Tools
Crypto futures liquidation price calculator by leverage
Liquidation price for isolated margin on USDT contracts from entry, leverage and the maintenance margin rate. Add a stop and the calculator tells you whether it fires before liquidation.
How liquidation price is calculated
For isolated margin on linear USDT contracts at the first maintenance margin tier: long — entry × (1 − 1/leverage) ÷ (1 − MMR), short — entry × (1 + 1/leverage) ÷ (1 + MMR). It's a special case of the general formula in Binance's USDⓈ-M help article: position margin = value ÷ leverage, no other positions.
Example: entry 100, 10× leverage, MMR 0.5%. The long is liquidated near 90.45 (−9.55% from entry), the short near 109.45 (+9.45%). With no maintenance margin the line would sit exactly 1/leverage away: a long from 60,000 at 20× — 57,000, −5%.
Why the real liquidation is closer
Opening fees and accrued funding shrink the position margin, pulling liquidation toward entry. The MMR rises with position size across exchange tiers, and larger tiers also carry a fixed maintenance amount this math leaves out.
Cross margin is computed against the whole futures wallet balance, and inverse (coin-margined) contracts use a different formula. For those, and for the exact number, use your exchange's own calculator.
The stop must sit before liquidation
If liquidation is closer than the stop, the stop is decoration: the exchange closes the position first and takes the margin. The right order is risk → stop → position size, and only then leverage — as a way to fit that position on margin.
Example: a 10,000 USDT balance, 1% risk = 100 USDT, a stop 2% from entry — a position worth 5,000 USDT. At 10× the margin is 500 USDT and liquidation is near −9.55%, so the stop at −2% fires long before.
Sources: binance.com
Frequently asked questions
- What is the maintenance margin rate (MMR)?
- The minimum margin the exchange requires to keep a position open, as a percentage of its value. When margin after losses falls to that level, the position is liquidated. The rate depends on the instrument and position size.
- How is isolated margin different from cross?
- In isolated mode a position risks only its own margin, and liquidation is computed from it. In cross mode the whole free wallet balance backs the position — liquidation is further away, but you can lose more.
- Does it work for inverse contracts?
- No. It covers linear contracts margined in USDT. Inverse (coin-margined) contracts use a different formula — use your exchange's calculator.
See what leverage really cost you
The Trading OS journal pulls trades from exchanges and shows each result in R and in money, fees included — so you see where leverage cost more than planned.
No sign-up — the journal runs in your browser; an account is only needed for sync.