What is the meaning of different colors in MT5 Strategy Tester Optimization Results?

In MetaTrader 5 (MT5) Strategy Tester Optimization Results, the different colors you see in the results table or chart represent performance values of the optimization runs, typically based on the optimization criterion you selected (e.g., profit, drawdown, Sharpe ratio, custom criteria).

🟢 Green: Best Performing Runs

• These are the top optimization results based on the chosen optimization criterion.
• The deeper or more intense the green, the better the performance (e.g., higher profit or lower drawdown).
• Usually, the highest-ranked results (e.g., best net profit) appear darkest green.

🟡 Yellow / Orange: Moderately Performing Runs

• These represent average or intermediate performance.
• The strategy settings performed decently but did not make it to the top-tier group.
• These are often candidates for further testing if overfitting is a concern with the best ones.

🔴 Red: Poor Performing Runs

• These are low-performing results.
• Typically, they resulted in losses, high drawdowns, or poor profit factor.
• The deeper the red, the worse the performance.

⚪ Gray: Invalid or Skipped Runs

• These parameter sets were skipped due to constraints (e.g., not enough margin, logical error, or invalid trade conditions).
• No meaningful result was generated.

Additional Notes:

• If you're using Graph view, MT5 colors the bubbles or bars to visually separate the high/low-performing runs.
• The color scale is relative — it adapts based on the range of values in your current optimization session.

What is better, light green or dark green?

✅ Dark Green is better than Light Green.

• Dark Green = Top-performing parameter sets
  • Higher profit
  • Better optimization criterion (e.g., lower drawdown, higher Sharpe ratio)
• Light Green = Still good, but not as optimal as dark green

The color intensity (from red → yellow → light green → dark green) reflects the ranking of performance according to your selected optimization criterion.

So, always look for dark green results when selecting the best configurations.