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Create AccountRisk Reward Ratio Calculator
Get the ratio from your entry, stop and target — and the win rate it needs to break even.
Your Result
The calculation runs in your browser. Rates used for currency conversion are indicative — check your broker for the exact figure.
The ratio compares the distance to your stop against the distance to your target. On its own it says nothing about whether a trade is good — a 1:5 setup that only works one time in ten still loses money. It becomes useful when read next to the win rate you actually achieve.
The break-even win rate is the number this page exists for. It tells you the smallest share of trades that has to work for the setup to stop costing money, which is a far more honest test than the ratio alone.
When to use it
- Before entering, to check the target is far enough away to justify the stop.
- When comparing two setups with the same entry but different targets.
- When reviewing a journal, to see whether the ratio you take matches the win rate you get.
- When a target feels ambitious — the ratio shows what the trade needs to work.
Distances first, then the ratio, then the win rate that makes it break even.
Risk = |Entry − Stop|
Reward = |Target − Entry|
Ratio = Reward ÷ Risk
Break-Even Win Rate = 1 ÷ (1 + Ratio)- Direction does not matter. The calculator uses absolute distances, so a short trade with the stop above the entry works the same way.
- At 1:1 you need 50% of trades to win. At 1:2 you need 33.3%. At 1:3, 25%.
- Break-even means exactly zero. Costs are not included, so the real figure you need is a little higher than the one shown.
A long on EUR/USD entered at 1.0850, stop at 1.0800, target at 1.0950.
Working: 100 ÷ 50 = 2.00, so the trade pays two for one. It needs to work only a third of the time to stay level. If your journal shows a 45% win rate on setups like this, the edge is real.
Is 1:2 a good ratio?
It is a common minimum, but the honest answer depends on your win rate. A 1:1 setup that wins 65% of the time is far better than a 1:3 setup that wins 20%. Judge the pair together, never the ratio alone.
Why does my ratio drop after entry?
Because you are measuring from the current price rather than the entry. Once a trade moves your way, the remaining reward shrinks while the risk to the original stop grows. Both are worth watching, but they answer different questions.
Should I move my target to improve the ratio?
Only if the market supports it. A target placed to reach a nicer ratio, rather than at a level price actually reaches, produces a good-looking number and a worse trade.
Does this include spread and commission?
No. Costs push the real break-even win rate above the figure shown. On short scalps with tight stops the effect is large; on wide swing trades it is minor.
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