Side by side
Smartbull vs 3Commas
Why walk-forward validated, non-custodial automation beats grid bots on shaky 2024-2025 markets.
| vs.feature | Smartbull | 3Commas |
|---|---|---|
| Custody of funds | Non-custodial — your exchange keys, your wallet | Custodial elements (API keys stored, smart-trade order routing) |
| Strategy validation | +104.58% OOS last-12m @ 10 bps · 78-window walk-forward · slippage-stress 0/5/10/20 bps | DCA/Grid presets, no walk-forward report |
| Live backtest | Auditable per-sleeve OOS attribution | Limited |
| Pricing | $99/month flat | $29–$99/month tier-gated, signals separate |
| Payment | USDT (ERC-20), Stripe option | Card / crypto |
| Auth | Wallet (SIWE) — no email leak | Email + 2FA |
| Public research log | Yes | No |
| Proof-of-reserves treasury | Yes | No |
| Per-trade attribution to a named sleeve | Yes | No |
Our take
3Commas is built around DCA and grid bots — great for ranging markets, but they don't publish a walk-forward report and they hold (or proxy) your API keys. If you want auditable strategy attribution and non-custodial execution, we're the cleaner option.