# Trading Support

Use this page to troubleshoot common trading, margin, liquidation, and order execution questions.

## Common Issues

<div className="faq-list">
  <section className="faq-item">
    <h3>Why was I liquidated?</h3>
    <p>Liquidations use oracle price, not last traded price. In cross margin, all positions share the same margin pool, so losses in one position can increase liquidation risk across the account.</p>
    <p>Check Trade History for liquidation details. For the full mechanics, see [Liquidations](/trading/perpetual-futures/liquidations).</p>
  </section>

  <section className="faq-item">
    <h3>My TP triggered, but I lost money</h3>

    <p>
      TP/SL orders trigger on oracle price and execute at market price. If the market price is worse than the trigger
      price when the order executes, the fill can realize less profit or a loss.
    </p>

    <p>
      This is more common with large positions, thin liquidity, volatile periods, and tight targets. Meridian cannot
      guarantee execution pricing during market movement. Default slippage for TP/SL positions is 5%.
    </p>
  </section>

  <section className="faq-item">
    <h3>I cannot open a position because of insufficient margin</h3>
    <p>Available margin is not the same as total balance.</p>

    <p>
      <strong>Available margin = Total balance - Position margin - Order reserves - Unrealized losses</strong>
    </p>

    <p>
      Close or reduce positions, cancel open limit orders, or add collateral to increase available margin. Unrealized
      losses reduce available margin until the position is closed.
    </p>
  </section>

  <section className="faq-item">
    <h3>My limit order will not fill</h3>

    <p>
      Limit orders only fill at your price or better. If the market moves away from your price, the order stays open until
      price returns, you cancel it, or it expires.
    </p>
  </section>

  <section className="faq-item">
    <h3>I used a limit order, but I was still charged a fee</h3>
    <p>A limit order can still be a taker order if it immediately uses liquidity already available in the order book.</p>
    <p>Use post only if you want to ensure your order does not immediately match against resting liquidity.</p>
  </section>
</div>

## Liquidation

Liquidation triggers when account equity falls below maintenance margin.

| Detail            | What It Means                                                                                                                   |
| ----------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| Price source      | Liquidations use oracle price, not last traded price.                                                                           |
| Cross margin      | Positions share one margin pool. Losses in one position can affect liquidation risk for other positions.                        |
| Liquidation price | The app shows liquidation price when you open a position. It can change as account equity, positions, and market prices change. |
| After trigger     | Positions are transferred to the liquidator. See [Liquidations](/trading/perpetual-futures/liquidations) for more detail.       |
| History           | Liquidation details are visible in Trade History.                                                                               |

## Order Execution

### Limit Orders

Limit orders fill at your price or better, or not at all. A limit order can partially fill if only part of the order can be matched before price moves away.

### Market Orders

Market orders execute immediately at the best available price. Execution price can differ from the price you saw before submitting the order, especially in fast or thin markets.

### TP/SL Orders

TP/SL orders trigger on oracle price and execute as market orders. A gap between trigger price and fill price is normal.

| What Happened          | Why                                           |
| ---------------------- | --------------------------------------------- |
| TP triggered at $100   | Oracle price hit the trigger price.           |
| Position filled at $98 | Market price was $98 when the order executed. |
| Less profit or a loss  | Slippage between trigger and execution.       |

Slippage is more likely with large positions, low-liquidity markets, high volatility, and tight profit targets. Market TP/SL orders use a default slippage tolerance; if the market moves beyond that tolerance, the order may not fill.

For full order mechanics, see [Order Types](/trading/perpetual-futures/order-types).

## Margin

Available margin is the amount that can be used for new positions or withdrawals after accounting for open risk and reserved collateral.

**Available margin = Total balance - Position margin - Order reserves - Unrealized losses**

| Component         | What It Is                                     |
| ----------------- | ---------------------------------------------- |
| Total balance     | Everything in your account.                    |
| Position margin   | Margin locked in open positions.               |
| Order reserves    | Collateral reserved for unfilled limit orders. |
| Unrealized losses | Current losses on open positions.              |

To free up margin, close or reduce positions, cancel open limit orders, or add collateral.

See [Margining](/trading/perpetual-futures/margining) for more information.

## Still Need Help?

Open a ticket in [Discord](https://discord.gg/etherealdex) in `#support` with:

* Wallet address
* Transaction hash, if applicable
* Screenshot of the error
* What you were trying to do