We receive dozens of EA submissions every month. Some are brilliant. Many are... learning experiences. Before you submit, we encourage a moment of clear-eyed self-assessment.
Your EA might be ready for submission if:
Your EA might not be ready if: you finished coding it yesterday, you've only tested it on one pair during one specific month, or you're primarily motivated by the desire to prove that one Reddit commenter wrong.
What we need from you to evaluate your creation properly
Duration: 3-5 Days
We open your code, read your documentation, and form first impressions. If your file is named 'EA_final_v2_FINAL_reallyFinal_v3.ex4,' we'll sigh audibly but still review it.
Duration: 1-2 Weeks
We run your EA through historical data from multiple brokers, multiple time periods, and multiple market conditions. We are looking for it to fail. If it doesn't fail, we test harder.
Duration: 2-4 Weeks
We deploy your EA on demo accounts with real tick data. This is where the rubber meets the road. Backtests lie; forward tests merely exaggerate.
Duration: 3-5 Days
We compile our findings, write up our assessment, and make a decision. If approved, your EA enters our catalog with full documentation. If not, you receive detailed feedback.
Real patterns from submissions that didn't make it (names and details fictionalized to protect the innocent)
Dear Valued Developer,
After careful consideration of your submission titled "SuperMega Profit Machine 3000," we regret to inform you that your Expert Advisor has not passed our initial screening.
While we appreciate the ambitious naming convention, our testing revealed that your EA's strategy appears to consist entirely of the following logic:
if (random() > 0.5) { buy(); } else { sell(); }
We've consulted with our philosophy department, and while they find this approach refreshingly nihilistic, it doesn't meet our performance criteria.
We encourage you to resubmit after incorporating any strategy beyond pure randomness. Even a basic moving average would represent significant improvement.
Warmly,
The YoForexEA Quality Assurance DepartmentDear Developer, Thank you for submitting "Guaranteed Wealth Builder Pro." Our testing team has identified that your EA implements a classic martingale strategy with position doubling after losses. While we appreciate the mathematical elegance of this approach, we must decline inclusion on our platform. Historical note: Martingale strategies have bankrupted approximately every casino and trading account that has relied on them for sufficient time. The strategy works until it doesn't, and when it doesn't work, it doesn't work spectacularly. We understand this may be disappointing. The allure of "guaranteed recovery" is powerful. However, the reality is that markets can remain adverse longer than your account can remain solvent. If you'd like to revise your approach, we recommend our guide on "Why Your Account Isn't a Casino (And Why That's Good)." With concern, The Risk Management Team
Dear Algorithm Creator, We've completed testing of "InfiniteGrid Master." Your grid trading EA performed admirably during our 6-month backtest... for approximately 5 months and 29 days. On day 180, the coordinated intervention by three central banks caused a 400-pip directional move that consumed every grid level you'd programmed, plus margin you didn't know you had. The simulated account went negative by $47,000 beyond its initial deposit. While we understand this was a "black swan event," we've noticed that black swans seem to appear every few months in forex markets, making them perhaps more accurately described as "grey swans" or "regularly scheduled swans." We'd welcome a resubmission with revised grid spacing and maximum exposure limits. Constructively, The Backtesting Division
Total time from submission to decision is typically 4-8 weeks. Complex EAs with multiple strategies may take longer. Simple EAs with obvious flaws may be rejected in days. We're thorough, not slow—okay, maybe a little slow, but for good reasons.
Yes, absolutely. You retain all intellectual property rights. We don't claim ownership of your code, your strategy, or your creative genius. We simply distribute your EA with your permission and provide you with exposure/revenue share depending on the arrangement we negotiate.
You'll receive detailed feedback explaining exactly why and what you could improve. Rejection isn't permanent—many of our best EAs were rejected on first submission. Think of it as constructive criticism delivered by people who want you to succeed (eventually).
We prefer EAs that are either free or use our platform's licensing system. External license checks add complexity and can create bad user experiences. However, we're open to discussion if your licensing model is particularly elegant.
Not directly, but our documentation and guides are extensive. If your EA is close to acceptable but needs specific improvements, we'll point you in the right direction. We're not a development house, but we're helpful when we can be.
Trade copiers and signal followers are welcome if they're original implementations. Repackaged versions of existing copiers won't be accepted. If your signal source is a paid service, ensure you have distribution rights.
Submission is free. We believe in evaluating quality, not charging aspiring developers money they might not have. If we ever started charging submission fees, it would mean we've lost our way.
Featuring is based on quality, user feedback, and performance. We don't sell featured spots. New EAs get initial visibility; sustained performance determines ongoing prominence. Good EAs rise; overhyped EAs normalize.
Prepare your files, gather your documentation, take a deep breath, and send us your work. We promise to treat it with the respect it deserves.