> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://countertrade.gitbook.io/docs/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://countertrade.gitbook.io/docs/trading/pnl-and-roi.md).

# PnL & ROI

How your equity, realized and unrealized PnL, and the ROI the leaderboard ranks you by are calculated.

The **Account** panel in the terminal shows a handful of numbers that move as you trade: **Equity**, **Realized PnL**, **Unrealized PnL**, plus your **Available** cash, **Used margin**, and **Initial balance**. Your ROI — the return the live leaderboard ranks you by — is built from those numbers.

Your **Equity** is your live account value. It is the sum of three things: your **Available** cash, the **Used margin** locked in your open positions, and your **Unrealized PnL**:

Equity = Available + Used margin + Unrealized PnL

**Unrealized PnL** is the current profit or loss on positions you still hold. It moves with the market on every price update and disappears the moment you close the position.

**Realized PnL** is profit or loss you have already locked in from positions you closed or reduced. When you close a winning position, its gain moves into your **Available** cash — so it is already counted inside your equity. That is why realized PnL is a separate, informational figure and is not added to equity a second time.

Your ROI is your return relative to the paper balance you started the room with:

ROI = (Equity − Initial balance) / Initial balance

Everyone in a room starts with the same paper balance, shown as **Initial balance**. Because every trader in the room begins from that same number, ROI compares them fairly regardless of how they sized their positions. The live leaderboard ranks the room by ROI.

## Example

Say a room starts you with 10,000 paper USDT. Your **Equity** is 10,000 and your ROI is 0%.

You open a position that locks 1,000 USDT of margin. Your **Available** drops to 9,000 and **Used margin** shows 1,000 — but nothing has moved yet, so **Equity** is still 9,000 + 1,000 + 0 = 10,000.

The market moves in your favor and your **Unrealized PnL** reads +200. Equity is now 9,000 + 1,000 + 200 = 10,200, and your ROI is (10,200 − 10,000) / 10,000 = +2%. Had the market moved against you by the same amount, **Unrealized PnL** would read −200, equity would be 9,800, and ROI would be −2%.

You close the position at +200. That 200 becomes **Realized PnL** and returns to your **Available** cash, **Used margin** goes back to 0, and **Unrealized PnL** resets to 0. Your **Equity** stays 10,200 and your ROI stays +2% — closing the position moves the gain from unrealized to realized without changing your equity.

## Reading the numbers

Watch **Equity** and ROI, not just realized PnL. A large **Unrealized PnL** is not locked in — it can swing back to zero or turn negative before you close, and it counts toward your leaderboard rank the whole time.

Paper PnL is simulated. It is not real money and cannot be withdrawn. Your ROI decides where you finish on the leaderboard, and the real payout is the prize for finishing high — not your paper PnL itself.

## Related

* [Leaderboards](/docs/ratings-and-competition/leaderboards.md)
* [Manage positions](/docs/trading/manage-positions.md)