What Is the Best Copy Trading Strategy?
June 21, 2026 · 6 min read
Quick answer
There is no single best copy trading strategy that works for everyone. The best strategy for you is one whose risk and style you understand, that fits your account size and risk tolerance, and that you can stick with through its inevitable losing periods. Rather than chasing the highest recent return, evaluate a strategy on its drawdowns, consistency, risk/reward, and how it behaves in bad conditions, then diversify across a few non-correlated strategies so no single one defines your results.
Part of the complete guide to copy trading.
Asking for the single best copy trading strategy is like asking for the single best car, it depends entirely on what you need. Anyone promising one universally best strategy or guaranteed winner is selling something. What actually matters is how to evaluate strategies so you can find the best one for you.
Why there is no universal best
A strategy that looks best on a leaderboard is often just on a hot streak, and past performance is not indicative of future results. High recent returns frequently come with high risk that only shows up later, in a deep drawdown. The strategy that suits an experienced options trader with a large account may be completely wrong for a beginner with a small one. Best is personal.
How to evaluate a strategy
- Drawdown: what is the worst peak-to-trough loss it has had, and could you stomach that on your account?
- Consistency: are returns steady, or driven by a few lucky trades and long flat or losing stretches?
- Risk/reward and win rate together: a high win rate with poor risk/reward can still lose money.
- Style and instruments: does it trade stocks, ETFs, or options, and does that match what you understand and your account permissions?
- Behavior in bad conditions: how did it handle volatile or down markets, not just good ones?
- Fit: does its typical position size and risk suit your account and your risk tolerance?
The best strategy is one you can stick with through its worst drawdown. A great strategy you abandon at the bottom out of panic performs worse for you than a modest one you can hold through.
Match the strategy to yourself
Be honest about your risk tolerance, time horizon, account size, and how much volatility you can handle without bailing. A conservative, lower-drawdown strategy may be the best fit even if flashier options strategies show higher headline returns. Read more in our guide to choosing a strategy and to managing risk, linked below.
Diversify rather than hunt for the one
Instead of searching for a single best strategy, most people are better served by following a few genuinely different (non-correlated) strategies, so one trader’s bad stretch does not define your results. Combine that with proportional sizing and your own risk limits, enforced server-side with RelayTrades, and you have a process rather than a gamble on one name.
Frequently asked questions
Related reading
How to Choose a Copy Trading Strategy to Follow
Choose a copy trading strategy by reviewing its full track record (including drawdowns), the instruments it trades, its style and frequency, and how well it fits your goals.
Read moreHow Many Traders Should You Copy?
There is no magic number, but copying two to five well-chosen, non-correlated strategies is a common, sensible range. Here’s how to think about diversification in copy trading.
Read moreCopy Trading Risks and How to Manage Them
The main copy trading risks are market risk, over-sizing, slippage, over-concentration, and over-trusting a track record. Here is how to manage each one.
Read moreOr read the complete guide to copy trading and browse the glossary.
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Get startedRelayTrades provides software and automation support, not investment advice or capital management. All trading involves risk; past performance is not indicative of future results.