The 90-90-90 rule
The 90-90-90 rule is a trading saying, not a study: 90 percent of new traders lose 90 percent of their money within 90 days of starting.
In depth
Nobody has produced the research behind those numbers. Treat them as a warning rather than a measurement. What the saying gets right is the shape of the failure. A new trader opens an account, puts a quarter of it behind one idea, gets it wrong twice, and the account is halved before any skill has had time to show up.
The arithmetic is the unkind part. Lose 50 percent and you need a 100 percent gain to get back to even. Risk 20 percent per trade and a short bad run puts you in that hole. Risk 1 percent and ten losses in a row cost about 10 percent, which is a bad month, not the end of it.
Why it matters
The number worth arguing with is not 90. It is the size of your bets. Traders who blow up rarely do it with one strange event. They do it by risking too much on every trade, then risking more to win it back. Small risk per trade buys you time to learn.
TraderLog imports your trades from Schwab or IBKR and puts each day's profit and loss on a calendar. The stats page shows your average loser, your worst day and your biggest drawdown, so a bad habit turns up in weeks rather than after the account is gone.
Frequently asked questions
No. It is a widely repeated saying with no published study behind it, so treat the numbers as a warning.
Risk a small fixed slice of your account per trade, use a stop, and keep records so the same mistake stops repeating.
Keep your 90-90-90 rule trades on the record in TraderLog
Trades import from Schwab and IBKR on their own, every day lands on a calendar with its P&L, and the day's entry sits beside it. Replay any trade on a TradingView chart. Free to start, no card.
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