How to Set a Daily Loss Limit in NinjaTrader 8

This article explains how to enforce a daily loss limit in NinjaTrader 8. If you want to know what a daily loss limit is, how each firm measures it and how much it is on each plan, that's in Daily loss limit in prop firms.

Short answer: NinjaTrader 8 desktop has no native daily loss limit. You have three options:

1. On your broker's server, if you have a personal account with NinjaTrader Brokerage or Tradovate.
2. On Rithmic's server, with R|Trader Pro's Auto-Liquidate, if your account lets you edit it.
3. Inside NinjaTrader with an AddOn, such as our free Risk Guardian.

The most solid setup combines a server-side option with the AddOn. Let's go step by step.

Before you start: what number to use

Check your firm's limit for your phase. Many firms use a different limit in the evaluation and on the funded account, and some have none. You'll find it per firm in the comparator.

Set yours lower. The automatic exit fills after the cutoff is crossed, and in a fast move that's several points. Example with a 50K account and a firm limit of $1,000:

If your firm has no daily loss limit, set one anyway. Without it, one bad day can eat the whole drawdown.

Risk a fraction of the limit per trade. With $800 a day and $200 per trade, you get four attempts. To size contracts from your stop, use the free Risk Reward tool.

Option 1: on the NinjaTrader Brokerage or Tradovate server

Use this if you have a personal account with NinjaTrader Brokerage or Tradovate.

1. Log in to your account's web dashboard. Risk settings aren't in the desktop platform.
2. Open the account's Risk Settings.
3. Enter the daily loss limit in dollars. Optionally add the weekly limit and the trailing drawdown.
4. Save before the session starts.

Once the limit is hit, the account can't place new orders until the next session. It works even if you close NinjaTrader, because it runs on the server.

If it's a prop firm account on Tradovate, the firm sets these limits. Some firms let you add your own and others lock the settings once the evaluation starts. Ask yours.

Option 2: Rithmic Auto-Liquidate in R|Trader Pro

Use this if your account runs on Rithmic and lets you edit risk.

1. Open R|Trader Pro with your Rithmic login.
2. Go to the Trader Panel.
3. Right-click the account.
4. Pick an Auto Liquidate criterion. For a fixed loss, Loss Limit. There's also minimum account balance, percentage of cash on hand lost and trailing minimum account balance.
5. Enter the value and check it before confirming.

Two warnings. On many prop firm accounts, Rithmic risk is managed by the firm and you won't be able to change it. And changing limits or cash on hand while the account is live can trigger an unexpected liquidation.

Option 3: inside NinjaTrader with the Risk Guardian

The Risk Guardian is a free AddOn we built for NinjaTrader 8. It watches each account with its own rules and, when the daily loss is hit, cancels orders, flattens the position and locks the account until the daily reset. It works with any NinjaTrader connection: Rithmic, Tradovate or others.

Install it

1. Download the .zip from the Risk Guardian page and don't unzip it.
2. In the NinjaTrader 8 Control Center: Tools → Import → NinjaScript Add-On… and pick the .zip.
3. Accept and wait for it to compile. If you had an older version, accept to overwrite it.
4. In the Control Center: New → ETF Risk Guardian. The guardian window opens. After that, it reopens with your workspace.

Set the daily loss limit

1. In the list on the left, select the account. You can select several and edit them at once.
2. Tick Protect.
3. In Daily loss limit ($), enter your limit. 0 means no limit.
4. In Safety buffer ($), set how early you want it to cut. The default is $100.
5. Optional: in Prop firm template, pick your firm and phase and click Fill in. Check the values against your firm's dashboard.
6. Click Save.

The guardian counts the day's loss as balance plus open P/L. It checks P/L every half second and whenever NinjaTrader updates the account.

What happens when the limit is hit

• It cancels that account's orders.
• It flattens the positions.
• It locks the account until the daily reset: 17:00 Chicago time by default, the CME one.

While the lock lasts, it cancels any order that opens or adds to a position and closes anything that fills, including orders coming from a copier. Orders that reduce a position, such as stops and targets, are left alone.

Strict mode

It's on by default and exists for the moment you'd want to break your own limit:

• A lock can't be lifted until the daily reset.
• Anything that tightens a limit applies immediately. Anything that loosens it waits until the next day.
• The drawdown floor can only be raised.

If you want to end the day early, the Lock today button locks the account right away.

Test it in simulation first

Give a simulation account a small daily loss limit, say $50, and open a position until you hit it. You'll see the flatten and the lock. Keep in mind that with strict mode that account stays locked until the daily reset.

What the AddOn can't do

• It runs on your PC. If NinjaTrader closes, freezes or loses its connection, it doesn't protect you. That's why it's worth having a server-side limit too.
• NinjaTrader doesn't let an AddOn veto an order before it's sent. The guardian cancels it as soon as it appears and, if it fills, flattens the position immediately.
• The exit fills after the limit. Between P/L crossing the cutoff and the order filling there's slippage and commissions. Size the safety buffer to your position: $100 is plenty for one MNQ and too little for several NQ.
• Strict mode protects you inside NinjaTrader. It can't stop you from deleting the AddOn with the platform closed.

Which setup to use

To see what other tools exist, free and paid, read NinjaTrader risk manager: free and paid options compared.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does NinjaTrader 8 have a daily loss limit?

Not in the desktop platform. The native limit is on the server, in the risk settings of NinjaTrader Brokerage and Tradovate accounts. For Rithmic or prop firm accounts, the way to set it inside NinjaTrader is an AddOn.

What limit should I set if my firm's daily loss limit is $1,000?

A lower one, with room for slippage. For example, $800 with a $100 safety buffer: the AddOn cuts at −$700 and you still have $200 before the firm's limit.

Does the limit count my open position?

In the Risk Guardian, yes: the day's loss is balance plus open P/L. Firms usually count open P/L too, so a position going against you can hit the limit before you've closed anything.

Can I remove the lock if I make a mistake?

With strict mode, no: it lasts until the daily reset. Without strict mode, only if you turn on "Allow manual unlock" in the general settings, which is off by default.

Does it protect me if the power or internet goes out?

The AddOn doesn't: it runs on your PC. Your broker's or firm's server-side limits do. That's why the recommended setup is to have both.

Keep reading

• Daily loss limit in prop firms: what it is and which firms use it
• NinjaTrader risk manager: free and paid options compared
• Free NinjaTrader 8 risk manager: Risk Guardian
• Risk management in futures trading
• NinjaTrader 8 tutorial