TradingJournalTools

Pre-Trade Checklist

Work through setup, risk, sizing and execution before entering a trade. Progress is saved in your browser only.

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Free · No sign-up · Runs in your browser

Trading mistakes are rarely analytical. They are procedural: the stop that was going to be placed in a moment, the size that was slightly larger because the setup looked especially good, the trade taken twenty minutes after the daily limit was reached.

A checklist does not improve analysis and is not supposed to. It catches the steps that get skipped when a position looks urgent, which is precisely when they get skipped. This one covers the setup, the risk, the exit and the state you are in.

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How to use the pre-trade checklist

  1. Open it before entering, not after.
  2. Work through every group rather than skipping to the ones that seem relevant.
  3. Treat any unticked item as a reason to pause rather than a formality.
  4. Adapt the items to your own plan - a generic checklist is a starting point, not a rule set.

What people use this for

  • Enforcing a routine before every entry.
  • Catching sizing and stop mistakes before they are live.
  • Slowing down when a trade feels urgent.
  • Building a repeatable process while a strategy is still being learned.

Why checklists work where willpower does not

The value of a checklist is that it removes the need to remember anything at the moment of highest pressure. Every item on it is something obvious, and being obvious is exactly why it gets skipped when attention is elsewhere.

Fields where checklists are standard - aviation, surgery - adopted them for the same reason. Expertise does not prevent omissions; structure does.

The state questions are not filler

The last group is about the trader rather than the trade. Whether the daily limit has been reached, whether this is an attempt to recover a loss, whether the decision would survive being unobserved - these predict outcomes at least as well as anything on the chart.

A trade that fails the last group should not be improved. It should not be taken.

Make it yours

A checklist copied from someone else covers their mistakes. The items worth adding are the ones drawn from your own journal - the specific errors that keep recurring, phrased as questions.

Reviewing the journal periodically and adding a line for each repeated mistake is what turns a generic list into a personal control.

Methodology and assumptions

What this calculator does, and what it deliberately does not do.

  • Results are arithmetic on the numbers you enter. Nothing here predicts prices or connects to an exchange, broker or market data feed.
  • Nothing you type is transmitted or stored - the calculation runs entirely inside your browser.

This tool is for informational and educational purposes only and does not constitute financial or investment advice. Past performance does not guarantee future results.

Nothing on this website is a recommendation to buy, sell or hold any security, currency, derivative or digital asset. No price is predicted and no return is promised or implied.

Trading and investing carry the risk of substantial loss, including the loss of your entire capital. Leveraged products can produce losses that exceed your deposit. Tax treatment depends on your jurisdiction and your circumstances.

Frequently asked questions

Is my progress saved?

In this browser only, using local storage. Nothing is uploaded, and clearing browser data will reset it.

Can I change the items?

Not in this tool, but you can download your progress and adapt the list in your own notes. The items here are a starting point.

Should I use it on every trade?

A checklist used selectively is a checklist that is not used. Its whole value is being run when it feels unnecessary.

Is this trading advice?

No. It is a process aid for informational and educational purposes. It does not recommend trades, strategies or risk levels.

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