Impermanent loss calculator
Providing liquidity to a pool earns trading fees, but when the two tokens' prices move apart you end up with less than if you had simply held them. Enter how much each price changed to see that gap.
Your share of the pool would be worth $14,142, against $15,000 if you had just held both tokens. The pool needs to earn $857.86 in fees to break even with holding.
- Value in the pool
- $14,142
- Value if held
- $15,000
- Fees needed to break even
- $857.86
- Price ratio change
- 2x
Impermanent loss when one token's price changes
| Price change | Impermanent loss |
|---|---|
| -90% | -42.5% |
| -75% | -20% |
| -50% | -5.7% |
| -25% | -1% |
| +25% | -0.6% |
| +50% | -2% |
| +100% | -5.7% |
| +200% | -13.4% |
| +300% | -20% |
| +400% | -25.5% |
| +900% | -42.5% |
How impermanent loss is calculated
A 50/50 constant-product pool, like Uniswap v2, keeps the value of both tokens equal. When one token rises, the pool sells some of it for the other, so you hold less of the winner. With r as the change in the price ratio, the loss against holding is 2√r ÷ (1 + r) − 1.
Only the ratio between the two prices matters: if both tokens rise by the same amount, there is no impermanent loss. It is called impermanent because it disappears if prices return to where they were when you deposited. It becomes permanent when you withdraw. Concentrated liquidity pools (Uniswap v3) can lose more within their range.
Putting a plan like this into practice
Kraken
Coinbase
Ledger
TrezorWe may earn a commission if you sign up through these links, at no cost to you. It never changes the numbers above. Disclosure.
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Questions
How much is impermanent loss at 2x?
If one token doubles against the other, impermanent loss is about 5.7%. At 3x it is about 13.4%, at 5x about 25.5%, and if one token falls 90% it is about 42.5%.
Can trading fees make up for impermanent loss?
Often, yes. The "fees needed to break even" figure shows how much the pool has to pay you over your deposit period. Busy pools with stable price ratios tend to cover it; volatile pairs often do not.
Is there impermanent loss with stablecoin pairs?
Very little, as long as both stablecoins hold their peg, because the price ratio barely moves. The risk comes if one of them loses its peg.