A Personal Daily Loss Limit (PDLL) is an optional risk-management setting that allows you to define a maximum daily net loss threshold for your TopstepX account. If your account reaches that threshold, TopstepX can either liquidate open positions or liquidate positions and block trading for the rest of the trading day.
What you’ll learn
What the Personal Daily Loss Limit does
How PDLL actions work
Where to set a PDLL in TopstepX
What happens after your limit is reached
What is a Personal Daily Loss Limit?
The Personal Daily Loss Limit is based on your account’s real-time net profit and loss (P&L) during the trading day. It is designed to help you apply a personal loss threshold to your trading activity.
PDLL is a platform tool, not a guarantee against losses. Market conditions, order execution, and other trading factors can affect results, and futures trading involves substantial risk.
How to set a PDLL
In TopstepX, open Settings.
Select Risk Settings.
Enter a dollar amount in the Personal Daily Loss Limit field.
Choose a PDLL Action.
Save your settings.
When PDLL is enabled, the Daily Loss Limit gauge in the platform header is replaced by a PDLL gauge. The gauge updates in relation to your real-time net P&L and selected limit.
Choose a PDLL action
PDLL Action | What happens when the limit is reached |
Do Nothing | PDLL is disabled. |
Liquidate | TopstepX liquidates all open positions. The PDLL action then resets to Do Nothing. |
Liquidate and Block | TopstepX liquidates all open positions and blocks the account from trading until the next trading day. |
Important note about Liquidate and Block
A Liquidate and Block action cannot be reversed after it is triggered. Once the account is liquidated and blocked, trading remains unavailable until the next trading day.
Consider reviewing the selected amount and action before saving. A PDLL is intended as a personal risk-management setting and does not eliminate the risks of futures trading.
Why This Matters
A predefined daily loss threshold can help traders use a consistent, self-directed approach to managing risk. By selecting an action in advance, traders can decide how TopstepX should respond if their daily net P&L reaches their chosen limit.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does PDLL use realized or unrealized P&L?
PDLL is applied to net profit and loss calculated in real time, which means it responds to your current daily net P&L as it changes.
What happens if I select Liquidate?
When your PDLL is reached, all positions in the account are liquidated. Afterward, the PDLL action resets to Do Nothing.
Can I trade again after Liquidate and Block is triggered?
No. The account is blocked from trading until the next trading day, and the block cannot be reversed.
Is PDLL required?
No. Selecting Do Nothing disables the PDLL functionality.
Need Help?
If you have questions about PDLL, contact the Support Team and we'll be happy to help.