Trading performance metrics are the statistics that summarize a set of closed trades: how often they win, how much they win and lose, what the account went through along the way, and how faithfully the plan was followed. No single number measures performance; the metrics are read together, per setup, and only over enough trades to mean something.
How it works
Every metric starts from a complete record: each trade's entry, exit, fees and the stop planned before entry, so that its initial risk (1R) is known. A trading journal or the free trading journal template holds these fields. Results measured in R, the profit or loss divided by the initial risk, compare trades of different sizes on one scale; see stop loss and position sizing.
Outcome metrics
| Metric | Calculation | What it tells you |
|---|---|---|
| Win rate | winning trades ÷ closed trades | How often trades win; meaningless without the size of wins and losses |
| Average win and loss | gross profit ÷ wins; gross loss ÷ losses | The typical size of each outcome |
| Payoff ratio | average win ÷ average loss | Realized reward per unit of loss; the planned version is the risk-reward ratio |
| Expectancy | win rate × average win − loss rate × average loss | The average result per trade, in $ and in R; see trading expectancy |
| Profit factor | gross profit ÷ gross loss | Above 1 exactly when expectancy is positive; see profit factor |
| Net P&L after fees | sum of all results minus commissions | The bottom line, which depends on position size |
Risk and path metrics
- Maximum drawdown: the deepest fall from a peak in the equity curve, in % and in R; see max drawdown.
- Streaks: the longest runs of wins and losses. Long losing streaks are normal even with an edge; the losing streak calculator shows how likely they are at a given win rate.
- R-multiple distribution: how results spread. Losses much worse than −1R point to gaps, slippage or stops moved; a total that depends on two or three large winners is fragile.
- Risk consistency: the risk per trade as a % of the account. Large swings in size distort every other metric.
Process metrics
Outcome metrics need many trades; process metrics can be judged on every trade:
- Rules followed: the share of trades with no rule broken, and the total R of the trades that broke one.
- Plan written before entry: the share of trades with entry, stop and target recorded in advance.
- Planned vs realized R: whether winners reach their targets or are cut early.
- MAE and MFE: maximum adverse and maximum favorable excursion, how far price moved against and in favor of a trade before the exit. They show whether stops are too tight or open profits are routinely given back.
Breakdowns
A combined figure can hide one setup that works and one that does not. Split the statistics by setup or system, long and short, weekday and holding period. Each slice holds fewer trades, so treat differences as questions to watch, not conclusions; searching many slices for one that looks good is the same trap as overfitting a backtest.
How the metrics fit together
- Win rate and payoff together set expectancy; the break-even win rate is 1 ÷ (1 + payoff).
- Expectancy in R × risk per trade in $ = expectancy in $; × number of trades = net result.
- Drawdown and streaks depend on the order of results and grow with risk per trade, so two records with equal expectancy can feel very different.
- Process metrics explain the outcome metrics: rule breaks often account for a large share of the losses.
The free expectancy calculator runs the first two relationships for any win rate and payoff.
Worked example (illustrative numbers)
A made-up journal of 40 closed trades in two setups, each trade risking $200 (1R = $200):
| Measure | All trades | Setup A | Setup B |
|---|---|---|---|
| Trades | 40 | 24 | 16 |
| Win rate | 42.5% | 37.5% | 50% |
| Average win / loss | 1.69R / 1.03R | 2.40R / 1.00R | 0.90R / 1.10R |
| Expectancy | +0.125R (+$25) | +0.275R | −0.10R |
| Profit factor | 1.21 | 1.44 | 0.82 |
| Net result | +5.0R (+$1,000) | +6.6R | −1.6R |
In the order the trades occurred, the longest losing streak was 5 and the maximum drawdown 5.5R ($1,100). 35 of the 40 trades followed the rules (87.5%) and made +11.0R together; the 5 that broke a rule lost 6.0R. Removing the single largest winner, +3.5R, leaves +1.5R for the whole record.
Small samples mislead
With 40 trades and a 42.5% win rate, a rough 95% range for the true win rate runs from about 27% to 58%. At this record's payoff of about 1.64, the break-even win rate is about 38%, inside that range, so the record cannot yet tell a real edge from none. Setup B's 16 trades are noisier still: a 50% win rate on 16 trades is consistent with anything from about 25% to 75%. The rule breaks, by contrast, are clear already. Process problems can be fixed now; judging an edge takes far more trades.
Common mistakes
- Tracking P&L only, which hides whether results came from the method or from luck.
- Chasing win rate: taking profits early raises it and usually lowers expectancy.
- No planned stop, so R and every R-based metric cannot be calculated honestly.
- Leaving out fees or "exception" trades, which flatters every figure.
- Reading metrics as forecasts. They describe past trades; the weekly trading review turns them into one or two changes.
In Clear Tape
The Clear Tape trade journal, free for signed-in members, computes these statistics over your closed trades: win rate, average win and loss, profit factor, expectancy in $ and R, streaks, the equity curve and maximum drawdown, with breakdowns by system or setup, tag, long/short, weekday and holding period (Journal). Each trade shows its P&L after fees, planned risk-reward, realized R, risk in $ and as a % of the account, and MAE and MFE approximated from daily bars. The AI trade score grades one trade's process against your own system's rules, never its P&L (Free 1 a day, Tools 10, Pro 30). The AI period review summarizes a week or month: statistics, recurring patterns, rule-following, risk consistency and three focus points (Tools 2 a week, Pro 7; not on Free; see plans).
Before any stops are recorded, the free trade history analyzer works out win rate, payoff ratio, average result per trade and profit factor in dollars from a broker CSV.
Most journal apps report similar statistics. The Edgewonk alternative, Tradervue alternative and TradeZella alternative pages compare what each one measures and what it costs.
For educational purposes only. Not investment advice.