Break-even calculator

The moment you buy, you've paid a fee — and you'll pay another when you sell. So if the price simply returns to what you paid, you don't come out even; you come out a little short, by the size of both fees. Break-even is the sell price where the proceeds, after the exit fee, exactly cover what you spent including the entry fee. Until the price reaches that level, closing the trade locks in a small loss even though the chart looks flat.

The formula is clean. If you pay a fee of f on each side, your cost basis is the buy price grossed up by (1 + f), and your exit nets the sell price times (1 − f). Setting those equal gives a break-even sell price of buy × (1 + f) ÷ (1 − f). At a 0.10% fee per side that's a move of roughly 0.20% above your entry — small, but real, and it's the floor under every position. Tighten the fee and the gap shrinks; widen it and you need a bigger move just to stand still.

This matters most for active traders and scalpers. If you're aiming for a 0.5% move, a 0.20% round-trip fee eats nearly half of it before you've made a cent. That's why the fee rate you pay is a strategic choice, not an afterthought — it sets how hard the price has to work for you. Our guide to trading fees covers maker versus taker rates and the discounts that lower them, and the fee calculator shows the cost of a single trade in dollars.

Break-even also reframes patience. A position that's down a fraction right after you open it isn't necessarily a bad call — it might just be sitting inside the fee gap. Knowing the real break-even price keeps you from panic-selling a trade that hasn't actually gone wrong, and from declaring victory a hair too early.

Putting break-even to work

• Mark the break-even price on your chart before you set a profit target.
• Aim for moves comfortably larger than the round-trip fee, not equal to it.
• Lower fees lower the bar — a cheaper rate means a smaller move clears it.
• Remember the figure ignores spread; on thin pairs your real break-even is a touch higher.