13/26 EMA crosslong
Backtest Results @ BTCUSDT β€’ Daily

The Moving Average Crossover strategy uses two moving averages of different periods to generate buy and sell signals. It appoximates the idea of a trending market by using 2 exponential moving averages, one short fast EMA(13) and another slow longer EMA(26). It buys whenever a short EMA(13) crosses up a long EMA(26), thereby implying that the direction of the market has changed. It sells once a short EMA(13) crosses down a long EMA(26).

Equity Curve

Backtest covers 5.7 years of BTCUSDT β€’ Daily () data, from October 8, 2019 to July 5, 2025.

Equity curve is the strategy's performance over time. You should compare it to the asset's Buy & Hold performance. In general, you want the blue area to be well above the gray area.

Drawdown is how much losses (realized or unrealized) the strategy has had if compared to the highest equity peak. Compare this to the asset's drawdown to see whether your strategy does a decent job of isolating you from downside volatility. In general, the red area must be well within the gray area.

Equity Curve
Strategy
Asset
Strategy Drawdown
Asset Drawdown

So, we have backtested 13/26 EMA cross on 5.7 years of BTCUSDT β€’ Daily candles.Β This backtest resulted in 27 positions, with the average win rate of 48% and reward-risk ratio of 5.61.Β If you assume that 5.61 reward-to-risk ratio holds, you need a minimum win rate of 15.1 to be profitable. So you're looking good so far.Β However, 27 positions is a small sample size, so take the results with a huge grain of salt.Β The key metrics are as follows:

  1. Total Return: Total Return: 1428.50% vs 1223.30% for the asset
  2. Max Drawdown: Max Drawdown: -57.50% vs -76.60% for the asset
  3. Exposure: Exposure: 55.30% time in the market
  4. Win Rate: Win Rate: 48.0%, vs 15.1% minimum
  5. Reward/Risk Ratio: Reward/Risk Ratio: 5.61

With that exposure in mind, you can tell that for 55% time-in-market, you get 116.77% of the asset upside potential, and 75.07% of the asset downside potential.

13/26 EMA cross: enter a position when

All of the following: # "Mike"
  D Exponential Moving Average (13, 0, close) Crosses β†— D Exponential Moving Average (26, 0, close)

13/26 EMA cross: exit a position when

All of the following: # "Kilo"
  D Exponential Moving Average (13, 0, close) Crosses β†˜ D Exponential Moving Average (26, 0, close)

13/26 EMA cross @ BTCUSDT β€’ Daily (1428.5%) backtest results explained by Alex C, Mike, Sarah

Alex C

Author

The 13/26 EMA cross strategy shows some interesting characteristics, but I have concerns about its statistical robustness. 27 trades over 5.7 years is quite low - that's less than 0.8 trades per month. This small sample size makes it difficult to draw reliable conclusions.

The win rate of 48% combined with the impressive risk/reward ratio of 5.61 looks mathematically promising. The strategy shows good alpha with 1428.5% net profit versus 1223.3% buy & hold return. However, the max drawdown of -57.5% is significant, even though it's better than the asset's -76.6%. What worries me most is the 6-trade losing streak - with such infrequent trading, this could mean several months of consecutive losses which could be psychologically challenging to handle.

From pure mathematics perspective, the strategy shows promise with its high expectancy of 2.2 and substantial win rate leeway of 47.85%. But I would want to see how stable these metrics remain across different market conditions. The low trade frequency makes me skeptical about the strategy's reliability in real-world application. I would suggest testing it on different timeframes to potentially increase the sample size without compromising the edge.

Mike

Author

Yo fam, this EMA cross strategy is looking pretty juicy! πŸš€ We're talking about beating buy & hold by like 200% over 5+ years, that's some serious tendies right there! πŸ’ŽπŸ™Œ

The risk/reward ratio of 5.61 is absolutely bonkers - when we win, we're bagging an average of 50% gains, but our losses are kept tight at around -9%. That's the kind of asymmetric betting I live for at Wendy's! And check this out - we only need a 15% win rate to break even, but we're hitting 48%. That's like having a 4x safety cushion! 🎯

Not gonna lie though, that 6-trade losing streak and -57.5% drawdown is pretty rough. You'd need diamond hands to hold through that, but that's what separates the paper hands from the real degenerates lol. Plus we're only in the market about 55% of the time, so we're not constantly exposed to those nasty BTC dumps. πŸ“‰

This is the kind of strategy that could turn my Wendy's paycheck into a Lambo fund if I size my positions right and don't get too greedy. Not financial advice though - I'm just a dude who flips burgers and dreams big! πŸ”πŸŽοΈ

Sarah

Author

Oh Dios mΓ­o, let me tell you what's wrong with this backtest - and there's plenty wrong here!

First off, only 27 trades in almost 6 years? That's ridiculously low! You're basically sitting on your hands most of the time, which explains that pathetic 55.3% market exposure. And with a 48% win rate, you're literally losing more often than winning - it's like throwing darts blindfolded!

The most alarming thing here is that -57.5% drawdown. Are you prepared to lose more than half your money? Because that's what this strategy is showing you! Just because you got lucky with some big winners (50.42% average win vs -8.98% average loss) doesn't mean this is sustainable. That 6-trade losing streak should make anyone nervous!

Look, I know the total return looks impressive at 1428.5%, but let's be real - you're barely beating buy & hold (1223.3%) while taking on all this extra risk and complexity. And with less than 1 trade per month, you could literally go on vacation for months and not miss anything.

This is exactly the kind of strategy that looks good on paper but will absolutely destroy your account in real trading. The sample size is too small, the drawdowns are too big, and the win rate is mediocre at best. Back to the drawing board!

Tabular metrics of 13/26 EMA cross backtested on BTCUSDT β€’ Daily

Total Trades27Net Profit1428.5%Buy & Hold Profit1223.3%
Win Rate48%Reward/Risk Ratio5.61Max Drawdown-57.5%
Asset Max Drawdown-76.6%Exposure55.3%Avg Candles in Position41.8
Sharpe Ratio0.81Sortino Ratio1.41Realized Volatility41.10%
Max Winning Streak3Avg Winning Streak1.9Max Losing Streak6
Avg Losing Streak2.3Avg Trades per Month0.8Avg Trades per Day0.0
Return Std Dev70.6Loss Std Dev5.9Win Std Dev93.8
Expectancy2.2Beta0.48

All backtests for 13/26 EMA cross

backtestexposurepeformance vs assetdrawdown vs assetwin%reward/risk
SPY β€’ 10 Minutes
60%(7.3%/14.0%) 0.52x(-10.2%/-20.7%) 0.49x342.3
BTCUSDT β€’ 1 Hour
55%(46.4%/66.0%) 0.70x(-32.0%/-30.6%) 1.05x342.6
EURUSD β€’ 1 Hour
53%(4.0%/7.5%) 0.53x(-7.6%/-9.0%) 0.84x312.7
SPY β€’ 1 Hour
62%(51.8%/109.4%) 0.47x(-17.6%/-35.1%) 0.50x431.9
BTCUSDT β€’ Daily
55%(1428.5%/1223.3%) 1.17x(-57.5%/-76.6%) 0.75x485.6
EURUSD β€’ Daily
47%(7.7%/11.3%) 0.68x(-14.5%/-23.3%) 0.62x312.9
SPY β€’ Daily
68%(324.3%/1315.7%) 0.25x(-33.7%/-56.7%) 0.59x452.4