Guides
Sourced Trader Guides
What to record in a trading journal
The fields that turn fills into a review, including the ones most often skipped.
Why keep one
A journal turns fills into records you can review: the plan, the result and the cost. Leave out costs, and you review a number that was never paid out.
The core fields
Field and why it matters
- Date, symbol, side
- Basic record. Tax records in many countries need it.
- Entry, exit, size
- Gross price P&L.
- Planned stop
- Sets initial risk, so results can be measured in R.
- Trading fees
- Charged on entry and exit.
- Funding (perps)
- Paid or received each interval you hold.
- Setup
- Groups results by approach.
- Notes, screenshot
- Context numbers can’t hold.
R-multiple
R-multiplenet P&L ÷ initial risk
Initial risk is |entry − stop| × size. A trade that risks US$50 and nets US$75 after costs is +1.5R.
Gross vs net
0.5 BTC long, held three intervals
- Entry → exit
- US$60,000 → US$60,400
- Gross P&L
- +US$200.00
- Taker fees, 0.05% each side
- −US$30.10
- Funding, 3 × 0.01%
- −US$9.00
- Net P&L
- +US$160.90
About 20% below gross. Fee rates vary by exchange and tier. Made-up numbers for illustration.
Spreadsheet or app
A spreadsheet keeps every formula visible and your data on your device.
Sourced Trader
Trader tools built on primary sources. No hype, no signals, no performance claims.
Educational only. Examples use made-up numbers and aren’t recommendations. Questions? Email [email protected].