Trading & signals glossary
What is an R-multiple in trading?
An R-multiple measures a trade’s result in units of its own risk: 1R is what you lose if the stop gets hit. A trade that makes twice what it risked is +2R; one that gets stopped out is −1R. That lets you compare trades and channels with different stops and position sizes.
How it works
Before you enter, the distance between your entry and your stop sets what you’re risking: that’s 1R. Everything else is measured against that distance.
If the target is twice as far away as the stop, hitting it is worth +2R. Closing at entry (breakeven) is 0R. Getting stopped out is −1R.
Add up the R on every trade and you get a channel’s result in a common currency, whether it trades gold or forex, uses tight or wide stops, or whatever each follower puts in.
How to calculate it
R = (exit price − entry price) ÷ (entry price − stop)
For a long. For a short, flip the signs.
R per trade (expectancy) = total R ÷ number of trades
If it’s positive, the channel makes more than it risks on average.
Example: a gold long with a stop and a target
- Buy gold at 4,200 with a stop at 4,190: you’re risking $10 per ounce. That’s 1R.
- The target is at 4,215: $15 above entry.
- If it gets hit: 15 ÷ 10 = +1.5 R. If the stop gets hit: −1 R.
- Risking 1% of the account per trade, +1.5 R is +1.5% and −1 R is −1%.
Calculate it
Run the numbers yourself
Free Verpips tools that do this calculation for you.
Our data · Verpips
What we measure in signal channels
- −0.04 R
- median per trade
- 6 of 18
- channels in the green
- 3,866
- trades measured
One dot per channel measured
6 in profit · 12 in the red
A typical trade
To break even with those numbers you need to be right more than 57% of the time.
We measured 3,866 trades from 18 Telegram channels, one by one against real prices. The typical winning trade makes +0.76 R and the typical loser gives back −0.99 R; with a median win rate of 44%, the median per trade comes out to −0.04 R. Only 6 of those 18 channels end up in the green.
Verpips data as of Oct 7, 2026, measured against the real price. See how we measure and the channel directory.
Types and variations
- Total R
- The sum of R across all trades: how much someone who took every one would have made or lost, in units of risk.
- R per trade (expectancy)
- The average. It’s the number that tells you whether a system makes money over time.
- 0R (breakeven)
- A trade closed at the entry price, usually after moving the stop to breakeven.
- Partial R
- Closing half at the first target and the rest at the second gives a blended result: for example, +0.5 R + 1 R = +1.5 R.
Why it matters when choosing a signal channel
A channel with an 80% win rate can lose money if it makes 0.3R when it’s right and loses 1R when it’s wrong. Win rate and pips don’t show that; R does. It’s the only fair way to compare two channels.
Common traps
- Targets very close and stops very far: a high win rate and negative R.
- Moving the stop to entry and counting that trade as a win.
- Posting signals with no stop: no stop means no R, and no limit on the risk.
- Measuring R from the best price in a zone, which few people got filled at.
Key takeaways
- ✓1R = what you lose if the stop gets hit.
- ✓+2R = making twice what you risked; −1R = losing what you risked.
- ✓R per trade tells you whether a channel makes money over time, whatever its win rate.
- ✓To compare channels, compare R, not pips or win rate.
FAQ: R-multiple (R)
What does +1R mean?
That the trade made exactly what it risked: if the stop was $10 from entry, it made $10 per unit.
What’s a good R per trade?
Anything above zero makes money over time; the higher it is and the more trades behind it, the more you can trust it. With few trades, a high number can be luck, which is why we show a confidence interval.
How much money is 1R?
Whatever you decide to risk per trade. R doesn’t set that; it just measures the result in that unit.
Why does Verpips measure in R instead of pips?
Because R builds in the risk on each trade, so you can compare channels with different stops, markets and position sizes.
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.