What is a margin call?

A broker warning that account equity has fallen to (typically) 100% of the margin required by open positions. It asks you to add funds or reduce positions before forced closure.

What is a stop-out level?

The margin level at which the broker automatically closes positions — commonly 50% of required margin under ESMA rules, but it varies by broker and jurisdiction.

How is the stop-out price calculated?

Equity falls with price: equity = balance ± (price − entry) × units. Setting equity equal to stopOut% × required margin and solving for price gives the level shown.

Does this work for short positions?

Yes — for a short, losses accrue as price rises, so the margin call and stop-out prices sit above entry instead of below.

Why is my broker's stop-out different?

Real accounts have multiple positions, floating swap charges, and sometimes tiered margin. This model assumes one position backed by the whole balance — a planning estimate, not a guarantee.

How can I move the stop-out further away?

Trade smaller (fewer units), use lower effective leverage, or hold more balance against the position. Halving the position size roughly doubles the price room.

Forex

Margin Call & Stop-Out Price Calculator

Calculate the margin call and stop-out prices for a forex position from balance, entry, lot size, leverage and the broker's stop-out level.

A margin call price is the level at which account equity falls to the broker's required margin; the stop-out price is the lower level where the broker force-closes the position.

Stop-out price

1.0555

Margin call price: 1.061
Required margin: $1,100.00
Room to stop-out: 0.0445
As % of entry: 4.05%

Single-position model: the whole balance backs this trade; other open positions pull the stop-out closer. Assumes the quote currency matches your account currency.

Worked example

A trader with a $5,000 account goes long 1 standard lot (100,000 units) of EUR/USD at 1.1000 on 100:1 leverage. The broker's stop-out level is 50% of required margin.

Required margin: $110,000 ÷ 100 = $1,100
Margin call price (equity = margin): 1.1000 − ($5,000 − $1,100) ÷ 100,000 = 1.0610
Stop-out price (equity = 50% of margin): 1.1000 − ($5,000 − $550) ÷ 100,000 = 1.0555
Room to stop-out: 445 pips (≈ 4.0% of entry)

The broker flags a margin call if EUR/USD falls to 1.0610 and force-closes the position at about 1.0555 — 445 pips below entry. The whole $5,000 account backs the one position in this model.

How this is calculated

Equity moves one-for-one with the position's floating P&L:

equity(price) = balance ± (price − entry) × units
requiredMargin = entry × units ÷ leverage

The margin call price solves equity = requiredMargin (a 100% margin level); the stop-out price solves equity = stopOut% × requiredMargin, where the broker force-closes the position:

stopOut = entry − (balance − stopOut% × margin) ÷ units (long, mirrored for shorts)

The model assumes one open position, no swap accrual and prices quoted in your account currency — a planning estimate, not the exact venue trigger.

When to use this calculator

Use this before opening a leveraged forex position to know the price at which the broker steps in — first the margin-call warning, then the stop-out. If the stop-out price is closer than your planned stop loss, the position is too large for the account.

It is the right tool for judging headroom: the distance to stop-out in pips and percent tells you how much adverse movement — including ordinary volatility and news spikes — the account can absorb at this size.

Treat it as a guardrail check, not a plan. A position should be closed by your own stop long before the stop-out level; if the two are close together, the sizing, not the stop, is the problem.

Common mistakes

Treating the stop-out price as a substitute for a stop loss — by the time a stop-out triggers, most of the account is gone.
Forgetting that other open positions share the same free margin, which pulls the real stop-out closer than this single-position estimate.
Mixing up margin call (a warning at 100% margin level) with stop-out (forced liquidation at the broker's lower threshold).

Frequently asked questions

What is a margin call?: A broker warning that account equity has fallen to (typically) 100% of the margin required by open positions. It asks you to add funds or reduce positions before forced closure.
What is a stop-out level?: The margin level at which the broker automatically closes positions — commonly 50% of required margin under ESMA rules, but it varies by broker and jurisdiction.
How is the stop-out price calculated?: Equity falls with price: equity = balance ± (price − entry) × units. Setting equity equal to stopOut% × required margin and solving for price gives the level shown.
Does this work for short positions?: Yes — for a short, losses accrue as price rises, so the margin call and stop-out prices sit above entry instead of below.
Why is my broker's stop-out different?: Real accounts have multiple positions, floating swap charges, and sometimes tiered margin. This model assumes one position backed by the whole balance — a planning estimate, not a guarantee.
How can I move the stop-out further away?: Trade smaller (fewer units), use lower effective leverage, or hold more balance against the position. Halving the position size roughly doubles the price room.