PositionSizeTools

Crypto Position Size Calculator

Size a crypto position from account risk and stop distance, with margin required and an estimated liquidation price when leverage is used.

Last reviewed

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Free · No sign-up · Runs in your browser

Crypto sizing follows the same rule as everything else: risk budget divided by stop distance. What changes is leverage, which does not alter the risk on the trade but introduces a second price level - the liquidation - that can close the position before the stop is ever reached.

This calculator handles both. It sizes the position from your account risk, reports the margin the position requires at your chosen leverage, and estimates where liquidation sits relative to the stop. When liquidation is closer than the stop, the position is not really protected by the stop at all.

Your numbers

Results update as you type. Nothing is sent anywhere.

Result

Position size (units)

0.08

Position value
$5,072
Margin required
$5,072
Risk budget
$200
Estimated liquidation price
0
Stop distance
3.94%
Liquidation distance
100%
Margin as a share of the account
25.36%
Stop versus liquidation
Stop triggers before the estimated liquidation price

This tool is for informational and educational purposes only. It is not financial or investment advice, and past performance does not guarantee future results.

The liquidation estimate is a simplified isolated-margin figure. It ignores maintenance margin tiers, funding payments and fees, all of which move the real level closer to entry.

Leverage does not change the risk on the trade - the stop does. Leverage only changes how much margin is locked up.

How to use the crypto position size calculator

  1. Enter your account size and risk percentage.
  2. Enter the entry price and the stop price.
  3. Enter the leverage you intend to use - 1 for spot.
  4. Check that the liquidation estimate sits well beyond the stop, not inside it.

What people use this for

  • Sizing a spot or leveraged crypto position to a fixed account risk.
  • Checking whether the chosen leverage puts liquidation inside the stop.
  • Seeing how much margin a position ties up.
  • Comparing the same trade at different leverage settings.

Worked examples

Every figure below is produced by running this calculator against the example inputs, so the numbers always match the tool.

A spot position with no leverage

$20,000 account, 1% risk, entry $63,400, stop $60,900.

Position size (units)
0.08
Position value
$5,072
Stop distance
3.94%

The same trade at ten times leverage

Identical risk, with the liquidation level now close to the stop.

Margin required
$507
Estimated liquidation price
57,060
Stop versus liquidation
Stop triggers before the estimated liquidation price

Leverage does not change the risk - until it does

The loss at the stop is the stop distance multiplied by the quantity, regardless of leverage. What leverage changes is the margin required and the distance to liquidation.

At high leverage the liquidation price can sit closer to the entry than the stop does, which means the exchange closes the position first, at a worse price, and the stop never runs. That is the specific failure this calculator exists to surface.

The liquidation estimate is an estimate

Exchanges calculate liquidation using their own maintenance margin schedules, funding accrual, insurance fund rules and position tiers, and those differ between venues and change with position size.

The figure here is a simplified approximation intended to show whether liquidation is anywhere near the stop. Use the exchange’s own figure before relying on it.

Crypto-specific hazards the arithmetic ignores

Weekend gaps, exchange outages during volatility, funding rates on perpetual contracts, and thin order books that turn a stop into a much worse fill are all real and none of them appear in a sizing calculation.

The practical consequence is that crypto positions warrant more conservative sizing than the arithmetic alone suggests, not less.

Methodology and assumptions

What this calculator does, and what it deliberately does not do.

  • Results are arithmetic on the numbers you enter. Nothing here predicts prices or connects to an exchange, broker or market data feed.
  • Nothing you type is transmitted or stored - the calculation runs entirely inside your browser.

This tool is for informational and educational purposes only and does not constitute financial or investment advice. Past performance does not guarantee future results.

Nothing on this website is a recommendation to buy, sell or hold any security, currency, derivative or digital asset. No price is predicted and no return is promised or implied.

Trading and investing carry the risk of substantial loss, including the loss of your entire capital. Leveraged products can produce losses that exceed your deposit. Tax treatment depends on your jurisdiction and your circumstances.

Frequently asked questions

Does leverage increase my risk?

Not directly - the stop and size determine the loss. It increases risk indirectly by moving liquidation closer, which can close the position before the stop and at a worse price.

Is the liquidation price exact?

No. It is a simplified estimate. Exchanges use their own maintenance margin tiers and funding calculations, and the real level can differ meaningfully.

What leverage should I use?

This site does not suggest a figure. The tool shows what each setting does to margin and liquidation distance so you can see the consequences of the choice.

Does this work for perpetual futures?

The sizing arithmetic applies. Funding payments, which accrue for as long as the position is held, are not included and can be significant.

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