Contents
What to put in each fieldAn example: a 500 USDT long on bitcoin at 10xWhy this is an estimate and not the final wordCross margin: the calculator can't see your balanceWhat to do with the numberWhat to put in each field
Direction is simply long (you expect the price to go up) or short (you expect it to go down). Position size in USDT is the full size of the trade, not the money you set aside for it — if you open a 500 USDT position at 10x, the size is 500 and your own money in it is 50. Entry price is the price you expect to get in at, and leverage is what you picked on the slider.
The last field, maintenance margin rate, is the thin slice of money the exchange insists stays in the position; when your margin drops to that slice, the trade is closed. Each exchange sets this per contract, and it gets a little bigger as your position gets bigger.
Every exchange publishes that rate somewhere in the contract details — look for the contract specification or the risk limit for your pair in the app. If you can't track it down, don't worry: the liquidation price the app shows on an open position already has it baked in. For now you can put in a small illustrative figure like 0.5% to see the shape of the answer, then check the real rate for your contract before you trade it.
An example: a 500 USDT long on bitcoin at 10x
Say you go long 500 USDT of BTC at an entry of 83,500, with 10x leverage and isolated margin. Your own money in the trade is 50 USDT. With a maintenance margin rate of 0.5%, the calculator gives a liquidation price of about 75,530 — roughly 9.5% below where you got in.
Notice that this is slightly closer than the rough guide of 1 divided by leverage, which would say 10%. That gap is the maintenance margin: the exchange steps in a little before your 50 USDT is completely gone. A short with the same settings is the mirror image — liquidation lands about 9.5% above your entry, around 91,400.
Isolated long of 500.00 USDT, 10× leverage, maintenance margin 0.50% of position size (example). Simplified model without closing fees, risk-limit tiers or other positions — the exchange will show its own price.
Why this is an estimate and not the final word
This calculator keeps things simple: one position, isolated margin, and nothing else going on in your account. The exchange adds a bit more — the fee it charges to close you out, and a slightly bigger safety slice if your position is large. It also doesn't use the last trade on the chart to decide when to close you. It uses a calmer average price taken from several big exchanges, shown on screen as the mark price, which is why your trade can be closed while the candle you are watching still looks fine.
So use this number for planning and the exchange's number for truth. Once you have a position open, the liquidation price sits right in the position row in the app; how to read the exchange's own liquidation price walks through where to find it, and what liquidation actually is covers the mechanics behind it.
Cross margin: the calculator can't see your balance
In isolated margin, only the money attached to that one position is at stake, and that is exactly what this calculator models. In cross margin, your whole free futures balance backs the position, so the liquidation price sits further away when you have spare funds and jumps closer as other trades lose money. There is no honest way to work that out from five fields — if you trade cross, read the figure in the app and nothing else. If you are still deciding, cross or isolated for a beginner explains the trade-off.
Your stop-loss should come first. Liquidation is the exchange protecting itself, not you — by then most of your margin is gone. Decide the price where you would admit the trade is wrong, check that it sits comfortably before the liquidation price from this calculator, and place it as a real order. Here is how to set a stop-loss.
What to do with the number
Look at the distance in percent and ask yourself one plain question: does bitcoin move that much in a normal day? If 9.5% feels close, you have two separate levers. One: lower the leverage. With the same 500 USDT trade, 5x instead of 10x puts more of your own money in and moves liquidation roughly twice as far away. Two: take a smaller trade. That doesn't move the liquidation price in percent, but it does mean the same move costs you fewer dollars.
When the numbers make sense on paper, the quickest way to see them for real is to open the order window on an exchange, type in the same size and leverage, and watch the liquidation price the platform shows before you confirm anything. On a demo account you can do that without risking a cent — sign up on Bybit, switch to demo trading, and compare their figure with the one here.
Why is my exchange's liquidation price different from the calculator?
Because the exchange includes things this simple model leaves out: the fee for closing you out, a slightly bigger safety slice on larger positions, any extra margin you added, and in cross mode your whole balance. The difference is usually small, but the exchange figure is the real one.
Where do I find the maintenance margin rate for my contract?
It lives in the contract details on each exchange — look for the contract specification or the risk limit for your pair in the app. If you can't find it, you don't need it to trade safely: the liquidation price shown on your open position already includes it.
Does the liquidation price change after I open the trade?
In isolated margin it stays roughly where it started unless you add or remove margin, though funding payments and fees nudge it over time. In cross margin it moves whenever your free balance moves, including when another position goes against you.
Is the liquidation price just entry minus 1 over leverage?
That is a quick guide and it lands close — 10x gives about 10%, 20x about 5%. The real level sits slightly nearer to your entry, because the exchange closes you while a small maintenance margin is still left rather than waiting for zero.
Does this work for shorts and for coins other than bitcoin?
Yes, for any linear USDT-margined contract — choose short and the liquidation price appears above your entry. Coin-margined (inverse) contracts use a different formula, so don't use this number for them.
Can I avoid liquidation completely?
You can make it very unlikely: use modest leverage, keep positions small, use isolated margin, and place a stop-loss well before the liquidation level. A stop can still fill worse than planned in a fast move, so leave yourself room rather than cutting it fine.