Guides
How to read a Portfolio page in the app: what each part means and which to read first
How to read a Portfolio page in the app: what each part means and which to read first.
I'm Chris, one of the co-founders of Autopilot. Most people read a Portfolio page in exactly the wrong order: return first, everything else never. Here's the order I'd use and why.
One thing first, because we're an SEC-registered investment adviser and I have to say it. Autopilot is the app. The actual investment advice comes from Autopilot Advisers, LLC. If you want the full legal version of anything in here, it's on our disclaimer page.
Read the source and method first
Every Portfolio has a description that says where its holdings come from. That's the single most important thing on the page, because it determines the Portfolio's whole failure mode.
A tracker built on quarterly SEC filings is one thing, and it always lags by the filing delay. A Portfolio built from somebody's public commentary is faster and looser, and depends on the Pilot's interpretation. A Portfolio driven by an AI model runs on a stated process with no filing delay and no filing either. A rules-based Portfolio reconstitutes on a schedule.
If you can't tell which one you're looking at from the description, that's the thing to ask about before anything else.
Then read the drawdown, not the return
The number that decides your outcome usually isn't the return, it's the worst decline along the way. That's the one that tells you whether you'll still be holding it in the bad year, and most people who lose money in a good strategy lost it by leaving at the bottom.
Read the drawdown before the return. If the worst decline would have made you quit, the strategy isn't wrong, it's wrong for you.
Then the turnover and the holdings count
How often the Portfolio changes tells you what it will cost you in trading and in taxes. A strategy that reassesses weekly behaves very differently in a taxable account from one that changes quarterly, which is covered in Autopilot and taxes.
How many positions it holds tells you what a small allocation can actually buy, especially where your brokerage doesn't support fractional shares. That's in Does Autopilot buy fractional shares.
Then the Pilot
Who publishes it, what they do outside this app, and whether that's verifiable. Do not stop at the stocks. Read the Portfolio. The longer version is in How to choose which investor to follow and what a Pilot is at all is in How Pilots work.
What a record on Autopilot is, and isn't
Records shown in the app are computed from actual follower accounts rather than from a hypothetical simulation, and they start when the Portfolio launched. A short record is a short record; there's no way around that and no reason to pretend otherwise.
And your own result will differ from the Portfolio's, for the ordinary reasons in Why your returns won't match the Pilot's. Past results are not a promise about future ones, which is true even when it's tedious to read.
Frequently asked questions
What do the numbers on an Autopilot portfolio page mean?
Read the source and method first, then the worst drawdown, then how often it changes and how many positions it holds, then who publishes it. Returns are the last thing, not the first.
How do I evaluate a portfolio before following it?
Ask what the holdings are built from, how long the record is, what the worst decline was, what the turnover implies for taxes, and whether the Pilot is who they say they are.
What should I look at before following a portfolio?
The drawdown. It's the number that decides whether you'll still be holding it in a bad year, and leaving at the bottom is how most people turn a decent strategy into a loss.
What is a Pilot's track record on Autopilot?
A record computed from actual follower accounts, starting when the Portfolio launched. A short record is a short record, and past results are not a promise about future ones.
Since Autopilot Advisers is an SEC-registered investment adviser, we have to put disclaimers on stuff like this. They're below, and the full version is on our disclaimer page.
Disclosures
© Autopilot Holdings Corporation 2026 — All rights reserved. “Autopilot” refers to Autopilot Holdings Corporation and its wholly-owned, and separately managed subsidiaries, including Autopilot Advisers, LLC, an SEC-registered investment adviser. All investing is subject to investment risks, including possible loss of the principal invested, and past performance is not indicative of future results. View our Customer Relationship Summary and other important information at joinautopilot.com/disclaimer.
This information is provided by Autopilot for educational and illustrative purposes only and is not a recommendation, an offer to sell or the solicitation to buy any security. Autopilot relies on information from various sources believed to be reliable, including information from Clients, Pilots and other third parties, but cannot guarantee the accuracy or completeness of that information. Autopilot does not provide tax or legal advice and you are encouraged to consult with professionals before making investment decisions.
Autopilot is not affiliated with, sponsored, or endorsed by the companies listed, described, or featured on its site. Company logos or trademarks used do not imply endorsement and are the property of their respective owners.
Investing involves risk, including the possible loss of principal. Past performance does not guarantee future results. You should carefully consider your investment objectives, risk tolerance, and time horizon before investing through Autopilot.
Autopilot Advisers, LLC is an SEC-registered investment adviser. Registration as an investment adviser does not imply a certain level of skill or training. Additional information about Autopilot is available in our Form ADV Part 2A, available at adviserinfo.sec.gov or joinautopilot.com/adv.
Autopilot provides limited investment advisory services focused on Portfolio selection and suitability assessment. Our services are not intended to replace comprehensive financial planning. We recommend consulting with a qualified financial advisor regarding your complete financial situation.
This content is provided for educational and informational purposes only. It does not constitute investment, legal, or tax advice and should not be relied upon as the basis for any investment decision. You should consult with qualified professionals regarding your specific circumstances.
Autopilot does not provide tax, legal, or accounting advice. You should consult with qualified tax and legal professionals regarding your specific circumstances.
Autopilot does not hold client assets. All investments are held at the brokerage firm you select and connect to Autopilot. Your brokerage firm is responsible for trade execution, custody, and reporting. Autopilot is not responsible for your broker-dealer’s services, fees, or execution quality.
Autopilot’s services depend on technology systems, third-party APIs, and internet connectivity. System outages, API disruptions, or connectivity issues may temporarily affect service availability or trade execution timing.
Client account holdings are designed to track the Portfolio you’ve selected, but your actual holdings and performance may differ from the Portfolio due to execution timing, market conditions, brokerage capacity constraints, fractional share availability, and other factors outside Autopilot’s control.
For Portfolios inspired by publicly disclosed trading activity, there may be a delay between when a Pilot executes a trade and when that trade becomes publicly available and is incorporated into the Portfolio. This timing delay may affect the suitability or performance of trades when executed in client accounts.
Records shown in the app reflect actual client accounts over stated periods and are not projections. Past performance does not guarantee future results. Individual results differ from Portfolio results due to timing, cash flows, fractional availability, brokerage constraints and manual trades.