Do you set a daily loss limit? How did you choose the number?

FTC Community TeamStaff14 Sept 2026105 views

A daily loss limit is simple: after a set loss, you stop until tomorrow. The hard parts are choosing a number that protects you without cutting off normal variation, and actually respecting it.

Do you set a daily loss limit? How did you choose the number? — central bank rate path diagram — A central bank's policy rate path across recent meetings

Tell us:

your limit, as a number of losing trades or a percentage of the account
how you enforce it: a written rule, a platform setting, or someone who holds you to it
whether you've ever broken it, and what happened next

Do you set a daily loss limit? How did you choose the number? — risk-reward diagram — A risk-reward ratio of 1 to 2

Some platforms and prop firm accounts enforce limits automatically. If yours does, explain how it works in practice.

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FTC Community Team1 mo ago
A way to choose a number from your own data rather than picking one that sounds sensible.
1. Look at your last 30 trading days and note the worst day in R.
2. Note how often you lost more than 2R in a day, and what happened on the trades after that point.
3. Set the limit just above your normal bad day, so it only stops you on days that are unusually bad.
For many traders risking 1% a trade, that ends up around 2% to 3% of the account, or two to three losing trades. Traders who find their results get worse after two losses often set the limit there regardless of percentage.
Enforcement matters as much as the number. Options include a written rule next to the screen, a platform or broker setting that blocks new orders, or an evaluation account whose rules close positions automatically (prop firm evaluations).
Members, have you checked whether your trades after hitting a limit would have made or lost money?
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