Forward Testing
Forward test trading systems. Automate paper trading a strategy against current price data before trading it for real.
Forward Testing Key Features
Multi-Stock Forward Testing
Forward test trading systems using thousands of stocks to measure its performance using current price data.
Single-Stock Forward Testing
Create forward tests for trading systems to generate trades for a single stock using current price and financial data.
Custom Trading Systems
Create and manage your custom trading systems and forward test them to measure their performance using current price data.
Performance Benchmarking
Compare the forward test performance results of your trading system to a benchmark stock or ETF; e.g., SPY.
Forward Tests Dashboard
Manage your forward tests in a single location by using our forward tests table to manage and view their results.
Generate Trade Ideas
View the open and closed positions, entry and exit price, for all of the trades your trading system generates on a daily basis.
Forward Testing Key Takeaways
Forward test your custom trading systems.
Automate paper trading your custom strategies.
Generate daily trade ideas with multiple strategies.
Compare forward test performance to a benchmark.
Measure the probability of winning and losing.
Automate up to 20 server-side trading systems.
What is Forward Testing?
Forward testing is a method stock traders use to evaluate the performance of their trading system or strategy using current data. It involves using current market data to simulate how a trading system would perform if a trader used real money to trade stocks with that strategy under current market conditions.
With forward testing, a trader uses current price and financial data to test the probability (of winning and losing), the profitability, and risk (volatility) of a trading system.
Similar to backtesting, forward testing is useful to traders in that it is a risk-free way to test a trading system without risking your money in the stock market to determine if a trading system is profitable.
Automated Paper Trading
Automate paper trading by creating forward tests for your trading systems. Instead of risking real money to test your trading systems for profitability in the stock market, our Forward Testing lets you test your system using current price data to generate trades.
Create multiple trading systems and then create an automated forward test for each strategy. Generate trades using the rules you define in your trading system and then track the trades your system makes and measure its profitability.
Paper trading is an important tool for traders to evaluate new and existing strategies and measure their profitability and probability odds of winning and losing in the current market environment.
Trading System Entry & Exit Signals
Create custom trading systems with thousands of combinations of entry and exit signals. Use entry and exit signal rules to define when to enter and exit a trade. Choose from price action, candlesticks, technical, dividends, and fundamental signals.
Choose from 50+ price action entry / exit signal rules. Enter and exit stocks based on price, performance, and trend changes.
Choose from 350+ Japanese candlestick pattern entry / exit signal rules. Create forward tests based on a combination of candlestick patterns for different timeframes, including daily, weekly, and monthly.
Choose from 40+ technical indicator entry and exit signal rules, including trend, volume, momentum, and volatility signal rules.
Use our dividend entry and exit signal rules, such as dividend yield, to enter and exit trades during a forward testing simulation of your trading system.
Choose from 600+ fundamental entry and exit signal rules and incorporate financial data and metrics into forward testing your trading systems.
Forward Testing FAQ
Q.What is forward testing?
A.Forward testing is a method traders use to measure their trading systems or strategies for profitability and its risk. Forward testing is similar to backtesting, except that forward tests use current price and financial data to test the trading system, rather than historical or past price data.
Q.What are the benefits of forward testing?
A.Forward testing helps traders to see if their trading system is profitability using current price data rather than past data. Instead of testing your trading system by risking real money in the stock market, it is better to test your trading system via paper trading. Paper trading allows traders to simulate trading by using current price data but without the risk of losing real money.
Q.How do I forward test my trading system?
A.The forward testing feature is available to Stocksift Pro and Elite members. Once you upgrade your account, then you can visit the Forward Testing page and create a trading system and forward test it for profitability.
Q.How many stocks can I test per forward test?
A.Our Forward Testing product lets users create custom forward tests where a user can select thousands of stocks to use for generating paper trades.
Q.What are multi-stock forward tests?
A.Multi-stock forward tests are where a user creates a custom forward test and selects more than one stock to test their trading system against when the forward test, paper trading, simulation starts.
Q.How much data is available to forward tests?
A.Forward tests use current price data to simulate trading via paper trading. The forward test simulation accesses the current price and financial data, which is updated daily, after the stock market closes.
Q.When does the Forward Testing generate trades?
A.The Forward Testing generates trades daily for each trading system that you automate and create a forward test for. At the end of the day, after the stock market closes, our servers scan all automated paper trading systems and generate trades, or close existing trades, based on the rules of the automated trading system.