Trading & signals glossary
What is breakeven in trading?
Breakeven is the point where a trade neither makes nor loses money. In trading signals, “move to breakeven” means moving the stop up to the entry price after the first target is hit: if price comes back, the trade closes flat instead of at a loss.
How it works
After the first target, the channel posts “move SL to entry.” From then on, the worst case is closing without making or losing anything.
Price often comes back to entry before continuing: moving the stop early avoids losses, but it also cuts off trades that would have gone further.
Once you add costs, true breakeven sits a few pips beyond entry (spread and commission).
How to calculate it
true breakeven = entry price + spread + commission (on a long)
Example: moving the stop after TP1
- Buy gold at 4,200, stop 4,190, TP1 4,210, TP2 4,220.
- TP1 hits: close half (+1 R × ½) and move the stop up to 4,200.
- If price comes back to 4,200: the other half closes at 0 → +0.5 R total, instead of 0 R.
- If it keeps going to 4,220 instead: the other half makes +2 R × ½ → +1.5 R total.
Our data · Verpips
What we measure in signal channels
- 6%
- of trades end at breakeven
- 4
- channels where moving it helps
- 4
- channels where it hurts
of trades end at breakeven
Moving the stop to entry…
6% of the trades we measured ended at breakeven. Does moving the stop help? It depends on the channel: for 4 channels, moving the stop to entry improves the result, and for 4 it makes it worse, because many trades pull back to entry before going on to the target.
Verpips data as of Oct 7, 2026, measured against the real price. See how we measure and the channel directory.
Types and variations
- After the first target
- The most common approach in signals.
- By distance
- Moving the stop to entry once price has moved X pips in your favor.
- Breakeven plus costs
- Slightly beyond entry to cover the spread and commission.
Why it matters when choosing a signal channel
Moving to breakeven feels safe, but it doesn’t always improve the result: it cuts off trades that would have made more. If a channel does it on every signal, its result depends heavily on that one rule.
Common traps
- Counting trades closed at breakeven as wins.
- Posting “stop moved to entry” but never the flat close.
- Moving the stop to breakeven too early, where normal noise is going to tag it.
Key takeaways
- ✓Breakeven = neither making nor losing money.
- ✓Moving the stop to entry protects you, but it also cuts winners short.
- ✓Whether it helps or hurts depends on the channel.
- ✓A trade closed at breakeven isn’t a win.
FAQ: breakeven
When should you move your stop to breakeven?
It depends on the channel and the market: moving it early avoids losses but cuts winners short. In our measurements it helps for some channels and hurts for others.
What does “SL to BE” mean?
Move the stop loss to the entry price (breakeven).
Does a breakeven trade count as a win?
It shouldn’t: it didn’t make anything. Counting it as a win inflates the win rate.
Channel by channel
See these numbers for each channel, not as an average.
With a free account you see each channel’s result in R, its drawdown, and what it announced versus what actually happened.