Stop Loss Calculator
A stop loss price is where you get out if the trade goes wrong. Work out how far away it sits, as a percent of the entry, a dollar loss spread over your quantity, or a multiple of ATR, then subtract that distance from the entry on a long or add it on a short. A long at 50.00 with a 4% stop puts the stop at 48.00.
Pick long or short, enter your entry, and set the stop by a percent, by the dollars you will risk, or by an ATR multiple. You get the stop price, its distance in price and as a percent of the entry, the money at risk once you add a quantity, and a take-profit at the R you pick (2R to start). It is arithmetic on the numbers you type, so it never sees your chart or your account.
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Stop Loss Calculator
Your stop price from a percent, a dollar loss, or an ATR multiple
The stop sits this percent of your entry below a long, or above a short.
1R is the stop distance, so 2R sits twice as far out. Clear it to skip.
Enter your entry price and how far away the stop goes, as a percent, to see the stop price.
How it works
How the stop loss price is calculated
Percent: Distance = Entry × Percent ÷ 100
Dollar risk: Distance = Max loss ÷ Quantity
ATR: Distance = Multiplier × ATR
Stop = Entry - Distance (long), Entry + Distance (short)
Money at risk = Distance × Quantity
Take profit = Entry + R × Distance (long), Entry - R × Distance (short)
Every method comes down to one number: how far the stop sits from the entry. Direction only decides the side. On a long the stop goes below the entry and the take-profit above it; on a short both flip. The stop comes back at the decimals you typed (the entry's, or the ATR's if it has more, and never fewer than two), rounded toward the entry, so rounding never makes the loss bigger than the math says. That matters most on the dollar method, where a max loss that doesn't divide evenly would otherwise round the stop a fraction too far out.
Worked examples, one per method
| Line | Long stock | Long BTC/USD | Short EUR/USD |
|---|---|---|---|
| Method | Percent from entry | Dollar risk | ATR multiple |
| Direction | Long | Long | Short |
| Entry | 50.00 | 64250.00 | 1.0850 |
| Stop set by | 4% from entry | $100 max loss | 2 × ATR of 0.0012 |
| Quantity | 100 shares | 0.05 BTC | 10,000 units |
| Stop distance | 2.00 | 2000.00 | 0.0024 |
| Stop price | 48.00 | 62250.00 | 1.0874 |
| Distance from entry | 4% | 3.11% | 0.22% |
| Money at risk | $200 | $100 | $24 |
| Reward multiple | 2R | 2R | 2R |
| Take profit | 54.00 | 68250.00 | 1.0802 |
On the stock, 4% of 50.00 is 2.00, so the stop goes at 48.00 and 100 shares put $200 at risk. The 2R take-profit sits 2 × 2.00 = 4.00 above the entry, at 54.00. On BTC/USD, $100 spread over 0.05 BTC allows 2000.00 a coin, so the stop is 62250.00, 3.11% under the entry. On the EUR/USD short, 2 ATRs of 0.0012 is 0.0024, so the stop sits above the entry at 1.0874 and the 2R take-profit below it at 1.0802. On 10,000 units of a pair quoted in US dollars, that is $24 at risk.
Pick a method
Percent, dollar risk or ATR: which stop fits
| Method | When it fits | Where it falls short |
|---|---|---|
| Percent from entry | Planning fast, or keeping one rule across names that move about the same amount in a day. | It ignores the chart and the instrument. 4% can be wide on a slow large-cap and inside the normal noise on a small-cap that can swing 10% in a morning. |
| Dollar risk | You already hold a set size, or you work to a fixed dollar loss per trade, and want to know how far away that lets the stop sit. | The stop lands wherever the arithmetic puts it, which can be inside the noise or just short of the level that proves you wrong. When the chart gives you the stop, size from the stop instead. |
| ATR multiple | You want the stop scaled to how far the instrument usually moves per bar, so a quiet name gets a tighter stop and a fast one a wider stop. | ATR is a recent average on one timeframe and lookback, so it changes when you switch charts, and it knows nothing about where support or resistance sits. |
None of the three reads the chart. The stop belongs where the setup is proven wrong, usually past the last swing low on a long, and a percent, a dollar figure or an ATR count only tells you how far away that is. See stop loss placement based on the chart and how to find support and resistance levels before you settle on a number.
If you use ATR, read it off your own chart on the timeframe you trade. The StockCharts ChartSchool article on Average True Range credits it to J. Welles Wilder, describes it as an indicator that measures volatility and not price direction, and notes it is typically based on 14 periods. The average true range guide works through the true range math bar by bar.
Once the stop is set, the position size calculator turns its distance and your risk percent into a share count, and the risk reward calculator checks it against the target you actually have on the chart.
Before you rely on it
Why a stop can fill worse than the stop price
The stop price is a trigger, not a fill. The SEC's investor bulletin on stop, stop-limit and trailing stop orders says: "When the stop price is reached, a stop order becomes a market order," and "The stop price is not the guaranteed execution price for a stop order." The fill "can deviate significantly from the stop price," which in practice means a gap through your level at the open, or a fast move where the next available price is well past it. So the money at risk this calculator shows is the planned loss, and a gap can make the real one bigger.
A stop-limit order sets a worst price, but the same bulletin warns the limit "may prevent the order from being executed," so it can leave you holding a trade that has already gone through your stop. Order types in trading compares the two with a gap example, what a stop loss is covers buy stops on shorts, and slippage in trading shows what a fill past the stop costs. A trailing stop is a different order that moves with price. This calculator places one fixed stop; the trailing stop guide covers how those work.
Common stop loss mistakes
- Picking the percent first and the chart second. If a 2% stop lands just above the morning's low, the level that proves the trade wrong is still below you, and a normal dip takes you out.
- Parking the stop on the obvious level. A stop exactly at the round number or the prior low sits where everyone else's stops sit, so one wick through it can fill you before price turns back.
- Tightening the stop to fit a bigger size. The dollars at risk look the same, but a stop inside the normal noise gets hit far more often.
- Moving the stop further away once the trade goes against you. That changes the loss you planned after the fact, which is the one thing the stop was there to prevent.
- Treating money at risk as a ceiling. It is the loss if the stop fills at its price. A gap through the stop fills at the next price there is.
Why stops bunch up at the same prices, and how a buffer keeps yours out of the crowd, is in stop loss hunting explained.
Grade the setup before you size it
This calculator puts the stop wherever the arithmetic says. It can't tell whether that price sits past real structure or in the middle of normal noise. Upload a chart screenshot and SnapPChart grades the setup A+ to F in seconds. A paid grade also returns an entry, a stop, and targets when the chart supports a trade plan.
Upload a Chart ScreenshotYour first grade is free and shows the setup's grade and the general read. Entry, stop, targets and the trade plan come with a paid plan.
Keep going
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FAQ
Stop loss questions
How do you calculate a stop loss price?
Work out the distance first, then subtract it from the entry on a long or add it on a short. With a percent, the distance is entry × percent ÷ 100. With a dollar loss, it is max loss ÷ quantity. With ATR, it is multiplier × ATR. Long at 50.00 with a 4% stop: 50.00 × 4 ÷ 100 = 2.00, so the stop is 48.00.
How do I calculate a stop loss percentage?
Divide the stop distance by the entry and multiply by 100. Entry 50.00 and stop 48.50: 1.50 ÷ 50.00 × 100 = 3%. Going the other way, a 3% stop on a 50.00 entry is 48.50 on a long, or 51.50 on a short.
What is a good stop loss percentage?
There isn't one number. The stop belongs where the setup is proven wrong, and how far that is depends on the chart, how much the instrument normally moves, and your timeframe. A fixed percent is a convenience, not a rule: the same 2% can be wide on a slow stock and inside the noise on a fast one. Find the level on the chart first, then check what percent it is.
How do I set a stop loss with ATR?
Read the ATR off your chart, pick a multiplier, and put the stop that many ATRs from the entry. An ATR of 1.20 at a multiplier of 2 is 2.40, so a long at 50.00 gets a stop at 47.60. ATR measures volatility, not direction, so it tells you how much room normal movement needs, not where the level is.
How do I work out a take-profit price from my stop?
Multiply the stop distance by the reward multiple you want, then add it to a long's entry or subtract it from a short's. Entry 50.00 and stop 48.00 is a 2.00 distance, so a 2R take-profit sits at 50.00 + 2 × 2.00 = 54.00. The risk reward calculator shows what win rate that ratio needs.
Will my stop always fill at the stop price?
No. Once price reaches it, a stop order becomes a market order, and the SEC's investor bulletin says the stop price "is not the guaranteed execution price for a stop order." On a gap or a fast move the fill can land past the stop, so treat the money at risk here as the planned loss; the real one can run past it. A stop-limit order sets a worst price, but it may not fill at all.
Does it work for forex and crypto?
For the prices, yes: type the entry and the ATR with your chart's decimals, like 1.0850 or 64250, and the stop comes back at that precision (at least two decimals). The dollar figures assume a 1.00 move is worth $1 per unit, which holds for coins and pairs quoted in US dollars when you count units. It does not work in pips or lots, so for a pair like USD/JPY or a lot-based position, use the percent or ATR method and skip the dollars.
Does this calculator read my chart or my account?
No. It does arithmetic on the numbers you type and nothing else. It does not see your chart, your broker account, or your trade history, it does not know where support is, and it leaves out spread, commissions, and slippage.
Benjamin Loh
Founder & Developer at SnapPChart
I build AI-powered tools for traders. I created SnapPChart to help day traders analyze chart patterns faster using computer vision and machine learning. Learn more · Follow on X
This calculator is for planning purposes only and is not financial advice. It computes a stop price, its distance, the money at risk, and a take-profit from the numbers you enter. It does not know your broker's fees, spread, or slippage, or whether a stop will fill at its price. Trading involves risk of loss.