Guide
EUR/USD liquidation heatmap explained
A EUR/USD liquidation heatmap marks the prices where leveraged positions on the EUR/USD perpetual would be closed by force: bright bands below the price are longs, bright bands above it are shorts. Ours is not a guess from open interest. It adds up the liquidation prices of real, public open positions. This guide explains how the map is built, how far each leverage sits from the entry, why data releases and the weekend close matter, and how to read the map next to the order book.
What the map shows
EUR/USD perpetual futures let traders hold positions much larger than their margin. If the price moves against a position by roughly one divided by its leverage, the position is closed with a market order: a liquidation. A long is closed by selling, a short by buying back. The heatmap shows where those forced orders would hit the market:
- Below the price (green on our map): longs that would be sold if EUR/USD falls there.
- Above the price (violet): shorts that would be bought back if EUR/USD rises there.
- Brightness: the dollar value of the positions with a liquidation price at that level. Brighter means more.
Where EUR/USD positions get liquidated
The distance to a liquidation depends almost entirely on leverage. For a position opened at 1.1000, with the same leverage steps as the map's filter:
| Leverage | Move that liquidates | Long opened at 1.1000 | Short opened at 1.1000 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3× | 32.3 % | 0.7443 | 1.4557 |
| 5× | 19.0 % | 0.8910 | 1.3090 |
| 10× | 9.0 % | 1.0010 | 1.1990 |
| 25× | 3.0 % | 1.0670 | 1.1330 |
| 50× | 1.0 % | 1.0890 | 1.1110 |
Simplified: entry × (1 − 1/leverage + maintenance margin) for a long, entry × (1 + 1/leverage − maintenance margin) for a short, with an assumed 1 % maintenance margin and no fees or added margin. Real liquidation prices differ a little, which is why the map uses the price reported for each position. 1.1000 is a round example, not a price level.
At 1.1000 a move of 1 % is 110 pips. EUR/USD usually moves less than that in a day, which is why traders use more leverage here than on stocks or crypto, and why the bands from 25× and 50× sit so close to the price.
How our EUR/USD heatmap is built
- Swiftedge follows public open positions on on-chain EUR/USD perpetual futures, each with the liquidation price the exchange reports for it. Nothing is assumed about leverage: it is read from the positions.
- Every 5 minutes the positions are added up by liquidation price: longs below the price, shorts above.
- A position that is closed or liquidated leaves the map. One column is kept every 15 minutes, for up to seven days.
- The live page compares what the map had waiting at the prices the market reached with the liquidations that really happened, and prints the score next to a baseline, so you can judge the map yourself.
This is part of the market, not all of it: positions Swiftedge does not follow, and positions on other venues, are not on the map, so every total is a lower bound. The leverage mix of the positions on the map is printed on the live page and changes as traders open and close positions.
What is different about EUR/USD
- Small moves, high leverage. The map's leverage steps go up to 50×. With the assumed margin, a 50× position is closed by a move of about 1 %, a 10× position by about 9 %, so almost all the bands near the price come from the highest leverage.
- Data and central banks. US data at 08:30 New York time, ECB decisions at 14:15 Frankfurt time and Fed decisions at 14:00 New York time can move EUR/USD by more in a minute than in the hours before. The economic calendar shows what is due.
- The weekend close. The spot currency market closes from Friday 17:00 to Sunday 17:00 New York time. The perpetual keeps trading on a thin book, and a jump when the spot market reopens can clear bands at once. EUR/USD trading sessions lists the times.
How to read it
- Bands are forced orders waiting to happen, not orders in the book. Nothing rests in the order book at a liquidation price until it is triggered. To see the orders that are really there, use the EUR/USD order book heatmap; the difference is explained in liquidation heatmap vs order book heatmap.
- Watch the real liquidations next to it. The Liquidations indicator in EUR/USD Depth draws every real liquidation on the live chart, so you can see which bands were hit.
- Check funding, open interest and positioning. Rising open interest with high funding means new leveraged longs, which is what fills the bands below the price: EUR/USD funding rate, EUR/USD open interest and EUR/USD Positioning.
See where EUR/USD liquidations sit right now.The live map is rebuilt every 5 minutes from public open positions and checked against real liquidations. Free, no sign-up.
Open the EUR/USD liquidation heatmapCommon questions
Is there a free EUR/USD liquidation heatmap?
Yes. The Swiftedge EUR/USD liquidation heatmap is free, needs no sign-up and is rebuilt every 5 minutes from the liquidation prices of public open positions.
How accurate is the EUR/USD liquidation heatmap?
It shows real positions, but only part of the market, so the totals are a lower bound. The live page compares the map with the liquidations that really happened and prints the score next to a baseline.
Why do bands disappear?
A band shrinks or disappears when the positions behind it are closed, have margin added or are liquidated. When price trades through a band, the positions there are usually liquidated, so they leave the map.
Does EUR/USD move to the brightest band?
The map shows where forced orders could appear, not where the price will go. We do not claim bands act as magnets, and nothing on this page is a forecast or advice.
Where can I see real EUR/USD liquidations?
Live on the chart in EUR/USD Depth with the Liquidations indicator, next to the order book heatmap and the trades.
When are EUR/USD liquidations most likely?
Around US data at 08:30 New York time, ECB and Fed rate decisions, and when the spot market reopens on Sunday at 17:00 New York time after weekend news.
How many pips from the entry are the bands?
It depends on leverage. At 1.1000 and with the assumed 1 % margin, a 50× position sits about 110 pips from its entry and a 10× position about 990 pips.