Skip to main content
Trading Journal

What to Record in Your Journal

Pomegra Learn

What to Record in Your Journal?

A trading journal is only as useful as the data you put into it. If you log only trade dates and profit/loss, you cannot identify patterns. If you log too much, you will give up journaling after a week because the process becomes overwhelming. The solution is a structured trading journal template that captures exactly what matters: enough data to identify your edge, but not so much that logging becomes a chore.

This article walks through the essential fields, why each matters, and how to organize them so you can spot patterns quickly. You will learn what separates a useful journal from a notebook full of noise.

Quick definition: A trading journal template is a standardized form or spreadsheet with fields for trade date, entry/exit prices, position size, outcome, market context, reasoning, and emotional state. It ensures consistent data capture so patterns are easy to spot during review.

Key takeaways​

  • Record seven core fields for every trade: date, entry price, exit price, position size, profit/loss, time held, and outcome status.
  • Add contextual fields: market setup, entry reason, exit reason, and any rules you broke.
  • Track emotional state and mental clarity; this reveals whether your best trades happen in calm focus or adrenaline-fueled speed.
  • Use consistent categories (e.g., "momentum," "reversal," "breakout") so you can filter and compare trades by type.
  • Review and iterate on your template; as you trade, you'll discover which fields actually predict your edge and which are noise.

The seven core fields every trade needs​

1. Trade date and time in​

A timestamp is non-negotiable. You need the date to organize trades chronologically. The entry time (hour and minute, at minimum) matters because different market hours have different volatility, liquidity, and patterns.

Many traders trade only specific hours. Noting your entry time lets you compare a 9:30 a.m. trade to a 2:00 p.m. trade and spot whether one timeframe favors your strategy. Your edge might be a 62% win rate between 10:00 a.m. and noon, but a 48% win rate in the final hour before close.

2. Entry price and exit price​

These are your objective anchors. Record the exact price you entered and the exact price you exited—not the price you should have entered, not the price you think you got, but the actual fill price from your broker.

Entry and exit prices let you calculate pips, points, or percentages gained/lost. More importantly, they let you spot slippage patterns. If your strategy wins 58% on backtest but only 52% in live trading, the difference is often slippage—you're entering <0.03% worse than expected, or exiting <0.05% worse. Over hundreds of trades, that <0.05% slippage adds up to real money. Only actual prices reveal this.

3. Position size (shares, contracts, or currency)​

Log the actual size you traded. This matters because your position size is a lever on your risk. A <1% win on a 100-share position is <$100. A <1% win on a 1,000-share position is <$1,000. When you review trades, you need to know whether your win came from a good setup or from overleveraging.

Recording size also forces you to acknowledge violations. If your rule is "trade 100 shares per signal" but you log a 150-share trade, you have documented a rule break. Over time, you notice that your 150-share trades perform worse (because you're less focused), and that becomes evidence you should stick to your rule.

4. Profit or loss in dollars (and/or pips)​

This is your outcome. Record both dollars (what you actually made or lost) and pips or points (the market movement you captured). Dollars tell you if you're profitable; pips tell you if your strategy works when risk is equal.

A trader who makes <$300 on a 20-pip win but loses <$600 on a 15-pip loss has a strategy that moves in the right direction but loses money because of poor risk management, not because the setup doesn't work. Logging both pips and dollars separates skill (picking the direction) from risk management (sizing correctly).

5. Time held (in minutes or bars)​

How long you held the trade matters because it reveals patterns in your exits. Some traders hold winners too briefly and losers too long. Some exit too early before their target is hit. Some hold way too long hoping for more profit.

Logging time held lets you sort by it: "What is my average hold time for winning trades vs. losing trades?" If you hold winners for an average of 3 minutes and losers for 12 minutes, you have a glaring problem. If you hold winners for 15 minutes and exit most losers in <5 minutes, that's discipline.

6. Outcome status (win, loss, or breakeven)​

A binary outcome classification. Was the trade profitable, unprofitable, or flat? This is how you calculate win rate. Keep it simple: win, loss, breakeven. Some traders add "win <$500," "win <$500–1,000," "loss <$500," etc., to spot patterns in trade size.

7. Trade type or setup category​

Assign every trade to a category: momentum, reversal, breakout, pullback, fade, range, support/resistance bounce, or whatever categories apply to your system. This is critical because you might have a 52% win rate overall, but a 68% win rate on momentum setups and a 38% win rate on reversals.

By categorizing trades consistently, you can filter your journal and calculate win rates per setup. This reveals your true edge and where you should focus (and where you should stop trading).

The context layer: why you entered and what you saw​

Every trade needs a reason. Log it in one sentence or a few bullet points: "3-bar high momentum, strong volume, above 20-MA" or "Pullback to support after gap-up, RSI oversold" or "Breakout from consolidation, catalyst announcement."

This reason section is where you document whether you followed your checklist. If your rule is "only trade momentum when above the 20-day moving average and volume is <20% above average," note whether these conditions were met. Later, when you review, you can filter to "trades that met the checklist" vs. "trades I entered anyway" and compare their win rates.

Also note what you expected to happen: "I expected a bounce to the 50-MA" or "I expected this breakout to follow through for at least 15 pips." This lets you later assess whether you exited too early, held too long, or were wrong about the expected move. Sometimes your setup is right but your profit target was unrealistic.

The emotional and mental layer​

Before you dismiss emotion as irrelevant, know this: most traders' best trades happen in a calm, focused mental state, and their worst trades happen after they have taken a big loss, made a quick win, or skipped their routine. Recording this information is the difference between a spreadsheet and a diagnostic tool.

Log a brief note: "Calm and focused" or "Anxious after two quick losses" or "Overconfident after <$2K win" or "Tired, almost skipped checklist." One word is often enough: focused, anxious, overconfident, tired, scattered, angry.

When you review your journal, sort by emotion and compare win rates. If your win rate is 58% when calm but 41% when anxious, you have evidence that your mental state matters. You might decide to stop trading on days when you feel anxious, or you might set a stricter rule (like taking only half-size trades) when you're not in your best state.

Decision tree​

Real-world examples​

Example 1: The template that reveals emotional trading. A trader logs 50 trades over two weeks. Her win rate is 54%, but when she sorts by emotional state, she notices something stark:

  • Trades logged as "focused" have a 62% win rate (21 wins of 34 trades)
  • Trades logged as "anxious" have a 29% win rate (3 wins of 10 trades)
  • Trades logged as "overconfident" have a 50% win rate (1 win of 2 trades)

She decides to stop trading on days when she feels anxious. The next month, she only logs focused and confident trades, her win rate jumps to 59%, and her average hold time increases from 4 minutes to 7 minutes (she's less eager to exit in fear). The template forced her to see a pattern she could not have spotted without data.

Example 2: The setup-type filter that identifies the real edge. A trader keeps a journal with a "Setup Type" field and trades three patterns: breakouts, pullbacks, and fades. After 100 trades, he reviews his journal and calculates:

  • Breakouts: 58% win rate, average win <$720, average loss <$560
  • Pullbacks: 52% win rate, average win <$680, average loss <$680
  • Fades: 41% win rate, average win <$600, average loss <$850

He sees that fades are dragging down his overall performance. He stops trading fades and focuses on breakouts and pullbacks. His win rate jumps to 55% and his average win increases to <$700. The journal revealed that his edge is only in two of the three setups he had been trading equally.

Common mistakes​

  • Logging too many fields: If your template has 20 fields, you'll quit journaling after 10 trades. Start with the seven core fields and two optional fields (context and emotion). Add more later only if you find them useful.

  • Being vague about entry reason: "Looked good" or "market was moving" tells you nothing. Force yourself to be specific: "RSI divergence + breakout above yesterday's high + volume spike." Specific reasons let you later filter to that exact setup and compare results.

  • Forgetting to log the actual prices: Logging "I made money" is useless. Log the actual entry and exit. This is the only way to calculate your win rate per setup or spot slippage patterns.

  • Not categorizing trades consistently: If you log one trade as "momentum" and a similar one as "breakout," you cannot compare them. Define your categories at the start and stick to them, even if a trade feels like it might fit two categories.

FAQ​

What if I'm trading multiple timeframes or instruments?​

Add a field for instrument (ticker/pair) and timeframe (5-minute, daily, etc.). This lets you calculate win rates by instrument and timeframe. You might discover your edge only works in certain instruments or on certain timeframes.

Should I include commissions and slippage in my logged P&L?​

Yes. Your P&L should reflect what actually hit your account. If you made 15 pips but lost <$200 to commissions and slippage, log your outcome as a loss or breakeven, not a win. This is real money.

How detailed should my "reason for entry" note be?​

One sentence is usually enough. "3-bar high, above 50-MA, volume spike" gives you enough detail to later filter to that exact setup. "Looked like a reversal" is too vague.

Can I log trades I didn't take?​

Yes. Some traders keep a "trades not taken" section where they log setups that met their criteria but they passed on (out of caution, position limit, etc.), then check if those would have been profitable. This teaches you when you were too conservative.

Should I log P&L as dollars or percentages?​

Log dollars, because that's what you care about—money in your account. You can calculate percentages from position size and pips/points if needed. Percentages can hide position-sizing mistakes.

What if I forgot to log a trade until the next day?​

Log it anyway, but note that you're adding it late. From that point forward, log immediately (within an hour of exit). The longer you wait, the more details you'll forget about your emotional state and market context.

Summary​

A trading journal template needs seven core fields: trade date/time, entry price, exit price, position size, profit/loss, time held, and setup type. Beyond these, add contextual fields for your entry reason and expected move, and emotional fields to note your mental state. Consistency matters more than perfection—use the same categories every time, log actual prices and sizes, and be specific about why you entered. The better your template, the faster you'll identify patterns that reveal your real edge.

Next​

Entry: Documentation and Setup Context