Simple and Profitable Strategies for Forex

Published:25 May 2020 Updated:4 January 2024

Due to the possibility of obtaining high profits with a small investment of own funds, trading on the international currency market attracts more and more traders. However, to receive regular income from trading it is not enough to open deposit at broker’s, choose currency pair and open deal in the trading terminal. You need to take into consideration a lot of nuances: from understanding of market situation to a certain trading plan (trading strategy). We are going to discuss the last aspect in this article.

We will give examples of simple and profitable trading strategies for different timeframes with a detailed description and screenshots from the trading terminal MT4 and open an account with a reliable broker NPBFX. This article will be useful not only for beginners who are just learning the basics of trading, but also for practitioners (How to start forex trading). We’ll take a look at the best forex trading strategies. Perhaps there is a strategy that you will take note of and successfully apply in your trading practice (Forex Trading).

Types of trading strategies

Depending on the used indicatorsThe most common types of trading strategies, trading time, trend, risk tolerance, traders use a wide variety of strategies. Let’s get down to business and look at the basic and common types of trading strategies for making trades on forex market and describe their algorithm in detail (Best Forex Strategies). According to the time of trading strategies are divided into:

  • Short-term.
  • Medium-term.
  • Long-term.

Transactions on short-term strategies are made within the day without carrying over to another day. Intraday trading allows the trader to make a good profit, but on the condition that he understands the market well and can make the right decision (Forex Trading in 2020). Sometimes it is very difficult to predict which way the price will go, so despite the likelihood of making a good profit on a trade, short-term trading involves increased risk (Forex without Investment and Risk). This type of trading strategy is popular with scalpers.

With medium-term strategies, trade orders are held from two days to several weeks. If a trader correctly selects a medium-term trading strategy, he can get a good profit of 50 to 200 pips or even more. The important condition for using medium-term strategies is an active trend on the market. Long-term trading tactics are popular mainly among large market players (e.g. banks or investment funds). Orders can be open for several months and a profitable transaction outcome requires patience and endurance as well as good preparation before entering the market in the form of thorough analysis (forex analytics). According to the method of opening an order forex trading strategies are divided into:

  • Trending.
  • Countertrends.

In trend trading, the trader opens a trade in the direction of the trend. The key to success of such a trade is to correctly determine the market trend. In counter-trend trading strategies, a trade is opened after a strong price impulse in the direction opposite to this movement. This type of strategies is considered risky, but if all trading rules are followed, it can bring investors substantial profits. According to the method of market analysis strategies can be:

  • Indicative.
  • Unsupported.

Indicator trading profitable strategies are based on the use of, as is clear from the definition, various forex indicators. Such trading implies receiving signals from the indicator and using them to determine the best entry point into the market. When trading without indicators, the trader analyzes the price chart and looks for patterns, which will indicate the further direction of price movement. The patterns can be various figures (pin bars, doji candles, etc.), which are formed on the candlestick chart and giving an idea in which direction the price will move (forex forecast). Trading strategies by type of market entry:

  • Trade on the breakdown.
  • Trade from the pullback.

Breakout orders are usually placed when there is high volatility on the market, when price quotes change their values sharply, breaking through local extrema. At such type of trade the large level of a stop-loss is exposed. Trading on a pullback, the trader evaluates the potential of the price movement and opens a deal with a small stop-loss level. Usually trade on a pullback if the price moves in a zigzag pattern. According to the type of technical characteristics trading strategies can be:

  • Automatic.
  • Manual.

Automatic currency trading strategies independently analyze the current market situation and on its basis open and close transactions. Trader’s participation in such trading is minimal. Trading algorithm does everything for him. At manual trading system trader independently analyzes market, after which he personally makes a decision about opening a deal. Technically, the trader also makes all operations on order management “manually”. According to the type of analysis, on the basis of which the trading strategy is built, there are

Trading by means of technical analysis implies a close study of a price chart and the search for certain regularities in it. When trading based on the fundamental analysis, the trader studies macroeconomic indicators of the country in the currency of which he trades, as well as all kinds of important economic news, income reports, etc. What strategy to choose for trading, the trader should decide at his own discretion, depending on many factors (trading experience, market situation, acceptable risk level, etc.).

In addition to discipline and psychological stability, the Forex currency market requires from a trader a systematic thinking and approach, and it is possible to develop them with the help of a trading strategy. Therefore, if you want to succeed in trading, do not neglect trading algorithms and strategies. By the way, NPBFX company welcomes all kinds of trading: classical, algorithmic, high-frequency, trading with the help of robots and advisors, as well as many other types of trading (NPBFX trading conditions overview). The broker’s service portfolio contains offers for every category of traders and investors (Forex Brokers).

Intraday forex strategies

In intraday trading, transactions are kept open no more than 24 hours. I.e. trade is carried out within one day without transferring to other day. You can use any timeframe from M30 to H4 for analysis (the most common timeframe is H1). Below we will give examples of simple but profitable trading strategies, which are traded within one day. Important note: in the examples of intraday strategies, as well as in the whole article, we used NPBFX trading account, connected to the MetaTrader 4 trading platform. Why this broker?

First of all, as we mentioned earlier, NPBFX supports all types of trading strategies. The minimum amount to start a real trade and enter a transaction is just 10 USD/EUR or 500 Russian rubles, with a leverage of 1:1000 and the ability to crush a trade lot up to 0.01. Secondly, the broker has a wide range of trading instruments which gives trader the huge freedom in asset selection – more than 40 currency pairs, precious metals (gold/silver), natural resources (2 oil brands, natural gas), cryptocurrencies (riple, bitcoin, cashcoin, lightcoin etc.), world stock indices (American, European, Asian etc.).

Thirdly, all orders are executed at the speed of 200-300 ms using STP technology with direct output to the world’s largest liquidity providers. Our clients get the best prices for traded assets and moreover every NPBFX client is insured for EUR 20,000 (the broker is a member of the International Financial Corporation), which guarantees access not only to profitable but also to safe trading. You can read more about the broker’s trading conditions on its official website. And we will return to the strategies and tell you about the daily forex strategies.

Accurate breakout strategy

This intraday strategy is based on breaking support/resistance levels and can be used in trading any currency pair or other asset class.

Timeframes: H1/H4.

Indicators: EMA with a period of 50.

Entry: wait until the candle breaks the EMA and closes above the indicator (buy trade) or closes below the EMA (sell trade).

Open an order with the second candle.

Exit: set the stop loss level at 10-15 pips.

Examples of buy/sell deals according to this strategy are shown in the screenshots below:

Example of opening a sell deal

Example of opening a buy deal

Impulse trading strategy

This trading strategy is based on the release of important news, which has a fairly strong influence on the rise/fall in the price of a traded asset. At the moment an important economic news release comes out, the asset can give an instant jump in price of 100-200 points (in some cases even more). On the quotations chart it looks like this:

Example of an impulse jump in the price of an asset

In order to trade successfully with this strategy, you need to identify an important event in the news calendar, which has a significant impact on the traded asset, and correctly predict the market reaction to it. To make a correct forecast and be aware of all important world events, we advise you to use the platform’s economic calendar NPBFX analytical portal. This section contains all economic events of yesterday/today/tomorrow/this week in order of importance and priority:

Calendar” section of NPBFX analytical portal

Trading strategy based on the method of “outsiding

This is an example of a scalping strategy according to which you can trade any volatile currency pairs. In the examples below, we used GPB/USD on a 15 minute timeframe.

Minute timeframes: from M1 to M15.

Indicators: SMA with a period of 9.

You set the stop-loss level on the opposite side from SMA.

You open a deal to buy under the conditions:

  • The current price has crossed the SMA from bottom to top or is above it;
  • There is a “bullish” candle, the closing price of which is higher than the closing price of the previous candle;
  • The gap between the second and third “bullish” candle is not less than 2 points.

Example of opening a buy deal

A deal to sell opens if:

  • The current price has crossed the SMA downwards, or is under the indicator.
  • A “bearish” candle has appeared, the closing price of which is lower than the previous one.
  • Between the third and second “bear” candle is not less than two points.

Example of opening a sell deal

Long-term forex trading strategies

As a rule, long-term trading strategies are based on fundamental factors, which allow to exclude the negative influence of market noises from the trading process. In long-term trading, the investor holds his open trades from a week to several months. Usually such transactions are not many, but with correct strategy they are profitable and bring considerable profit. Long-term trading suits traders who have good knowledge in the field of finance and economics and have significant amounts of trading funds.

Trading strategy based on Bollinger lines indicator and RSI oscillator

A simple, but quite profitable trading system, thanks to which you can get reliable signals to enter the market.

Timeframes: D1 and above.

Indicators: Bollinger lines with the default settings.

Oscillators: RSI (20).

Sell order open if the price has reached the upper band of the Bollinger Bands indicator and / or crossed it, and the values of the oscillator RSI have values greater than 70 (ie are in the overbought zone).

Example of opening a sell deal

A Buy trade opens when the price chart has touched and/or crossed the lower Bollinger band, and the RSI is in the oversold area (below 30) as in the example below:

Example of opening a buy deal

MACD + Parabolic trading strategy

Like the strategy we described above, this trading system is based on standard indicators, which are already available in the trading platform MetaTrader 4 and they only need to be installed on the chart.

So what do we have:

Timeframes: D1 and above.

Indicators: Parabolic (step 0.02 and max 0.2).

Oscillators: MACD (12; 26; 9).

The signal to open a sell order: the Parabolic indicator is above the price and the MACD oscillator within 3 points of the Parabolic should give a sell signal as in the screenshot below:

Example of opening a sell deal

A buy order is opened if the parabolic points are below the price and the MACD oscillator gives a buy signal (crosses the zero line from bottom to top) within 3 points of the parabolic:

Example of opening a buy deal

Strategies of forex trading by trend

Trend strategies are considered one of the safest and are suitable for novice traders (trend trading). This is a “classic” of all forex strategies. Trading on trend lines is easy enough to perform and even in some cases there is no need to use any additional indicators and oscillators. The main condition for the success of this type of strategy is to identify the current trend, determine its nature (downward, upward, sideways) and open an order in the direction of the trend.

Trading strategy using the EMA indicator of three periods

Timeframes: H1 and higher.

Indicators: EMA with periods of 50, 14, 7

The signal to open a sell order:

  • EMA (7) and EMA (14) crossed in a top-down direction,
  • The EMA (50) has changed its direction to downward,
  • After the decline, the price went to a correction to the EMA (14).

After the correction ends and the first candle closes below the EMA (7), you can open a trade to sell the asset at the breakdown of the minimum value of the signal candle. Stop-loss is recommended to be placed behind the nearest local maximum, which was formed during the correction.

Example of opening a sell deal

The deal to buy opens under the following conditions:

  • EMA (7) and EMA (14) crossed in a bottom-up direction,
  • The EMA (50) is directed upwards,
  • The asset quotes after the growth went to the EMA (14) and again pushed up from the moving average.
  • The quality of the signal is assessed between the EMA indicators at the time of opening a trade.

Example of opening a buy deal

Forex trading strategies against the trend

Trading against the trend is considered very risky and is suitable for experienced traders who are well-versed in the current market situation, able to recognize quality signals for possible pullbacks and reversals, as well as the moment to enter the transaction (counter-trend trading). Traders who trade against the trend usually open orders based on predictions of an imminent trend reversal. Such trading on reversals provides several variants of the TS.

Trading on kickbacks

Any strong trend is interspersed with pullbacks (Profit on a rollback strategy). This is especially evident when some important economic news is released. The price at first under the pressure of the speculative channel goes upwards (at this moment traders who adhere to conservative trading fix their orders), and then the price makes a U-turn and moves already in the opposite direction (at this moment traders who trade on reversals enter the “game”).

An important nuance: earlier we mentioned that on the NPBFX analytical portal you can find the trader’s economic calendar where you will find all the important economic news. But in addition to this auxiliary tool, the analytical portal also publishes daily fresh forecasts on the most popular traded assets. These forecasts will help you understand in which direction the price will move and when there is a probability that the movement will go in the opposite direction.

Section “Lenta” with forecasts of the analytical portal NPBFX

Scalping strategies

This type of trading provides profits on short price movements against the trend. The duration of such transactions usually does not exceed 10 minutes.

Trading in the channel

Here the Bollinger band indicator, as well as support and resistance levels are most often used for trading (as it is from them the price bounce occurs more often). At these levels and set pending orders in the opposite direction with the level of stop-loss 1.5 times larger for the standard correction for the last few timeframes.

Trading strategy based on intraday reversal + RSI + Bollinger lines

Timeframes: H1

Indicators: RSI and Bollinger Bands with default settings

The signal to open a buy order:

  • RSI value is less than 30 (in the oversold area)
  • the price breaks through the 3rd Bollinger Bands indicator
  • On the H1 chart, wait until the candle from the zone between the third and second BB enters the zone between the second and first BB
  • When the candle closes completely in the zones 2-1, we open a buy trade.

Stop-loss is set at the minimum price value minus 10 points.

Example of opening a buy deal

The signal to open a deal to sell:

  • RSI values greater than 70 (in the overbought zone)
  • the price breaks through the 3rd Bollinger Bands indicator
  • On the H1 chart, wait until the candle from the zone between the third and second BB enters the zone between the second and first BB
  • when the candle closes completely in the 2-1 zones, we open a sell trade.

Stop-loss is set at the maximum price value plus 10 pips.

Example of opening a sell deal

Forex trading strategies by support and resistance levels

Such trading strategies are not only suitable for experienced traders, but also for beginners because of their simplicity. Support and Resistance Levels – basic concepts in forex trading, which indicate the local minimums and maximums of an asset’s price. Therefore, all strategies based on support and resistance levels are built on the analysis of price movement in a similar “critical” zone of each level.

Support and resistance levels are applicable to all currency pairs, precious metals, commodities, stocks, indices, cryptocurrencies and are suitable for trading on any timeframe. However, if you trade on the levels on short timeframes (M5, M15, M30), keep in mind that the built levels of support and resistance very quickly become irrelevant. Below is an example of a trading strategy based on a breakdown of support and resistance levels.

Trading strategy of support and resistance levels breakdown

Timeframes: any

Currency pairs: any

This TS on support and resistance levels is considered one of the most effective in trading during a trend. The more pronounced the trend, the greater the chance that the trade will be profitable. When trading according to this strategy, the following order of actions should be followed:

  • Determine in which direction the price is moving. If an uptrend is observed, then expect a breakdown of the resistance level. If it is a downtrend, then on the contrary – breakdown of the support level.
  • As soon as you notice that the price has made a true breakout of an approximate level, open an order: if it was a breakout of resistance, then buy the asset, if the support line is broken – sell.
  • Place a stop loss above the broken support level and below the broken resistance at a distance slightly above the average volatility of the asset.
  • Profit is fixed at the moment when the quotes of the asset will indicate signs of an incipient correction.

See the screenshots below for examples of true breakdowns of support and resistance levels:

Example of opening a buy deal

Example of opening a sell deal

Indicator forex trading strategies

As is clear from the name, this type of trading strategy is based on the use of various indicators, as well as technical analysis. You can use both built-in indicators in the trading platform and download yourself and install them in MT4. Indicator strategies are suitable even for beginner traders, as they do not require deep analysis, construction of additional figures and use of other auxiliary elements to get clear signals to enter the trade.

With time and experience, instead of standard indicator settings, you can adjust and modify them to your trading strategy to make it even more effective and profitable at a particular moment of trading. Below you can see an example of a simple indicator trading strategy in which 2 indicators were used (ADX + Parabolic SAR) with standard settings.

Trading strategy with two indicators ADX + Parabolic SAR

Timeframes: any

Currency pairs: any

This TS is based on standard trend indicators, which are already built into the MT4 trading platform, and all you have to do is install them on the chart. The settings of indicators can leave the standard. Pay attention to the ADX indicator. His two broken line +DL (pink on the chart) and -DL (blue) at crossing each other must give a strong signal of entry into the market. The order to buy opens under the following conditions:

  • the Parabolic indicator was under the price of the asset,
  • The dashed line +DL must cross the -DL from bottom to top and be above it,
  • After the first (signal) candle closes, you can open a buy trade.

Example of opening a buy deal

A sell deal with exact entry is opened when the conditions are met:

  • the Parabolic indicator is above the price of the asset,
  • the intermittent line +DL must be under -DL,
  • After the first (signal) candle closes, you can open a sell trade.

Example of opening a sell deal

Stop-loss levels can be set at local extrema that are close to the opening price of the trade (the highest and lowest points). You can exit the trade when the pink and blue lines of the ADX indicator cross in the opposite direction.

Non-syndicator forex trading strategies

In contrast to indicator-based strategies, fundamental analysis, different patterns and candlestick combinations are used to determine entry points into the market. This type of strategy is more accurate and profitable, however, requires the trader to have some experience in trading and good knowledge of chart and candlestick analysis.

The Inside Bar

This strategy is called “inside bar” from the candlestick pattern of the same name. This pattern consists of two candles, and the second candle must necessarily be smaller than the first. In the screenshots below, you can clearly see it – the next candle can easily “fit” inside the previous one. Such an inside bar can be either “bullish” or “bearish”. It is possible to enter into a long position, when in a downtrend, we see a rising bar after a bearish one. A buy trade is then placed slightly above the maximum of the inside candle. And the stop-loss level is set a little below the minimum of this bar.

Example of opening a buy deal

We open a sell trade using the “mirror” method and place the Sell order slightly below the minimum of the second candle (“bullish”), and place the stop loss at the maximum value of the inside bar.

Example of opening a sell deal

The strategy described above belongs to the trend trading methods.

How to choose a trading strategy?

Below we have a list of recommendations to help you choose your trading strategy for forex trading:

  • If you are a beginner trader, we advise you to start with a simple strategy with no more than one/two technical indicators/oscillators, etc.
  • First of all, the strategy should be easy to understand, have a clear logic and algorithm. So you will make fewer mistakes in trading and will not get confused by the huge number of indicators in the strategy. We advise to start with the more classical variants of TS. For example, strategies that contain simple and clear trading indicators (Moving Average, Bollinger Bands, Parabolic, etc.). Examples of trading systems with the use of these indicators are presented in this article, so you can start by using all of the above examples of trading strategies with confidence.
  • Also, we advise to pay attention to long-term strategies. The fact is that short-term TS (scalping, intraday trading) require from the trader constant participation and close observation of the market situation, as a result, trading is accompanied by high stress. Of course, any trader wants to get a result as soon as possible in the form of a profit from the transaction, but do not rush to trade in the “short term” – it requires a certain experience which takes months to accumulate.
  • Any strategy, before using it in trading, should be thoroughly studied and tested on demo account. In this way, you will understand for which market situation it is best to use it, and in which cases it will bring the greatest profit. For this purpose, we recommend using a demo account of NPBFX broker, the conditions of which are as close to the real ones as possible. After testing the strategy on the following demo accounts from NPBFX, you will have a full understanding of whether to use this TS in your trading or to choose another one.
  • When choosing a trading strategy, it is better not to get hung up on just one. We advise you to choose several strategies at once, test them under different market conditions, and then compare the final results of the TS used. In general, it is better to choose several working trading strategies (trend TS, a strategy for trading on the news, on the breakdown, flat, etc.), which will be effective in a particular market situation. In this way, you will be able to make a profit under any conditions on different strategies, instead of waiting, for example, for the trend to open a trading deal and enter the market. You can find both free and paid strategies on the Internet. It is up to you to decide which one is better to choose.

NPBFX demo accounts

Recommended brokers for trading

It is very important to determine not only an effective and optimal strategy, but also to choose a broker for forex trading that you can trust. Today the brokerage services market offers a lot of companies for trading. It can be very difficult for a beginner to make the right choice in favor of a reliable broker with a good reputation. To make this task easier, we have put together the TOP 3 brokerage companies, with which you can confidently make deals on Forex and use all the trading strategies that we have listed in this article.

NPBFX

NPBFX (go online) is the market leader in brokerage services. The broker has been serving clients worldwide since 1996 and has a banking background (until 2016, the company provided services to traders represented by Nefteprombank). It is one of the first retail brokers that began to provide services to clients exclusively on the brokerage business model (there is no conflict of interest between the two parties). As we mentioned earlier in the article, the company welcomes any strategy, including the use of automatic trading algorithms (Automatic Trading with NPBFX Broker). Trading with NPBFX is suitable for any category of traders, namely:

  • HFT traders, algorithmic traders, scalpers;
  • Beginner traders who need high-quality training and loyal conditions for the start (Forex Trading Training);
  • Traders who need high liquidity in large trading volumes;
  • Institutional partners and clients, hedge funds;
  • Traders with individual needs and requests.

For comfortable trading the broker offers the following accounts to choose from:

  • Master.
  • Expert.
  • VIP.

The deposit can be opened in any of three currencies – dollars, euros or Russian rubles. The list of trading instruments for trading at NPBFX is as follows:

  • more than 40 currency pairs,
  • precious metals (gold/silver),
  • natural raw materials (2 grades of oil, natural gas),
  • cryptocurrencies (riple, bitcoin, deshkoin, lightcoin, etc.),
  • world stock indices (American, European, Asian, etc.).

The terms of service for each type of account are shown in the screenshot below:

Types of NPBFX trading accounts

NPBFX clients have at their disposal uninterrupted and high-speed trading platform MetaTrader 4, which can be installed on any device convenient for the client: PC, iPhone, iPad, Android or Internet browser. All transactions are derived directly from STP technology to the world’s largest liquidity providers, so the broker’s clients receive the best quotes and aggregated liquidity from Tier 1 banks. The important nuance: the broker’s servers are located in the largest data center – Equinix NY4 in New York. Equinix NY4 is considered one of the most powerful and secure data centers in the world.

RoboForex

RoboForex – is an international broker that has been providing brokerage services since 2009. Trading is available on MetaTrader 4/MetaTrader 5 platforms, as well as cTrader. In addition, you can use rMobileTrader (for iOS and Android), rWebTrader and rTrader terminals, which will allow you to trade where there is no access to a personal computer. Roboforex welcomes all types of trading strategies and offers the following selection of trading instruments:

  • 36 currency pairs,
  • precious metals (silver/gold),
  • cryptocurrencies,
  • indices (European and American),
  • stocks,
  • natural raw materials.

There are 5 types of trading accounts: Prime, ECN-Pro, Pro-Standart, Pro-Cent. More detailed trading conditions for all types of accounts on the screenshots below:

Types of Roboforex trading accounts

Roboforex also has demo accounts available, just like the NPBFX broker, so you can use them to test any trading strategy with zero risk to your deposit.

Alpari

Like NPBFX, the broker Alpari is considered to be one of the “gatekeepers” in the brokerage services market. Alpari started providing services to traders in 1998. The Company offers two quotation methods to its clients – Standart (when a total position is placed on the market) and ECN (when all traders’ orders are placed on the market automatically). Two trading terminals are available for trading: Metatrader 4 and Metatrader 5 and more than 70 assets for trading:

  • currency pairs,
  • precious metals (gold and silver),
  • CFD,
  • cryptocurrency (bitcoin, lightcoin, etc.).

See the screenshot below for Alpari’s account types:

Types of Alpari trading accounts

All the above mentioned accounts have a demo version, thanks to which you can get acquainted with the broker’s trading conditions in more detail, as well as test the trading strategy of interest with zero risk. All three companies described above have long been on the brokerage services market and have a good reputation, so you can confidently trade with them and use any trading strategies.

Conclusion

In this article, we found out what types of trading strategies there are, examined them in detail with concrete examples in MetaTrader 4 trading terminal on a real trading account opened with a reliable NPBFX broker, and offered a number of recommendations so that you can choose the right trading strategy and get a good profit trading with it. An important nuance: the best way to test your trading strategy is to test it in a risk-free environment, namely on a demo account. The NPBFX demo trading account is the best way to do it:

  • Trading conditions on a demo account as close as possible to the real;
  • You can test any trading strategy (the broker welcomes trading using any trading strategies on both demo and real accounts);
  • This is a good opportunity to check the trading conditions of a broker and make sure of its impeccable reputation and reliability.

It is very easy to become a NPBFX broker client. All you have to do is to register and in your personal cabinet you will get access to all the trading and demo accounts of the company.

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