LearnETFs › QLD

QLD trading strategies, backtested

ProShares Ultra QQQ — 2x daily leveraged Nasdaq-100 — the middle ground between QQQ and TQQQ. Every DeployQuant template run on QLD over 5.5 years of minute data, same engine, same window, sorted by return.

Quick answer: the best-performing template on QLD (2021-01-04 → 2026-07-17) was RSI(2) snapback at 26.8% CAGR vs 21.6% for buy-and-hold. 3 of 12 templates beat holding; 11 cut the max drawdown.
StrategyCAGRmax DDSharpetradeswin ratefinal value
RSI(2) Dip Snapback 26.8% −29.5% 0.94157 70% $37,150
Weekly Entry + 7% Target 25.2% −44.5% 0.82185 43% $34,609
20-Day Momentum + Trailing Stop 21.7% −20.1% 0.9420 50% $29,655
SMA 10/50 Trend 19.6% −32.4% 0.7817 41% $26,912
200-Day SMA Regime Filter 19.6% −28.8% 0.7912 42% $26,914
First-to-Last Day of Month 17.4% −65.0% 0.6067 60% $24,283
Drawdown Dip Buyer + 8% Target 16.5% −62.0% 0.5812 100% $23,316
SMA-200 Trend + 15% Trailing Stop 15.5% −40.2% 0.6617 47% $22,228
3-Month Momentum Switch 13.1% −36.1% 0.5915 47% $19,769
EMA 12/26 Trend 11.9% −38.1% 0.5422 41% $18,637
Golden Cross (SMA 50/200) 9.8% −39.9% 0.473 67% $16,798
RSI(14) Mean Reversion 8.3% −48.1% 0.4115 73% $15,566
Buy & hold QLD 21.6%−62.8% 0.68 $29,498
Run a QLD strategy yourself — free →

Build it from blocks (or type it in English), backtest it on 5.5 years of minute data in seconds, tweak any parameter, then paper trade it on live data. No card, no broker needed to start.

Frequently asked questions

What was the best strategy for QLD?

Of the 12 templates tested on QLD over 2021-01-04–2026-07-17, the strongest by CAGR was RSI(2) snapback at 26.8% (max drawdown 29.5%), versus 21.6% for buy-and-hold. Best-in-hindsight is not a forecast — check drawdowns and trade counts before drawing conclusions.

Did any strategy beat buying and holding QLD?

3 of 12 templates beat QLD buy-and-hold (21.6% CAGR) on this window; 11 of 12 had a shallower maximum drawdown than holding (62.8%).

Other leveraged etfs

TQQQProShares UltraPro QQQSSOProShares Ultra S&P500SPUUDirexion Daily S&P 500 Bull 2X SharesSOXLDirexion Daily Semiconductor Bull 3X SharesTECLDirexion Daily Technology Bull 3X SharesROMProShares Ultra TechnologyFASDirexion Daily Financial Bull 3X SharesTMFDirexion Daily 20+ Year Treasury Bull 3X Shares

Backtests are hypothetical, computed by DeployQuant's engine on minute-resolution consolidated US market data (2021-01-04 to 2026-07-17, $10,000 starting capital, no margin, fees and slippage not modeled) and do not guarantee future results. Nothing on this page is investment advice. Live trading involves risk of loss.