TP-SL Strategy
Updated
The TP-SL strategy is the most complete and beginner-friendly OptiTrade 2.0 strategy. Every trade has a clearly defined Stop Loss and up to four Take Profit targets, so you always know your risk and reward before you enter. It's the strategy this guide's practical examples are based on.
How it works
- OptiTrade gives a Buy or Sell entry signal.
- It immediately draws a Stop Loss box (your maximum risk) and up to 4 Take Profit lines (your targets).
- As price hits each Take Profit, part of the trade closes and books profit; if price hits the Stop Loss first, the trade closes for a controlled loss.
- Exit labels show the profit or loss of each finished trade so you can see performance directly on the chart.
The settings unique to TP-SL
In Automatic mode, OptiTrade tests ranges of these to find the best combination. In Manual mode, you set them directly.
- Take Profits1–4
- How many Take Profit targets. Use 1 for a single clean target; use more to scale out of a winning trade in stages.
- Stop Loss (size)in ATR
- How far away the Stop Loss sits, measured in ATR. ATR is the average size of the last 14 candles — roughly "one candle". So a Stop Loss of 2 is about two candles away. Automatic mode tests a range (e.g. 1 to 4).
- Risk-Reward ratio
- How far the Take Profit sits compared to the Stop Loss. With a Stop Loss of 2 ATR and a Risk-Reward of 3, the Take Profit is 6 ATR away. Higher ratio = bigger targets. Automatic mode tests a range (e.g. 1 to 4.5).
A worked example
Say you set the Signal Length range to 5–50, the Stop Loss range to 1–4, the Risk-Reward range to 1–4.5, and both resolutions to 10. OptiTrade runs 100 back-tests (10 × 10) covering every combination, then picks the winner.
Tuning TP-SL — quick recipes
Change these under Automatic Settings Selection. They're the fastest ways to shape the results:
| You want… | Change | To |
|---|---|---|
| More signals | Signal Length | between 2 and 10 |
| Fewer, cleaner signals | Signal Length | between 50 and 100 |
| Wider stop distance | Stop Loss | between 2.5 and 6 |
| Tighter stop distance | Stop Loss | between 1 and 2.5 |
| Faster loading | Resolutions | 8 and 15 |
| Only one target line | Take Profits | 1 |
For finer control, the Advanced → Filtering settings (Minimum Candles between Signals, RSI Filter Bias, Max Trade Duration) reduce over-trading and steer signals toward higher-probability setups. They're covered in Core Concepts.
Quick start
- Add the TP-SL strategy to a chart and open its settings (double-click the dashboard).
- Leave Settings Selection on Automatic and Optimize For on Total Profit.
- If you see too many or too few signals, adjust the Signal Length range using the recipes above.
- Check the Dashboard — aim for a healthy Total Profit and Profit Factor above 1.
- Try a couple of different timeframes and symbols; results vary, and finding a good fit is normal.
- Happy with it? Create alerts (see Signal Alerts) or set up Automatic Trading.