Strategies / Trend / MACD Trend Day Trader

MACD Trend Day Trader Strategy

Price above the 200 period SMA and a positive MACD(12,26,9) histogram put the system long. Below the SMA with a negative histogram, it goes short. Each trade has a 1% stop and a 3% target, and an opposite signal flips the position.

TrendLong & shortIntradayEUR/USD2 min

2.06Profit factor

487,386Net profit USD

19.46%Win rate

4,783Trades

-53,806Max drawdown

102Avg trade

Best run of 16. EUR/USD, 2 min, spread 1, from run pf:2026-09-24-EURUSD-2m.tsv:5.

Entry rules, long

Close is above the 200-period SMA
Members only

Entry rules, short

Close is below the 200-period SMA
Members only

Exit rules

Stop loss at 1% from entry
Members only
An opposite signal reverses the position

Test conditions

Period	Up to 2026-09-25
Instrument	EUR/USD, 2 minutes
Spread	1 points
Contracts	1
Starting capital	1,000,000
Costs	Spread only. Commissions and overnight financing are not included.
Bars	Up to 200,000 bars, fewer where the instrument has less history
Last tested	2026-09-25

Parameters

positionSize Contracts per trade	1
trendPeriod Trend SMA length	200
macdFast MACD fast length	12
macdSlow MACD slow length	26
macdSignalPeriod MACD signal length	9
stopLossPct Protective stop, percent of entry price	1
takeProfitPct Profit target, percent of entry price	3

Every run

Markets and timeframes tested

Market	Timeframe	PF	Trades	Win %	Net	Max DD
EUR/USDBest run	2 min	2.06	4,783	19.46	487,386 USD	-53,806
EUR/USD	3 min	1.80	4,512	19.81	320,038 USD	-36,504
EUR/USD	5 min	1.43	4,253	19.89	151,962 USD	-34,084
USD/JPY	Daily	1.28	1,032	28.29	2,702,350 JPY	-382,610
USD/JPY	30 min	n/a	3,704	21.33	352,160 JPY	-343,430
USD/JPY	10 min	n/a	3,758	20.78	319,550 JPY	-190,140
EUR/USD	Daily	n/a	972	27.47	107,120 USD	-31,597
EUR/USD	4 hours	n/a	1,203	24.77	58,507 USD	-51,528
Nikkei 225	Daily	n/a	2,035	27.86	38,685 USD	-19,774
GBP/USD	Daily	n/a	994	26.56	14,062 USD	-8,831
Nasdaq 100	30 min	n/a	4,432	23.04	11,399 EUR	-5,084
Gold	1 hour	n/a	3,135	23.29	2,607 EUR	-811
Gold	4 hours	n/a	1,597	24.17	1,824 EUR	-939
Gold	5 min	n/a	4,125	19.01	1,291 EUR	-1,038
Gold	3 min	n/a	4,039	20.33	1,184 EUR	-876
Gold	Daily	n/a	2,166	25.35	826 EUR	-810

Charts

Results by run

Profit factor by run

Above 1.0 made money, below 1.0 lost money.

Net profit against max drawdown

Net profitMax drawdown

Longer history

Re-run on up to 1,000,000 bars

With 996,000 bars available on EUR/USD 2 minutes, net profit fell to USD 257,837 from USD 487,386 in the standard run, because the older data alone lost USD 229,549.

EUR/USD · 2 min

Bars available	996,000
Net, standard 200,000-bar run	487,386.00 USD
Net, long run	257,837.00 USD
Net on the older data alone	-229,549.00 USD

The code

ProBuilder, rewritten to house standard

Every file in the library uses the same header, the same section order and the same variable names. The numbers above were produced by the original version before the rewrite, and the rewrite has not yet been compiled in ProRealTime.

// ============================================================
// MACD Trend Day Trader
// ProRealAlgos Strategy Library  |  prorealalgos.com
// Type: Trend
// Direction: Long & short
// Timeframe tested: 2 minutes
// ============================================================

// --- Settings ---
DEFPARAM CumulateOrders = false

// --- Parameters ---
positionSize = 1          // contracts per trade
trendPeriod = 200         // trend SMA length
macdFast = 12             // MACD fast length
macdSlow = 26             // MACD slow length
macdSignalPeriod = 9      // MACD signal length
stopLossPct = 1           // protective stop, percent of entry price
takeProfitPct = 3         // profit target, percent of entry price

// --- Indicators ---
trendMA = Average[trendPeriod](close)
macdHistogram = MACD[macdFast, macdSlow, macdSignalPeriod](close)

17 more lines: the entry and exit rules.

Read this first

Known weaknesses

The win rate is low at 19.46% on EUR/USD 2 minutes. Long losing streaks are normal with a 1% stop and a 3% target.
The long history test was much weaker. Over 996000 bars the net profit fell to 257,837 USD, and the older part alone came to -229,549 USD.
Drawdowns are large on some markets. USD/JPY 30 minutes made 352,160 JPY but drew down 343,430 JPY.
It reverses on every opposite signal, so it is almost always in the market and fully exposed to costs on a 2 minute chart.

Indicators used

SMAMACD

How to load it

Copy the code with the copy button above the code block.
In ProRealTime, open a chart of the instrument and timeframe you want to test, then open ProOrder > New trading system and choose "Create with programming".
Paste the code, give the system a name and save it.
Click "Backtest", set your own spread and position size, and run it before you consider trading it live.

Questions

About this strategy

Can this day trader run in ProOrder?

Yes. It is fully automated with a fixed stop, a fixed target and reversal on opposite signals.

Where did it work?

EUR/USD was strongest: 2 minutes (profit factor 2.06), 3 minutes (1.8) and 5 minutes (1.43). USD/JPY Daily reached 1.28, while Gold showed small profits on every timeframe tested.

What drawdown should I plan for?

On EUR/USD 2 minutes at 1 contract the worst drawdown was 53,806 USD. That is the figure to size against.

Why such a short timeframe?

The 2 minute EUR/USD chart gave the best result. The longer 996000 bar rerun showed the edge was far weaker in older data, so the timeframe choice is sensitive to the test period.

Bollinger Squeeze

Uses the same indicator.

14.30 PF · 86 trades

Slow MACD Slope

Best run on the same market, EUR/USD.

6.80 PF · 7,305 trades

Candle Body Sum Daily

A similar profit factor.

2.05 PF · 168 trades

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Past backtest results do not guarantee future results. This is not financial advice. Curated and maintained by ProRealAlgos. ProRealTime™ is a trademark of ProRealTime SAS. prorealalgos.com Stats Docs