Lesson 5 of 12 · 5 min
Daily and weekly stop-loss
A stop-loss is a ceiling on losses; once you hit it, there are no more clicks. The picture shows a scale labelled "cap". The beginner school sets 3 units (one stake, usually 1% of the bank) per calendar day and 10 units per week. This does not mean "almost 3, so one more single at 1.40 is fine". It is a wall. You build the wall on Saturday morning, not on Sunday after the eighth loss. Bonulist will not build the wall for you: it lives in your diary and in your account limits.
A daily and weekly stop-loss in plain words
A daily and weekly stop-loss protects your bank from one nasty run while you still cannot tell variance from a broken method. It does not make you profitable. It leaves you with a Monday. The daily stop catches tilt. The weekly stop catches "I was careful all week, then on Sunday I settled the month with an accumulator". Without a date, a stop is a wish. With a date and a number, it is a rule.
How it works
Choose the unit for your stop: units, not money, if you think in units. 3 units with 1 unit = 100 means −300 per day. Write down what counts: only settled bets, not "an in-play bet still pending". If something is still pending, you are already at the wall and do not open anything new. Do not carry over what is left of the weekly limit: if you did not use your 10 units, that is not a bonus for next week.
- Write 3 units per day and 10 units per week in your diary header.
- Switch on a loss limit in your bookmaker account, if one is available.
- When you hit the wall, close the app until the next calendar day.
- Do not move the number on the same evening.
Example with numbers
Saturday: three singles of 1 unit, all lost. That is the daily wall. The player opens an in-play market for "a small one, just 50". That is the fourth click and a broken stop. Another example: the week stands at −9 units, it is Sunday, and "one more will not take me past 10". It loses, the week is at −10 units, and the itch comes: "well, it does not matter now". That is exactly why the wall is at 10 and not 11. A third example: the wall worked, and the diary shows the line "stop, 0 bets". That is a win for the rule, not an empty day.
| Stop | Beginner | Breaks when |
|---|---|---|
| Day | 3 units | "Just one more small one" |
| Week | 10 units | The remainder is carried over |
| Account | Loss limit | Removed while on tilt |
Common mistakes
- Setting the stop in money while keeping the diary in units, and never reconciling the two.
- Moving the wall because "it is the final today".
- Treating an unsettled bet as "not a loss yet".
- Keeping the stop only in your head.
What to write in your diary
Two cells: day-loss and week-loss. They turn red when you hit the wall. A green line saying "stop worked" gets recorded too.
stop-loss, responsible gambling. Next: tilt.
18+ only. This is a lesson, not a tip or a call to bet. Bonulist is an editorial guide to licensed bookmakers; we do not take bets.