Manual Trading in Strategy Tester: Faster MT5 backtesting with realistic manual trade execution

This review of Manual Trading in Strategy Tester contains a 2025 performance analysis that focuses on execution realism and repeatable testing workflows. The utility, developed by Filip Dockal for MT5, injects a clean on-chart panel into the Strategy Tester environment so users can place market and pending orders while replaying historical ticks. The first section of the review examines how the dashboard records timestamps, slippage, spreads, and order modifications to produce objective metrics rather than relying on manual note taking. What makes Manual Trading in Strategy Tester unique is the combination of replay-style practice with built-in trade management controls accessible from the chart. The interface is not an automated expert advisor; instead, it supports discretionary workflows by logging each manual action. The algorithmic component is lightweight and deterministic: it captures order requests, associates them with the current tick, and applies simulated fills according to configurable spread and execution parameters. In testing, Manual Trading in Strategy Tester performs best in liquid markets such as major FX and high-volume futures where tick replay provides faithful order execution. Risk management happens through user-applied stop and limit orders, and the utility records outcomes for later analysis. Expected performance characteristics reflect the trader’s skill and rules, but the tool helps isolate execution effects so a 60 to 70 percent win rate observed in controlled replay sessions can be separated from poor execution practices. At a $49 price point, the utility is a cost-effective way to validate manual rules before live deployment on MT5.