Margin Trading Calculator

Work out the margin required and your buying power for a leveraged trade.

Trade value	$50,000
Initial margin requirement	50 %
Your available cash	$30,000

Trade value

Initial margin requirement

US Regulation T: 50% for stocks. Futures and forex margins are set by the exchange or broker.

Your available cash

Margin needed

$25,000.00

Leverage 2:1. Your cash of $30,000 gives buying power of $60,000. A 50% fall in price would wipe out your margin.

Who pays for the trade

Your margin50%: $25,000
Borrowed from the broker50%: $25,000

About the Margin Trading Calculator

Enter the trade value, the margin requirement and your cash. The calculator gives the margin needed, the leverage, your buying power and how far the price can fall before your margin is gone.

Trading on margin borrows from your broker. Under US Regulation T you need at least 50% of a stock purchase in cash initially, and FINRA requires at least 25% equity to be maintained (many brokers require more). Leverage multiplies losses as well as gains.

The formula

Margin = trade value × requirement; buying power = cash ÷ requirement

Worked example

A 50,000 trade at a 50% requirement, with 30,000 cash

Margin needed: 25,000
Buying power: 30,000 ÷ 0.5 = 60,000
Leverage 2:1

Questions people ask

What's a margin call?

A demand to add cash when your equity falls below the maintenance level.

Do I pay interest?

Yes, on the borrowed amount, daily.

Sources

Investor.gov: Margin account