One of the most underrated skills in trading — whether you’re in crypto, forex, or stocks — is record-keeping. Tracking your trades is the backbone of consistent improvement. Without a proper system, you’ll rely on memory, and memory is biased. It will trick you into thinking you’re a better trader than you actually are or make you repeat the same mistakes.
In this post, I’ll break down exactly how I use Google Sheets to track every single trade. This isn’t theory — it’s the actual system I’ve refined over months of trial and error. I’ll explain why I use Google Sheets instead of fancy apps, what columns I include, how I analyze the data, and the insights I’ve gained that changed the way I trade.
Why Google Sheets and Not a Paid App?
There are tons of paid tools for tracking trades — some even sync directly to your exchange. But I prefer Google Sheets for three reasons:
Free and accessible: You can open it from anywhere — your phone, laptop, or tablet — and it syncs instantly.Customizable: I can add or remove columns whenever I want without being stuck with a rigid format.Teaches discipline: Manually entering trades makes you more aware of your decisions. It forces you to slow down and think.
When you log trades manually, you start asking yourself:
“Is this trade really worth writing down? Does it fit my plan?”
This extra friction has saved me from impulsive trades more times than I can count.
Step 1: Setting Up the Sheet Structure
The first thing I did was create a new Google Sheet titled “Trading Journal.” I added a header row with the following columns:
Date — When I opened the trade.Pair — For example, BTC/USDT, ETH/USDT.Direction — Long or short.Entry Price — The exact price I entered.Position Size — How much I risked.Stop Loss — My exit point if the trade goes against me.Take Profit — My target price.Risk (in %) — How much of my account I’m risking on this trade.Risk-Reward Ratio — Target vs stop.Actual Exit Price — Where I closed the trade.Result (Win/Loss) — Self-explanatory.Profit/Loss ($) — How much I made or lost in dollars.Profit/Loss (%) — Percentage gain or loss relative to my account.Notes — What I saw on the chart and why I entered.
This might sound like a lot, but trust me — the details matter. A basic journal with just entry and exit prices won’t help you identify why you’re winning or losing.
Optional Columns I Use
Once I got comfortable, I added some extra columns:
Market Conditions — Was Bitcoin trending, ranging, or volatile?Setup Type — Breakout, pullback, scalp, swing.Mistakes — If I broke my rules, I write it here.Emotional State — Was I calm, FOMO-ing, overconfident, or tired?
These extra notes have helped me spot psychological patterns that cost me money.
Step 2: Automating Calculations
One of the best things about Google Sheets is formulas. You don’t need to calculate everything manually.
Profit/Loss ($):
=(Exit Price – Entry Price) * Position Size (or reversed for shorts)Profit/Loss (%):
=(Profit or Loss $ / Account Balance) * 100Risk-Reward Ratio:
=(Entry Price – Take Profit) / (Entry Price – Stop Loss) (absolute values for shorts)
These formulas update automatically, so I just enter the raw trade data and the sheet does the rest.
Step 3: Tracking Risk Per Trade
If you don’t know how much you’re risking on each trade, you’re gambling, not trading. That’s why my journal includes Risk (in %). I use this formula:
Risk % = (Entry Price – Stop Loss) * Position Size / Account Balance
If it’s over 2%, I know I’ve broken my rule. This simple check has saved me from oversized positions that could blow my account.
Step 4: Logging Every Trade Without Excuses
This is where most traders fail — they skip logging losing trades because it feels uncomfortable. But your losses are the most valuable lessons.
When I started journaling, I promised myself:
“Every single trade goes into the sheet — good or bad.”
Even the impulsive ones, even the stupid ones. Why? Because those trades reveal the habits I need to fix.
Step 5: Reviewing the Data Weekly
Tracking trades is useless if you never analyze the data. Every Sunday, I spend 30 minutes reviewing my sheet. Here’s what I look for:
Win rate: What percentage of my trades are winners?Average risk-reward ratio: Am I cutting winners too early?Profit factor: Total profit vs total loss.Setup performance: Which setups are making me money? Which ones suck?Emotional mistakes: Do I trade worse when tired or after a losing streak?
This review is where the real improvement happens. For example, I discovered that 70% of my losses came from trades I entered outside of my plan. That insight alone made me tighten my discipline.
Step 6: Visualizing Results with Charts
Numbers are great, but visuals hit harder. I use Google Sheets charts to track:
Equity curve: A line chart showing account growth (or drawdown).Win vs loss ratio: A pie chart.Setup success rate: A bar chart comparing breakout vs pullback vs scalp trades.
When you see your equity curve flattening or dipping, it’s a wake-up call. When you see one setup outperforming others, you know where to focus.
What I Learned From Tracking Every Trade
After months of using this system, here are my biggest takeaways:
1. Overtrading Was Killing Me
When I saw how many trades I took in a week, I realized I was trading out of boredom, not opportunity. Logging trades slowed me down.
2. My Best Setups Were Obvious
The data showed that my breakout trades had a 65% win rate, but my scalp trades were barely 40%. I stopped scalping altogether.
3. Small Mistakes Add Up
I thought I was following my rules, but the notes column exposed all the little rule breaks — late entries, early exits, no stop loss. Once I saw them in writing, I couldn’t ignore them.
4. Emotions Matter More Than I Thought
The emotional state column was a game changer. Most of my losing trades happened when I was stressed or trying to “make back losses.” Now, if I’m emotional, I don’t trade.
How You Can Start Today
If you want to build a similar system, here’s what you need to do right now:
Open Google Sheets and create the columns I mentioned.Add formulas for P/L and risk-reward.Log your next 50 trades — without skipping any.Review weekly and adjust your strategy based on real data.
Don’t wait until you blow an account to take journaling seriously. The sooner you start, the sooner you’ll become the trader you want to be.
Final Thoughts
Trading is 80% psychology and 20% execution, but you can’t fix your psychology without seeing your behavior in black and white. That’s what a trading journal does — it forces accountability.
Google Sheets might not look as sexy as a paid app, but it’s powerful, customizable, and free. It’s helped me cut bad habits, refine my edge, and grow as a trader.
If you’re serious about trading, start tracking your trades today.
Because if you don’t measure it, you can’t improve it.
How I Use Google Sheets to Track Every Trade was originally published in Coinmonks on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.