What this calculator answers
This page works out what a crypto trade made or lost. You enter the amount of money you put in, the price you paid for one coin, the price you sold at, and the fee on each trade as a percentage. It returns the profit or loss in money, the return as a percentage of the amount invested, the number of coins you bought and the money the sale brought in after fees. It also shows the total fees paid and the break-even sell price: the price per coin at which the sale pays back exactly what you put in. A chart shows the profit or loss for a range of sell prices.
The formula
The buy fee comes off first. Of the amount invested, only the part left after the buy fee buys coins. The coins bought c equal the amount invested I times one minus the buy fee a, divided by the buy price B. The gross proceeds G are the coins times the sell price S. The sell fee g then comes off the gross proceeds, which leaves the net proceeds P. The profit R is the net proceeds minus the amount invested, and the return r is the profit divided by the amount invested. The break-even sell price p is the buy price divided by one minus the buy fee and by one minus the sell fee, and the total fees F are the buy fee on the amount invested plus the sell fee on the gross proceeds.
c = I(1 − a) / B, G = c·S, P = G(1 − g), R = P − I, r = R / I, p = B / ((1 − a)(1 − g)), F = I·a + G·g
Both fees are entered as percentages, so 0.1 means 0.1%. A fee of 100% would leave nothing to trade, and the break-even would need a division by zero, so the calculator asks for a fee below 100%. The buy fee also lowers the number of coins bought, so the total fees are not the same as the profit with no fees minus the profit with fees.
A worked example
Start with no fees. You invest $1,000.00 at a buy price of $50,000.00, which buys 0.02 coins. You sell at $60,000.00. The sale brings in $1,200.00, so the profit is $200.00, a return of 20%. With no fees, the break-even sell price is the buy price, $50,000.00.
Now charge 0.1% on each trade. The buy fee reduces the money that buys coins, so 0.01998 coins are bought. Sold at $60,000.00, they bring in net proceeds of $1,197.60 after the sell fee. The profit is $197.60, a return of 19.76%. The fees on both trades add up to $2.20, and the break-even sell price rises to $50,100.15.
A loss uses the same arithmetic. You invest $2,000.00 at a buy price of $60,000.00, with 0.1% fees on each side, which buys 0.0333 coins. You sell at $45,000.00. The net proceeds are $1,497.00, so the result is -$503.00, a return of -25.15%. The total fees are $3.50, and the break-even sell price was $60,120.18.
Small prices work too. Investing $1,000.00 at $0.00001234 per coin with no fee buys 81,037,277.147488 coins. These examples show only the arithmetic. They are not a forecast and not a suggestion to buy or sell anything.
Reading the chart
The chart plots the profit or loss at each sell price, using the amount invested, buy price and fees you entered. The line crosses zero at the break-even sell price: to the left of that point the trade loses money, and to the right it makes money. By default the prices run from half to one and a half times the buy price, and the range is widened if your sell price or the break-even falls outside it. Under Advanced options, Lowest sell price shown and Highest sell price shown set the range yourself. An end left at 0 is chosen for you.
Why the break-even is above your buy price
With no fees, selling at the buy price gives back exactly what you put in. Once fees apply, that is no longer true, because each trade gives up a small share of the money. The buy fee reduces the coins you hold, and the sell fee reduces what the sale pays. To end with the full amount invested, each coin has to be sold for more than it cost. In the 0.1% example above the break-even is $50,100.15, not $50,000.00, even though both fees look small. The larger the fees, the wider that gap grows, and with a fee on each side the gap is a little more than the two percentages added together.
Gains, holding period and tax
This calculator has no tax rate and no dates, so the figures are before any tax. Many countries tax gains on crypto, and some treat short holdings and long holdings differently. The rules depend on the country, they change over time, and none of that is in the result. As an example of how a rule can work, the Internal Revenue Service in the United States explains in its Topic 409 page on capital gains and losses that a gain or loss on an asset held one year or less is short-term, and on an asset held longer is long-term. That page does not decide how a particular coin or trade is treated. For your own situation, ask a tax professional or your tax authority.
What the result does not include
The figures cover the two trades and the two fee percentages, and nothing around them. The following are not counted:
- the spread between the price you see and the price you get, and slippage on larger orders
- withdrawal fees and network fees for moving coins
- funding costs on borrowed money
- price changes between placing an order and its fill
- fee tiers that change with your trading volume
- currency conversion, if you pay in one currency and the coin is priced in another
Related calculators
If you trade shares rather than coins, the stock profit calculator uses flat commissions and a number of shares. To size a position by the amount you are willing to lose, see the position size calculator.
FAQ
How is profit calculated with fees?
The buy fee is taken out of the amount you invest, so fewer coins are bought. The sell fee is taken out of the money the sale brings in. Profit is what is left after the sell fee, minus the amount you invested.
Why is my break-even higher than my buy price?
Fees are charged on both trades, and each one takes a slice of your money. The sell price has to rise far enough to pay back both slices before the trade stops losing. The break-even price is the buy price divided by one minus the buy fee and by one minus the sell fee.
Are exchange fees a flat amount or a percentage?
This page takes each fee as a percentage of the trade value. If your exchange charges a flat amount, divide it by the size of the trade and multiply by 100 to get the equivalent percentage, then enter that.
Does the calculator include taxes?
No. It has no tax rate and no dates, because the rules depend on the country and on how long you held the coins. The tax section above explains what is left out.
Can I use it for a coin worth a fraction of a cent?
Yes. Prices keep their leading zeros, for example $0.00001234, and the number of coins bought is shown in full, up to six decimal places.
Does it include spreads, slippage or network fees?
No. Only the two percentage fees you type are counted. Spreads, slippage, withdrawal fees and network fees are not part of the figures.
Can I use it for leveraged trades?
No. It assumes you buy the coins with the money you enter and sell the same coins later. A leveraged position works differently, with borrowed money and a price at which it can be closed out, and these figures do not describe it.