Position Math

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Loss Recovery / Break-Even Calculator

Enter how far your position is down and see the exact percentage gain required to climb back to break even.

Your position

required_gain = drawdown / (1 − drawdown)

What it takes to recover

Gain needed on remaining capital—
Dollar gain needed—
Recovery target (back to peak)—

Months to recover, by monthly return

Monthly returnMonthsApprox.
A drawdown and the gain that reverses it are not symmetric. The deeper the hole, the steeper the climb — that asymmetry is the whole point of this page.

How it works

What this calculator does

It converts a percentage loss into the percentage gain you need to return to your original capital. Losses and recoveries are not symmetric: the further an account falls, the disproportionately larger the rebound it takes just to get back to flat.

The formula

The recovery gain is calculated from the size of the drawdown:

recovery % = drawdown / (1 − drawdown)

where drawdown is the loss as a decimal (a 25% loss is 0.25).

Worked example

Suppose you buy at $100 and the price falls to $60 — a 40% drawdown. Plugging in: 0.40 / (1 − 0.40) = 0.40 / 0.60 = 0.667, or about 66.7%. The price must climb from $60 back to $100, a 66.7% move, just to break even. A 50% loss needs 100%; a 90% loss needs 900%.

What it deliberately does not do

This is a math tool, not a live quote feed. It does not pull real-time prices, account for fees, taxes, or slippage, and it does not tell you whether a recovery is realistic. The same arithmetic applies to a whole account balance, not just a single position. Use it to understand the shape of drawdowns — it is not investment advice.

Frequently asked questions

How much do I need to gain to recover a 50% loss?
A 50% loss requires a 100% gain to break even. If $100 falls to $50, the price has to double back to $100 — 0.50 / (1 − 0.50) = 1.00. The deeper the loss, the more lopsided this gets.
Why isn't recovering a loss symmetric with the loss itself?
Because the gain is measured against your smaller remaining balance, not your original one. A 20% drop leaves you with 80% of capital, and you have to grow that 80% by 25% to get back to 100% — not by 20%.
What gain do I need to recover a 20% loss?
About 25%: 0.20 / (1 − 0.20) = 0.25. For reference, a 10% loss needs ~11.1%, a 30% loss needs ~42.9%, and a 50% loss needs 100%.
Does this account for trading fees?
No. It shows the pure price recovery needed. Real break-even is a little higher once buy and sell commissions and spreads are included — use the Break-Even After Fees calculator for that.
Is the break-even gain the same as the break-even price?
They measure the same point from different angles. This tool gives the percentage move needed; combine it with your entry price to get the dollar level you must reach.

Related calculators

Average DownTarget Break-EvenPosition Size
Information tool only. Every result is deterministic arithmetic (for the simulator, a probability estimate) from the numbers you enter. No live data, no account connection, nothing stored. This is not investment, trading, tax, or financial advice — verify against your own broker or prop firm before acting.
Disclosure. Some outbound links may be affiliate or partner links; they never change how a tool computes.
Position Math · updated 2026-06-27 · all calculators
Information tool only — not investment, trading, tax, or financial advice. All computation runs in your browser.