Liquidation Price Calculator
A leveraged position is liquidated when the market moves against you far enough that your margin no longer covers the loss. This calculator estimates that liquidation price from your entry price, your leverage, and the exchange's maintenance margin rate, for both long and short positions. The higher the leverage, the smaller the price move needed to wipe out the position, so use this to size risk before you open a trade.
Liquidation price formula
Initial margin fraction = 1 / leverage
Long liquidation = entry * (1 - initial margin fraction + maintenance margin)
Short liquidation = entry * (1 + initial margin fraction - maintenance margin)
Adverse move % = | liquidation price - entry | / entry * 100
This uses the isolated-margin model with maintenance margin expressed as a decimal fraction. Funding fees and tiered margin tables are not included.
Reading the result
- A long position is liquidated when price falls to the liquidation price.
- A short position is liquidated when price rises to the liquidation price.
- The adverse move shows how far, in percent, the price can travel against you before liquidation.
- Higher leverage shrinks the adverse move, so the position is liquidated by a smaller swing.
Liquidation price: frequently asked questions
What is a liquidation price?
The liquidation price is the market price at which your leveraged position no longer has enough margin to stay open, so the exchange closes it to prevent further loss. For a long, it sits below your entry; for a short, above. The higher your leverage, the closer the liquidation price is to your entry.
How does leverage affect the liquidation price?
Leverage determines how far the price can move against you before the position is liquidated. At 2x, roughly a 50% adverse move triggers liquidation; at 10x, roughly a 10% move; at 20x, roughly a 5% move. Maintenance margin tightens this further. This is why high leverage is far riskier.
What is maintenance margin?
Maintenance margin is the minimum fraction of position value an exchange requires you to keep as collateral. When your equity falls to this level, liquidation occurs. Different exchanges and position sizes use different maintenance margin rates, so enter your platform's figure for an accurate result.
Is this an exact figure?
This is an estimate using the isolated-margin model and ignores funding payments, fees, and tiered margin schedules that some exchanges apply. Always confirm the exact liquidation price shown by your exchange before relying on it.
Sources and method
- The liquidation formula is the standard isolated-margin identity: a position is liquidated when equity falls to the maintenance margin requirement. All inputs are user-editable; no exchange-specific rate is hardcoded.
- U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission: Learn and Protect on leveraged trading risk.
Reviewed by the CalculatorHub team, edited by James Graham, 19 June 2026. See our methodology.