Why the PnL on an open position can change after closing

Crypto futures realized vs unrealized PnL describes two stages of a position. Unrealized PnL is the exchange’s current estimate for an open quantity using a specified reference price. Realized PnL records amounts booked as trades close or settle, usually alongside trading fees and funding. The figures answer different questions: “What does this open exposure show at the selected price now?” and “What has the account booked from its trading activity so far?”

There is no single display convention across every venue or contract. One platform may calculate an open position from Last Traded Price by default and offer Mark Price as an alternative; another may use Mark Price for the main display. A wallet summary can also exclude unrealized gains even when a margin panel includes them. Before reconciling two screens, check the contract type, selected price basis, time range and which fees the metric includes.

Unrealized PnL is a moving estimate

For a simple linear USDT-margined long, a basic gross calculation is position quantity multiplied by the difference between the reference price and average entry price. A short reverses the direction of that price difference. If a hypothetical 0.1 BTC long has an average entry at 60,000 USDT and the chosen mark is 61,000 USDT, its gross unrealized PnL is 100 USDT before any excluded costs. This is not a universal formula for inverse contracts, options or every exchange interface.

The number can change without a new trade because the reference price changes. It can also change when a trader adds quantity and the average entry price is recalculated. Leverage changes the margin required and the displayed return-on-margin percentage; it does not independently multiply the position’s gross dollar PnL for a fixed size and price move. Compare position size and price movement before comparing ROI percentages across accounts.

Realized, closed and wallet PnL may mean different things

When part of a position is closed, the exchange may book the price difference on that quantity while the rest remains open with unrealized PnL. A realized-position total may accumulate partial-close results, fees and funding during the lifecycle of the remaining position. A “closed PnL” history row can use a different allocation method when it distributes opening costs and past funding over the closed fraction. Read the labels in the specific product help center; similar words do not guarantee identical reporting.

Bybit’s published USDT-contract calculation separates unrealized PnL from closed PnL and says that the unrealized figure does not include trading or funding fees. Its realized-PnL section then includes realized position PnL, trading fees and funding over the position period. Binance likewise explains its futures wallet PnL analysis separately from the unrealized amount in an open position. These are examples of venue documentation, not a promise that every app uses the same fields.

Worked example: from screen estimate to booked result

Assume the same hypothetical 0.1 BTC long opened at 60,000 USDT and closed at 60,900 USDT. Gross price PnL on the closed quantity is 90 USDT. If, purely for illustration, the opening and closing taker fee rates are each 0.055%, the opening fee on 6,000 USDT is 3.30 USDT and the closing fee on 6,090 USDT is 3.3495 USDT. If the position also paid 2.10 USDT in funding, the simplified net is 81.2505 USDT before any other account-specific adjustment.

The example’s fee rate and funding amount are assumptions, not a current quote or recommended trade. Your tier, maker or taker execution, contract size, funding timestamps, partial fills and venue formula can change the result. A displayed unrealized +100 USDT at 61,000 is not the same as the +81.2505 USDT hypothetical booked result after closing lower and deducting costs. Small differences between an estimate and the ledger often come from these inputs rather than an arithmetic error.

Reconcile the right records in the right order

  • Confirm whether the contract is linear USDT/USDC-margined or inverse coin-margined.
  • Record the average entry price, current quantity and whether the PnL uses last price or mark price.
  • Separate gross position PnL from opening and closing commissions.
  • Add or subtract each funding payment for the time the position was held.
  • Reconcile partial fills and partial closes against the exchange’s closed-PnL history.
  • Compare like-for-like periods in wallet analytics; net deposits and withdrawals can affect totals.

Funding is a periodic transfer under perpetual-contract rules; it is separate from the price move. Our guide to crypto funding rates explains why a position can pay or receive funding while the displayed mark is nearly unchanged. Keep that cash flow in its own line so a positive price move does not hide a negative carry cost.

Do not treat exchange PnL as a tax statement

A trading interface is designed to show position and account performance under the venue’s definitions. It may not include transfers between wallets, assets held elsewhere, every fee paid outside the contract or the cost-basis method required for a tax return. Do not copy a single “realized PnL” field into tax records without reconciling transaction history and getting jurisdiction-specific advice where needed.

For execution analysis, retain order fills, fees, funding ledger entries and balance transfers. For account monitoring, compare the same instrument and time window before and after the close. This makes crypto futures realized vs unrealized PnL a reconciliation task with identifiable inputs instead of a confusing mismatch between two labels.