Overview
A liquidation closes your position automatically when the accumulated loss gets close to the size of your margin. The protocol has to guarantee repayment to lenders, so it can't let a trade slip below the collateral that backs it.
A position is liquidated when losses reach 88% of the initial margin. The 12% that remains is your buffer - runway to ride out volatility or close manually.
For context: Hyperliquid liquidates around 60% margin loss, and most other perp DEXes sit in the 60–80% range. Atomic's deeper threshold leaves more room before forced exit. The keeper network and oracle design pick up the extra solvency risk on the protocol's side (see Keeper network).
Liquidation price
The exact price at which the 88% line is hit is computed when you open the position, from margin and leverage. It's shown in two places:
- the order panel, before you sign, and
- the Open Positions tab while the trade is live.
That price is the number to plan around. Use the calculator below to plug in your own margin, leverage and entry price. It shows the adverse move and the liquidation price on Atomic side by side with Hyperliquid and the perp-DEX average.
| Venue | Liq threshold | Adverse move | Liquidation price |
|---|---|---|---|
| Atomic | 88.0% | 8.80% | - |
| Hyperliquid | 60.0% | 6.00% | - |
| Avg perp DEX | 70.0% | 7.00% | - |
Entry-time estimate. Funding and realized volatility erode the buffer while the position is open, so real liquidation distance on a multi-day trade is always tighter.
On a $1,000 margin trade, the position survives a drawdown of up to $880 on Atomic before forced exit, against roughly $600 on Hyperliquid. The notional size is the same; the difference is how deep the protocol lets the trade run.
What happens on liquidation
When the threshold is hit, a keeper closes the position in a single transaction:
- The borrowed capital is repaid to the lending pool.
- Trading and liquidation fees are deducted.
- Whatever is left of the margin lands back in your wallet.
If the price moved fast - a wick, a thin book, network congestion - the residual you receive can be zero. The 12% buffer is a target, not a guarantee.
The liquidation price assumes the keeper can execute near that level. On thin liquidity or violent moves the actual close can be worse, and the margin you recover smaller than the buffer suggests.
How to avoid liquidation
- Lower the leverage. It's the biggest lever you have. 5x roughly doubles your survivable adverse move compared with 10x.
- Set a Stop Loss above the liquidation price. You exit at a price you chose, with the normal close fee instead of a liquidation fee.
- Read the order panel. The liquidation price is right there before you sign. If it sits inside the day's normal trading range, the position is too aggressive.
A liquidation pays the keeper that executes it on top of the standard close fee. Closing the position yourself - even at a loss - is almost always cheaper than letting the protocol do it.