Sizing: by amount or by risk
Type the position size yourself, or say what you are ready to lose and let Lance work the size out.
Key ideas
- 1By amount: you type the position size in USD. The margin it uses is the size divided by the leverage.
- 2By risk: you choose what you can lose (it starts at 1% of your account) and where your stop goes. Lance works out the size that loses about that much at the stop, fees included.
- 3With a market order, the stop you set becomes the position’s stop loss.
- 4The size is capped by your community’s largest order, your own limits and your available margin. Lance tells you when one of them made it smaller.
By amount
You type the position size in USD, or drag the slider to a share of your buying power (available margin × leverage). Simple, and fine when you already know what the trade risks.
By risk
You say what you are ready to lose (it starts at 1% of your account, with 0.25%, 0.5% and 2% a tap away) and where your stop goes (your stop loss preset, or 2% away). Lance works out the size that loses about that much at the stop, counting fees in and out.
- At risk
- $20
- Entry and stop
- 100,000 and 98,000 (−2%)
- Position size
- $913.24
- Margin at 5x
- $182.65
- Loss if the stop is hit
- −$20.00
A 2% stop on about $900 loses about $18; the fees in and out make up the rest of the $20.
Try it
Change the leverage: the size and the loss stay the same, only the margin changes, until your available margin runs out.
- At risk
- $20.00
- 1% of $2,000
- Position size
- $913.24
- Margin used
- $182.65
- At 5x
- Loss at the stop
- −$20.00
- Fees in and out at 0.095% each
A $913 position with its stop 2.0% away loses about $20.00 if the stop is hit. Change the leverage: the size and the loss stay the same, only the margin moves.
What can make it smaller
The size is capped by your community’s largest order, your own largest order if you set one, and your available margin. When a cap applies, Lance says which one and what you would actually risk.
Common mistakes
- Choosing a size because it is a round number. Ask what you would lose at the stop first.
- Putting the stop where it limits the loss, not where the trade idea is wrong. A stop too close gets hit by ordinary noise.
- Raising the risk after a loss to win it back. Keep the share of your account the same.
Check yourself
You size by risk: $20 at risk, BTC at $100,000, stop at $98,000. About what size does Lance suggest?
Try it in Lance
In the order panel, set “Size by” to Risk, pick a risk and drag the stop.
Try size by risk