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Margin Calculator

Find the exact margin required for delivery, intraday, CO, and BO orders — free, instant, no signup required.

Margin & Leverage Calculator
Margin Required
₹0
Total Order Value
₹0
Leverage
1x
Leveraged Exposure
₹0

What is Margin Trading?

Margin trading allows you to buy or sell securities worth more than the money you currently have in your trading account. Your broker essentially lends you the additional funds, using your existing capital as collateral. The amount you need to deposit to open a position is called the margin requirement. Different order types — delivery, intraday, cover order, and bracket order — have different margin requirements, reflecting their respective risk profiles.

This calculator shows you instantly how much capital you need to trade a given stock position under each order type, along with the total order value and the effective leverage provided by your broker.

Types of Margins in Indian Markets

  • SPAN Margin (Standard Portfolio Analysis of Risk): The minimum margin required by the exchange for derivatives positions. It uses a risk-based algorithm developed by the Chicago Mercantile Exchange and adopted by Indian exchanges. SPAN considers price movement, volatility, and correlation across positions.
  • Exposure Margin: An additional margin collected by the exchange over and above SPAN margin to cover any extraordinary market movement. Typically 3–5% for equity futures.
  • VaR Margin (Value at Risk): Applied to equity delivery positions. It is calculated as a percentage of the stock price based on its historical volatility. Higher volatility stocks attract a higher VaR margin.
  • Mark-to-Market (MTM) Margin: Applied daily to futures positions. If the market moves against your position, you are required to deposit additional funds to cover the daily loss.

Delivery vs Intraday Margin

For delivery trades, you need 100% of the trade value upfront. There is no leverage for CNC (Cash and Carry) delivery orders — you pay the full price and receive the shares in your Demat account after T+1 settlement.

For intraday (MIS) trades, brokers offer leverage — typically up to 5x for equity cash segments, meaning you only need 20% of the total trade value as margin. However, positions must be squared off before the market closes the same day.

Cover Orders (CO) and Bracket Orders (BO) come with built-in risk management — CO requires a compulsory stop-loss order, and BO requires both a stop-loss and a target. Because risk is predefined, brokers offer up to 10x leverage, requiring only 10% of the trade value as margin.

What is a Margin Call?

A margin call occurs when the value of your account falls below the broker's required maintenance margin. This happens when your open positions move against you and your losses erode your deposited margin. When a margin call is triggered, your broker will either ask you to deposit additional funds immediately, or automatically square off (close) some or all of your open positions to bring the account back above the minimum threshold.

Margin calls are most common in leveraged intraday and derivatives trading. Delivery positions (CNC) do not face margin calls since you have already paid 100% of the value.

Risks of Margin and Leverage Trading

  • Amplified losses: Leverage works both ways. A 10x leveraged position means a 1% adverse move in the stock results in a 10% loss on your margin. Losses can exceed your initial investment in some cases.
  • Margin calls and forced liquidation: If the market moves sharply against you, your broker can close your position at a loss without notice to recover the lent amount.
  • Overnight risk: Intraday positions must be closed by market end or they get auto-squared off, often at unfavourable prices during volatile sessions.
  • Interest on borrowed funds: Some brokers charge daily interest on the margin utilised for overnight positions, which adds to your cost of trading.

Advantages of Margin Trading

  • Capital efficiency: You can take larger positions than your cash balance allows, potentially earning higher absolute returns on the same capital.
  • Short selling: Margin enables you to sell stocks you do not own (intraday) and profit from falling prices — not possible with delivery-only accounts.
  • Hedging: Traders can use leveraged positions to hedge existing portfolio exposure without committing the full capital required to own the hedge outright.
  • Flexibility: Different order types (MIS, CO, BO) give you control over your leverage and risk-reward profile depending on your trading strategy.

Frequently Asked Questions

A margin call is a demand from your broker to deposit additional funds when your account value falls below the minimum maintenance margin required for your open positions. To avoid a margin call: (1) maintain a buffer above the minimum required margin at all times; (2) use stop-loss orders to limit the downside of open positions; (3) avoid over-leveraging — just because 10x leverage is available does not mean you should use it fully; (4) monitor your positions actively during high-volatility sessions. If you cannot meet a margin call promptly, your broker will automatically liquidate positions, potentially locking in losses at the worst prices.
In theory, yes — although most brokers have systems to auto-square off positions before losses exceed deposited margin. In practice, during extreme market events (circuit breakers, halt in trading, or very fast price movements), a position can gap through your stop-loss level, resulting in a loss greater than your deposited margin. In such cases, you would owe the broker the difference. This is more common in futures and options trading than in equity cash-segment intraday trading. Cover Orders (CO) and Bracket Orders (BO) provide better protection because they mandate a pre-set stop-loss at the time of order entry.
Delivery margin (CNC — Cash and Carry) requires you to pay 100% of the trade value. You take actual ownership of the shares, which are credited to your Demat account after T+1 settlement, and you can hold them for as long as you want. There is no leverage, no forced intraday square-off, and no margin call risk (since you have already paid in full). Intraday margin (MIS — Margin Intraday Square-off) allows you to trade with leverage — typically 3–5x for equity cash, meaning you only need 20–33% of the trade value. However, the position must be closed the same day, and you may face a margin call if the position moves sharply against you.
Leverage means you can control a larger position than your cash would otherwise allow. For example, with 5x leverage, ₹10,000 in your account lets you take a position worth ₹50,000. If the stock rises 2%, your ₹50,000 position gains ₹1,000 — a 10% return on your actual ₹10,000 capital. However, if the stock falls 2%, you lose ₹1,000 — 10% of your capital — on a movement that would have cost only 2% without leverage. Higher leverage (CO/BO at 10x) amplifies both gains and losses tenfold compared to an unlevered delivery position. Leverage should be used with clearly defined stop-loss levels and position sizing to manage risk responsibly.