Spot vs perpetual grids

GRIDer runs grids on two kinds of markets: perpetuals and spot. The grid logic is the same — buy low, sell high across levels — but the mechanics, risk and costs differ. GRIDer detects which kind you're trading from the market you pick.

At a glance

Perpetual grids

Perps are the default for grid trading. You can run a grid LONG or SHORT, and you can apply leverage up to the token's maximum.

• Leverage multiplies both buying power and risk. A 3× grid reaches further with the same capital but a breakout hurts three times as much. Liquidation is possible if you over‑leverage and price runs hard against you — always pair leverage with a stop‑loss.
• Funding applies. While you hold a perp position you pay or receive funding every hour. GRIDer folds funding into your Grid PNL so the number you see is the real one. See Fees and funding.
• Direction matters at the edges. A LONG grid that breaks below its range ends fully long; a SHORT grid that breaks above ends fully short. See Risk and range breakouts.

Spot grids

Spot grids trade the actual token against USDC. They are long‑only by nature — you can't be short spot — so a spot grid accumulates tokens as price falls and sells them as price rises.

Key differences to understand:

• No leverage, no funding, no liquidation. Simpler and lower‑risk in that sense: the worst case is holding the token after a drop, not being liquidated.
• Your position is your balance. There's no separate "position" — the grid trades around the tokens you hold. PNL is calculated on a cost‑basis (what you paid vs. what you sold for).
• GRIDer protects a balance you already hold. If you already own some of the token before starting a spot grid, GRIDer will confirm with you and will never sell that pre‑existing balance when the grid closes — it only trades the portion it bought.

Funding to start a spot grid comes from your spot USDC balance (it needs enough for the initial buy plus the first buy level). If there isn't enough, the grid won't start and no order is placed. For perps, you need funds in your perps (USDC) balance instead.

Which should you use?

• Want leverage, a short grid, or to keep capital in your perps account → perpetual grid.
• Want the simplest, lowest‑risk version, no funding to think about, and you're happy being long the token → spot grid.

Next: Fees and funding for the cost side, or Risk and range breakouts for the risk side.