Notion backtesting template: a backtest log that stays honest

Notion is a good place to log backtests, not to run them. Here are the fields to track and the rules that keep a test honest.

What a backtest log is

A backtest tests a strategy on past market data. A backtest log is the record of what you tested and what you found. Notion is a good place for the log, but not for the testing itself: it has no charts or market data. You run the test elsewhere (a trading platform's tester or by hand on charts) and record the results in Notion.

What AI Trading Journal does and does not do

To be clear: AI Trading Journal records and analyses your real closed MT5 trades. It does not backtest, replay or simulate anything. If you need a backtester, use MetaTrader 5's Strategy Tester or another tool, then use a journal to keep your live results honest.

Fields for a backtest database

Field	Type	Why
Test name	Title	For example, London breakout v1
Rules	Text	Entry, stop, target and filters written exactly
Market and timeframe	Select	Symbol and chart timeframe tested
Period tested	Date range	Which dates the data covers
Number of trades	Number	Small samples mislead
Win rate, average win, average loss	Number	The inputs to expectancy
Profit factor, max drawdown	Number	Quality and pain
Costs included?	Select	Spread, commission and slippage change results
Verdict	Select	Reject, retest, or trade on demo
Notes	Text	What you learned, what you would change

Keep the test honest

Write the rules first and do not change them to improve the results afterwards.
Include costs. Spread, commission and slippage can turn a good-looking test into a losing one.
Use enough trades. A few dozen is too few to trust; the expectancy calculator shows what your numbers imply.
Test out of sample. Reserve some data you did not use to build the rules.
Trade it on demo before live, and journal those trades.

Then compare backtest with reality

The most useful comparison is your backtest numbers against your real, journaled results. If live win rate or drawdown is much worse, look at costs, execution and whether you followed the rules. Your journal shows this, provided every trade is recorded; see why a trading journal needs automation and the Notion trading plan template.

Want the Trades database to fill itself? If you connect Notion, AI Trading Journal creates a daily database and a linked Trades database in your own Notion workspace and writes each closed MetaTrader 5 trade into them about every 5 minutes, with a Notes field it never overwrites. It is Windows-only and MT5-only, with a 7-day free trial and a one-time $19.99. Notion has no built-in link to MT5, so templates alone cannot do this.

This page is general education. Backtest results do not predict future results, and nothing here is trading or investment advice.

A filled-in backtest log row (hypothetical)

Field	Example entry
Test name	London breakout v1
Rules	Buy a close above the 07:00-08:00 range high, stop at range low, target 1.5 times the range, no trade after 11:00
Market and timeframe	EURUSD, 15 minutes
Period tested	Two years, split into 18 months for building and 6 months held back
Number of trades	212 (in sample 158, out of sample 54)
Win rate, average win, average loss	41%, 18 pips, 10 pips
Profit factor, max drawdown	1.25, 14%
Costs included?	Yes: 1.0 pip spread and commission
Verdict	Trade on demo for 50 trades
Notes	Out-of-sample profit factor was 1.05; suspect curve fitting on the range definition

Notice that the verdict is not 'go live'. The gap between the in-sample and out-of-sample result is the most useful thing in the row, and it is the kind of detail a log makes visible only if you record both numbers.

Costs can erase an edge: a computed example

Take a hypothetical strategy with a 55% win rate, an average win of 6 pips and an average loss of 5 pips. Before costs, expectancy is 0.55 x 6 - 0.45 x 5 = +1.05 pips per trade. Costs come off every trade, winner or loser:

Round-trip cost per trade	Expectancy after costs	Verdict
0 pips	+1.05 pips	Looks good on paper
0.5 pips	+0.55 pips	Still positive, thinner
1.0 pip	+0.05 pips	Essentially break-even
1.5 pips	-0.45 pips	Loses money

A test that ignores a 1.5-pip cost reports a profitable strategy and a live account loses money. This is why the template has a Costs included field and why it should never be left blank.

Signs of curve fitting

The rules have many parameters, each tuned to a specific number (for example a 13-period setting that beats 12 and 14 by a lot).
Results collapse when you shift the start date by a few weeks.
The strategy works on one pair and fails on closely related ones for no obvious reason.
You changed the rules several times after seeing results.
The out-of-sample result is far worse than the in-sample one.

From backtest to demo to live

Stage	Goal	What to record
Backtest	Reject weak ideas cheaply	Rules, period, costs, in-sample and out-of-sample results
Demo	Check that you can follow the rules and the execution matches	Every trade, plan followed, slippage you noticed
Small live	Test costs, emotions and fills with real money at small size	Every trade, risk per trade, how you felt
Normal live	Run the strategy at your planned size	Everything, plus a monthly comparison with the backtest

A note about the Strategy Tester

MetaTrader 5's Strategy Tester offers several modelling modes, for example every tick and every tick based on real ticks, and results can differ between them and between brokers' data. Whichever mode you use, note it in the log, along with the broker and the data period. When live results later diverge, those notes are the first place to look. See the expectancy calculator for turning a backtest's numbers into a per-trade figure, and the Notion trading plan template for writing the rules before you test them.

Frequently asked questions

Can I backtest in Notion?

No. Notion has no charts or market data. Use a trading platform's tester, then keep the log of results in Notion.

Does AI Trading Journal backtest strategies?

No. It records and analyses your real closed MT5 trades. It does not backtest, replay or simulate.

What should a backtest log include?

The exact rules, market and timeframe, period tested, number of trades, win rate, average win and loss, profit factor, drawdown, whether costs were included, and your verdict.

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