After a breached account, most traders ask the same question: what actually went wrong? Without records, the answer is a feeling. With a trading journal for prop traders, it is a list — the setup, the size, the rule that bent and the hour it happened.
This guide covers what to log on every trade, how to review it daily and weekly, and how to read fees and funding so they do not hide inside your totals.
Why a trading journal for prop traders matters more
A prop evaluation fixes the rules in advance: a profit target, a daily loss limit, a maximum loss and often a consistency rule. That makes your trading measurable against a known standard.
A journal shows not only whether you made money but how close each day came to a limit, which setups pay for the account, and whether your behaviour changes after a loss. That last pattern can quietly end an account, and it is hard to see without written records.
What to log on every trade
Automated records cover the numbers; your job is the context a fill cannot know. Write down the plan before the trade where you can, so the record is not rewritten by the outcome.
| Field | Why it matters |
|---|---|
| Setup name | Shows which patterns pay for the account and which drain it |
| Planned stop and target | Lets you compare the exit with the plan, not only the result |
| Risk in dollars and as a share of the daily limit | Keeps sizing tied to the rule that ends accounts |
| Entry and exit reason | Separates rule-based exits from fear or boredom |
| Fees and funding | Reveals costs that turn small winners into losers |
| Mindset before the trade | Flags revenge, boredom and overconfidence trades |
| Rule followed (yes or no) | The single most useful column in a review |
| Time and session | Finds the hours where your edge disappears |
What the QATS trade journal records
The QATS terminal includes a trade journal for each account. It lists every execution with its fill price, quantity, fees, duration, and gross and net P&L, and you can search it, filter it and export the full history.
Each execution also has room for a personal review: the setup, your mindset, a note on what you saw and whether the exit followed the plan, and tags such as “A-setup” or “news”. Filter by reviewed or unreviewed to find the trades you have not looked at yet.
The journal separates execution P&L from account P&L, including funding, which matters as soon as you hold positions across funding intervals.
Execution P&L vs account P&L
Two numbers describe the same trade. Execution P&L is the result of your fills after trading fees: entry, exit, size and commission. Account P&L is what the account actually gained or lost, which on perpetuals also includes funding paid or received while the position was open.
Review setups on execution P&L, because it measures your entries and exits. Check rules on account P&L, because that is the number the loss limits see. On a scalp the two are almost identical; on a position held for days they can drift apart by more than the fees.
| Line | Amount |
|---|---|
| Gross P&L from fills | +$300 |
| Trading fees | −$24 |
| Execution net P&L | +$276 |
| Funding paid while held | −$18 |
| Account net P&L | +$258 |
A ten-minute daily review
Keep the daily review short enough that you never skip it. Ten minutes after the session, before you look at anything else, work through five steps.
- Mark every trade as rule-followed or not before you look at the P&L.
- Write one line on the best and the worst trade: what you saw and why you exited.
- Note how much of the daily loss limit you used at the worst point of the day.
- Tag any trade taken after two losses in a row or outside your planned hours.
- Note tomorrow’s maximum-loss floor from Risk center and set a personal daily stop if you use one.
A weekly review that changes your trading
Once a week, group trades by setup and tag, and compare expectancy: (win rate × average win) − (loss rate × average loss). A setup with a high win rate can still lose money if its losers are large, and a setup you dislike can be the one paying for the account.
- Rank setups by expectancy and drop the weakest one for a week.
- Compare results by hour and weekday; crypto trades around the clock, but your edge may not.
- Add up fees and funding as a share of gross profit.
- List every day that came within half of the daily limit and what came before it.
- If you are in a QATS Crypto evaluation, check your best day against the 40% consistency rule.
Turn findings into rules
A journal only pays off when it changes behaviour. Convert each repeated mistake into a written rule with a clear trigger: “after two consecutive losses, stop for an hour”, “no entries in the first minutes after a major data release”, “at most three trades on Mondays”.
Enforce the rules you can automate. QATS supports a personal stop, an extra limit on top of the plan rules, shown in Risk center. Rehearse new rules on the free sandbox, which has virtual funds and the same server-side risk checks, before they matter on a paid evaluation.
Frequently asked questions
01What should a prop trader record in a trading journal?
At minimum: the setup, entry and exit, planned stop and target, size and risk in dollars, fees and funding, the reason for the exit, your mindset and whether you followed your rules. Automated fill data covers the numbers; you add the context.
02How often should I review my trading journal?
Briefly after every session and in depth once a week. The daily review catches rule slips while they are fresh; the weekly review shows which setups, hours and habits drive your results.
03Does QATS have a built-in trading journal?
Yes. The QATS terminal includes a trade journal with fill-level prices, quantities, fees and P&L, personal review fields and export, and it separates execution P&L from account P&L including funding.
04Is a spreadsheet good enough for a trading journal?
It can be, if you fill it in every day. Importing fills automatically removes copying errors, which is why a journal tied to the account is easier to keep honest. Add your own notes either way.
Educational content, not investment advice. QATS evaluations and initial funded accounts are simulated; payouts depend on eligibility, verification and the applicable agreement.