Futures grid bot FAQ

The Futures grid trading bot helps you automate futures trading by placing buy and sell orders across a set price range, with the potential to generate returns from changing market conditions. Unlike the Spot grid bot, it allows you to trade long, short, or neutral positions with leverage—offering more flexibility but also higher risks. With the new Edit Parameters feature, you can adjust your grid settings anytime without stopping the bot, making it easier to stay aligned with market movements.

Learn more on how you can manually set up your Futures grid bot here.

FAQ

1. How are orders initialized once I create my Futures grid bot?

Order initialization depends on the selected strategy direction: Long, Short, or Neutral.

• Long: the bot places buy orders at each grid level using your investment to open long positions. Some orders may be filled immediately, depending on the market price. The bot can only maintain long positions.

• Short: similar to Long, but sell orders are placed at each grid level to open short positions. Immediate fills are possible based on market conditions. The bot can only maintain short positions.

• Neutral: buy orders are placed at grid levels below the current market price, while sell orders are placed above. No position is opened at startup until the market hits one of the grid levels. The bot can maintain long or short positions based on market movements.

Order initialization process:

• Amount per grid: first, the bot calculates the amount per grid level (in terms of number of futures contracts) based on your total investment (not accounting for any reserved buffer) and chosen leverage ratio.

• Order creation: with the amount determined, the bot sets up the buy/sell orders as per your chosen direction.

Note:
For Long and Short modes, there's an option called "Open a position on creation" (enabled by default).
If disabled, the bot will only place orders so as to avoid opening a position upon initialization:

• In Long mode, only buy orders below the market price will be placed upon initialisation.

• In Short mode, only sell orders above the market price will be placed upon initialisation.

2. How does the Futures grid bot work in LONG mode, and how is the strategy maintained consistently?

Once you set up your Futures grid bot, it goes through the initialization process outlined here. In LONG mode, the bot begins by placing buy orders at each grid level within your selected price range.

Here’s how the LONG mode strategy is consistently and automatically maintained:

• Order execution and auto-replacement: whenever a buy order is filled (for example, the market hits a grid level), the bot automatically places a corresponding sell order at the next higher grid level—providing an opportunity to earn if the market moves favorably.

Example:
Suppose you configure a Futures grid bot for BTC/USDT with the following settings:

• Price range: 100,000 to 110,000 (for example)

• Number of grids: 10

• Leverage: 3x

• Current market price: 105,000

During initialization, the bot will place buy orders at each grid level:

• 100,000, 101,000, 102,000... up to 109,000.

• Order execution: buy orders at or above the current price (for example, 105,000) will be filled immediately.

• Sell order placement: when a buy order is filled, the bot places a sell order at the next grid level above (e.g., a buy at 105,000 being filled triggers a sell order placement at 106,000).
  This buy-sell pairing creates a complete grid cycle. Once both orders are filled, the profit is realized from the price difference.

• Continuous automation: this process loops automatically—buy low, sell high—until you stop the bot, ensuring consistent execution of the strategy without manual input.

Note:
If the “Open a position on creation” setting is disabled, the bot will only place BUY orders below the market price during initialization. In the above example, that means only buy orders up to 105,000 will be placed upon initialization. As the market price moves upward (for example, above 106,000), corresponding buy orders at higher grid levels will be activated dynamically.

The key benefit of disabling this setting is to avoid opening most positions upfront. Instead, the bot reacts to price movements, helping to reduce initial exposure while remaining responsive to market changes.

3. How does the Futures grid bot work in SHORT mode, and how is the strategy maintained without errors or interruptions?

Once your Futures grid bot is created, it undergoes the initialization process as described in here. In SHORT mode, the bot places sell orders across the grid levels within your chosen price range, aiming to profit from price declines.

Here’s how the SHORT mode strategy remains consistent and automated:

• Order execution and auto-replacement: whenever a sell order is filled (for example, the market reaches a grid level), the bot automatically places a corresponding buy order at the next lower grid level. This creates ongoing opportunities to profit as the market moves down.

Example:
Let’s say you configure a Futures grid bot for BTC/USDT with these settings:

• Price range: 100,000 to 110,000

• Number of grids: 10

• Leverage: 3x

• Current market price: 105,000

• Investment: USDT

During initialization, the bot will place sell orders at each grid level:

• 101,000, 102,000, 103,000 ... up to 110,000.

• Order execution: sell orders at or below the current price (for example, 105,000) will be filled immediately.

• Buy order placement: once the sell order is filled, the bot places a buy order at the next grid level down (for example, a sell at 105,000 being filled triggers a buy order placement at 104,000).
  This forms a sell-buy order group. Once both orders are filled, you earn the profit from the difference between the sell and buy prices.

• Continuous automation: this cycle—sell high, buy low—continues automatically until you manually stop the bot, aiming to keep the strategy running smoothly.

Note:
If the “Open a position on creation” setting is disabled, the bot will only place SELL orders above the current market price during initialization. In the example above, this means only orders from 106,000 upward will be placed at the start. If the market price drops (for example, below 104,000), corresponding sell orders at those lower levels will be placed dynamically.

This setting helps reduce initial exposure by avoiding the opening of most positions upfront. Instead, the bot adapts to price movements, making it more responsive and conservative in its initial positioning.

4. How does the Futures grid bot work in NEUTRAL mode, and how is the strategy maintained without errors or interruptions?

When you create a Futures grid bot in NEUTRAL mode, it goes through the standard initialization process. Unlike LONG or SHORT modes, NEUTRAL mode is designed to profit from price fluctuations in both directions, placing both buy and sell orders across the grid levels simultaneously.

Here’s how the NEUTRAL strategy is executed and maintained automatically:

• Dual Order Placement: The bot places buy orders below the market price and sell orders above the market price, creating a balanced grid that captures profits from both upward and downward movements.

Example:
Suppose you set up a NEUTRAL Futures grid bot for BTC/USDT with the following settings:

• Price range: 100,000 to 110,000

• Number of grids: 10

• Leverage: 3x

• Current market price: 105,000

• Investment: USDT

At initialization, the bot will place:

• Buy orders at 100,000, 101,000, 102,000, 103,000, 104,000

• Sell orders at 106,000, 107,000, 108,000, 109,000, 110,000

• Order execution: as the price fluctuates, buy or sell orders are triggered.

• Counter-order placement: once a buy order is filled (e.g., at 104,000), a sell order is placed at the next higher grid level (105,000). Conversely, if a sell order is filled (e.g., at 106,000), a buy order is placed at the next lower grid level (105,000).
  Each buy-sell or sell-buy pair forms a complete trading cycle, aiming to profit from market volatility in either direction.

• Automatic repetition: this cycle repeats continuously as long as the bot is running, ensuring that the grid strategy is followed consistently without manual input.

5. My Futures grid bot stopped without me configuring any stops. Why did this happen?

One of the most common reasons is liquidation. If you were using high leverage and the market moved against your position, your bot may have been liquidated—which may result in the loss of the capital allocated to that position and causing the bot to stop. This is an inherent risk of futures trading.

Other, less frequent reasons include:

• The trading pair was delisted. In such cases, an official announcement is posted on the website, and affected users are notified.

• You were copying a bot from a lead trader, and that trader’s bot was manually stopped or closed, which also stops your copy bot.

If none of these apply (for example, the bot wasn’t liquidated, the trading pair wasn’t delisted, and it's not a copy bot), please reach out to our OK Assistant on Support Center with your bot ID for further assistance.

6. Why are there many PnL metrics displayed on my Futures grid bot, and which PnL is the true bot PnL?

The Total PnL is the key metric for tracking your bot's overall performance. It reflects the change in your bot’s equity over time, factoring in all gains and losses. It's calculated by comparing your current bot equity (based on live market prices) with your initial equity when the bot was created—plus or minus any top-ups or withdrawals.

Example:
If you started a bot with 100 USDT, and the current bot equity is 200 USDT, your Total PnL = 200 - 100 = 100 USDT.

This figure includes:

• Realized profits from completed trades

• Unrealized PnL from open positions

• Trading fees

• Funding fees

For visualization purposes, the Total PnL is broken down into two additional metrics:

• Grid Profits

• Unpaired PnL

These metrics provide more granular insights into your bot’s performance but are also estimations requiring approximations. Total PnL serves as a comprehensive measure of performance, as it takes all factors into account.

7. How is the “Grid Profits” value calculated?

Grid Profits reflect the estimated realized gains generated from completed grid cycles—each consisting of one buy followed by one sell within the grid range.

The value is calculated by summing up all individual profits from successfully executed grid trades, as recorded in your transaction history.

It's important to note that Grid Profits only represent income from completed grids and do not include:

• Unrealized PnL from open positions

• Trading fees outside of completed grid order groups

• Funding fees (in the case of Futures)

As a result, Total PnL provides a more comprehensive view of your bot’s overall performance, while Grid Profits serve as a useful breakdown of profits specifically from grid execution.

Example of how Grid Profits are calculated for an order group:

8. I tried to manually evaluate my profit for an order group in the order history of my Futures grid bot, but the profit seems significantly smaller than what I expected. Why could this be?

This difference in calculated profit is likely due to how initialization orders are handled for visualization purposes. Here’s why:

• Bot initialization orders:

  • When you first create your Futures grid bot, some of the buy and sell orders may be filled at better prices compared to their theoretical grid levels.

  • Example: If you set up a BTC/USDT grid with a range of 100,000 to 110,000 and 10 grids, and the market price is 102,000 at initialization, your theoretical buy orders above 102,000 will be placed between 103,000 and 109,000.

  • However, at initialization, these buy orders are filled at the market price (around 102,000).

• Profit calculation for order groups:

  • Let's say the top-most grid in your bot (between 109,000 to 110,000) has a sell order executed at 110,000.

  • You might expect the profit to be calculated based on a buy price of 102,000 and a sell price of 110,000.

  • However, for visualization purposes, the bot will consider the buy price to be the theoretical 109,000 (the price at which the grid was set up) rather than the actual market price at the time of the order fill.

  • As a result, the profit displayed for this order group will appear lower than expected.

• Where the profit goes:

  • This is only a visualization consideration. The bot’s Total PnL is still accurate and reflects the actual profit.

  • Any profits that are not included in the visualized order group (for example, profits from fills at better prices than their theoretical ones) will be accounted for under Unpaired PnL.

9. How is the field "Unpaired PnL" calculated?

As noted earlier, Total PnL is a comprehensive measure of your bot’s overall profit or loss, as it takes all components into account. While Grid Profits represent estimated realized gains from completed grid cycles, Unpaired PnL accounts for the remaining portion of the Total PnL that cannot be attributed to those completed grids. In other words, Unpaired PnL = Total PnL - Grid Profits. This typically includes partially executed grid orders—such as when only the buy leg has been filled and the corresponding sell order is still pending, as well as any funding fees or trading fees not accounted under Grid Profits. Like Grid Profits, Unpaired PnL is for display purposes and follows a predefined calculation methodology.

10. What's the "Auto-Reserve Margin" option when creating a Futures grid bot? What does reserving margin mean?

When setting up a Futures grid bot, your total investment is split into two parts:

• Active investment – the portion used to place grid orders

• Reserve margin – funds held aside as a buffer

Purpose of reserve margin:

The reserve margin isn't used to place grid orders. Instead, it serves as a protective buffer that can help:

• May reduce the risk of liquidation

• Cover funding fees incurred during the bot's operation

What does "Auto-Reserve Margin" do?

If you enable Auto-Reserve Margin, the system will automatically allocate a default portion of your investment to be reserved. This reserved amount won’t be used for trading but will act as a safety net.

If you'd prefer more control, you can manually adjust how much of your investment is actively used for grid orders versus how much is held in reserve.

After the bot is running:

At any time, you can choose to add or remove reserve margin, giving you full control over your risk exposure and margin levels.

Note:
Changing your reserve margin will affect your liquidation price. It’s generally recommended to maintain a sufficient reserve margin to help lower the risk of liquidation—especially during volatile market conditions.

11. Can I edit my bot parameters once my bot is active? How does it work, and are there any risks?

Yes, you can edit core parameters—such as the price range and number of grids—while your Futures grid bot is running. However, doing so triggers a re-initialization process, which effectively resets your bot’s orders based on the new configuration and current market conditions. This may result in existing positions being closed at market prices, potentially at a loss. Here’s how it works:

Example:
You initially set up a BTC/USDT bot with:

• Range: 100,000 to 110,000

• Grids: 10

• Investment: 1,000 USDT

• Market price at start: ~102,000

After a few days, BTC rises to 108,000, and your bot completes several grid cycles. If you now expect BTC to range between 105,000 and 115,000, you decide to edit the bot range.Here’s what happens next:

1. Re-initialization: your bot will cancel all existing orders and generate new buy/sell orders based on the updated range and your current assets—without stopping the bot.

2. Current asset usage: say your bot currently holds 900 USDT and 0.001 BTC worth of open positions (BTCUSDT perpetual). These assets will be used to place new grid orders, and in some cases, this may involve selling or buying assets at market price to align with the new grid structure.

3. Fresh start, same bot: this process is similar to manually stopping the bot and creating a new one, but it happens automatically—streamlining the transition while keeping the bot active.

4. Order groups reset: all previous order groups will be cleared. A new set of grid orders will be generated according to your new settings.

Risks and considerations:

• Market orders may be triggered: asset reallocation during re-initialization can involve buying or selling at the current market price, which may lead to losses if price movements are unfavorable.

• Consider manual reset: if you're not comfortable with automatic re-initialization, you can stop the bot manually, withdraw assets, and create a new bot with your preferred settings.

• Grid Profits are reinvested: any realized grid profits not yet withdrawn or used will be reinvested into the bot during the update.

• Reserved margin remains untouched: any portion of your investment originally set aside as reserved margin (for example, not used to place orders) will remain as-is and won’t be used in the new order setup.

• Liquidation price may change: adjusting your bot settings can significantly impact your liquidation price. You may want to add extra margin manually after editing to reduce risk.

Additionally, you can modify your exit conditions—such as Take Profit (TP), Stop Loss (SL), or other stop triggers—at any time without affecting the grid structure.

12. Can I add investment to my bot while it’s running? How does it work, and are there any risks?

Yes, you can add more investment to your bot at any time in the same investment currency used when the bot was created. Here’s how it works:

• Buffer reserved: when you add funds, a small portion is automatically held as a buffer which may help to protect against liquidation. The remaining amount becomes available for grid trading.

• Dynamic allocation: based on current market conditions and your updated total investment, the bot will determine how much to increase the order size per grid.

• Order group adjustments:

  • For pending grid orders (for example, a buy order in a LONG bot that hasn't been filled yet), the order size will be immediately updated to reflect the increased amount.

  • For active grid cycles where the first order has already been filled (for example, the buy is filled and the sell is pending), the order size will not be updated immediately. However, once the full cycle is completed and a new grid cycle begins, the new amount will be applied.

• Gradual update across grids:
  Over time, as older grid cycles complete and new ones are created, all grids will reflect the increased investment amount.

13. How is the liquidation price estimated for a Futures grid bot?

For Futures grid bots, the liquidation price is calculated at two key stages:

• Before bot creation, and

• Continuously after the bot is running.

During the bot creation:

An estimated liquidation price is provided before the bot is launched, taking into account:

• Your leverage setting

• The initial investment

• The potential impact of grid orders that could be filled as the market moves toward the liquidation threshold

This gives you a forward-looking view based on the assumption that some orders may get executed before reaching the liquidation point.

For active bots:

Once the bot is live, the liquidation price is dynamically updated in real time. It's recalculated based on:

• The current open position

• The remaining orders in the grid that could be filled on the way to liquidation

• Any free margin available in your bot

Because both your position and the grid order queue can evolve with market activity, the estimated liquidation price can change frequently.

Note:
The liquidation price shown in the interface is an estimate only, intended for reference. Due to rapid market changes, the actual liquidation price may differ slightly at the time of execution.

Special case – neutral grid:

In Neutral mode, a bot may hold both long and short positions at different times during its lifecycle. Therefore, you may see both long and short liquidation estimates displayed, depending on the bot's current exposure.

14. What actions are copied when I copy a profit-sharing bot from a lead trader in the Marketplace?

Note: the following applies specifically when copying a bot under the profit-sharing model from a lead trader.

When you copy a bot, most of the basic settings, such as the grid range, number of grids and direction, will be inherited from the lead trader’s bot, though outcomes may still vary. Advanced settings, like entry/exit conditions, will also be copied over. Some core settings might be hidden from view as they were special configurations chosen by the lead trader. You’ll be able to choose your investment amount and independently decide how much to set aside as a buffer to help prevent liquidation, as well as modify the leverage ratio to your suiting.

It’s important to note that actions performed by the lead bot during operation, such as editing parameters, or adding investments will not be copied to the bot you’re running. Additionally, if the lead bot is stopped, the copied bot will also stop automatically, with any assets being sold at market price.

15. How can I stop my Futures grid bot?

You have multiple ways to stop your Futures grid bot, both manually and automatically:

• Manually stopping the bot:

  • To stop your bot manually, simply open the Bot Details window and click the Stop button.

  • If you're not a lead bot trader, you will be presented with two options:

    • Sell your bot assets at market price, or

    • Stop the bot while keeping your existing position intact, allowing you to manage it manually afterward

Note: lead bot traders are only able to stop the bot and sell assets at the market price.

• Setting exits at bot creation:

  • You can set your Take Profit (TP) and Stop Loss (SL) levels when creating the bot.

  • These settings can also be edited at any time while the bot is running, allowing you to adjust your strategy as needed.

  • Once your TP/SL is activated, the bot will act according to your settings and may sell your assets at the market price if you've configured it to do so.

• Setting Stop Conditions:

  • For greater customization, you can configure Stop Conditions based on:

    • Price or RSI triggers

    • TradingView signals

  • Once a stop condition is activated, the bot will act according to your settings and may sell your assets at the market price if you've configured it to do so.