Why Are My Position Sizes So Inconsistent?
Compare your biggest positions with your smallest and see how widely your size varies.
Measure My Size SpreadPosition size is meant to be a decision, but for many traders it ends up as a mood. A setup feels strong, so the position is large. The last trade lost, so the next is small, or large. Over time the sizes scatter, and your results come to depend on a handful of oversized trades instead of the steady application of a method.
That matters because a strategy can only be judged if it is applied consistently. If your biggest trades are ten times your smallest, a few of them decide your totals. A good strategy looks bad when its large positions happen to lose, and a poor one looks good when they happen to win, and you cannot tell which is which.
Inconsistent size also hides risk. If you intend to risk about the same amount on each trade but your positions vary widely, then some trades risk far more than you think. The loss that hurts will be one of the big ones, and it will feel like bad luck when it is really the spread.
The analyzer compares your largest positions with your smallest, using the entry price and quantity in your file, and reports when the gap is wide. Then the position size calculator can help you set size from a fixed amount of risk instead.
Drop your trade history CSV here
Closed positions or P&L history from your exchange. Up to 5 MB.
Your file is read in memory and is never saved — only the result of the analysis is kept (7 days, or until you delete it if you save it to your account). Don't include passwords or API keys. See the Privacy Policy.
Example — not your data
Example result
Median position
2,400
Average of the largest 10% of positions
11,800
Average of the smallest 10% of positions
The biggest positions are 13.1× the smallest
900
Illustrative numbers for a made-up account, shown so you know what a result looks like. They are not your data and not a benchmark.
What it measures
The largest tenth against the smallest tenth
The average of your biggest tenth of positions divided by the average of your smallest tenth, so one extreme trade cannot decide the result.
A threshold
It is reported when the biggest positions average at least five times the smallest, with at least 20 trades that include a size.
Your typical size
The median position is shown, so you can see what normal looks like for you.
Size after losses
Whether the swings are tied to losses is a separate question: see why you might size up after a loss.
Frequently asked questions
Should every position be the same size?
Not necessarily. Many traders vary size deliberately, for example by keeping the amount at risk constant while the stop distance changes, which makes position size vary. The concern is variation that follows mood and not a rule you chose in advance.
What does a large spread mean for my results?
It means your totals lean on a few trades. If those trades are good, you may be right to size them up; if they are not, you are taking on risk you have not examined. The spread tells you where to look.
What if my file has no entry price or quantity?
Size is calculated from entry price and quantity, so without them the spread cannot be measured. The analyzer then reports your other numbers and patterns.
Which file should I upload?
A CSV where each row is one finished trade with its result: your exchange's closed positions or profit-and-loss history. It needs a close time and a result, or entry price, exit price, quantity and side. A list of individual order fills is not enough, because fills cannot be paired into trades without guessing.
Is my trade history stored?
The file is read in memory and is not saved. Only the result of the analysis is kept: for 7 days if you do not sign in, or until you delete it if you save it to your account. The analyzer never asks for exchange passwords or API keys.
Keep going
Analyzers
Position Sizing Analyzer
Calculators
Crypto Position Size Calculator
Trading problems
Why Do I Increase My Position Size After a Loss?
Analyzers
Trading Performance Analyzer
Trading problems
Am I Better at Long or Short Trades?
Analyzers
Trade Holding Time Analyzer
Learn
Overconfidence in Trading: When Confidence Becomes a Cost
Learn
Trading Discipline: 7 Rules for Beginners
Holdy Lab content is educational and is not financial advice. Results describe the data you provide; they do not predict future results.