Crypto Margin Calculator — Initial vs Maintenance
If this futures trade is $10,000 at 10×, how much cash do you post to open — and how little can equity fall before the venue closes you?
Margin mode
Guide
How to calculate crypto margin (initial vs maintenance)
It splits a futures position into initial margin (cash to open) and maintenance margin (the floor that triggers liquidation). The gap between them is your buffer. Extra isolated margin raises posted cash without changing trade size, which is like running lower leverage.
Initial margin is about trade size ÷ leverage — cash reserved to open. Maintenance margin is about trade size × the venue's cushion — the equity line the venue defends with liquidation. On a $10,000 position at 10× with a 0.40% Binance-style rate, you post about $1,000 to open and must keep about $40 as maintenance. Extra isolated margin adds to posted cash and pushes liquidation farther away; re-check with effective leverage = trade size ÷ posted. Cross margin can pull collateral from the rest of the wallet, which this page does not simulate. Treat the cross note as a warning, not a full engine. This page does not pull a live price, and it does not print a wipe-out price — that is the liquidation calculator.
Example
Margin example: $10,000 trade at 10×
Match this on the sliders: isolated, $10,000 size, 10×, Binance, extra margin at $0.
- Trade size
- $10,000
- To open
- ~$1,000
- Maintenance
- ~$40
- Buffer
- The gap
- Extra cash
- Pushes wipe-out out
- Cross mode
- Not modeled
The $40 floor looks tiny next to $1,000. That is why a 10× long on Bitcoin at $50,000 wipes out about 9.6% below entry, not a clean 10%. Check the price on the liquidation page.
| Term | Meaning | $10k at 10× |
|---|---|---|
| Initial | Cash to open | ~$1,000 |
| Maintenance | Floor before liquidation | ~$40 at 0.40% cushion |
Limits
What this margin calculator cannot do
- It will not print a wipe-out price. Use the liquidation calculator.
- It will not simulate the rest of a cross-margin wallet.
- It will not size the trade from a stop. Use position size first.
- It will not pull a live price.
If you already have a stop, size there first, then come back so you know the cash to post and the floor the venue defends.
Keep going
Same toolkit, a different question — pick the next calculator.
FAQ
Questions people ask
It splits a futures trade into initial margin (cash to open) and maintenance margin (the floor that triggers liquidation), using the same exchange cushions as the liquidation tool.
Initial is about trade size ÷ leverage — cash reserved to open. Maintenance is about trade size × the venue's cushion — the equity line the venue defends by closing you. The gap is your buffer.
It raises posted cash without changing trade size, which is like running lower leverage. Re-check liquidation with effective leverage = trade size ÷ cash posted.
No. Cross can pull the rest of the wallet in. This board still shows initial and maintenance on the position. Treat the cross switch as a warning, not a full engine.
Each venue keeps a slightly different cushion. Binance and OKX often sit near 0.4% on small size; Bybit is often nearer 0.55%. Confirm on the venue for large size.
No. Size from a stop on the position-size calculator, then see the cash this size needs. Margin is a consequence, not a target.
No. It shows the cash floors. The liquidation calculator turns those into a price. Open that next if leverage is more than about 3×.
No. You type the dollar size of the trade. Price only matters when you convert size into coins or a wipe-out level.