Trading & signals glossary
What is a trailing stop?
A trailing stop is a stop loss that automatically follows price at a fixed distance when the trade moves in your favor, and doesn’t move back when price turns around. It locks in open profit without setting a target in advance.
How it works
You set a distance, say $10 on gold. Buy at 4,200 with a $10 trail and the stop starts at 4,190.
If price climbs to 4,230, the stop moves up to 4,220. If price then pulls back, the stop stays at 4,220.
The trade closes when price comes back and hits the stop, with whatever profit it locked in.
Example: a gold buy with a $10 trailing stop
- Buy at 4,200; initial stop at 4,190 (−1 R).
- Gold climbs to 4,235: the stop moves up to 4,225 (+2.5 R locked in).
- Gold drops back to 4,225 and closes the trade at +2.5 R, even though there was never a target.
Our data · Verpips
Moving the stop: what we measure
- 6%
- of trades end at breakeven
- 4
- channels where moving the stop helps
- 4
- channels where it hurts
of trades end at breakeven
Moving the stop to entry…
Lots of channels move the stop to breakeven after the first target, which is the simplest form of trailing. 6% of the trades we measured ended that way. Whether it helps depends on the channel: in 4 channels moving the stop improves the result, and in 4 it makes it worse, because price comes back to the entry before continuing.
Verpips data as of Oct 7, 2026, measured against the real price. See how we measure and the channel directory.
Types and variations
- Fixed distance
- Follows price at X pips or dollars.
- Target-based
- Moves the stop up a step at each target: to entry at TP1, to TP1 at TP2.
- Volatility-based
- The distance adjusts to how much the market is moving (for example, using ATR).
Why it matters when choosing a signal channel
Locking in early feels prudent, but it can turn trades that would have hit the target into scratches. Whether it helps depends on how price moves in each channel’s signals, and that can be measured.
Common traps
- Setting it so tight that normal price noise takes it out.
- Counting a trade closed at breakeven as a win.
- Assuming a trailing stop always improves results: for some channels it makes them worse.
Key takeaways
- ✓Follows price in your favor and never moves back.
- ✓Locks in profit without a set target.
- ✓Moving the stop to entry is its simplest version.
- ✓Helps with some channels and hurts with others.
FAQ: trailing stop
What’s the difference between a trailing stop and breakeven?
Moving to breakeven means bringing the stop to your entry once. A trailing stop keeps moving it as long as price keeps going your way.
Does MetaTrader have a trailing stop?
Yes: MetaTrader 4 and 5 let you set one by distance in points, but it only works while the platform is running.
Should you always use a trailing stop?
No. In our measurements, moving the stop improves results for some channels and makes them worse for others.
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.