Prop Firm Genius
All Terms

Profit Factor

Backtesting

Description

A measure of profitability, calculated as the ratio of total profits to total losses. A profit factor above 1 indicates a profitable strategy.

Also known as:

P/L RatioProfit Ratio

Why It Matters

Profit factor helps traders assess the overall performance of their strategy. A profit factor below 1 means they are losing money over time, while a higher profit factor (e.g., 2.0) means they make $2 for every $1 lost.

Example

If a trader’s total profits over a month are $10,000 and their total losses are $5,000, their profit factor is 10,000 ÷ 5,000 = 2.0, indicating a strong trading strategy.