Set Up Guide
Connect your platform
NinjaTrader 8: install the Add-On. Tradovate: link your account.
Create an alert on TradingView
Add your webhook URL and alert message
Review Alert History
Visit crosstrade.io/user/alert-history to review your alerts
Only Step 1 differs between platforms.
NinjaTrader 8 runs through the CrossTrade NT8 Add-On on your Windows desktop. Step 1 (NinjaTrader 8) below walks through the install.
Tradovate has nothing to install: link your account once and route alerts to it with a single extra line in the alert message. The Tradovate guides cover the full path in depth.
Step 1 (NinjaTrader 8) - Download and Install the Add-On
Install the Add-On
Once downloaded, open NinjaTrader and install the Add-on by clicking on Tools > Import > NinjaScript Add-On.
Before you restart NinjaTrader, enable the ATI!
Enable the NinjaTrader ATI
Enable the Automated Trading Interface (ATI) to accept your external commands by going to Tools > Settings > Automated Trading Interface.
Now restart NinjaTrader
Connect to Live Data
In order for your order execution to be supported you need to connect to a live data feed. This can be a purchased data subscription from NinjaTrader directly or a data feed that is provided through a prop evaluation account.
Level 1 data is sufficient for XT orders - Level 2 data is not required.
Log In to CrossTrade
After you have restarted NinjaTrader, it's now time to Log In with your email and password.
Step 1 (Tradovate) - Link Your Tradovate Account
Linking is the whole "installation" for Tradovate. There's no download and nothing to keep running: you authorize CrossTrade once through Tradovate's own sign-in screen, and from then on CrossTrade routes your webhook orders to Tradovate's cloud API directly, even when your computer is off.
Head to My Account → Brokers or the guided Tradovate setup page and pick the right door:
- Link Live is for a personal real-money Tradovate brokerage login.
- Link Demo is for Tradovate sim accounts and every prop firm login (Apex, Topstep, and other Tradovate-based firms), including funded/PA accounts.
For the full picture on environments, multiple identities, and fixing an expired link, see Linking Your Tradovate Account.
Step 2 - Create a TradingView Alert
To set up an alert, you can utilize various trigger conditions and decide whether the alert should fire once or repeatedly until you disable it. You can customize the alert message to include specific information or values that are relevant at the time the alert is triggered. The notifications for these alerts can be received via pop-ups, emails, and even push notifications if you have the TradingView mobile app installed.
Inside your Supercharts, click to open an Alert window from the top or right navigation clock button
Determine your Alert Conditions
To set up an alert, you can utilize various trigger conditions and decide whether the alert should fire once or repeatedly until you disable it. You can customize the Expiration date of the alert and provide a name to keep your alerts organized.
Provide payload information
In the message field you will supply the payload information you want to send to CrossTrade for relay to NinjaTrader. You can customize this however you want based on the methods NinjaTrader will accept.
Remove the default text in the Message window!
ONLY the CrossTrade command can be present.
For example: Bot V3 (, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , hlc3, 5, 2, 2.8, 3, 3, 5, 5, 5, 5, NORMAL, 0.75, 0.75, 25, 3, 2, NORMAL, 3, 3, 4, 4, 9, 5, 1, 1.2, 59, 43, 1.55, 23, 2.4, 6.2, CLASSIC, 9, 19, 0.7, 0.25, 0.6, 5, 19, MAC-Z, 6, 67, 25, 17, 2, 0.6, 61, 80, 20, 80, 20, 50, 14, 30, 15, 30, 0.75, 10,000, Small): order {{strategy.order.action}} @ {{strategy.order.contracts}} filled on {{ticker}}. New strategy position is {{strategy.position_size}}
All of that needs to be removed.
Here is an example of a basic PLACE command for a Buy Market order.
key=your-crosstrade-secret-key;
command=place;
account=sim101;
instrument=ES1!;
action=buy;
qty=1;
order_type=market;
tif=day;
The same command routes to Tradovate by adding one line, destination=tradovate;, and using your Tradovate account name (shown in My Account → Brokers after linking). Without that line, alerts go to NinjaTrader 8, the default destination.
key=your-crosstrade-secret-key;
command=place;
account=DemoAccount;
instrument=ES1!;
action=buy;
qty=1;
order_type=market;
tif=day;
destination=tradovate;
See Your First Automated Trade (Tradovate) for the full walkthrough.
If you are automating a strategy use the following command example with the strategy variables:
key=your-crosstrade-secret-key;
command=place;
account=sim101;
instrument=ES1!;
action={{strategy.order.action}};
qty={{strategy.order.contracts}};
order_type=market;
tif=day;
sync_strategy=true;
market_position={{strategy.market_position}};
prev_market_position={{strategy.prev_market_position}};
target_quantity={{strategy.position_size}};
out_of_sync=resync;
This command uses Strategy Sync logic and is designed to allow your TradingView strategy to send both entries and exits without interference. If you intend to have NinjaTrader handle the exit logic, you will need to remove the Sync logic (last 5 lines) and add trade brackets or an ATM strategy.
out_of_sync=resync; tells CrossTrade to correct a drifted position automatically, which is why it's the default in our examples. target_quantity is required for it: resync needs the exact size to correct to. Prefer to be flattened instead of corrected? Use out_of_sync=flatten; and drop the target_quantity line. Full details in Strategy Synchronization.
Add Webhook URL
Your webhook URL is found on the Dashboard and/or your My Account page
Copy the webhook URL from either location to your clipboard...
Paste Webhook URL
On the Notifications tab of the alert window, you will need to provide your specific CrossTrade webhook URL. You can also enable alerts for pop-ups, emails, and mobile push notifications if you have the TradingView app installed.
Webhooks require 2FA to be enabled on your TradingView account. Once enabled, you can add the webhook URL into the field and save the alert.
Managing Alerts on TradingView
You can edit, clone, or delete them from the alert manager, and even adjust alert conditions directly on the chart for easy visualization. Alerts that have been triggered are logged, and you can access and review this log to track past market events and alert responses.
Note: TradingView alerts do not dynamically update when you change a condition in your indicator/strategy or chart setting. If you make changes, be sure to update the alert in the Condition dropdown.
Step 3 - Reviewing Alerts on CrossTrade.io
Once you start sending alerts from TradingView to CrossTrade, you can review your recent alert history on the CrossTrade Alert History page in your account. Alerts for both platforms land in the same log, whether they routed to NinjaTrader 8 or Tradovate.
Additionally, your CrossTrade NT8 Add-On also shows every alert received:
Great Job! You are on your way to becoming a CrossTrade master.