Position Size Calculator for Crypto
A position size calculator tells you how much to buy or short so that a stop-loss hit costs a fixed share of your account. This one works in USDT, handles leverage and exchange fees, supports long and short, and returns margin required and an estimated liquidation price.
Runs in your browser. No account. Your inputs stay in this browser.
Your position
Estimates only. Exchanges add maintenance margin, funding and their own rounding.
How the position size is calculated
Position sizing starts from the loss you can accept, not from the trade you want. The calculator works backwards from your stop-loss in five steps.
- 1. Risk amount
- Balance × Risk %
- 2. Stop distance %
- |Entry − Stop-loss| ÷ Entry
- 3. Position size
- Risk amount ÷ Stop distance % (USDT)
- 4. Quantity
- Position size ÷ Entry (coins)
- 5. Margin required
- Position size ÷ Leverage
Take-profit and fees
- Risk:reward
- |Take-profit − Entry| ÷ |Entry − Stop-loss|
- Profit
- Quantity × |Take-profit − Entry|
- Fees
- 2 × Position size × Fee % (entry and exit, on the entry value)
- Net profit
- Profit − Fees
- Potential loss
- Risk amount + Fees
Liquidation (simplified, isolated margin)
- Long liquidation
- ≈ Entry × (1 − 1 ÷ Leverage)
- Short liquidation
- ≈ Entry × (1 + 1 ÷ Leverage)
The liquidation figure ignores maintenance margin, funding payments and exchange-specific tiers, so real exchanges liquidate slightly earlier. Use it to check that your stop-loss sits well inside it, not as an exact trigger price. Leverage does not appear in steps 1 to 4: it only changes margin and liquidation.
| Long | Short | |
|---|---|---|
| Stop-loss goes | below entry | above entry |
| Take-profit goes | above entry | below entry |
| Liquidation is | below entry | above entry |
Set the stop where your idea is wrong, such as below the last higher low for a long, with room for ATR noise. Then let the stop distance decide the size. See the market structure guide.
Worked example: BTC long with a 1% risk
You have 1,000 USDT, you risk 1%, and you want to buy Bitcoin at 60,000 with a stop-loss at 58,800 and a take-profit at 63,600. Leverage is 10x. Fees are 0.1% per side. Prices are made up for the example.
| Step | Working | Result |
|---|---|---|
| Risk amount | 1,000 × 1% | 10.00 USDT |
| Stop distance | 60,000 − 58,800 = 1,200; 1,200 ÷ 60,000 | 2.00% |
| Position size | 10 ÷ 0.02 | 500.00 USDT |
| Quantity | 500 ÷ 60,000 | 0.008333 BTC |
| Margin at 10x | 500 ÷ 10 | 50.00 USDT |
| Liquidation (est.) | 60,000 × (1 − 1 ÷ 10) | 54,000.00 |
| Take-profit distance | 63,600 − 60,000 = 3,600; 3,600 ÷ 60,000 | 6.00% |
| Risk:reward | 3,600 ÷ 1,200 | 1 : 3.00 |
| Gross profit at TP | 0.008333 × 3,600 | 30.00 USDT |
| Fees (round trip) | 0.50 entry + 0.50 exit (0.1% of 500 USDT, each side) | 1.00 USDT |
| Net profit at TP | 30.00 − 1.00 | 29.00 USDT |
| Net loss at stop | 10.00 + 1.00 | 11.00 USDT (1.10% of balance) |
- The stop-loss is at 58,800 and liquidation is at 54,000. The stop triggers first, which is what you want.
- Fees turned a 10.00 USDT planned loss into 11.00 USDT. Plan for that.
- Net reward after fees is 29.00 for a 11.00 loss, or about 1 : 2.64. The listed 1 : 3.00 is before fees.
Why fees matter more on tight stops
Fees are charged on the whole position, but your risk is only the distance to the stop. A tighter stop means a bigger position for the same risk, and bigger fees against a smaller loss.
Take the same trade with the stop-loss at 59,700 instead of 58,800. The stop is 0.50% away, so the position size is 10 ÷ 0.005 = 2,000 USDT, or 0.03333 BTC. At 0.1% per side, fees if the stop hits come to 4.00 USDT, 40% of the 10 USDT you meant to risk. With the 2.00% stop above, fees were 10%.
Before you tighten a stop, check what the fees do to your real risk. The calculator shows this in the Potential loss row.
| Stop distance | Position size | Margin at 10x | Fees if stopped | Fees as % of planned 10 USDT risk |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2.00% (58,800) | 500 USDT | 50 USDT | 1.00 | 10.0% |
| 0.50% (59,700) | 2,000 USDT | 200 USDT | 4.00 | 40.0% |
Related tools
Size a trade on a specific coin
Each coin page shows the current bias, key levels and ATR you can use to place a stop.
FAQ
How do I calculate position size in crypto?
Divide the amount you are willing to lose by the distance to your stop-loss, as a percentage of entry. With a 1,000 USDT balance, 1% risk and a 2% stop, you risk 10 USDT and the position is 10 ÷ 0.02 = 500 USDT. Divide by the entry price to get the quantity in coins. This calculator does it for you.
Does leverage change my position size?
No. Position size comes from your risk amount and stop distance. Leverage only changes the margin the exchange locks and how close your liquidation price is. With 10x leverage that 500 USDT position needs 50 USDT of margin. With 2x it needs 250 USDT, and liquidation moves much further from your entry.
What risk percentage should I use?
It is your decision. Many traders cap risk at 1% to 2% of the account per trade so that a losing streak does not do serious damage. The calculator warns above 5% but does not stop you. Nothing here is advice on what is right for you.
Does the calculator include trading fees?
Fees are shown separately. You set the fee per side, and the results show round-trip fees, net profit at your take-profit and the loss you take if the stop is hit including fees. The position size itself comes from the stop distance only, so a stop-out will cost slightly more than your risk amount.
How is this different from the forex position size calculators?
Forex tools work in pips, lots and a currency pair’s pip value. This one is built for crypto: prices in USDT, quantity in coins, leverage, margin, short and long, and a liquidation estimate. You can still get a forex-style answer by reading the risk amount and stop distance.
How exact is the liquidation price?
It is a simplified estimate for isolated margin: entry × (1 − 1 ÷ leverage) for a long. Exchanges add maintenance margin, tiered rules and funding, so real liquidation usually happens a little earlier. Treat it as a warning line, and check your exchange’s own calculator before using high leverage.
This calculator is for education and planning. It does not give financial advice, and results are estimates.