What the spread costs, timeframe by timeframe
Across 761,900 backtested trades on 5 minute charts, trading costs took an average of 15.4% of the amount risked on every trade. On daily charts the same costs took 0.8%. The strategies are the same; the faster the chart, the smaller the stop, and the larger the share the spread takes.
Last updated 30 September 2026. Figures from the scanner run of 2026-11-01, every published timeframe, market data through 2026-11-01.
- 15.4%
- of each trade's risk paid in costs on 5 minute charts
- 0.8%
- of each trade's risk paid in costs on daily charts
- 2,074,913
- backtested trades behind this table
Every strategy, every timeframe, before and after
| Timeframe | History | Trades | Reached target | Cost, share of risk | Before spread | After spread |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| M1 | 60 days | 534,023 | 48.7% | 34.3% | -2.6R | -37R |
| M5 | 1 year | 761,900 | 49.2% | 15.4% | -1.7R | -17R |
| M15 | 1 year | 301,862 | 50.0% | 9.3% | +0.1R | -9.2R |
| M30 | 1 year | 159,851 | 50.5% | 6.7% | +0.9R | -5.8R |
| H1 | 1 year | 84,895 | 50.6% | 4.9% | +1.3R | -3.6R |
| H2 | 1 year | 45,306 | 49.1% | 3.6% | -1.8R | -5.3R |
| H3 | 1 year | 30,548 | 49.2% | 3.0% | -1.6R | -4.6R |
| H4 | 1 year | 22,801 | 49.2% | 2.6% | -1.6R | -4.2R |
| H6 | 3.0 years | 47,598 | 49.2% | 1.9% | -1.7R | -3.6R |
| H12 | 5.0 years | 40,151 | 48.7% | 1.2% | -2.5R | -3.7R |
| D1 | 11.8 years | 45,978 | 48.3% | 0.8% | -3.4R | -4.2R |
The win rate barely moves from one row to the next. What moves is the cost column, and the last column follows it.
Every figure is from the backtested record STS Trading publishes: fixed rules run over real price history, one trade at a time, entered at market unless the piece says otherwise. Markets are pooled at one fixed target and none is left out. R per 100 trades is what 100 trades made or lost, in units of the amount risked on each.
It is a description of past data. It is not a forecast and not advice, and slippage and overnight financing are not included.
Why a fast chart pays more
The spread is a number of pips, and it does not shrink because your chart is faster. A stop on a daily chart might be a hundred pips from the entry; on a 5 minute chart it is a handful. One pip of spread is one percent of the first and a fifth of the second.
That is also why a high win rate on a fast chart proves less than it seems. At the 1R target a strategy needs to win half its trades to break even before costs. On 5 minute charts, after costs, this pool needs 57.7%.
The same costs by asset class, on 1 hour charts
| Asset class | Trades | Reached target | Cost, share of risk | Before spread | After spread |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FX majors | 20,904 | 49.6% | 2.7% | -0.7R | -3.4R |
| FX crosses | 63,991 | 51.0% | 5.6% | +1.9R | -3.7R |
| FX exotics | 54,052 | 50.3% | 19.8% | +0.6R | -19R |
| Metals | 9,259 | 50.2% | 1.8% | +0.5R | -1.4R |
| Energy | 5,913 | 49.3% | 0.9% | -1.4R | -2.3R |
| Indices | 32,701 | 50.0% | 5.1% | -0.0R | -5.1R |
| Crypto | 33,091 | 49.5% | 17.8% | -1.0R | -19R |
Costs differ far more between markets than between strategies. Where the spread is wide against the typical stop, no entry rule in this set recovers it.