Paper Trading Before Going Live: What to Check

Paper trading is not a second backtest. It is a test of everything around the idea: your orders, your fills and your data feed.

Treat it as an execution test

The backtest already told you whether the idea had an edge on historical data. Paper trading checks whether live conditions match what the backtest assumed.

Track the fill gap from day one

Record the price you expected and the price you actually got on every order. That gap is usually what shows up when you go live, and it is easier to see on paper than with real money.

Check your order types

Market, limit and stop orders behave differently in fast markets. Confirm each order type does what the strategy assumes.

Check your data

Live data can arrive late, have gaps, or differ from the historical series used in the backtest. Compare the two for the same instrument and day.

Run it long enough to see more than one condition

A few quiet days prove little. Run the test long enough to see a volatile session and a calm one, and note how the strategy behaves in each.

Keep the logic identical

The biggest source of backtest to live gaps is rewriting the strategy between the two steps. In Nvestiq, the same compiled strategy runs in backtest, in Nvestiq paper trading, and when deployed through Interactive Brokers or Alpaca. Before any live order routes, you confirm by typing the ticker.

Nvestiq is in early access. Nvestiq publishes this page, so weigh it accordingly.