Drawdown Calculator
Measure the exact decline from an entered peak to an entered trough, then see the gain required from that trough to recover the peak. The page does not rate the drawdown or predict recovery time.
Enter the peak and trough
The trough must be no greater than the peak for a drawdown calculation.
A display label only; no currency conversion occurs.
The reference high-water value.
The later low value, from zero up to the peak.
Peak-to-trough result
Capital Change and Recovery model 1.0.0.
Drawdown and recovery use different bases
Drawdown is measured from the peak. Recovery is measured from the lower trough. That base change is why the required recovery percentage is larger than the drawdown percentage.
This page computes one entered peak-to-trough episode. It does not find a maximum drawdown from a time series.
Worked examples
| Entered scenario | Derived output | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 10,000 peak; 9,000 trough | 10.00% drawdown; 11.11% recovery | The account retains 90% of the peak. |
| 10,000 peak; 7,500 trough | 25.00% drawdown; 33.33% recovery | The missing 2,500 is one third of the trough. |
| 10,000 peak; 0 trough | 100.00% drawdown; no finite recovery % | A positive peak cannot be restored by a percentage of zero. |
How to interpret the result
The drawdown percentage uses the entered peak as its denominator, while the recovery percentage uses the lower trough. That denominator change is why a 25.00% decline from 10,000 to 7,500 requires a 33.33% gain from 7,500 to return to the peak. This two-point arithmetic does not estimate recovery time or probability.
Model and execution limitations
- This is a two-point calculation, not a maximum-drawdown scan of an equity curve.
- It does not model the duration, timing or probability of recovery.
- Deposits, withdrawals, fees and currency conversion can change the meaning of account values.
- No prop-firm, broker or strategy threshold is treated as universally safe or acceptable.
The CFTC cautions that hypothetical results have inherent limitations and that actual results can differ because of factors including spreads, commissions, liquidity and execution. The result on this page should be read within the narrower boundaries stated above.
Frequently asked questions
- It is the percentage decline from the entered peak value to the entered trough value.
- Only if the values you enter are the actual high-water peak and the lowest later trough for the period being studied. The page does not inspect a time series.
- Recovery is calculated from the smaller trough base, while drawdown is calculated from the larger peak base.
- Not in this capital-value model because the trough cannot be negative. A trough of zero is a 100% drawdown.
- No. The output is arithmetic only and does not assess future risk, strategy quality or suitability.
Method sources and provenance
- CFTC trading-system advisory — Official caution on hypothetical and past-performance presentations.
Local calculation: Inputs are processed in the browser by the named versioned model. The page does not send entered balances, rates, probabilities or notes to a calculation API.
Continue the performance workflow
Compare broker cost and execution terms
Before treating a scenario as net, confirm which spreads, commissions, financing charges, leverage rules and execution conditions apply to the account and broker entity available in your jurisdiction.
Risk and affiliate disclosure: Leveraged forex and CFD trading can result in substantial losses. These are affiliate links, so ForexMT4Indicators.com may receive compensation if you register or trade through them, at no additional cost to you. Availability and terms vary by jurisdiction and broker entity.