Learn › Comparisons › monthly cycle vs RSI mean reversion

First-to-Last Day of Month vs RSI(14) Mean Reversion

Two rule sets, 59 ETFs, one engine and one window.

Head-to-head: monthly cycle won on 31 of 59 ETFs by CAGR. Median CAGR: monthly cycle: 5.5% · RSI mean reversion: 3.0%. Median max drawdown: 36.6% vs 24.6%.
monthly cycleRSI mean reversion
Median CAGR (59 ETFs)5.5%3.0%
Median max drawdown−36.6%−24.6%
ETFs won (by CAGR)3128
Stylemeasuring how much of an asset's return accrues inside the month versus across month boundariesassets that trend up over time but overshoot on the way, such as broad index ETFs

Where the gap was biggest

ETFmonthly cycleRSI mean reversiongap
TECS −55.6%−29.1% 26.5%
SOXS −77.5%−53.7% 23.7%
SQQQ −44.6%−23.6% 21.0%
UVXY −68.7%−48.5% 20.2%
REW −37.2%−18.5% 18.7%
SOXL 32.9%14.4% 18.4%
SOXX 29.2%12.8% 16.4%
CLSE 18.9%3.8% 15.1%
EEV −10.0%5.0% 15.0%
QID −28.8%−14.2% 14.6%
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Frequently asked questions

Which is better: monthly cycle or RSI mean reversion?

On this 2021-01-04 to 2026-10-02 window, monthly cycle produced the higher CAGR on 31 of 59 ETFs. Median CAGR: monthly cycle 5.5% vs RSI mean reversion 3.0%; median max drawdown: 36.6% vs 24.6%. Which is better depends on the asset and what you optimize for. The per-ETF table shows where each wins.

Dig deeper

First-to-Last Day of Monthrules + all 59 ETF results RSI(14) Mean Reversionrules + all 59 ETF results

Backtests are hypothetical, computed by DeployQuant's engine on minute-resolution consolidated US market data (2021-01-04 to 2026-10-02, $10,000 starting capital, no margin, no fees or slippage in the headline run; buy-and-hold puts 98% of the account in at the first open, as the templates do) and do not guarantee future results. Nothing on this page is investment advice. Live trading involves risk of loss.