How to Keep a Stock and Crypto Trading Journal: Record Entry Rationale, Stop-Loss Plan, and Trade Results in One Table
If you record only profits and losses after a trade ends, it is difficult to distinguish why you made money and why you lost money. A trading journal is more useful for practical review when you separately record the rationale and stop-loss plan established before entry, the actual execution results, and whether you followed the plan.
In particular, it is important to record the planned stop-loss price and the actual exit price separately. This is because a stock stop order may convert into a market order when the specified stop price is reached, and the actual execution price may differ from the price set in advance.
A trading journal should record the ‘decision-making process,’ not just returns
The first thing to record in a trading journal is why you entered, rather than the buy or sell price.
Even with the same +5% profit, it is difficult to evaluate in the same way a trade that was entered and exited according to a planned strategy and a trade where you impulsively chased the price and happened to profit. Conversely, even a trade that followed the plan exactly but ended with a -1R loss loses useful information for the next trade if it is recorded only as a ‘failure.’
Therefore, reviewing a trade becomes easier if you divide each one into the following four stages.
1. Pre-entry plan
2. Actual entry
3. Actual exit
4. Plan adherence and review
Here, R is a recording method that treats the amount of loss initially accepted for one trade as 1 unit and compares the result against it.
For example, if you planned a maximum pre-entry loss of KRW 100,000, then KRW 100,000 is 1R. If the final profit or loss is +KRW 200,000, it can be recorded as +2R, and if it is -KRW 100,000, it can be recorded as -1R.
What should you record in a trading journal table?
The following is enough to use for both stocks and crypto. It is structured so that you can compare the entry plan and actual results on one screen.
| Record Item | What to Record | Purpose |
|---|---|---|
| Date·Time | Entry·exit time | Distinguish the timing of the trade |
| Instrument | Name·ticker·trading pair | Distinguish the traded asset |
| Direction | Buy·long·short | Distinguish the position |
| Entry Rationale | Entry conditions and confirmation signals | Check whether the trade followed the plan |
| Planned Entry Price | Price considered before entry | Compare with actual entry |
| Actual Entry Price | Actual execution price | Calculate results |
| Planned Stop-Loss Price | Stop-loss criterion before entry | Check risk in advance |
| Stop-Loss Rationale | Why the trade thesis ends at that price | Prevent arbitrary stop-loss decisions |
| Target Price | Pre-entry target | Check planned risk-reward |
| Actual Exit Price | Final execution price | Calculate actual result |
| Exit Reason | Target·stop-loss·manual exit, etc. | Compare plan and result |
| Profit/Loss | Amount·% | Record result |
| R Result | Actual profit/loss ÷ planned risk amount | Compare trades |
| Plan Adherence | O / X | Separate result from process |
| Review | What went well·mistakes·next action | Identify recurring patterns |
There is no need to make the table too large. If you add items that you will never review again, you are more likely to give up on keeping records altogether.
The key is to connect entry rationale → planned stop-loss → actual exit → plan adherence → next action in a single line.
Record entry rationale so you can judge it again later, rather than writing ‘because it looked like it would rise’
It is better to make the entry rationale specific enough that you can later determine whether the same conditions appeared again.
For example, you can record it like this.
Confirmed support after a breakout above the previous high
Re-entered after a short-term pullback while the daily-chart trend remained intact
Broke above the top of the range with increasing volume
Pulled back to a predetermined price zone and met the rebound condition
Simultaneously met condition A and condition B of the existing trading rules
By contrast, if the criteria are unclear, with notes such as ‘it looked good,’ ‘it seemed likely to rise,’ or ‘the news was good,’ it becomes difficult to classify the same type of trade later.
If news or a disclosure is the reason for entry, it is more useful for review to briefly record which specific fact you treated as a trading condition rather than writing only the article headline.
Separate the planned stop-loss price from the actual exit price in stop-loss records
A stop-loss plan should record at least the planned stop-loss price, the reason for setting the stop, and the actual exit price separately.
A typical stock stop order does not guarantee execution at the stop price. Once the stop price is reached and the order becomes a market order, it may be executed at a different price depending on market conditions. A stop order may also be triggered by short-term price fluctuations.
That is why one field labeled only ‘Stop-loss KRW 50,000’ is not enough in a trading journal.
For example, you can separate it like this.
Planned Stop-Loss Price: KRW 50,000
Actual Exit Price: KRW 49,650
Exit Method: Stop order executed
Plan Adherence: O
Only by recording it this way can you later distinguish whether a larger loss came from the original strategy, a violation of the plan, or a difference between the planned price and the actual execution price.
Order types and execution conditions for crypto can differ depending on the exchange and product used, so you should check the order rules of the relevant exchange for the actual order method.
Recording the R value along with profit makes it easier to compare trades of different sizes
If the trade amount changes each time, it is difficult to compare trades using won-denominated profit alone.
Suppose there are two trades as follows.
Trade A: planned loss KRW 50,000, actual profit KRW 100,000
Trade B: planned loss KRW 200,000, actual profit KRW 100,000
Both trades earned KRW 100,000, but their results relative to risk are different.
According to the author’s calculation,
R = Actual profit/loss ÷ risk amount planned before entry
so Trade A is +2R, while Trade B is +0.5R.
The R value is not an indicator that guarantees profits. It is a recording unit used to review the planned risk and actual result of different trades on the same basis.
A practical example of an easy-to-use trading journal
The figures below are hypothetical examples intended to show how to keep the record.
| Item | Example Record |
|---|---|
| Instrument | ABC |
| Direction | Buy |
| Entry Rationale | Confirmed support after a breakout above the previous high |
| Planned Entry Price | KRW 50,500 |
| Actual Entry Price | KRW 50,600 |
| Planned Stop-Loss Price | KRW 49,600 |
| Planned Risk | KRW 1,000 per share |
| Target Price | KRW 52,600 |
| Actual Exit Price | KRW 52,100 |
| Exit Reason | Trend condition broke before the target was reached |
| Result | +KRW 1,500/share |
| R Result | +1.5R |
| Plan Adherence | O |
| Next Action | Review a separate early-exit rule for the same condition |
According to the author’s calculation, the difference between the actual entry price of KRW 50,600 and the planned stop-loss price of KRW 49,600 is KRW 1,000 per share. Since the actual exit price is KRW 52,100, the profit/loss per share is +KRW 1,500, and the result is +1.5R.
What matters in this record is not the +1.5R itself, but the fact that you can reconstruct the initially planned risk and actual behavior later.
For losing trades, first check whether you followed the plan before asking ‘why did I lose?’
The value of a trading journal decreases if every losing trade is classified as a bad trade.
When reviewing, it is practical to separate the result from the process.
| Result | Plan Adherence | Review Direction |
|---|---|---|
| Profit | O | Check whether the condition is repeatable |
| Profit | X | Mark separately whether the result was accidental |
| Loss | O | Review strategy conditions and risk level |
| Loss | X | First correct the cause of the rule violation |
For example, if you group together as simply ‘losses’ a -1R trade where you followed the planned stop exactly and a trade where you delayed the stop and the loss grew to -3R, you will not be able to see what needs improvement.
It is better to use a trading journal as a record for checking whether you made a plan and whether you actually carried it out, rather than as a collection of stocks you got right.
Leave only one action immediately after the trade ends
Instead of writing a long self-critique in the review section, it is easier to manage if you record one action that you will actually change in the next trade.
Examples include the following.
Do not enter before the breakout is confirmed.
Do not arbitrarily widen the stop-loss after entry.
Do not average down unless it was planned.
If the same mistake repeats, stop new entries under that condition and review previous records first.
If you changed the target price, always record the reason for the change.
As the number of trades accumulates, you can count not only returns but also recurring patterns such as ‘trades that violated the plan,’ ‘trades where the stop-loss was changed,’ and ‘chasing entries.’
How much should stock and crypto trading journals be kept the same?
The core structure can be the same.
For both stocks and crypto, you can record the entry rationale, planned entry price, stop-loss criterion, target, actual execution price, profit/loss, and whether you followed the plan.
However, trading hours, cost structures such as fees and funding rates, order types, and execution methods may differ depending on the market and service used. Therefore, you should keep a common trading-journal framework while recording actual costs and order methods according to the brokerage or exchange you use.
A trading journal also does not guarantee investment performance. Its purpose is not to extrapolate past results into future profits, but to make it possible to review your own decision-making and risk-management process.
You can reduce the mixing of pre-trade and post-trade planning by filling in ‘entry rationale·planned stop-loss price·target price’ in the table before starting the trade, then completing ‘actual exit price·R result·plan adherence·next action’ after the trade ends.
※ This article is for reference to help understand market movements and is not a recommendation to invest in any specific stock or asset. Final judgment and investment responsibility rest with the individual.