# Understanding Commission and Swap in MT4 Reports

> Commission and swap are the two hidden costs that turn a winning strategy into a breakeven one. Here is what each is and how to analyze them in your journal.

**Tags:** mt4, commission, swap, trading-costs, reporting
**URL:** https://traderjournal.app/metatrader/understanding-commission-swap-mt4

---


# Understanding Commission and Swap in MT4 Reports

Two costs affect every MT4 trade beyond the price movement: commission and swap. Most traders understand these exist but underestimate their impact on long-term performance. Here is a clear explanation of each and how to track them in your journal.

---

## Commission in MT4

Commission in MT4 comes in two forms depending on your broker type:

**Spread-based (no explicit commission)**
Market maker and standard account brokers build their fee into the spread - the gap between the bid and ask price. When you buy at the ask and immediately sell at the bid, the loss you see is the spread, which is the broker's fee. There is no separate "commission" line in your trade history.

**ECN/Raw spread (explicit commission)**
ECN brokers provide tighter spreads close to the real market spread. In exchange, they charge an explicit commission per lot traded. This appears as a negative number in the Commission column of your trade history. Common amounts: $3-7 per standard lot per side (so $6-14 round trip).

**Why it matters:**
A strategy with a 1.0 profit factor on gross profit becomes a money-loser after commission costs. If you make $100 on average per standard lot trade but pay $10 in commission, your effective profit factor is lower than the gross numbers suggest.

Many traders analyze their results on gross profit without realizing that their commissions are eating a significant slice. In your Trader Journal, every trade shows gross profit, commission, and net P&L separately so you can see the true cost.

---

## Swap in MT4

Swap (also called rollover or overnight financing) is a charge or credit applied when you hold a position through the end of the MT4 server's trading day (typically 5pm New York / midnight server time).

**How swap is calculated:**
Swap is based on the interest rate differential between the two currencies in a pair, adjusted for the broker's spread and the position size. Some pairs have positive swap in one direction (you receive credit), others are always negative (you pay a charge).

**The practical impact:**
For day traders who close positions before rollover, swap is irrelevant. For swing traders holding positions for days or weeks, swap can be significant.

A trader holding 1.0 lot of AUDJPY long for 5 business days might pay or receive $30-80 in swap, which is a meaningful amount relative to a 30-50 pip trade. Analyzing your total swap cost as a percentage of gross profit is worth doing quarterly.

**Triple swap on Wednesday:**
MT4 applies triple swap on Wednesdays to account for the weekend settlement. A position held through Wednesday midnight incurs 3 days of swap at once. This catches some traders off guard with a larger-than-expected charge.

---

## Analyzing Trading Costs in Your Journal

After accumulating 90+ trades, run these analyses:

**Total commission cost over the period:**
Sum all commission values from the reports. Compare to your gross profit. What percentage of your gross profit did commission represent?

**Total swap cost over the period:**
Same calculation for swap. Are you net negative or net positive on swap across your positions? Which pairs have the most negative swap?

**Net vs gross profit factor:**
If your gross profit factor is 1.4 but your net profit factor (after all costs) is 1.1, your strategy has a narrower real edge than the gross numbers suggest.

---

Trader Journal captures commission and swap on every trade automatically via EA sync. The P&L breakdown on each trade detail page shows all three components clearly.

Download at android.traderjournal.app or ios.traderjournal.app.