Leverage and margin mode

Leverage

Leverage lets you open a position larger than your margin. At 10x, $100 of margin opens a $1,000 position.

Leverage multiplies both gains and losses. At 10x, a 1% price move is about 10% of your margin. A move against you of about 10% can wipe out the margin and liquidate the position.

Each market has its own maximum, for example 40x on BTC on Hyperliquid. The leverage window stops at that maximum.

Set leverage before you trade

1. Open the leverage window

   On Trade, tap the leverage chip next to the market name, for example 10x. On a phone the 10x and Cross chips are in the market header and in the title row of the order ticket.

2. Pick a value

   Drag the track (arrow keys move it by 1) or tap a preset. The label next to the number shows the risk: Low risk up to 3x, Medium risk up to 10x, High risk above that and at the market's maximum.

3. Check the numbers

   Max position is the largest position your available balance allows at this leverage. Margin for this order is what the order in the ticket locks. Est. liq. price is where that position would be liquidated.

4. Confirm

   Tap Set 10x (your value). The venue saves the leverage for this market.

Leverage is saved per market on each venue. BTC at 10x does not change ETH. You can set a default for new markets in Settings > Trading > Default leverage.

Margin mode: Cross or Isolated

Margin is the money that backs a position. The margin mode decides how much of your balance a position can use.

Cross

All Cross positions on a venue share one pool: your whole balance on that venue. A losing position can draw on the free balance to stay open, so liquidation is further away. The risk: a large loss reaches your other positions and can use up the entire balance.

Isolated

Each Isolated position has its own margin. Only that margin can be lost. The rest of your balance is safe. The risk: liquidation comes sooner, since the position cannot draw on the rest of the balance.

Some markets trade in Isolated only. Their window says so, for example "BTC trades in Isolated only on Aster", and the Cross card is greyed out.

Change the mode

Tap the Cross (or Isolated) chip next to the leverage chip, pick a mode and tap Use Isolated (or Use Cross). You can set a default in Settings > Trading > Margin mode.

Add or remove isolated margin

On an Isolated position you can move margin in or out without changing the size.

1. Open the position

   Tap the position on Portfolio or in Trade's positions panel. At the bottom of the position, tap Add margin. A position close to liquidation also has Add margin in Needs attention on Portfolio.

2. Choose Add margin or Remove margin

   Enter an amount in Amount (USDC) or tap a quick amount. One of them moves the liquidation price to 20% away from the mark.

3. Check the numbers

   The box shows the Position margin, Effective leverage, Liq. price, Distance to liq. and what stays Available, before and after.

4. Confirm

   Tap the button at the bottom, for example Add $250 margin.

• Add margin moves money from your available balance into the position. It pushes the liquidation price away. No fee.
• Remove margin moves it back. You can only remove what is not needed to keep the position open: the window shows what is "Removable without breaking initial margin".

On a Cross position the Margin window explains that your whole balance is the margin, and shows the margin in use and the liquidation price. To push liquidation away on Cross, deposit more or reduce the size.

Change leverage on an open position

• From the position: tap the leverage button at the bottom of the position, for example 5×. The Adjust leverage window opens.
• From the ticket on Trade: open the leverage window for that market. It warns that it "Changes leverage for your whole BTC Long on Hyperliquid" and shows how the liquidation price moves.

What happens depends on the mode:

• Isolated: lower leverage moves margin from your balance into the position ("Moves $120.00 from Hyperliquid into this position.") and pushes liquidation away. Higher leverage frees margin back to your balance and brings liquidation closer.
• Cross: lower leverage locks more margin but does not move the liquidation price, since it depends on your whole balance. The window says so. To protect the position, set a stop loss.

You need enough available balance to lock the extra margin. If you don't have it, the available amount turns red and the button stays off.