Crypto backtesting: test rules on Hyperliquid perps

Written by the Tactfolio research teamPublished Data as of 7 min read

Crypto backtesting shows how a set of trading rules would have done on past crypto prices. Tactfolio backtests rules on Hyperliquid perps, such as BTC and ETH, on daily or hourly prices. Funding and a cost on every trade are counted. It is free, and crypto on Tactfolio is backtest and paper or testnet only.

  • Test crypto perps such as BTC, ETH, SOL, and HYPE, and perps that track stocks, indexes, and gold, such as XYZ:TSLA and XYZ:GOLD.
  • Pick daily or hourly bars. Rules can run every hour, every 4 hours, or once a day, week, or month.
  • Prices are adjusted for funding, so every result is net of it. Every trade pays a 0.05% cost.
  • A crypto strategy holds only perps, never stocks or ETFs as well.
  • It holds each perp long, at 1x. It never borrows or sells short.
  • A backtest is hypothetical. It can’t tell you what happens next.

Open the builderFree while we build. Look around without an account.

The Tactfolio editor with the Trend following pattern open: its rules as a tree on the left, and its backtest on the right with growth, drawdown, and holdings charts.
A strategy in the builder: its rules on the left, their backtest on the right.

What is crypto backtesting?#

Backtesting means testing a plan on past prices, as if you had followed it at the time. The SEC’s investor site warns that back-tested results are hypothetical and do not reflect actual performance.

Crypto adds three things to watch:

  • The market never closes. Crypto trades every hour of every day, weekends included. A test needs prices for all of those hours.
  • History is short. Bitcoin has traded for years, but most coins and most perps have not. A short test can miss a bad year.
  • Perps charge funding. Holding a perp long usually costs a small fee every hour. A test that leaves it out looks better than real life.

What you can backtest on Tactfolio#

Tactfolio tests perps listed on Hyperliquid, an exchange for perpetual futures. A perp is a contract that tracks a price, such as the price of bitcoin, with no end date.

What you can testExamplesNotes
Crypto perpsBTC, ETH, SOL, HYPEHyperliquid’s main market
Stock perpsXYZ:TSLA, XYZ:NVDA, XYZ:AAPLListed on trade.xyz, a market on Hyperliquid
Index perpsXYZ:XYZ100, XYZ:SP500XYZ100 tracks the Nasdaq 100
Commodity perpsXYZ:GOLD, XYZ:SILVERCan mix with crypto in one strategy
BarsDaily or hourlyDaily bars close at 00:00 UTC
Costs0.05% on every tradeClose to Hyperliquid’s base taker fee of 0.045%

A strategy picks its market when you create it, and the market never changes. A crypto strategy can mix crypto with stock and gold perps, such as BTC and XYZ:GOLD. It can’t hold SPY or any other US-listed fund.

How funding is counted#

Hyperliquid pays funding every hour. When the rate is positive, people who hold a perp long pay people who hold it short. Tactfolio adjusts past prices for funding, the way stock prices are adjusted for dividends. So a backtest’s growth is already net of the funding a long position paid.

Here is how much longs paid over the 20 days to October 16, 2026, as a yearly rate:

PerpFunding paid by longs, per year
BTC7.7%
ETH8.3%
XYZ:TSLA8.2%
XYZ:XYZ1005.4%
XYZ:GOLD6.6%

Rates change all the time, and they can turn negative. The point is the size: a test that skipped funding would look about that much better each year.

How far back the test goes#

PricesWhere they start
BTC, dailyAugust 19, 2020, when it listed on Hyperliquid
Stock perps on trade.xyz, dailyLate 2025 for most of them
Hourly barsAbout 208 days back when a perp is first used, and longer from then on, since Tactfolio keeps every new hour

A backtest starts once every perp in it has prices. For a perp that tracks a stock or gold, you can turn on simulated history on daily bars. It fills the years before the perp listed with the prices of the asset it tracks, such as GLD for the gold perp, and charges a funding cost on top. Simulated history is off until you turn it on, and the results say which part is modelled.

For a crypto perp, simulated history fills the years before it listed with Hyperliquid’s own reference prices for the coin, which reach back to 2020 for BTC and ETH, and charges the perp’s average funding on top. With it off, a crypto backtest covers only the years the perp has traded on Hyperliquid.

How to backtest a crypto strategy on Tactfolio#

  1. Open the builder. Go to the builder and pick Hyperliquid as the market on the start page.
  2. Start from a pattern or a blank strategy. Two starters are ready: Crypto trend or cash holds BTC and ETH while bitcoin is above its 200-day average and steps out to cash when it is not. Bitcoin and gold balances BTC with the gold perp.
  3. Add your rules. An If block can switch holdings when a condition is true. A Rank block can hold the strongest few perps. An empty Weight block means cash.
  4. Pick how often it runs. Hourly or every-4-hours runs use hourly bars. Daily, weekly, or monthly runs use daily bars.
  5. Read the results. The backtest shows growth, the deepest fall, what it held and when, and BTC held alone over the same dates. Save it with a free account, and every save is kept.

When a test looks good, run it forward on a Hyperliquid paper account or your own Hyperliquid testnet account. Neither uses real money.

Crypto backtesting mistakes to avoid#

  • Leaving out funding. A long perp often pays several percent a year. Tactfolio counts it, but a test elsewhere may not.
  • Trusting a short test. A strategy built on one bull run can fail in the next bear market. Check how it did in 2022, when crypto fell hard.
  • Testing too many versions. Hourly bars give you many more numbers to tune. Try enough rules and one will look great by luck. This is called overfitting.
  • Trading too often. Hourly rules can trade many times a day. Each trade pays the 0.05% cost, and it adds up fast.
  • Forgetting the drops. Bitcoin has fallen more than 70% from a high more than once. Look at the deepest fall before you look at the growth.

Why past results mislead covers each trap. How to read a backtest explains every number in the results.

What Tactfolio does and does not do#

Tactfolio doesTactfolio does not
Backtest Hyperliquid crypto, stock, index, and gold perpsBacktest coins you buy and hold, or other crypto exchanges
Test on daily or hourly bars, with funding countedTest minute by minute
Run a tested strategy on paper or your own Hyperliquid testnet accountTrade crypto with real money
Hold each perp long at 1xUse leverage or sell short
Keep crypto and stock strategies apartMix perps with US-listed stocks or ETFs in one strategy
Label simulated history on stock and gold perpsSimulate history for crypto perps

Try it on Tactfolio#

Open the builder, pick Hyperliquid on the start page, and open Crypto trend or cash. Change the average, the perps, or how often it runs, and the backtest runs again. For stocks and ETFs instead, see backtesting on Tactfolio.

Open the builderFree while we build. Look around without an account.

Keep learning#

Common questions#

Is crypto backtesting free on Tactfolio?#

Yes. Everything is free while we build. You need a free account to run and save your own backtests.

Can I trade crypto with real money on Tactfolio?#

No. Crypto on Tactfolio is backtest and paper or testnet only. Real-money trading on Hyperliquid is switched off.

Which crypto can I backtest?#

Perps listed on Hyperliquid, such as BTC, ETH, SOL, and HYPE. You can also test perps that track stocks, indexes, and gold on trade.xyz, such as XYZ:TSLA, XYZ:SP500, and XYZ:GOLD.

Can I backtest bitcoin on hourly bars?#

Yes. Pick hourly or every-4-hours runs, and the strategy uses hourly bars. Hourly history is shorter than daily history, so the test covers fewer years.

Is a perp the same as owning bitcoin?#

No. A perp tracks bitcoin’s price, but you never own a coin. Holding it long usually costs funding every hour. Tactfolio tests perps, not coins.

Can I mix crypto and stocks in one strategy?#

You can mix crypto perps with perps that track stocks or gold, such as BTC and XYZ:GOLD. You can’t mix perps with US-listed stocks or ETFs like SPY.

Is a good crypto backtest proof that a strategy works?#

No. A backtest shows how rules would have done on prices that already happened. Crypto history is short, so this matters even more. Paper trade a strategy before you trust it.

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