Ladder Bot Settings Reference
Every setting you see on the Strategy Builder page, explained.
Core Settings
Budget (USD)
Total capital the bot uses. Divided across all levels on both sides.
| Budget | Who It's For |
|---|---|
| $100-$500 | Small accounts, learning the system |
| $500-$2,000 | Most users |
| $2,000-$10,000 | Larger accounts, more fills, more points |
| $10,000+ | High-volume market making |
Example: $500 budget with 3 levels = 6 orders (3 buy + 3 sell). Each order ≈ $83.
Spread (bps)
Distance from mid price to your closest orders. 1 bps = 0.01%.
| Range | Effect |
|---|---|
| 2-8 bps | Tight. More fills, more volume, more points. Higher chance of getting filled on adverse moves. |
| 8-20 bps | Balanced. Good default for most coins. |
| 20-30+ bps | Wide. Fewer fills but safer per fill. Best for thin markets. |
BTC/ETH: 3-8 bps. Altcoins: 10-20 bps (some up to 50 bps). RWA/commodities: 20-30 bps. Start wider, tighten over time. Watch the market you're trading and match its general spread.
Levels
Orders per side. Total orders = Levels × 2.
| Levels | Best For |
|---|---|
| 2-3 | Low-liquidity markets, smaller budgets |
| 4-5 | Standard. Captures tight and wide fills. |
| 6-10 | Deep coverage. Needs more capital. |
Spacing (bps)
Gap between consecutive ladder levels.
| Spacing | Effect |
|---|---|
| 4-6 bps | Orders clustered near mid. More fills at similar prices and during smaller moves. |
| 8-12 bps | Standard separation. |
| 15-30 bps | Wide. Outer levels catch big moves. |
Spread = where your first order sits. Spacing = the gap between each order after that.
Risk Settings
Max Inventory
Maximum position size (in USD) the bot will accumulate on one side.
| Range | Effect |
|---|---|
| $1K-$5K | Bot caps position quickly. Safer. |
| $5K-$15K | Standard for most accounts. |
| $15K-$50K | Larger positions allowed. Higher PnL potential, higher risk. |
Set max inventory to at least order_size × levels × 2. Too low and the bot constantly hits the cap and stops placing orders.
Min Profit to Exit (bps)
Minimum profit required before the bot closes a position. Most important setting.
| Setting | What Happens |
|---|---|
| 2-3 bps | Exits quickly for small profit. High turnover, more volume. |
| 5-8 bps | Waits for meaningful profit. Standard. |
| 10-15 bps | Holds longer. Higher profit per trade but more exposure time. |
| 20-30 bps | Only exits on bigger moves. Swing-style. |
Higher min profit = bot holds positions longer = more inventory accumulation. If the market trends against you while waiting, your position grows as new entries keep filling.
Stop Loss (Optional)
Emergency exit. If unrealized loss exceeds this %, the bot cancels everything and market-closes. This is optional, not required.
| Setting | Use Case |
|---|---|
| None (default) | Bot manages risk via spreads, max inventory, and inventory skew. This is how the developer runs production ladders. |
| 0.5-1.0% | Very tight safety net. May trigger frequently during normal volatility. |
| 2.0-3.0% | Wide. Only triggers on major adverse moves. |
Grid trading involves periodic drawdowns — waking up to a $500 loss on a $5,000 account is normal during volatile periods. The bot's inventory skew and spread management handle most adverse moves. A stop loss is a last-resort safety net, not a primary risk tool.
Profit Protection
| State | What Happens |
|---|---|
| OFF (default) | Bot exits normally. |
| ON | Bot holds exits until Min Profit is reached. Continues placing entries while waiting. |
When ON, the bot keeps adding to your position while refusing to exit at a loss. In a sustained move against you, this grows your position and can lead to liquidation. Recommended: OFF unless you understand the risk.
Range Extreme Filter
Protects against entering positions at the worst possible prices using 24-hour Binance data.
| State | What Happens |
|---|---|
| ON | When price is within 0.5% of the 24h high, buy orders are blocked. When price is within 0.5% of the 24h low, sell orders are blocked. |
| OFF (default) | Bot places both sides regardless of 24h range position. |
Can help prevent chasing into extremes, but also blocks volume at range boundaries. Default is OFF — enable if you want the extra protection.
Execution Settings
Mode
| Mode | Name | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Auto Grid | GLFT (Recommended) | GLFT math handles spread and inventory skew automatically. No signals, no brain — just set size, levels, and go. Best for most users. |
| Simple Grid | Basic | Symmetric quoting, both sides requote together. Simplest manual mode. |
| Standard | Standard | Three tiers with separate requote thresholds. Signals enabled. |
| Directional | Advanced | Direction-aware requoting — only refreshes the stale side. Full signal stack. |
| Fast | Aggressive | Same as Directional with tighter thresholds and faster cycles. Maximum volume. |
Auto Grid is the default and recommended for new users. It uses the GLFT (Guéant-Lehalle-Fernandez-Tapia) model to calculate optimal spreads and inventory skew mathematically — no configuration needed beyond size and levels. Per-coin defaults are applied automatically (BTC: 12 levels/2bps, ETH: 10/2bps, SOL: 8/2bps, HYPE and alts: 6/4bps).
Geometric Sizing
| State | Effect |
|---|---|
| ON | Outer levels use larger sizes. Inner levels (closest to mid) are smallest. |
| OFF | All levels equal size. |
Recommended: ON. Bigger orders are placed farther from mid — they only fill on larger moves where reversal is more likely.
Selective Cancel
| State | Effect |
|---|---|
| ON | Only cancels orders that drifted too far. Reduces API calls. |
| OFF | Cancels and replaces ALL orders every cycle. |
Preserve Other Orders
| State | Effect |
|---|---|
| ON | Bot only manages its own orders. Manual orders left untouched. |
| OFF | Bot may cancel all open orders when requoting, including manual ones. |
Turn ON if you place manual orders or run multiple bots.
Requote Threshold
How far price must move (% of spread) before inner orders re-quote.
| Setting | Effect |
|---|---|
| 5% (Fast) | Re-quotes on tiny moves. Very responsive. |
| 15% (Default) | Re-quotes on meaningful moves. Good balance. |
| 30-50% (Slow) | Only re-quotes on big moves. Fewer API calls. |
Outer Requote Interval
How often (seconds) outer levels are refreshed.
| Setting | Effect |
|---|---|
| 5s | Always fresh. More API usage. |
| 15s (Default) | Standard. |
| 30-60s | Slow refresh. Outer levels may be stale in fast markets. |
Cycle Seconds
How often the bot runs its full loop.
| Setting | Effect |
|---|---|
| 0.5s | Maximum speed. High API usage. |
| 1.0-1.5s (Default) | Standard speed. |
| 2.0-3.0s | Slower. Reduces API calls. Fine for wide spreads. |
Intelligence
Signal Engine
Master toggle for proprietary market intelligence.
| State | Effect |
|---|---|
| ON | Bot uses real-time signals to adjust spreads and avoid bad entries. Improves performance. |
| OFF | Pure mechanical market making. No signal adjustments. |
Recommended: ON.
Leverage
Margin multiplier. Max depends on coin.
| Leverage | Risk | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 1x | Lowest | Cannot be liquidated. |
| 2-3x | Moderate | Standard for most users. |
| 5-10x | High | Requires tight stops. |
| 10-20x | Very High | Expert only. |
Presets
Auto-configure all settings based on budget and coin.
| Preset | Spread | Speed | Risk |
|---|---|---|---|
| Conservative | Widest | Slowest | Lowest |
| Balanced | Medium | Medium | Medium |
| Aggressive | Tightest | Fastest | Highest |
Presets are coin-specific. After selecting, toggle "Show Advanced" to fine-tune.