TradeJournalOS
Sign in Create account

R-Multiple

An R-multiple expresses a trade’s result as a multiple of the dollars you initially risked. If you risked $100 (entry to planned stop) and made $250, that is +2.5R; losing the full risk is −1R. R normalises trades of any size onto one comparable scale.

Formula 

r_multiple = net P&L / initial_risk
initial_risk = |avg_entry − planned_stop| × quantity × multiplier

Worked example

Long 100 shares, entry $50.00, planned stop $48.00, exit $55.00.

Initial risk |$50.00 − $48.00| × 100 = $200
Net P&L ($55.00 − $50.00) × 100 = $500
R-multiple $500 / $200
Result 2.50R
Why it matters

R turns every trade into apples-to-apples units of risk, so a 2R win on a small position and a 2R win on a large one count equally — the basis of expectancy in R and the R-distribution.

Common pitfalls

R only exists when you recorded a planned stop; without it, initial risk is unknown and R is left blank rather than guessed (TradeJournalOS never invents a stop).

How TradeJournalOS shows it

Computed the moment you save a journal entry with a planned stop, then shown per trade and rolled into the R-multiple histogram and expectancy (R).

Create a free account to see r-multiple on your own trades.

Related metrics
Expectancy MAE & MFE Payoff Ratio

Frequently asked questions

Why is R-multiple blank on some of my trades? +

R needs a planned stop to define initial risk. Trades without a recorded stop show a blank R rather than an estimated one — money is never inferred (invariant 2).

Is a −1R loss the same as my stop being hit? +

A −1R result means you lost approximately the amount you planned to risk. It can occur from a stop fill, a manual exit near the stop, or slippage that lands close to −1R.