Risk / Reward Calculator
Judge a setup before you take it: R-multiples per target, the win rate you need to break even, and your expected value per trade.
Trade setup
Prices update the analysis instantly.
Below entry
Above entry. Only target 1 is required.
Optional - adds rand values.
Optional - unlocks expected value and profit factor. Your journal tells you this number.
Risk to reward (target 1)
1 : 2.00
Risk vs reward, to scale
Break-even win rate
33,3%
Win more often than this and the setup is profitable
Stop distance
0,005
In price terms
Educational tool - verify with your broker
This calculator uses industry-standard formulas and the rates you enter. Contract specifications, pip values, swap charges and margin requirements differ between brokers, so confirm the numbers on your own platform before placing a trade. Nothing here is financial advice, and trading involves substantial risk of loss.
Understand the numbers
How this calculator works, and why it matters.
Thinking in R
“R” is your risk on the trade. A 2.5R winner pays for 2.5 average losers. Track results in R and position size stops mattering - only the quality of your setups does.
Break-even win rate
Break-even win rate = 1 ÷ (1 + R). A 1:2 setup only needs 33% of trades to win. A 1:0.5 setup needs 67%. This is why professionals reject low-R trades regardless of how confident they feel.
Expected value
EV = win% × R − loss% × 1. Positive EV compounds; negative EV bleeds. You can only know your real win rate from a journal - estimate honestly or measure it properly.
Frequently asked questions
What is a good risk-to-reward ratio in forex?
A ratio of 1:2 or better is generally considered good, because a 1:2 setup only needs a 33.3% win rate to break even. Ratios below 1:1 mean you risk more than you stand to gain and need win rates above 50% just to stay flat - a standard most strategies cannot sustain after costs.
What win rate do I need to be profitable?
The break-even win rate is 1 ÷ (1 + R), where R is your reward-to-risk multiple. At 1:1 you need more than 50% of trades to win, at 1:2 more than 33.3%, at 1:3 more than 25%. Anything above the break-even rate, after costs, is profit.
What does R mean in trading?
R is the amount you risk on a trade - the distance from entry to stop loss expressed in money. A trade that makes twice what it risked is a +2R winner; a stopped-out trade is -1R. Measuring results in R makes trades comparable regardless of position size, which is how this calculator and the TradeJournal analytics report performance.
More free tools
Planned the trade? Journal the result.
The traders who improve are the ones who measure. Log this trade and see your real expectancy, drawdown and edge over time.