Leverage calculator
Leverage on your account and the leverage you are really using are different things. Enter your balance and position size to see the real figure and how big a move would hurt.
Your numbers
See how much you are really using, and how far the price can move against you.
The money in your account, including open profit and loss (your ).
Trade size in : 1 standard lot is 100,000 units.
+Prices and rates (already filled in)
The prices and the exchange rate are pre-filled from the ECB reference rate for 2026-10-23. It is a daily rate for information only, so your broker's price will differ a little. Replace them with the current ones from your platform for an exact result.
If you hold several trades at once, add their sizes together.
Your answer
Your 1 standard lot of EUR/USD is worth $111,900.00, backed by a $10,000.00 balance. That makes your effective leverage 11.19 to 1. That is a high level of leverage: a fairly ordinary move against you could take a big share of the balance. A move of 8.94% (about 1,000 pips) against you would use up the whole balance, and your broker would usually close your trades before then.
Effective leverage is what you actually use. It is not the same as the maximum your broker offers.
- Full value of your trades
- $111,900.00
- Your balance
- $10,000.00
- Move that uses up the balance
- 8.94%
- The same move in pips
- 1,000 pips
+Show the working
- Trade size in units = 1 standard lot × 100,000 = 100,000 units.
- Value of the position = 100,000 units × 1.119 (what 1 EUR is worth in USD) = $111,900.00.
- Effective leverage = value of the position ÷ balance = $111,900.00 ÷ $10,000.00 = 11.19 : 1.
- Move that uses up the balance = balance ÷ value of the position = $10,000.00 ÷ $111,900.00 = 8.94% of the price.
- In pips = price × 8.94% ÷ pip size (0.0001) = about 1,000 pips.
EUR/USD live price
Track all markets on TradingView · For reference only; prices can differ from your broker's. Loaded from TradingView, a third party; see our privacy policy.
For information only, not financial advice. Trading carries a high risk of loss. Results depend on the values you enter and on your broker's contract specifications. Risk disclosure
Account leverage and effective leverage
Brokers talk about leverage as a ratio such as 1:30, 1:100 or 1:500. That number is the maximum position they allow for the money you set aside as margin. It says what you could do, not what you are doing. Effective leverage is what you are doing: the full value of everything you have open divided by your account balance.
How it is calculated
- Position value = position size in units × the value of one unit in your account currency.
- Effective leverage = position value ÷ account balance.
- Move that wipes out the balance = balance ÷ position value, as a percentage of the price.
Worked example
One standard lot of EUR/USD is 100,000 euros. With the euro at $1.08 that is a position worth $108,000. On a $10,000 account the effective leverage is 10.8 to 1. A move of 9.26% against you would take the balance to zero, which for EUR/USD at 1.08 is about 1,000 pips. Trade a micro lot (1,000 euros) on the same account and the effective leverage is only 0.108 to 1.
Why it matters
Effective leverage links your position size to how much of the account is exposed to the market. Two traders with the same 1:500 account can be taking very different risks: one at 1 to 1, the other at 40 to 1. Because forex pairs often move 0.5% to 1% in a day, a trader at 40 to 1 can lose 20% to 40% of the account in a day without anything unusual happening.
Things to remember
- Add up all positions open at the same time. Positions that move together add to the same risk.
- Your broker will usually close positions at its stop-out level, long before the balance reaches zero. The danger point is closer than the figure shown.
- A stop-loss limits the loss on a trade even when leverage is high, but only if it fills at the price you set.
- The margin calculator shows what your broker holds for a position. This calculator shows how exposed you really are.
Frequently asked questions
+What is effective leverage?
It is the total value of your open positions divided by your account balance. A $108,000 position on a $10,000 account is 10.8 to 1. It tells you how much your balance is exposed, whatever maximum leverage your broker offers.
+What is the difference between account leverage and effective leverage?
Account leverage, such as 1:100 or 1:500, is the most your broker lets you use and sets the margin you must put up. Effective leverage is what you actually use. You can have 1:500 on the account and trade at 2 to 1.
+What level of effective leverage is safe?
There is no safe number, because it depends on how far the market moves and how well you manage losses. In general, the higher it is, the smaller the move against you needed to cause a large loss. Many traders keep it in single figures.
+How is the move that wipes out the account worked out?
It is the balance divided by the position value. At 10 to 1, a 10% move against you removes the whole balance. In practice your broker closes positions before that, at its margin call and stop-out levels.
+Should I add all my open trades together?
Yes. Effective leverage counts everything open at once. Two trades that move together, like long EUR/USD and long GBP/USD, add to the same exposure.