Start by separating four numbers that look similar
Position P&L measures the price outcome of a position or close. Realized P&L records results that have crystallized. Wallet balance is an accounting balance, while available balance also changes with margin requirements and open positions. Treating these numbers as interchangeable is the most common source of confusion.
A trade can therefore be green while the wallet increases by less than the displayed profit. It can even decline if the price profit is smaller than commissions and funding paid during the same period.
Opening fees are easy to miss
A perpetual position normally creates trading fees when it opens and when it closes. Scaling in, scaling out, partial fills, stop orders, and liquidation-related executions may create additional fills. Counting only the final close understates the cost of the completed trade cycle.
Use fill-level trade history to identify notional and Maker/Taker role, then use the income or transaction ledger to confirm the amount actually posted to the wallet. If the same commission appears in both exports, deduplicate it instead of adding it twice.
Funding is a separate ledger event
Funding is not a commission for opening or closing a trade. It is posted when a perpetual position crosses a funding settlement time. The amount may be paid or received, and it can appear hours before the position is closed.
A closed-trade screen may not place that historical funding event next to the trade. That does not make it irrelevant to net profitability. Reconciliation should include every funding event inside the chosen holding period.
Use wallet change only as a final cross-check
After reconstructing net trading result, compare it with ending balance minus starting balance. Adjust for deposits, withdrawals, internal transfers, bonuses, rebates, fee assets, and the change in unrealized P&L. Only then should the two methods be expected to approach each other.
If a gap remains, check timezone boundaries, settlement asset conversion, duplicate order identifiers, and records that were exported from different account modes.
Ledger net result
Realized P&L − trading commissions + funding received − funding paid − other identified costsTo compare this with wallet balance, separately adjust for deposits, withdrawals, transfers, rebates, and unrealized P&L.
Apply the formula to a complete example
A ledger shows +120 USDT realized P&L, 24 USDT of opening and scale-in fees, 22 USDT of closing fees, and 19 USDT net funding paid. With no transfers or open positions, the reconstructed net result is +55 USDT, not +120 USDT.
Every amount and rate in this guide is an anonymized example that demonstrates a method. None represents a real account or a current fee schedule. Your own rates depend on the venue’s published schedule and your fee tier.
Put these records on one timeline
Trade history explains executions; the income ledger explains postings to the wallet. A complete reconciliation normally needs both.
| Record | What to extract | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|
| Realized P&L | Closed-position price result | Starting point, not necessarily net profit |
| Commission | Every opening, add, reduce, and closing fill | Subtract once and deduplicate across exports |
| Funding fee | Each paid or received settlement | May not be shown beside the eventual close |
| Transfers | Deposits, withdrawals, and internal movements | Affects balance but is not trading performance |
| Unrealized P&L | Open positions at both endpoints | Affects equity and available balance |
A complete 120-to-55 USDT reconciliation
Assume a starting balance of 2,000 USDT and no deposit, withdrawal, or internal transfer. Closed-position records show +120 USDT realized P&L.
The full trade history contains 24 USDT in opening and scale-in commission and 22 USDT in closing commission. Funding settlements add another 19 USDT net cost.
With no open position at the ending timestamp, the expected ending balance is approximately 2,055 USDT. A materially different balance is a prompt to inspect missing assets, time boundaries, rebates, and duplicates.
- Realized P&L: +120 USDT
- Opening and scale-in commission: −24 USDT
- Closing commission: −22 USDT
- Net funding paid: −19 USDT
- Ledger net result: 120 − 24 − 22 − 19 = 55 USDT
The count of profitable trades is not a profitability measure. The reconciled ledger result is the number that should be compared with an adjusted wallet change.
Three-step reconciliation
- 1
Export trade history and the income ledger for the exact same period
Use the same timezone and do not omit fills at the period boundary.
- 2
Group realized P&L, commission, funding, rebates, and transfers
Keep positive and negative entries; do not sum only profitable rows.
- 3
Reconcile the reconstructed result with the adjusted wallet change
Separate deposits, withdrawals, internal transfers, and remaining unrealized P&L.
Confirm these five items before drawing a conclusion
- Trade and ledger exports use identical timestamps
- Opening commission is included
- Funding income and expense keep their original signs
- Transfers are excluded from trading performance
- Endpoint unrealized P&L is shown separately
Common mistakes
- Adding green position-history rows and calling the total net profit
- Counting only the closing commission
- Adding commissions from two exports without deduplication
Scope and limits
- Export column names vary by product, region, and account mode
- Non-USDT fees need a consistent historical conversion method
- This reconciliation does not evaluate whether the trading strategy is sound
Frequently asked questions
Does Binance closed P&L include every fee?
Do not assume that one screen includes every ledger event. Confirm commissions and funding in the downloadable transaction or income records for the same period.
Can leverage make fees larger than the margin I posted?
Trading commission is generally driven by executed notional, not only by posted margin. A highly leveraged position can therefore generate fees that look large relative to margin.
Should wallet change exactly equal net trading result?
Only after adjusting for transfers, rebates, fee-asset conversion, open-position P&L, and account-scope differences should the two numbers be expected to align closely.
Why do two reconciliations of the same week disagree?
Usually the timezone. The web interface often displays UTC+8 while the export is written in UTC, so trades and settlements near midnight land in different windows.