Guide

Copy Trading on dYdX

Follow experienced traders and automatically copy their positions with built-in risk controls.

Copy Trading allows you to mirror the trading activity of selected Top Traders on dYdX perpetual markets while keeping full control of your account and allocation.

How Copy Trading Works

  • Select a Lead Trader from the public leaderboard.
  • Allocate a percentage of your account equity to copy trading.
  • When the Lead Trader opens, increases, reduces, or closes a position, your Copy Bot mirrors the action proportionally.
  • Trades place only if sufficient margin is available, with protections based on your risk settings.

Capital Allocation

  • Allocation % controls how much of your equity is used for copied positions.
  • 100% mirrors the leader proportionally to your full equity; lower allocations reduce exposure.
  • Your funds always stay in your dYdX account.

Market Scope

  • All markets: copy every market the leader trades.
  • Selected markets: copy only the markets you choose.
  • Excluded markets: skip specific tickers you don’t want to follow.
  • Markets are independent; one market’s activity doesn’t rebalance another.

Risk Controls

  • Entry price tolerance: skip new entries if price moved too far from the leader’s fill.
  • Max position size (USD): cap per-market exposure.
  • Position direction: allow long & short, long only, or short only.
  • If a rule triggers, the trade may be skipped.

Getting Started

  1. Select a Lead Trader from the leaderboard.
  2. Set allocation %, market scope, and position direction.
  3. Set entry tolerance and max position safeguards.
  4. Start the bot and monitor copied positions in real time.

Lead Trader Incentives

Lead Traders receive 10% of the trading fees generated by their followers, paid monthly. This aligns incentives while keeping the platform free for followers.

Important Considerations

  • Execution prices can differ because of liquidity and timing; partial fills may occur.
  • Trades can be skipped if risk limits or margin requirements are hit.
  • Each account’s results vary based on allocation, timing, and market conditions.
  • Only one Copy Bot runs per account to keep risk focused on a single leader.

Risk Disclosure

  • Copy trading carries significant risk; leverage and volatility amplify gains and losses.
  • Past performance of a Lead Trader does not guarantee future results.
  • You remain responsible for trading decisions and potential losses; only allocate capital you can afford to risk.