Pattern day trader (PDT) rule
The pattern day trader rule is a US rule for margin accounts. Four or more day trades in five business days, and the account must keep a broker-set minimum size.
In depth
A day trade is buying and selling the same thing on the same day. Do that four times or more within five business days in a margin account. The broker then labels you a pattern day trader, and the account has to keep a minimum balance.
Fall under that balance and the broker restricts day trading until it is topped up. There are ways around the label. A cash account has no such rule, though you wait for money to settle. Holding trades over more than one day does not count either. The threshold is under review in 2026, so ask your broker.
Why it matters
The rule shapes how a small account trades. Under the limit you get a handful of day trades a week. A bored trade costs you one you actually wanted. Cross it by accident and the broker can block day trading until you add money.
The calendar shows each day's trades and the profit or loss. Counting your day trades across a week takes a glance. Automatic tags mark the trades you held overnight. Those do not count against the limit.
Frequently asked questions
Opening and closing the same position on the same day. Four or more in five business days triggers the label.
Use a cash account and wait for settlement. Or hold trades overnight, or keep the balance above your broker's minimum.
Keep your Pattern day trader (PDT) 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 for 14 days, no card.
Every trading morning at 8:40 ET our model draws the SPY, QQQ and IWM zones it expects to matter, on a TradingView chart, before the open. Where price reaches one, it has turned 74 percent of the time. Free, no account. See today's map