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Does the Bollinger Band breakout actually work?

A computed answer — not an opinion. Here's what nearly two decades of honest data say.

84OUT OF 100
SURVIVES SCRUTINY

Clears all five traps that fool most backtests — necessary, but not sufficient. This does NOT promise future profit; no backtest can. Verify with paper/live before risking capital.

The honest verdict

Across nearly two decades of survivorship-free NIFTY & BANKNIFTY data — out-of-sample, after real costs — the Bollinger Band breakout scored 83.6/100 and actually survives honest scrutiny. That's rare: most strategies people teach fall apart under this kind of test.

Why it holds up

Here's what it gets right:

How we tested it

Five statistical tests, no mercy: out-of-sample decay (is the edge curve-fit?), Monte-Carlo robustness (is it just luck?), real cost & slippage survival, survivorship-bias exposure, and sample-size adequacy. Run on NIFTY 50 and BANKNIFTY — survivorship-free by construction, the most honest data available — across roughly two decades. Rules are read at each day's close and filled the next open, so the strategy can never peek at the bar it trades on.

83.6/100
Honesty score
125
Trades tested
60%
Win rate
NIFTY/BANKNIFTY · ~2 decades
Data

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Frequently asked

Is the Bollinger Band breakout profitable?

On a true, survivorship-free test (83.6/100, survives scrutiny), the Bollinger Band breakout holds up. A backtest looking profitable is not the same as a strategy being real — most aren't. Test your own version free at The Honest Quant.

Does the Bollinger Band breakout work on the NIFTY?

This verdict was computed on NIFTY 50 and BANKNIFTY index data (survivorship-free) over nearly two decades. It scored 83.6/100 — survives scrutiny.

Is the Bollinger Band breakout overfit?

Our overfitting test checks how much of the edge survives out-of-sample. See the full breakdown — and run your own parameters — in the lab.

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Educational, not financial advice. An honest backtest score measures whether a result survives statistical scrutiny — it does not predict future profit, and is not a buy or sell signal. · About · FAQ · All strategies