Risk Per Trade Calculator
Calculate the maximum dollar amount to risk per trade based on your account size and risk percentage.
Essential for protecting your trading capital.
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Risk Per Trade
Risk per trade is the maximum dollar amount you are willing to lose on any single trade. It keeps your account safe from catastrophic losses.
Risk Amount = Account Balance × (Risk Percentage / 100)
Common risk levels:
- 0.5% — Very conservative (200 losing trades to empty account)
- 1% — Conservative, recommended for most traders
- 2% — Moderate risk
- 3% — Aggressive
- 5%+ — Very aggressive (not recommended)
Why it matters:
- At 1% risk, a 10-trade losing streak only costs 10% of your account
- At 5% risk, a 10-trade losing streak costs 40% of your account
- Professional fund managers typically risk 0.5–1% per trade
The 2% Rule: Many trading books recommend never risking more than 2% of your account on a single trade. This gives you enough room to survive losing streaks while still allowing meaningful position sizes.