How to Set a Stop Loss and Take Profit on TradingView
There are two separate things people mean by this: drawing the levels on the chart to plan a trade, and placing actual orders through a connected broker. Both are below.
This is the planning tool, and it's the one to learn first.
Open the drawing toolbar on the left and pick Long Position (or Short Position).
Click at your intended entry.
Drag the lower handle to where the idea is wrong — that's the stop.
Drag the upper handle to your objective — that's the target.The box immediately shows the risk-to-reward ratio, the distance in points and percent, and — once configured — the position size for your account.
To configure sizing, double-click the tool and set your account size and risk per trade. From then on, every box you draw tells you how many units to trade.
Why this matters
most people pick position size first and then find a stop that fits it. That is backwards. The chart decides the stop; the stop decides the size.
Method 2: real bracket orders through a broker
If your broker is integrated with TradingView:
Connect it in the Trading Panel at the bottom of the chart.
Open the order ticket (Shift + click on the chart price, or the Buy/Sell buttons).
Tick Stop Loss and Take Profit and enter either price levels, ticks or a percentage.
Submit. The bracket orders sit with the broker, not with TradingView, so they survive your browser closing.Once live, you can drag the stop and target lines directly on the chart to modify the orders.
Method 3: alerts as a manual stop
Without broker integration, the practical fallback is an alert at your stop level so you're told to act. It is not protection — it's a reminder — but it beats staring at a screen.
Where to actually put the stop
Three approaches that hold up:
| Approach | Where it goes | Best for |
|---|
| Structure | Beyond the swing high/low that invalidates the idea | Swing and position trades |
| Volatility | A multiple of ATR from entry | Intraday and fast markets |
| Time | Exit if the trade hasn't worked within N bars | Range and mean-reversion trades |
The one that doesn't hold up is a fixed dollar amount chosen because that's all you're willing to lose. The market doesn't know your budget.Sizing so the stop is affordable
Work it backwards:
Decide risk per trade as a percentage of the account — commonly 0.5% to 1%.
Measure the stop distance in points or percent.
Divide the money risked by the stop distance to get the size.Our position size calculator does this in one screen, and the risk/reward calculator shows the win rate a given ratio needs to break even.
FAQ
Can TradingView place a stop loss without a broker?
No. TradingView charts and alerts; execution needs a connected broker or your broker's own platform.
Should the take profit always be further than the stop?
Not always, but if your target is closer than your stop you need a high win rate to survive. Check the break-even rate before committing.
Does a trailing stop exist on TradingView?
Yes, through supported brokers in the order ticket, and via strategy scripts in backtesting.
Why does my stop keep getting hit before the move?
Usually a stop placed at the obvious level everyone else uses, or one too tight for the timeframe's normal noise. Measure typical range before choosing distance.
Stops and targets printed on the chart
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