Short Selling Calculator [Profit, Loss & Position Size]

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Anton Palovaara
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Our short selling calculator for stocks, crypto, and other assets will calculate the profit, loss, and position size of a short sell position. The calculator can also be used if you short sell with leverage by checking the “Add Leverage” box.

Short Selling Calculator

How to use the short stock calculator:

  1. Insert the Sale Price (e.g. $250)
  2. Add the number of shares (e.g. 20)
  3. Add leverage if used (e.g. 10, 25, or 50)
  4. Insert Buyback Price (e.g. $220)
  5. Click Calculate!

What is a short selling calculator?

A short-selling calculator is often used by traders and investors to find the profit, loss, and overall position size of a short sale.

With a short calculator, you need three inputs as sale price, the number of shares, and the buyback price.

You can also add a ratio if you are trading with borrowed money and it will automatically add the leverage to the calculation.

How do you calculate short selling profit?

Short selling profit is calculated by finding the difference between the sale price and the buyback price, and then multiplying it by the number of shares and ratio.

The formula is:

Profit = (Sale Price – Buyback Price) * Number of Shares * Ratio

This is the exact formula that our short short selling calculator uses to calculate the profit.

How do you calculate the loss on a short sale?

A loss on a short sale happens when the buyback price is higher than the sale price. The formula for calculating loss is similar to the profit formula, but it results in a negative value.

The formula is:

Loss = (Buyback Price – Sale Price) * Number of Shares * Ratio

Use our short calculator to find out how big a loss would be with a margin short position.

How do you calculate position size on a short sale?

Short sell position size is the total value of the short sale position. It’s calculated by multiplying the sale price, the number of shares, and the ratio.

The formula is:

Position Size = Sale Price * Number of Shares * Ratio

If you simply want to know the position size while trading crypto I recommend using our crypto position size calculator.

Example of how to use it

Let’s consider an example:

You want to sell a stock short at the price of $100, with 200 shares, at a ratio of 1:5, and with a buyback price of $80.

  • Sale Price: $100
  • Number of Shares: 200
  • Leverage Ratio: 5
  • Buyback Price: $80

Using the short profit calculator, you can input these values, including checking the “Add Leverage” checkbox and clicking the “Calculate” button.

The calculator would then provide you with the calculated position size and profit.

In this example, the position size would be:

$100 * 200 * 5 = $100,000

And the profit would be:

100,000 * 0,20 = $20,000

What is the formula?

The formula for the short sell calculator can be broken down into two parts: calculating the position size and calculating the profit/loss.

The formulas are as follows:

  • Position Size: Position Size = Sale Price * Number of Shares * Ratio
  • Profit/Loss: Profit/Loss = (Sale Price – Buyback Price) * Number of Shares * Ratio
Anton Palovaara
Anton Palovaara

Anton Palovaara is a seasoned trader and the founder of Leverage.Trading, where he shares data-driven insights on leveraged trading in crypto, forex, and derivatives. With over 15 years of experience in traditional markets—using proprietary systems to trade stocks and currencies — Anton transitioned to the crypto space in 2017, focusing on futures and margin platforms.

He’s known for his ability to break down complex trading mechanics into clear, actionable strategies. His work has been featured in major crypto publications, and thousands of traders use his calculators and platform reviews to improve their trading outcomes.

When he’s not researching market structure or refining strategies, Anton contributes to transparency in trading education by publishing platform comparisons, risk analysis guides, and user-focused trading tools.

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