Leverage Risk Visualiser
Shows the distance from entry to a margin call given account equity, position size, leverage, and current price. The result quantifies the room a position has before mechanical close-out triggers.
This page covers the calculation; it is not trading advice.
How this calculation works
Margin held = position notional ÷ leverage. The reserved margin determines the broker's margin call trigger level (typically 50% of margin held on retail accounts).
Free margin = account equity − margin held. Free margin is the buffer that absorbs adverse P&L before equity falls to the margin call level.
Distance to margin call (in pips) = (free margin − margin call threshold) ÷ pip value per lot × position size in lots.
The visualiser plots equity over price movement on the X-axis, with the margin call threshold marked as a horizontal line. Adjusting any input — leverage, lot size, account size — shifts the distance to the threshold.
Formula
- Margin held = (lot units in base × exchange rate) ÷ leverage
- Margin call threshold = margin held × broker margin call percentage (typically 0.50)
- Distance to margin call (pips) = (account equity − margin call threshold) ÷ (pip value × position size in lots)
Worked example
$10,000 USD account, 1 standard lot EUR/USD at 1.0850, 1:30 leverage, broker margin call at 50% of margin held.
Margin held = $108,500 ÷ 30 = $3,617. Margin call threshold = $3,617 × 0.50 = $1,808.50.
Distance to margin call = ($10,000 − $1,808.50) ÷ ($10 × 1) = $8,191.50 ÷ $10 = 819 pips of adverse movement before the broker forcibly closes the position.
Same account, same position, leverage 1:100 (offshore): margin held = $108,500 ÷ 100 = $1,085. Margin call threshold = $1,085 × 0.50 = $542.50. Distance to margin call = ($10,000 − $542.50) ÷ $10 = 946 pips. Higher leverage holds less margin, leaving more free margin — distance to margin call increases on a single position.
But: a trader who uses 1:100 leverage often opens larger positions. The same account at 1:100 might open 3 standard lots, holding $3,255 in margin and producing $30 per pip. Distance to margin call on the 3-lot position: ($10,000 − $1,627.50) ÷ $30 = 279 pips. Higher leverage with proportionally larger position size shortens the distance to the margin call.