Available Instruments
What It Is
Strateda provides access to two datasets sourced from Databento: US Stocks and CME Futures. All market data uses Best Bid/Offer (BBO) quality, ensuring consistent data fidelity regardless of which instrument you select.
The instrument catalog is designed to cover the most actively traded symbols — liquid markets where backtesting results are most likely to translate to realistic live execution.
How to Access It
Instruments are accessed from the left panel. Use the data source dropdown at the top of the panel to switch between available sources:
| Source | Contents | Plan Required |
|---|---|---|
| US Stocks | 120 leading US equities by market cap and volume | All plans |
| Futures CME | 11 CME futures contracts | Plus and above |
| MT5 Live Data | Full instrument universe from your connected MT5 broker | Plus and above + MT5 connected |
| Market Watch | Your saved watchlist instruments | All plans |
Click any instrument to load its chart and set it as the active symbol for strategy building and backtesting.
What You See
US Stocks
Stocks are available on all plans, including Free. The catalog includes major US-listed equities such as:
- AAPL — Apple Inc.
- MSFT — Microsoft Corporation
- NVDA — NVIDIA Corporation
- AMZN — Amazon.com Inc.
- GOOGL — Alphabet Inc.
- TSLA — Tesla Inc.
- META — Meta Platforms Inc.
And many more large-cap and mid-cap US equities. These are the same symbols you would find on any major US stock exchange.
CME Futures
Futures require a Plus plan or above ($15/mo+). The available CME Futures contracts are:
- ES.FUT — E-mini S&P 500
- NQ.FUT — E-mini Nasdaq-100
- YM.FUT — E-mini Dow Jones
- MGC.FUT — Micro Gold
- SIL.FUT — Micro Silver
- QM.FUT — E-mini Crude Oil
- MBT.FUT — Micro Bitcoin
- M6E.FUT — Micro EUR/USD
- 6B.FUT — British Pound
- 6J.FUT — Japanese Yen
- 6S.FUT — Swiss Franc
These contracts cover equity indices, metals, energy, crypto, and FX — giving you broad cross-asset coverage for strategy research. Futures offer extended trading hours and leverage characteristics that differ significantly from equities — attributes worth accounting for in your strategy design.
MT5 Live Data
When your MT5 terminal is connected, all instruments available in your broker account appear under MT5 Live Data. This includes forex pairs, indices, commodities, and any other instruments your broker provides — far beyond the curated Databento library.
MT5 data is sourced directly from your broker with no Strateda-side processing or delay. See MT5 Integration for connection setup.
Adding New Instruments
The Databento instrument library can be expanded on request. If you need a US equity or CME futures contract not currently listed, contact Strateda support. New instruments are integrated through the same data pipeline and become available to all users once added.
How to Interpret It
Plan Requirements
| Instrument Class | Free | Plus ($15/mo) | Pro ($45/mo) | Premium ($75/mo) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| US Stocks | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Futures | No | Yes | Yes | Yes |
If you are on the Free plan and need to research futures strategies, upgrading to Plus unlocks the full futures catalog along with an increased bar limit (4,500 bars) and parameter optimization.
Instrument characteristics that affect backtesting
Trading hours — CME Futures trade nearly 24 hours on weekdays, generating significantly more bars per calendar day than US stocks, which trade during regular market hours (9:30 AM – 4:00 PM ET). This directly affects your data coverage at shorter timeframe intervals and consequently how much calendar history fits within your plan's bar limit.
Contract specifications — Futures have defined tick sizes and point values that determine how position sizing and P&L are calculated in your backtests. Review your broker's contract specifications for the exact values applicable to your account.
Instrument Selection and Backtesting
When you select an instrument and run a backtest, the platform loads historical data for that specific symbol up to your plan's bar limit. You can switch instruments and re-run the same strategy to test how it performs across different markets — a straightforward way to assess whether your edge is instrument-specific or more broadly applicable.
Example
You are researching a trend-following strategy and want to compare its behavior across asset classes:
- Select AAPL from the left panel. Set the interval to daily (D1). Run a backtest over the maximum available history. Note the equity curve shape, drawdown characteristics, and win rate.
- Switch to ES.FUT (requires Plus or above). Keep the same strategy and interval. Run the backtest again. Compare the results — equity index futures often trend differently than individual stocks.
- Switch to MGC.FUT. Run the same test. Gold futures exhibit different trend characteristics and correlation patterns compared to equities.
This cross-instrument comparison takes minutes on Strateda. The consistent BBO data quality across all instruments means differences in results reflect genuine market behavior, not data artifacts.