In memecoins, entries get all the attention, but exits decide whether you make money. A coin that does 10x is worthless if you hold it all the way back down, and a decent entry turns into a disaster without a stop. Take profits and stop losses are how you decide your exits before emotion gets a vote.
Why set exits in advance
When a coin is moving, you won’t think clearly. Greed keeps you in a pump too long; hope keeps you in a dump. Setting take profit and stop loss levels the moment you enter removes both. You make the decision once, calmly, and the order executes it.
It also makes your results testable. If every trade uses the same exit rules, you can measure whether those rules work.
Take profit ladders
Selling everything at one target leaves money on the table when a coin keeps running. Selling nothing until the top usually means riding it back down. A ladder splits the difference: sell portions at increasing targets.
A common shape:
| Target | Sell | Why |
|---|---|---|
| 2× | 50% | Recovers your initial; the rest is free |
| 5× | 25% | Banks a solid win if it keeps going |
| 10× | 25% | Leaves a runner for the outliers |
The first rung matters most. Taking your initial out at 2× means the worst case on the remaining position is breaking even. Trenchkit’s Sell Init button does exactly this in one click when you’re managing a trade by hand.
Stop loss sizing
Memecoins are volatile enough that tight stops get hit by normal noise. Stops that are too wide turn small losses into big ones. Some starting points:
- −20% for slower, more established coins with deep liquidity.
- −30% as a general default for fresh launches.
- −50% only for very small, very early positions where you’ve accepted the risk.
Whatever you pick, size the position so that a stop-out costs an amount you’re fine losing. A −30% stop on 0.5 SOL risks 0.15 SOL. That number, not the percentage, is your real risk.
Where stops fail
A stop loss is a trigger, not a guarantee. In thin liquidity or a fast dump, the price can gap straight through your level and fill lower. Low-liquidity coins deserve smaller positions, not wider stops.
Pin a default
Consistency beats cleverness. Pick one TP/SL setup and pin it as your default so every new trade starts with it automatically. In Trenchkit, the pin icon in the TP/SL panel saves your current levels as the default for every new position.
You can still adjust a single trade when you have a reason. The default just means you never enter a trade with no exit plan.
Exits that keep working
On paper and live, the hardest part is being there when the target hits. Trenchkit keeps checking take profits, stop losses and limit buys in the background about every 30 seconds, even after you close the token’s tab. When you come back to a supported site, a toast tells you what filled and at what market cap.
Test a setup before you trust it
Paper trading is the right place to compare exit strategies:
- Pick one setup, for example 50% at 2×, 50% at 5×, stop at −30%.
- Run it unchanged for 20 to 30 trades.
- Note total PnL after fees, average win versus average loss, and how often the stop was hit.
- Run a second setup on the next block and compare.
The trade history and PnL calendar make the comparison quick. Most traders find that the stop level changes results far more than the exact take profit targets.
Example setups
- Initial out, let it ride. 50% at 2×, the rest at 10×, stop at −30%. Simple and forgiving.
- Scalper. 100% at +40%, stop at −20%. Many small wins; needs a high hit rate.
- Runner hunter. 25% at 3×, 25% at 10×, 50% at 25×, stop at −35%. Fewer wins, bigger outliers.
None of these is “best”. The best setup is the one your own paper results back up. If you’re new to the routine, start with How to paper trade memecoins.