From an idea to a strategy you trust
Nine steps from an initial concept to a validated strategy you would put money behind. This overview includes features currently in active development.
Every screenshot here is the real app. Illustrations are labelled as illustrations.
What you need in front of you
A computer you control
Works on macOS, Windows, or Linux. The app runs locally where you work so your broker keys never leave your machine.
Node 20 and Python 3.10, or newer
The smart installer checks your environment first and details missing prerequisites instead of failing halfway through.
A broker account, if you want one
Optional to start. Browser practice simulates orders inside PTQ. Connect Alpaca's paper API from your own computer when you want to send paper orders there. You can build and test without a broker account.
A region we can serve
Legal compliance first. We strictly refuse your payment if our software cannot legally operate within your region.
Step 01
Buy
$997 per year. One plan, full access.
Secure checkout via Stripe. Your card details never touch our servers. We only receive your name, email, and purchase confirmation.
Payment instantly creates your access key. An account with nothing paid holds no key and no access.
Step 02
Put it on your machine
Run a local copy directly on your own hardware.
Download the secure archive file alongside its verification checksum. Because the early build lacks formal code-signing, use this checksum to manually verify file integrity against the warning notes.
The installation script automatically verifies your software versions, configures a dedicated Python environment, and updates your system path with the ptq command.
Step 03
Activate this device
Run a single command to authorise your computer.
The software securely exchanges your licence key for a temporary server-signed lease. The app automatically verifies this signature on every request to prevent unauthorised modifications.
Your active lease manages your compute credits. You can activate up to two devices per account, tracked directly by our server.
Step 04
Connect your broker
Optional setup. Your API keys remain entirely on your own local machine.
The software saves credentials directly to your operating system's native secure vault: Keychain for macOS, DPAPI for Windows, or Secret Service for Linux. They never leave your device, and our remote servers strictly block any request containing them.
The app validates your API keys with your broker before saving anything. If validation fails, no data is written. Only your computer can access these live trading connections.
Step 05
Write your first strategy
Build your strategy in plain language with zero code required.
Start fresh or use a template to outline your rules: when to buy, when to sell, trade sizes, and exit points. You maintain complete control over every decision.
The builder gives you instant warnings if you exceed your preset risk limits. The execution engine immediately rejects unrunnable rules with clear reasons rather than making assumptions.
Step 06
Let the gates try to kill it
See if your strategy actually works.
Your rules run against verified market history. If the data engine is down, the run fails openly.
Then our statistical checks look for luck. Most strategies fail here. If yours does, we show you exactly why and by how much.
Step 07
Watch it work
Watch your strategy run for weeks with none of your money involved.
Surviving rules trade on paper with real prices and fake money. Every order is clearly labelled as a simulation and passes standard live risk checks.
This forward-testing takes time on purpose. Running on a set schedule while you work tests the strategy without hindsight.
Step 08
Switch it on
Going live is entirely your decision.
You activate strategies locally, one at a time, with custom limits and expiration times. No website can override this. If you modify your limits later, the active strategy safely shuts down.
Disclaimer: Live trading is currently experimental, single-shot, and never tested against the live venue. Automated, multi-broker production safety features do not exist yet. Unattended live trading is disabled for compliance, meaning armed strategies run on paper data by default.
Step 09
See what happened
Find out exactly why your strategy behaved the way it did.
The system reviews your journal to answer four key questions: what happened, why it happened, what the checks said then, and what to change.
Recommendations are delivered as clear tests you can run yourself. The software never applies changes automatically or invents data if the engine goes offline.
The ideas you will lose
Our software stops bad trades to save you money. Do not buy this if you want a tool that always says yes.
Location block
Checkout stops the sale if we cannot legally serve your region.
Gate block
The statistical gate rejects most strategies, even your favourites.
Risk block
The engine blocks any order that breaks your custom limits.
Price block
Orders are rejected if market prices move past your set boundary.
Broker block
Live paths stop immediately if no active broker is linked.
Engine block
Backtests stop instantly if the calculation server goes offline.
Still deciding? The product page covers the maths, the security page shows where your keys live, and the FAQ answers the rest.