How to Calculate Your Real Crypto Profit (The Formula Most Traders Get Wrong)
Most traders overestimate their crypto gains by ignoring fees, cost basis, and multi-trade math. Learn the correct formulas and use Flicker's free P&L calculator to get your true numbers.
You bought ETH at $2,000. It's now $2,500. That's a 25% gain, right?
Not exactly.
After exchange fees, the real number is lower. If you bought in multiple batches at different prices, the math gets more complex. And if you're trading with leverage or shorting, most mental math falls apart completely.
Here's how to calculate what you actually made — or lost.
The Basic Formula
For a simple long trade (you buy, price goes up, you sell):
Profit = (Exit Price - Entry Price) x Quantity
And quantity comes from your investment:
Quantity = Investment Amount / Entry Price
So if you invested $1,000 in BTC at $100,000 and sold at $110,000:
- Quantity = $1,000 / $100,000 = 0.01 BTC
- Profit = ($110,000 - $100,000) x 0.01 = $100
- ROI = $100 / $1,000 = 10%
Simple enough. But this is where most people stop — and where the number starts being wrong.
Where Most Traders Get It Wrong
1. Ignoring Trading Fees
Every trade has fees. Buy and sell. Both sides.
| Exchange | Typical Fee |
|---|---|
| Binance | 0.10% |
| Bybit | 0.10% |
| Coinbase | 0.50% |
| Uniswap (DEX) | 0.30% |
| Hyperliquid | 0.035% |
These fees apply twice — once when you buy, once when you sell. For a round-trip trade on Coinbase, you're paying 1% in fees before you've made a single dollar.
Net Profit = Gross Profit - Entry Fee - Exit Fee
Using our BTC example with Coinbase fees (0.5%):
- Entry fee = $1,000 x 0.005 = $5.00
- Exit fee = $1,100 x 0.005 = $5.50
- Net profit = $100 - $5.00 - $5.50 = $89.50
Your "10% gain" is actually 8.95%. On Binance it would be 9.78%. The exchange you use directly impacts your real returns.
2. Wrong Cost Basis on Multiple Buys
If you bought ETH three times:
| Buy | Price | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| 1st | $2,000 | $500 |
| 2nd | $2,500 | $300 |
| 3rd | $1,800 | $200 |
Your average cost basis is not ($2,000 + $2,500 + $1,800) / 3 = $2,100.
It's a weighted average:
- Total invested: $1,000
- Total quantity: 0.25 + 0.12 + 0.111 = 0.481 ETH
- Average cost: $1,000 / 0.481 = $2,079.00
The difference matters. Using the wrong average means your profit calculation is off from the start.
3. Forgetting Short Trades Are Reversed
When you short, the formula flips:
Profit = (Entry Price - Exit Price) x Quantity
A short at $100,000 closed at $90,000 is a $10,000/BTC profit. But a short at $100,000 that moves to $110,000 is a $10,000/BTC loss. Many traders new to shorting miscalculate because they apply the long formula.
The Complete Formula
Here's the full calculation that accounts for everything:
For long positions:
Quantity = Investment / Entry Price
Gross PnL = (Exit Price - Entry Price) x Quantity
Entry Fee = Investment x Fee Rate
Exit Fee = (Exit Price x Quantity) x Fee Rate
Net PnL = Gross PnL - Entry Fee - Exit Fee
ROI = (Net PnL / Investment) x 100
For short positions:
Quantity = Investment / Entry Price
Gross PnL = (Entry Price - Exit Price) x Quantity
Entry Fee = Investment x Fee Rate
Exit Fee = (Exit Price x Quantity) x Fee Rate
Net PnL = Gross PnL - Entry Fee - Exit Fee
ROI = (Net PnL / Investment) x 100
For multiple trades (weighted average):
Avg Buy Price = Total $ Invested / Total Quantity Bought
Realized PnL = (Sell Price - Avg Buy Price) x Quantity Sold
Total Fees = Sum of (Trade Value x Fee Rate) for each trade
Net PnL = Total Realized PnL - Total Fees
Break-Even Price
Your break-even isn't your entry price. It's your entry price plus fees on both sides:
Break-even = Entry Price x (1 + Fee Rate x 2)
On Coinbase at 0.5% fees:
- Entry at $100,000
- Break-even = $100,000 x 1.01 = $101,000
You need a 1% price move just to cover fees. On a DEX with 0.3% fees, break-even is $100,600. On Binance at 0.1%, it's $100,200.
This is why high-frequency traders obsess over fees — the lower the fee, the smaller the move needed to profit.
Use the Calculator
You don't need to do this math by hand.
Flicker's Crypto Profit & Loss Calculator handles all of this automatically:
- Simple mode — Enter your buy price, sell price, and investment. Fees included.
- Multi-trade mode — Add multiple buys and sells. Calculates weighted average cost basis, realized PnL across all trades, and total fees.
- Shareable results — Copy a link or download a branded PnL card to share your wins (or losses) on social media.
- No sign-up required — Use it immediately, no account needed.
The calculator updates in real-time as you type. Select any coin from Flicker's database to auto-fill the current price.
Quick Reference
| Scenario | Formula |
|---|---|
| Long profit | (Exit - Entry) x Qty |
| Short profit | (Entry - Exit) x Qty |
| Quantity | Investment / Entry Price |
| Net PnL | Gross PnL - Total Fees |
| ROI | (Net PnL / Investment) x 100 |
| Break-even (long) | Entry x (1 + Fee Rate x 2) |
| Avg cost (multi-buy) | Total Invested / Total Qty |
Common Mistakes to Avoid
Counting unrealized gains as profit. If you haven't sold, you haven't profited. Price can reverse. Only realized PnL is real PnL.
Using exchange P&L without checking the math. Some exchanges show P&L before fees. Others include fees but exclude funding rates. Always verify with an independent calculation.
Mixing USD and coin-denominated returns. A 10% gain in BTC terms might be a loss in USD if BTC dropped 15% during the same period. Be clear about which denomination you're measuring.
Averaging percentages instead of dollar-weighting. Three trades with +50%, -20%, +30% returns don't average to +20% if the position sizes were different. Dollar-weight everything.
Share Your Results
After calculating your PnL, use the Download Card button to generate a branded image you can share on Twitter, Telegram, or Instagram. Every card includes your entry, exit, profit, and ROI — with Flicker branding.
Related: Futures Position Calculator — Calculate liquidation price, margin, and P&L for leveraged futures trades.
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