Liquidation price calculator
Before opening a leveraged trade, know the price at which it is closed for you. Enter the side, the entry price, the leverage and the maintenance margin rate of your exchange: the calculator gives the liquidation price of an isolated-margin position, its distance from the entry in percent, and the size of the position your margin opens.
Runs in your browser: nothing you enter is sent anywhere.
How to use it
- Choose long or short.
- Enter the entry price, the leverage and your exchange’s maintenance margin rate for this size.
- Optionally enter your margin to see the position size and quantity.
With leverage L and maintenance margin rate m (as a fraction):
- Long: liquidation = entry × (1 − 1/L + m)
- Short: liquidation = entry × (1 + 1/L − m)
- Position size = margin × L; quantity = position size ÷ entry
- Maintenance margin = position size × m
The initial margin is 1/L of the position. The position is liquidated when losses eat it down to m of the position, which is a price move of 1/L − m.
Worked example
A long at 60,000 with 10× leverage and a 0.5% maintenance margin rate, margin 1,000:
- Liquidation = 60,000 × (1 − 0.1 + 0.005) = 60,000 × 0.905 = 54,300.
- That is 9.5 % below the entry.
- Position size = 1,000 × 10 = 10,000.00; quantity = 10,000 ÷ 60,000 = 0.166667.
The same trade as a short is liquidated at 60,000 × 1.095 = 65,700.
Common mistakes
- Treating 1/L as the distance: at 10× the price does not need to fall 10%, only 9.5% here, and less after fees.
- Using cross margin: then the whole account balance backs the position and the liquidation price depends on your other positions.
- Forgetting that a stop loss should sit well before the liquidation price.
Frequently asked questions
How is the liquidation price calculated?
For an isolated-margin linear contract, long: entry × (1 − 1 ÷ leverage + maintenance rate); short: entry × (1 + 1 ÷ leverage − maintenance rate). At that price your margin has shrunk to the maintenance margin and the exchange closes the position.
Why is my exchange's liquidation price a bit different?
Exchanges add trading fees, funding payments and tiered maintenance rates for large positions, and some use a mark price instead of the last price. The result here is the standard formula without those extras, so leave yourself a margin of safety.
What leverage puts liquidation 10% away?
Roughly 1 ÷ (0.10 + maintenance rate). With a 0.5% maintenance rate that is about 9.5× for a 10% move. At 10× with 0.5% the distance is 9.5%.
Does adding margin move the liquidation price?
Yes. Adding collateral to an isolated position lowers its effective leverage, which moves the liquidation price further from the entry. Enter the new effective leverage to see where it goes.