What is Risk : Reward?
Risk : Reward (R:R) is the single most important number on every trade plan after your stop loss. It compares how much you stand to lose vs how much you stand to gain — and it sets the minimum win rate you must beat to be profitable long-term.
The break-even math nobody teaches
At 1:1 R:R you need to win 50% of trades just to break even. At 1:2 R:R you only need 33.3%. At 1:3 R:R you only need 25%. This is why professional traders obsess over high-R:R setups — the math does the work.
QbarTrade rule of thumb
Never take a trade with R:R below 1:1.5. If your trading journal shows your win rate is below your break-even win rate for 30+ trades, the problem isn't your strategy — it's the R:R you're accepting. Pair this with the Position Size Calculator to size every trade correctly.