Profit Factor
Formula
Profit Factor = Σ winning net P&L / |Σ losing net P&L|
Worked example
Four closed trades: +$500, +$300, −$200, −$100.
| Gross profit (winners) | $500 + $300 = $800 |
| Gross loss (losers) | |−$200 − $100| = $300 |
| Profit factor | $800 / $300 |
| Result | 2.67 |
It rolls win rate and average win/loss into one number, so a low win rate can still be healthy if the winners are large. It is one of the fastest reads on whether an edge exists.
A handful of trades makes it noisy, and one outlier winner can flatter it. With zero losing trades it is infinite (TradeJournalOS shows ∞, distinct from “—” for no trades at all).
How TradeJournalOS shows it
Shown as a headline KPI on the dashboard and in every breakdown (by symbol, setup, day-of-week, and more), computed over your closed trades.
Create a free account to see profit factor on your own trades.
Frequently asked questions
What is a good profit factor? +
Above 1.0 is profitable; many traders treat 1.5–2.0 as solid and anything above 2.0 as strong. Always read it alongside the number of trades.
Why does TradeJournalOS show ∞ for profit factor? +
When you have winning trades but no losing trades, the denominator is zero, so profit factor is undefined — we display ∞. That differs from “—”, which means there are no closed trades to measure.