Why My Stop Loss/Take Profit Order Not Executed in Futures Trading?
- Must-Read for Beginners
- FAQ
When using the take profit/stop loss (TP/SL) feature, you may encounter situations where the market price reaches your trigger price, but your TP/SL order is not executed or only partially executed. This can be caused by various factors, including the trigger price type, order type, market volatility, order book depth, order quantity, and margin availability. Below, we provide a detailed analysis of three common scenarios where TP/SL orders fail to execute or execute only partially.
1. TP/SL Order's Trigger Price Not Reached
A TP/SL order can only be sent to the market when its trigger price is reached. When setting a TP/SL order, you can choose between two types of trigger prices: last price and mark price.
On the trading page of our official website, you can view the K-line chart for last and mark prices (index price temporarily unavailable) and compare them with the trigger price you set to verify whether it was truly reached. If the TP/SL trigger price is not reached, the order will not be executed.
Example:
You hold a long position in ETHUSDT perpetual futures at an average entry price of 2,000 USDT, and have set a TP limit (or market) order at 2,500 USDT, with a trigger price (mark price) of 2,500 USDT.
If the last price reaches 2,500 USDT and then quickly drops, but the mark price does not reach 2,500 USDT, your TP order will not be triggered. Since the trigger price type is set to mark price, the TP order is not triggered and does not enter the market.
That is the reason why your TP order (close long at 2,500 USDT) is not executed.
2. Limit Order Not Executed or Executed Partially
TP/SL order types include market order, limit order, and BBO order (BBO 5, BBO 10, BBO 20).
Market Order: Immediately executes at the best available market price once triggered.
Limit Order: Places a buy or sell order at your predefined price after being triggered.
BBO 5, BBO 10, BBO 20: Executes based on the counterparty's order book depth, but if the price moves beyond the selected levels, it may only partially execute.
By default, TP/SL orders are set as market orders, but you can change them to limit orders. To increase the probability of execution for a limit order, consider setting limit buy price slightly above the trigger price and the limit sell price slightly below the trigger price.
Example:
You hold a long position in ETHUSDT perpetual futures at an average entry price of 2,005 USDT, and have set an SL limit order at 2,000 USDT, with a trigger price (last price) of 2,000 USDT.
If the last price falls to 2,000 USDT, the SL limit order (close long at 2,000) will be triggered, and then the system will place a limit sell order at 2,000 USDT. If the market is highly volatile and rapidly declines, the limit sell order may not be filled or may only be partially filled.
To improve execution, setting the limit order price at 2,195 USDT, coupled with the trigger price of 2,000 USDT, increases the likelihood of a successful trade.
3. Order Execution Subject to Order Size Limits and Matching Rules
Your order size must be smaller than the maximum single order size limit, and you must have sufficient margin. If your order exceeds the maximum limit or if there is insufficient margin when the trigger is activated, the order may fail.
After a successful stop loss or take profit trigger, the order sent to the market is subject to the price-priority, time-priority matching engine. Orders with more favorable prices are filled first; for orders with the same price, they are filled in the order they were received. Your successfully triggered market/limit order may not be fully filled, or may not be filled at all, due to other orders in the market that have a more favorable price or were submitted earlier.
In summary, the success of your stop loss or take profit order depends on several factors: the trigger price type, order price type, market volatility, order book depth, order quantity, and sufficient margin. Therefore, complete execution of your stop loss or take profit order cannot be guaranteed. We recommend setting reasonable stop loss/take profit parameters to manage your trading risks effectively.
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