Do Forex Robots Improve Your Winning Odds?

forex flex ea software

If you trade forex, you will know that timing is critical. A forex robot can take the guesswork out of flaws in human timing, including emotion, by not only identifying trades but if you choose to do so the robot also automatically enters and exits trades with no manual intervention.

Trading forex can be very exciting and profitable, but remember, it is a zero-sum game. For every FX winner, there is a loser on the other side of the trade. To be a winner, you only need to be right a little more than half the time.

As part of your broader trading system, can you expect to be a winner more than half the time with a forex robot?

To help answer this question, it is crucial to undertake rigorous research before adding a forex robot, also known as an Expert Advisor (EA) to be part of your trading system.

Once you have identified an EA to match your strategy, it is then vital to both backtest and undertake at least 50 trades with it by forward testing in a demo environment before progressing the robot to real account trading.

Research is Key

As part of your forex robot research, it is essential to consider the following points when considering adding a robot to your existing trading strategy.

Compatibility

Does the Expert Advisor’s underlying trading strategy align with your trading strategy?

For example:

  • Does it trade the currency pair or pairs that you already trade?
  • Are you a day trader using a scalping strategy? If so, a scalper robot like Forex Megadroid is probably the most relevant robot to your trading system.
  • Do you trade a particular session? If so, does a robot also generate trade signals during that session?
forex megadroid software

The Key Metrics for Evaluating Robots

To verify robot performance as part of your research, the robot developer must have verified performance data on a real trading account for you to analyze. Two essential resources provide this data, MyFXbook and FX Blue. Consider the following statistics as part of your research:

Profit factor

The profit factor can reveal whether a robot makes money, and so is a crucial metric. The profit factor or PF displays the relationship between profit and risk, calculated by dividing gross profit by the gross loss on all trades. An EA with a PF of less than 1.0 should not be considered for selection as it will lose you money.

Risk-reward ratio

The risk-reward ratio is an indication of a robot’s level of risk. A high risk-reward ratio indicates that a robot has a riskier strategy coded into its algorithm and should be openly questioned.

The golden risk-reward level of 3:1 is considered the benchmark to apply to a trading system where every $1 risked expects to see $3. It means that you could trade profitably with a robot that is only correct 50% of the time. Consider the below table that illustrates this point where if you only had winning trades 50% of the time you would still make an overall profit over 5 trades of $20,000 using a 3:1 risk-reward ratio.

TradeLossWin
1$2,000$6,000
2$2,000$6,000
3$2,000$6,000
4$2,000$6,000
5$2,000$6,000
Total$10,000$30,000

Drawdown

Drawdown is an essential metric and represents the maximum loss percentage since the last high point on your capital trading account. It can be analyzed by studying an equity curve chart. If a chart has large peaks and troughs, it is an indication of volatility. A robot with a high drawdown is not only volatile but also poses a higher risk. Consider robots with a low drawdown like Forex Flex EA represented by a steadily rising chart.

a forex robot looking at a currency chart

Maximum drawdown

This metric represents the robot’s maximum loss after the last high point in capital on your trading account. For example, a 60% drawdown indicates that an EA lost 60% of the trading capital value at one point. If it were to occur right after trading started, it would mean an instant fall of 50% in your capital account!

Average drawdown

Average drawdown is the comparison of several different drawdown amounts. If a robot has five drawdowns, adding them up and dividing by five gives the average drawdown. It will offer you an idea of the average loss size during a period of drawdown.

Backtesting is Vital to Verify a Forex Robot’s Results

Some forex robots are programmed to be quite active and will put on trades several times a day. Others will trade less frequently, only when conditions are optimal. Some automated programs, such as Forex Flex EA have a lengthy history of positive reviews and long-term backtesting to confirm their validity. You can also look at the results obtained from recent live trades for confirmation. 

Best of all, you can link them to the MetaTrader demo account without risking real money. It should provide the necessary validation. If you are a new or a seasoned trader, a robot can help you become more profitable as part of a robust forex strategy.

Statistical expectancy

It is essential to completely disconnect from whether your next trade placement makes a profit or a loss. If your underlying strategy has an edge, you do not have to be right even half the time to trade profitably. Statistical expectancy allows you to evaluate your trading system’s performance objectively by testing robot performance from fifty trades.

Forex robots allow 24/5 trading

There is a vast choice of automated trading software that allows robots to direct your trading through algorithms. Most are simple to install and get running, linking right into your online broker’s platform.

If your broker uses the MetaTrader platform, then automated software integration should be straightforward as most robot developers use the MQL language code of MetaTrader for scripting forex robots. 

forex chart on a computer screen

Conclusion

Forex trading can be profitable and exciting. By undertaking extensive research and testing to get the right forex robot trading for you, further reinforcing trade signals aligned to your strategy means guesswork is further reduced. The risk of trading outside the confines of your strategy through psychology also reduces.

For every side that there is a winner, there is also a loser. Which side would you prefer to be?

Written by Chris Gillie

chris-gillie-founder-of-axcess-fx

Chris Gillie is the founder of Axcess FX, a forex software review and research website. He is a former investment banker who worked in FX Sales on the UBS London trading floor. Chris has been using forex trading software as part of his trading set-up since the late 2000s and the embryonic days of MetaTrader and the MQL coding language.

linkedin logo email logo

The 15 Best Resources to Learn Forex Trading Online

When starting in online forex trading, you must understand the mechanics of the Forex market. If you want to preserve the cash balance on your brokerage account, at the very minimum, you must have some concept of economic fundamentals and technical analysis.

forex chart

The primary influencer of forex markets is global macro-events and news and the potential to make significant profits in forex requires volatility. If the FOMC cut US interest rates unexpectedly, currencies are likely to move wildly. Inexperienced traders may be unsure how to trade in volatile markets and make irrational trades in panic. Experienced traders with a system trade without emotion and will always benefit when the inexperienced do not.

Without having a robust strategy or trading plan in place, trades are mostly thoughts only, and thoughts are emotions. It is a weak base from which trade. Getting a forex education and developing a trading plan is vital if you want to thrive as a forex trader. How can you do this?

There are different ways to study foreign exchange basics before you dive into the wild world of forex trading and there is no reason that it should cost you any outlay with an extensive number of free forex learning resources available on the internet.

The Best Free Forex Resources Online

Until you understand basics like the forex quote system, trading terms, and market participants, you will not be able to move on and develop a robust strategy for forex trading. Free resources are available online to aid you get the basic forex education necessary to move forward and trade forex. The top forex trading resources for mastering forex basics are:

1. FX Street

The A to Z of everything forex from the basics to advanced strategies, FX Street is an accessible resource in the online trading community.

2. Forex.com

An extensive library of educational content is available at Forex.com. This well-regarded CFTC registered online broker caters for all levels of trader from the newbie to the experienced pro and it is free to open an account to access the full suite of educational trading resources.

3. Investopedia

Interactive learning from basic up to mid-level education, Investopedia is an all encompassing bible of financial information which is easy to navigate with a simple to understand layout.

4. Babypips

Great for beginners to understand the basics of forex by presenting complex information in a simple way. Baby pips also have a busy forum where you can ask any forex related question and expect to receive an answer from a member of this thriving community.

5. Investing.com

A forex trading website that specializes in beginner traders and provides free to use information and resources, including educational material, analysis, and real-time data.

6. Bloomberg TV

Expert panelists and reporters will provide you with copious amounts of forex market information to digest. Immersing yourself in Bloomberg TV every day is a necessity to get an understanding of the FX market.

7. Youtube

Learn from Youtube channels dedicated to forex from researching tools and platforms to videos explaining trading concepts. Here is an example of a high quality beginner forex tutorial made available on Youtube byTrading 212 which has more than 1 million subscribers.

8. DailyFX

A free-to-use site, DailyFX provides real-time news, live market data, and in-depth technical analysis for those looking to build their forex education.

9. Trading View

Excellent for charting, Trading View, through cloud-based software, allows all traders to track and research the forex market with customizable charts

10. Forex Factory

Forex factory has a trades section where beginners can watch live trades placed by a more experienced market participant. An excellent forum section hosts a broad range of active forex related discussions.

The Best Online Forex Tutorials

Online tutorials train you to read charts, understand price dynamics, open and close positions, and see developing patterns, a further move towards developing your trading strategy. We see tutorials as an integral step to learn how to trade forex.

There is a number of online tutorials to choose from. We have selected our best five

11. Learn to Trade

A site which offers free live FX workshops and a lot of other free online resources

12. Trading Academy

A website that provides a free online trading course if you subscribe. Trading Academy also offers free-half day training courses all over the world

13. The Forex Guy

Access to a forex trading course that will teach you how to interpret charts, access to weekly video tutorials and access to a trading community forum

14. 2nd Skies Forex

A highly rated, free beginners course in forex consisting of 12 chapters covering you from the basics to forex trading strategies

15. Winners Edge Trading

Well known within the forex trading community, Winners Edge offers some free tools including forex calculators

Finishing Your Online Forex Education

Once you think you have covered the basics through free online resources and furthered your forex education with online tutorials, it is the time to develop a strategy.

Unless you have done so already, you will need to open an account with an online broker, and the final stage before you start trading with real money will be to hone your strategy on a demo account. A reputable CFTC regulated broker like forex.com will allow you to open an account and practice in their demo environment.

Forex resources, ourselves included, advocate getting hands-on experience by using a demo account. Learning not only to develop or fine-tune a strategy but also to familiarise yourself with your broker’s online platform to avoid making order placement errors when you commence trading live.

We wish you happy trading – From everyone at Axcess FX

Written by Chris Gillie

chris-gillie-founder-of-axcess-fx

Chris Gillie is the founder of Axcess FX, a forex software review and research website. He is a former investment banker who worked in FX Sales on the UBS London trading floor. Chris has been using forex trading software as part of his trading set-up since the late 2000s and the embryonic days of MetaTrader and the MQL coding language.

linkedin logo email logo

What is Forex Charting Software?

charting software

Forex charting software is a computer program which helps traders compare the price of a currency pair using different trading indicators. The most popular technical indicators includes moving averages, bollinger bands, fibonacci retracement and relative strength index.

The practice of studying charts and patterns is known as technical analysis. It is used by traders to analyze the market and find indications about the future performance of a currency pair.

Identifying trade signals and price patterns may seem confusing at the beginning. There are excellent online courses, tutorials, and books on technical analysis essential for those learning charting as part of their trading education.

Charting software as part of a trading strategy

Charting software helps traders undertake their technical analysis and is a vital tool in implementing a successful forex trading strategy.

Focusing on one specific trading approach using charts and implementing it into a disciplined strategy is recommended.

Simulated paper trading can be employed to help traders understand how technical trading indicators identified as part of their strategy behave in live markets. From charts, beginner traders may choose to paper trade a simple crossover strategy tracking two moving averages on a currency pair.

Should you invest in charting software?

forex charting software on a screen

Most online forex brokers offer free charting software to support your trading activities when you open an account on their forex trading platform. The MetaTrader platform, which is popular with online brokers, offers excellent charting software.

Other platforms may not have competitive charting software and many traders prefer to use their own charting software purchased independently. If you are thinking of investing in independent software, it is vital to first read online reviews to get informed independent feedback before committing. We have a detailed guide where you can read further about the benefits of reviews and how it will help you decide on the appropriate charting and technical analysis software.

The following software development companies offer good FX charting software:

  • NinjaTrader
  • eSignal
  • MetaStock
  • ProfitSource

What constitutes good charting software?

Proper technical analysis focused software should have interactive charting features allowing you to work to implement a charting strategy as part of your broader trading system.

Features must include technical indicators, including moving averages and oscillators and also patterns such as shapes and trendlines. Charts will include bar and candlestick charts and opening and closing prices. Time frames vary from a minute up to multi-year intervals. Traders usually employ candlestick charting as it displays the broadest amount of data.

Takeaway thoughts

Before you consider purchasing charting software, make sure it has useful support features, including advice and support for trading on the Forex market, a possibility to ask questions about using the software’s features, and technical support.

Considerations When Buying Forex Trading Software

FX software

Purchasing the right forex trading software at the outset is crucial if trading software is part of a broader FX strategy that you want to pursue. Opting for the wrong software and your forex trading career could go from very good to very poor in a short time.

The concept of using forex software, which provides you with charts and graphs and sends signals, may seem desirable. However, to justify the implementation of software, your sole concern when undertaking research should be functionality alone.

Search online and find out as much as you can. Do your homework and make sure you understand what you need to know. Unless you know how all the features in forex trading software works, you will not be in an excellent position to analyze the software by backtesting and paper trading as part of a broader strategy.

Forums as soundboards

If you feel you may have identified the right forex software package, hold off instead of purchasing it immediately. Authoritative reviews and forum feedback on the software are essential reading. You need to invest in the software only when your exhaustive research has identified that it is the best option for any more comprehensive trading strategy.

We have a detailed guide that covers the merits of thoroughly using online reviews to identify the best software.

The best forums for foreign exchange where you can interact with the Forex Community, including for trading software include but are not limited to the following:

EarnForex

A forum with a large community ensuring quick answers to your questions

MT5 Forum

A valuable forum dedicated to software around the MetaTrader trading platform

Forex Abode Forum

A forum with a large community with a heavy emphasis on the subject of analysis

Babypips Forum

A forum focusing on the needs of beginners which is the overall aim of the Babypips site

forex chart on a screen

10 Forex Tips and Tricks to Help You Trade Profitably

As with all forms of trading, making money in FX is about having a trading plan that you have the discipline to follow. You must know your entry and exit points. Risk and reward must weigh up before you enter a trade.

Here at Axcess FX are our 10 top forex tricks and tips to put you on the right path to trade profitably.

forex chart on a screen

1. Get a forex education

Forex trading carries the risk of losing your capital. To manage risk, put in place a working strategy, and avoiding significant losses requires solid FX knowledge. If you are committed to starting forex trading, tip number one is to get a good forex education.

From a basic understanding of how currency pairs work, you will want to learn how to analyze the market using fundamental and technical analysis and understand trading signals, trading tools, instruments, and study price action.

Beyond immersing yourself, online courses hosted or written by respected industry figures are essential. It is vital to learn the right way. They are also convenient for those that are in employment. UBS, the world class investment bank offer a one-day Forex course either as a classroom or virtual program which you can find out more about at their research academy.

Continuous education is also a necessity for experienced traders. Strategies may need refining, and keeping abreast of market and technological developments is essential. As an accompaniment, here is our useful article on the five steps needed to trade forex.

2. Carefully research your broker

A myriad of online brokers exist. Choosing one can be time-consuming and confusing. Taking account of the following is essential:

  • What trading platform and software does the broker use?
  • Are you likely to use automated software to trade?
  • Will this software be compatible with broker trading platforms?

It is critical to choose the right trading partner as you engage in the forex market since price, execution, and the quality of customer service can all make a difference in your trading experience.

Remember, if you are a US resident, you will need to use a CFTC registered forex broker such as Forex.com, TD Ameritrade, Interactive Brokers, Oanda or IG USA.

forex chart

3. Select a consistent strategy and goals

Once you have a forex education, find a trading strategy, and stick with it to discover your trading style. FX Strategies range from the very basic to the very complex and from the aggressive to the conservative. Every trading style has a differing risk profile and a different approach for the strategy to work.

  • Are you a position trader where you have the funds to take a long-term strategic trade?
  • Are you a day trader due to limited funds and need to trade daily to make a profit?
  • Will you be a disciple of technical or fundamental analysis or a bit of both?
  • If you trade short term, consider a scalping strategy that requires instant decisions in the space of one trading period.
  •  Are momentum or reversal strategies a consideration?
  • Are you a chartist and will trade with a moving average or Fibonacci strategy?
  • What is your risk tolerance? How much leverage will you use?
  • Will you trade using automated software, or do you prefer to trade FX manually?
  • What currencies or currency pair(s) will you focus?
  • Will you margin trade or make use of CFDs?

Here is an excellent video detailing a simple profitable trading strategy

4. Use discipline and risk management

The management of your capital account is key to your success as a trader. Ensuring through appropriate stops that you trade with 1% to 2% of your capital at any time is essential if you want to last in the foreign exchange market. Every trade has an element of risk, and risk management will keep you trading for longer.

A lack of discipline can result in excessive trading losses, which can put you out of the game.

Panic and greed often blight the early stages of a forex trading career. Controlling all emotions through risk management and recording it in a journal is excellent control overtaking a specific trading action.

Rules, discipline, and experience are critical in forex trading. We have also written a dedicated article on how to further maintain focus and discipline when trading forex.

5. Create an intense work ethic

One of the most crucial forex trading tips is a strong work ethic which means that you prepare well for every trading day or week through solid research.

It means accepting that sometimes you may not feel like it but must take progressive action to improve continually. If you are trading through automation or mechanically, this may involve backtesting your software or exploring new forex trading strategies.

fx scalp trader

6. Accept losses

Look at the bigger picture and never obsess over having a high win percentage. Any loss should be easier to accept by limiting your trade exposure to no more than 1 or 2% of your capital. If you cannot take a loss, you will never be a profitable trader. Self-improvement and learning from previous mistakes build your character as a forex trader.

7. Maintain a trading journal with weekend analysis

If you do not trade with discipline, you may be susceptible to revenge trading. A significant loss can trigger ill-disciplined traders to open up a new position with no strategic thought acting purely on emotion.

Operating a trading journal is essential, as successful currency traders are also accurate record keepers. It is vital to evaluate your trading performance continuously.

Note keeping should include:

  • Entry and exit conditions of all trades
  • Support and resistant levels
  • Target levels for each trade
  • Daily ranges

With meticulous note keeping, a journal helps to evaluate why you made losing trades and to monitor the ongoing performance of your trading strategy. It also flags up any inconsistencies with trades being out of line with your forex trading strategy.

A journal can also be a printed record of an underlying chart if your strategy uses technical analysis. Entry and exit points and emotions at the time can record on the chart.

Our top trading trick

Evaluating your journal at the weekend is a useful tip. The forex markets are closed, and it will not interfere with your weekday trading and may allow you to be more objective; remember during the weekend you are more likely to be calmer than in the cut and thrust of a trading day.

8. Positive feedback loops

Essential for building confidence, positive feedback loops are proven to work—trading according to your underlying strategy and executing well a pattern of positive feedback forms. Success builds confidence, and the more times you have winning trades in your chosen strategy, the more significant the positive feedback loop.

9. Carefully consider entry and exit points

Forex traders continually blight by conflicting information on charts of different time frames. A selling opportunity on a weekly chart may reflect as a buy signal on a daily chart. Make sure you synchronize a daily chart to time the entry against a weekly chart displaying trading direction. Only sell when you have a sell signal on both time frames.

charting software on a screen

10. Do not overtrade and take regular breaks

If you are over-trading the forex markets, it is usually an indication of two underlying issues that may even be happening at the same time:

  1. You are likely to be risking too much capital with every trade.
  2. Your trading frequency is too high relative to the trading session.

Overtrading can harm your capital account. Trading forex can be draining, and if trades are not going your way, a tendency is to spend long sessions in front of a computer looking at multiple screens that are central to a trading set-up.

To counter this, take regular breaks. It is vital to try and keep sessions uniform and take frequent breaks away from trading forex and collect your thoughts. Only return to your trading station once you are feeling refocused.

Bonus Tip

We have highlighted ten forex trading tips and trading tricks that experienced traders use to profit from the forex market successfully. However, the ability to trade forex profitably depends on having substantial knowledge and a rigorous forex trading system in place. Emotion is the bane of traders, especially those new to the market. By eliminating it through discipline and rules is a solid base on which to perform.

Many top traders deal with emotion in different ways. Our final tip is to use meditation techniques before your trading day to start trading in a peak emotional condition.

If you are interested in further trading insights we have written an article on forex trading tips and one on how you can make money forex trading.

Written by Chris Gillie

chris-gillie-founder-of-axcess-fx

Chris Gillie is the founder of Axcess FX, a forex software review and research website. He is a former investment banker who worked in FX Sales on the UBS London trading floor. Chris has been using forex trading software as part of his trading set-up since the late 2000s and the embryonic days of MetaTrader and the MQL coding language.

linkedin logo email logo

What Are Forex Robots & How Do They Work?

Forex Trading Using Automation

There is a myriad of forex trading strategies and styles. Traders of differing levels, from beginners to professionals, will have different ways of working. There is a divide between those who want to trade manually and others who wish to trade using automation.

Traders who go down the path of automation will need to undertake plenty of research to find automated software that matches their trading style and correctly carries out trades according to their strategy.

What is A Forex Robot?

To undertake fully automated trading, a trader will need to purchase or develop an automated forex trading robot. A forex trading bot, also known as an Expert Advisor or Forex EA, is computer software that uses technical signals to establish if a currency pair should be bought or sold at a point in time.


As part of an overall FX strategy, a robot helps take away the emotion out of fx trading. Emotions can sometimes result in currency traders opening trades that are not based on logical decisions or market analysis and out of line with an overall trading system. Psychology can amplify in fast or volatile forex markets or the temptation to trade quickly.

an automated forex robot

The Mechanics: How Do Forex Robots Work?

Many forex trading robots are built using the Metaquotes, MQL scripting language used exclusively with Metatrader Software. Metatrader is a leading forex trading platform used by many online brokers through which their clients trade. The ability to integrate a robot with MetaTrader allows the automatic generating of trading signals and placing orders according to the trade indicators.

metatrader 4 platform

Forex robots are chiefly programmed to scan and interpret charts. Additionally, they can program with specific parameters needed to make a trading decision; using forex trading signals, they decide when it is appropriate to trade or hold back.

Forex robots work best when employed to trade specific currency pairs and use a defined range or time frame as part of an overall strategy. They are typically designed to make a certain number of pips within a trading range. They can identify profitable forex trades even in unstable markets, which has an unclear trading direction for a human. They can also follow a clear trend to maximize profits.

In Practice: Do Forex Robots Work?

Forex trading bots can be a useful tool to accompany your trading strategy, but it is essential to employ an EA correctly for full effectiveness.

Traders using robots should never entirely depend on them to undertake their full range of trading activity. Expert Advisors can carry out sophisticated tasks, but their functionality can be limited to how they were initially programmed. Forex trading still requires extensive human observations and research and digesting current news and economic developments that EAs cannot do.

Are forex robots profitable?

Expert Advisors can generate strong profits by following short term trends within specific ranges and then identify the clearest signals on which to trade. Long term trends that can see forex market conditions with sudden adverse price movements are harder for robots to follow with the same degree of success, although more sophisticated robots with dynamic features are beginning to address this issue.

With how much can I start forex trading by robot?

Forex EAs typically work with brokers that employ the MetaTrader platform. It is the minimum trade size specified by a forex broker that drives the minimum size that can be placed for order execution using a forex trade robot.

For example, Forex.com requires just $100 to open a forex trading account but then has a minimum trade size of just $1.

A Key Consideration Before Buying A Robot for Trading Forex

Ahead of buying a robot for forex trading, perhaps the most crucial consideration is whether the robot forex trader can trade profitably as part of your broader trading strategy. The only way of really knowing is by researching for the right EA and then backtesting specific settings and demo trading before employing it in a real-money environment. Most reputable robot developers will offer a 30 day or 60-day money-back guarantee giving you time to test thoroughly.

expert advisor software

An excellent video about automated & manual trading and how you can use a hybrid of both in a trading system

Identifying The Best Robots: Research is Essential

We have undertaken extensive research on the most important considerations to identify solid forex robots. Through our detailed analysis we have created a guide of the best forex robots on the market.

The guide provides full details, but as a concise summary:

  • First and foremost, you should always look for verified performance through real trading accounts. A reputable forex robot developer will make this available on either Myfxbook or FX Blue.
  • It is essential when researching EA software to look for authoritative online testimonials and user reviews. Online trader reviews are also essential to determine the general sentiment for a particular robot and if the forex robot trades profitably to improve winning odds. Dedicated review sites include Forex Peace Army (FPA).
  • Forex trading forums can also be a good source of feedback. MT5 Forum has a high degree of relevance for automated forex software. MT5 is the Metatrader platform forum, and as the majority of Expert Advisors develop using the MQL coding language, you will find many references to robots.
  • Not only does extensive research need to be undertaken before deciding which automated software to use as part of your trading style or strategy. Once purchased, testing the software is vital to establishing statistical expectancy as part of your overall trading system. Testing can be undertaken both through theoretical trading using a demo account and backtesting.
forex robot software

Backtesting

Although backtests are available from a robot’s developer, there are reasons why you should do your own backtests ahead of any live trading.

Not many developers use modeling with enough accuracy to tell whether an EA will perform well as part of your strategy. If you trade USDJPY and are looking to make a nine pip profit with a six pip stop loss on every trade, if developer backtests do not include individual tick data, real-time spreads, commissions, or slippage, then automated software could actually lose money for you.

Many software developers use the Metatrader Strategy Tester, and as it only uses random bar graph data from the trading day, it is only considered 90% accurate. Developers that provide backtesting with 99.9% accuracy are using historical data with tools like Birt’s Tick Data Suite and offer much more credibility; however, if you are using a robot according to your strategy, you must still backtest according to strict adjustable parameters within the robot algorithms, to align any automated forex to your trading system.

Here is a screenshot of a backtest employing 99.9% modeling accuracy:

What is the Best Forex Trading Robot?

Our detailed research on understanding the role of forex robots values low drawdowns as the most important criteria for choosing a forex EA. A robot algorithm generally employing a lower drawdown has a less volatile strategy and should give more consistant monthly performance.

Forex Diamond is the robot with one of the lowest drawdown that we have researched. We have undertaken a full review of Forex Diamond to complement backtesting and full performance results at the Forex Diamond official site.

The other EA we rate very highly at Axcess FX is GPS Forex Robot 3. It is one of the top 20 robots we have identified according to our ranking criteria. Its drawdown is within the parameters of 20% to 40% that is considered safe for an EA, but it is the sheer length of time of 8 years that it has been trading profitably on a verified real trading account that is so impressive.

Unusually for a Forex EA, it has been used by a Wall Street investment firm to trade profitably, and the results are available to view at the GPS official site. It is unusual because most large investment firms have their in-house quants and programmers and rarely use external auto trading software, preferring to develop in-house. Read our detailed review of GPS Forex Robot 3

Develop Your Own Forex Robot

Technically capable traders may consider building out their own forex robot. The advantage of this is developing an automated system based on their own technical trading rules. Demo accounts that use Metatrader allow experimentation with MQL scripts, and after backtesting, it may be possible to develop a capable robot.

A simple example of a robot could be one designed for GBPUSD, where a trader has a strategy for take-profits and stop-losses following a technical break-out. A robot could be programmed with rules to place trades automatically rather than the trader has to make a manual order placement.

Final Takeaway

It is essential to remember that forex trading robots work at their best identifying a narrow set of parameters to which they program. They are a useful addition to a defined trading strategy but should not be used on their own as a stand-alone trading system.

Forex robots have, at times, received bad publicity due to their association with promises of guaranteed profits that have not materialized when used to trade in live markets. If, however, you do your research and undertake your backtesting, there are enough proficient robots out there to make a difference to your trading.

Written by Chris Gillie

chris-gillie-founder-of-axcess-fx

Chris Gillie is the founder of Axcess FX, a forex software review and research website. He is a former investment banker who worked in FX Sales on the UBS London trading floor. Chris has been using forex trading software as part of his trading set-up since the late 2000s and the embryonic days of MetaTrader and the MQL coding language.

Currency Trading: An Overview of The Basics

The global forex market is the world’s most liquid and most significant market. In 2022 the daily turnover in FX according to the Bank for International Settlements (BIS) in it’s triennial survey has hit a record 7.5 trillion US dollars. To put this in perspective, the New York Stock Exchange has a daily turnover of 75 billion US dollars

Currency trading, also known as forex trading, is a 24-hour market operating across three trading sessions in Europe, the United States, and Asia.

Although the trading sessions overlap, the major currency pairs of each market will have more volume during specific trading sessions. The markets are 24 hours, but not quite 24/7 as Saturday is when no trading takes place in the major markets.

major currencies

Currency prices can be very volatile. Factors affecting the movement of currencies include Geo-politics, Macroeconomic data, unexpected events such as catastrophes, and market supply and demand and trade flows.

An excellent Forex Basics video

Retail foreign exchange has grown substantially

The major players in the currency markets have traditionally been banks, investment funds, large corporations, and sophisticated private investors.

a forex retail trader in front of screens

The advent of online brokers and electronic trading platforms means retail investors have the same market access as the large players. In 2022, retail foreign exchange was 5.5% of all daily global FX turnover.

Foreign exchange sees currency pairs traded as one against the other. It means that when you buy one currency, you are selling the other currency in the pair. Currencies quote in pips, which are a percentage in points to four decimal places and represents 1/100 of one percent of a currency.

The quotation system is entirely different from the securities markets where you either buy or sell a single stock, bond, or exchange-listed fund.

The forex market has 8 currencies that largely contribute to daily turnover

currency chart on a screen

Despite such a huge daily turnover, the forex market has relatively few major currency pairs contributing to this significant turnover.

Around 18 currency pairs dominate turnover, and the most traded currencies are Sterling, the Swiss Franc, the Euro, US Dollar, Japanese Yen, and the Australian dollar.

Compared to the thousands of individual stocks that we can buy or sell, the currency market seems very slimmed down. All the major currencies are available in a variety of trading forms. It includes spot and forward foreign exchange and derivatives, including futures and options.

Is It Possible To Make Money Forex Trading?

Statistics place those that make money trading forex at between 10% and 30% of all market participants. Whether trading personally or professionally forex trading is not guaranteed to make you money.

So how do you make money in forex? How can you increase your chances of success in one of the fastest moving financial markets?

Read on, and we will explain how.

How Can you Make Money in Forex Trading?

If you are a retail investor, Bloomberg report that research undertaken by forex broker FXCM of its retail clients highlights that 68% of accounts had a net trading loss.

It indicates that one in three retail forex traders did not have a loss on their account, but it does not give a glowing confirmation that everyone becomes rich from trading in forex.

If you are well researched and disciplined, you can be one of the 32 % of traders who do not lose money trading forex even going on to make a good income from the markets. Financial rewards can be substantial if you can differentiate yourself and become a skilled forex trader.

forex trading app

How Much Can you Make Trading Forex?

A robust forex trading system should win 50% of the time if you have the right trading conditions to undertake a sufficient number of trades. If you are day trading EUR USD, it may prove challenging to find up to 5 suitable transactions a day if the market is trading in a narrow range.

Assume your strategy limits a losing trade to 6 pips and attempts to make nine pips on winning deals, and you have $10,000 capital in your trading account. 10:1 leverage with a maximum risk of $100 per trade (1% of $10,000), your leveraged trading position is $100,000. The maximum risk is $60 per trade (6 pips of $100,000).

Assume you trade EUR USD five times a day on 20 trading days a month which is 100 trades a month

A 9 pip win = $90 per trade x 50 transactions per month = $4500

A 6 pip loss = $60 per trade x 50 transactions per month = $3,000

Your net profit is 1245 US dollars per month

Six Basics To Follow To Make Money From Forex

We have listed the following essential points that you need to adhere to make money when you trade in forex and keep your your capital account stable.

1. Trade forex less to gain more

Try and focus on the trades that will make the most significant gains rather than trading for its own sake. To do this, you must always be informed and alert.

2. Do not diversify

Stick to trading one currency or specific currency pairs and become an expert on it. If you are having success trading GBP/USD why would you start trading EUR/JPY

3. Understand compounding growth

Small gains compounded over time can produce some astonishing results. Consider the following. If you target a 50% annual profit, you can grow a $10,000 account into over $250,000 in under ten years

4. Make your stop loss into a stop profit

Always maintain your stop loss at its original level. Only move it up when the position is well in profit, but don’t trail your stops too close. Give that open position a chance to run.

5. Give your positions breathing space

Trading can be volatile. If you are after a significant gain give your trade breathing space with a stop-loss that takes account any market volatility

6. Limit risks but maximize your chance of success

Many traders lose money not by market direction but through unstable financial markets that take out tight stop losses. Consider buying in or at the money options to avoid getting stopped out rather than trading the underlying spot.

forex graph

12 Ways to Avoid Losing Money in Forex Trading

It is essential to have a rigorous system in place to minimize losing money. Below we list the most critical areas of consideration to help reduce the risk of losing money.

1. Do your research

Do not dive in and trade if you have no underlying knowledge of the forex markets. Here are the key areas to consider

  • Understand how foreign exchange works, including quotes and what factors affect it.
  • Will you use technical analysis or fundamental analysis?
  • Will you use manual or automated software?
  • Which domestic and foreign currencies or currency pairs will you trade?
  • What hours and which session (European, Asian, US) will you operate?

2. Use a reliable broker

Only open an account with a broker that is registered with both the CFTC and the NFA. A central issue here is making sure your deposit and funds in an account will be safe. Interactive Investors, Oanda, TD Ameritrade, IG USA and Forex.com are CFTC and NFA regulated brokers.

3. Make use of a demo account

Good brokers will have a demo account for you to use before going live. Make full use of this to practice getting familiarity with the broker platform, so order errors do not occur when you go live.

4. Begin with small trades and pre-plan

If you have had success with a practice account, it is a great start. When going live, a critical risk is emotion as real money is at stake. Trading in a small size will allow you to practice minimizing emotion, which is an unwanted part of trading. Emotional trading occurs when you do not pre-plan your trades.

5. Protect the downside

Always put a stop loss in place to protect your trading account. Foreign exchange is a fast-moving financial instrument. Unexpected news can move the forex market and if you have a leveraged position without a stop loss, this could wipe out your cash.

6. Exit trades properly

If you are in a winning position, do not come out too early. If you are in a losing position, do not compound the damage. Try and minimize stress and emotion in your decisions.

technical anlysis chart

7. Be aware of leverage

Leverage should be used with care when you are starting in forex. Brokers can offer up to 50 times of leverage. If you have $5,000 in your account, a $250,000 position results from using 50:1 of leverage.

8. Do not trade for the wrong reasons

If a currency pair is not moving, do not enter a trade just because you are bored. Have a trading strategy in place for your trade.

9. Do not give up too easily

Getting trades wrong is normal. Even if you are having a bad trading day, try and keep to your daily trading limits and not quit because you are losing.

10. Maintain accurate account book-keeping

Keep an accurate record of every trade. Having instruments traded, why you entered into a position, and the profit and loss to hand can help you identify mistakes and avoid doing them in the future.

11. The impact of tax

What is the impact of tax on your FX trading?  Ensure you do not have any unexpected tax bills to pay from your FX trading. A tax specialist can also advise if your trading can be tax efficient.

12. Trading is a business

You do not become a successful FX trader overnight. Stay organized, set realistic goals, and treat every day as just another day at the office, whether you have winning or losing trades.

currency trader at his desk

Key Takeaway

Can you make money trading forex? The answer is there are no guarantees you will successfully trade Foreign Exchange. However, being organized, disciplined, and having a trading strategy in place will give you the best chance of being one of the 32% of retail traders that do not lose money in the forex market. For further relevant articles we have written further tips on how to trade forex profitably and how to maintain focus when trading.

Written by Chris Gillie

chris-gillie-founder-of-axcess-fx

Chris Gillie is the founder of Axcess FX, a forex software review and research website. He is a former investment banker who worked in FX Sales on the UBS London trading floor. Chris has been using forex trading software as part of his trading set-up since the late 2000s and the embryonic days of MetaTrader and the MQL coding language.

linkedin logo email logo

Forex automated trading systems and software explained

No product becomes popular without possessing something attractive and beneficial for the targeted user. The industry of trading has become quite popular and there are number of reasons for this popularity. Some of the benefits include the fact the foreign exchange market is open day and night all over the world and is extremely liquid. Currently, it has been reported that every day 2$ billions changes hands.

automated fx software

Automated trading systems play an important role in this industry. Through the program you can trade currencies online on autopilot, without needing any human supervision. The aim of the program is to maximize your profits to its full potential. It achieves its purpose by identifying and capitalizing on signals when to initial or exit trades as per the parameters initially defined.

They are scripted and encoded in a way that the mathematical algorithms are able to produce money-spinning results. It is worthwhile to mention that functioning of these systems is dependent very much on the extent of how well the system has been executed and programmed.

forex samurai

Although the systems work on autopilot, your trading skill and the experience you have as a trader is also important as it increases your chances of finding and exploiting more trading opportunities. Trading programs can be aiding tools in the process of your earning money, but your trading skills remain your most important assets.

They can only help but not lead the way to success. Also, you have to understand that there are no immediate returns, systems can be beneficial in long term and you must understand how they function.

It is generally claimed that most programs can generate a regular income for $100 or so to say the least. But that is not always true. The back tests that they offer as a proof are not actually a proof. The reason being those tests are conducted in only favorable conditions without projecting the element of unpredictability of the market. Often it is assumed that the simulation profits of the software will actually repeat itself in real life. However, it is not history. Simulation track record never repeats itself.

master scalper software

It is a very difficult choice as in which autopilot system is suitable for you. There are numerous trading systems available. Not all of these trading systems are useful. Some of them are just worthless pieces of software. But is it not like going to the moon and back to find an affordable system which actually performs well. I would suggest that you choose systems, which has good price and all the functions are as per your business needs.

Avoiding Mistakes – Forex Tips for beginners

currency graph

Depleting your capital account with your online broker is undesirable.

As an inexperienced trader, what are the ways that you can cut out mistakes and limit trading losses?

We highlight what essential controls need to be maintained to at least give yourself a chance to make profits as a forex trader.

Essential controls to avoid trading mistakes

1 Master one strategy at a time

If you are new to forex trading, trying to learn too many strategies could slow up your learning process and cause losses on your trading account.

As you become more experienced, it is reasonable to use different trading strategies, but at the beginning, master one strategy at a time.

2 Simplify your trading

Novice traders tend to overcomplicate trading creating technical indicators and trying different expert advisors.  If you use chart software, your chart may obscure by all the technical indicators flashing up on the screen.

It is best to focus on the raw price action that presents itself on every chart. Learn what the price is telling you, and the simplicity of trading will become apparent to you.

3 Avoid trading in different markets

Novice traders tend to trade on multiple markets with little understanding of the market. Known as noise trading, traders enter trades without the proper technical or fundamental research to justify the trade. If you want to trade on different markets, it is essential first to trade them on a demo account.

4 Over leveraging positions

Inexperienced traders are often susceptible to using too much leverage in their trades. Online brokers offer levels of leverage that put the capital account of a new trader at risk. Leverage of more than 100:1 is not uncommon. As the amount of leverage magnifies the profit and loss on a trade, it needs monitoring.

5 Lack of research

Proper research of a currency pair or currency market is essential to trade successfully. In-depth analysis should shed light on entry and exit timings and market trends. There may be slight differences between currency pairs and how they work. Detailed research is essential to put a proper strategy in place.