How to trade futures on Bybit? (Derivatives guide)

Account Setup and Verification

1. Visit the Bybit official website and click “Sign Up” to create a new account using an email address or phone number.

2. Complete the mandatory KYC verification by uploading a government-issued ID and a clear selfie holding that document.

3. Enable two-factor authentication via Google Authenticator or SMS to secure your trading environment.

4. Deposit funds into your Bybit wallet using USDT, BTC, ETH, or other supported assets through on-chain transfers or fiat gateways.

5. Navigate to the Derivatives section from the top menu bar and select “USDT Perpetual” or “Inverse Perpetual” based on your preferred settlement asset.

Understanding Contract Types

1. USDT-margined perpetual contracts use Tether as both margin and settlement currency, offering stable value exposure without Bitcoin price volatility affecting margin calculations.

2. Inverse perpetual contracts are quoted in USD but settled in BTC; margin and PnL fluctuate with Bitcoin’s market price, introducing additional volatility layers.

3. Quarterly and bi-quarterly futures have fixed expiration dates and are settled physically or in cash depending on the contract specification.

4. Bybit offers both linear and inverse options alongside futures, allowing traders to hedge directional risk or express volatility views.

5. Each contract displays real-time funding rates, open interest, and liquidation prices—metrics essential for position sizing and risk monitoring.

Placing and Managing Orders

1. Choose between Market, Limit, Stop Market, Stop Limit, Take Profit, and Trailing Stop orders depending on execution priority and risk tolerance.

2. Set leverage manually using the slider next to the order form; leverage ranges from 1x to 100x for USDT contracts and up to 125x for selected inverse instruments.

3. Adjust position mode to One-Way or Hedge Mode to allow either single-directional exposure or simultaneous long/short positions on the same symbol.

4. Use the “Reduce-Only” toggle to prevent accidental position expansion when placing closing orders during volatile swings.

5. Monitor active orders in the “Order History” tab and review filled trades under “Trade History”, where each entry includes timestamp, price, size, and commission details.

Risk Management Tools

1. Activate Auto-Deleveraging (ADL) settings to define priority level during forced liquidations—higher ADL rank means earlier intervention if system-wide margin calls occur.

2. Configure partial close functionality to exit portions of a position at predefined profit or loss thresholds without canceling the entire trade.

3. Set up price alerts through Bybit’s notification center to receive email or app-based signals when assets reach specific technical levels.

4. Review the “Liquidation Price Calculator” embedded in the trading interface to simulate how changes in leverage or entry price affect your margin buffer.

5. Access the “Risk Limit Table” per contract to understand tiered maintenance margin requirements and corresponding maximum position sizes at various leverage levels.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: Can I hold a futures position overnight?Yes. Perpetual contracts have no expiry and remain open until manually closed or liquidated. Funding payments occur every 8 hours to align mark price with spot index.

Q: What happens during a liquidation event?When equity falls below maintenance margin, the system automatically closes the position at the bankruptcy price. Any remaining balance after fees is returned to the wallet if positive; otherwise, it results in negative equity absorbed by the insurance fund.

Q: Is there a minimum trade size on Bybit futures?Yes. Minimum order size varies by contract—for example, BTCUSDT USDT Perpetual requires 0.001 BTC equivalent in notional value, while ETHUSDT starts at 0.01 ETH.

Q: How do I view my realized and unrealized PnL?Realized PnL appears under “Wallet History” after closing a position. Unrealized PnL updates live in the “Positions” tab and reflects current mark price deviation from entry.