trigger trading signals, risking duplicate entries
- Fixed lot sizing without dynamic position management, unable to adjust risk exposure based on account size or market volatility
- Stop loss/take profit conflicts with SMA crossover exit logic—Connors' original strategy does not use fixed take-profit, relying on SMA crossover exits instead
- Sell entry uses currentAsk as the sell price instead of currentBid, which is a logic error
- No spread filter—entering during high-spread periods may cause unnecessary slippage losses
Possible improvements
- Add a new-bar check mechanism (IsNewBar function) to ensure signal evaluation occurs only once per candle, preventing duplicate trades
- Fix the sell entry price error—change currentAsk to currentBid for sell position opening
- Implement dynamic position sizing based on account equity percentage or ATR volatility instead of fixed lots
- Remove or disable fixed take-profit by default, letting SMA crossover serve as the primary exit mechanism to stay faithful to Connors' original strategy
- Add spread and trading session filters to avoid trading during high-spread or low-liquidity periods
Risk assessment
Overall risk: Medium
- Missing new-bar check may cause repeated signal triggers within the same candle, leading to overtrading
- Sell entry uses currentAsk instead of currentBid, potentially causing entry price deviation
- Fixed lot sizing without dynamic adjustment may result in disproportionate risk exposure for large or small accounts
- Dual exit logic of stop loss/take profit plus SMA crossover may cause strategy performance to deviate from the original design intent
Evaluation scores
Parameters
| Parameter | Default | Description |
|---|---|---|
lot | 1 | Trade lot size |
shortSmaPeriods | 5 | Fast SMA period (exit signal) |
longSmaPeriods | 200 | Slow SMA period (trend filter) |
RSIPeriods | 2 | RSI period |
RSILongEntry | 6 | RSI long entry threshold |
RSIShortEntry | 95 | RSI short entry threshold |
slippage | 3 | Allowed slippage |
useStopLoss | true | Enable stop loss |
stopLossPips | 30 | Stop loss in pips |
useTakeProfit | true | Enable take profit |
takeProfitPips | 60 | Take profit in pips |
Similar Mean Reversion EAs
Backtests are historical simulations and do not guarantee future results. Not financial advice.