Bitcoin Liquidation Heatmap: Live BTC Liquidation Levels

A liquidation heatmap estimates where leveraged positions would be forcibly closed if the price reached certain levels. It does not record liquidations that have already happened; it projects where they could cluster. The model covers Binance USDT perpetual contracts (BTC, ETH, SOL, XRP, DOGE and BNB), uses Binance candles and open interest, and refreshes every five minutes.

How the levels are estimated

A position is liquidated when price moves against it far enough that the remaining margin no longer covers it, and the exchange closes it to stop further losses. Its liquidation price depends mainly on entry price and leverage.

Simplified, ignoring fees and assuming isolated margin:

• Long: liquidation price ≈ entry × (1 − 1/leverage + maintenance margin rate)
• Short: liquidation price ≈ entry × (1 + 1/leverage − maintenance margin rate)

Hypothetical example: a 10x long opened at $60,000 with a 0.5% maintenance margin rate would be liquidated near $60,000 × (1 − 0.10 + 0.005) = $54,300. A 10x short at the same entry would be liquidated near $65,700.

The heatmap cannot see individual traders’ positions. It uses price history and changes in open interest to infer where positions were likely opened, applies a range of leverage assumptions, and plots each estimated liquidation price at its level. The more estimates stack up at one price, the stronger the color there.

Reading the chart

Color is relative, not absolute. A bright band means more projected liquidations than at nearby prices within the selected period. It is not a dollar figure you can compare across pairs or timeframes. The Viridis, Inferno and Mono palettes change only how intensity is displayed. Raising the liquidity threshold hides weaker levels so the strongest bands stand out.

The period setting (12 hours to 1 month) controls how far back the model looks for position entries. Short windows reflect recent leverage. Longer windows add older positions that may since have been closed.

Bands above the current price mostly represent shorts that would be liquidated on a rally. Bands below it mostly represent longs that would be liquidated on a drop.

How traders use it

Liquidations are forced market orders, so a dense band is a pool of liquidity that can be triggered at once. Traders read the map in two main ways:

• Magnet zones. A heavy cluster may draw price toward it, since large participants can fill sizable orders there and a cascade of forced closes can extend the move once it starts.
• Support and resistance. Once a cluster is hit and the forced orders are absorbed, the move can lose pressure, so some traders watch it as a possible reversal area.

These are interpretations used alongside other evidence, not rules. Comparing the bands with resting orders in the Bitcoin order book and with funding rates shows whether leverage is crowded on one side.

Limits of the model

The heatmap marks where liquidations could start, not where they stop, and the realized total is typically smaller than the projection. Traders add margin, cut positions or close them early, and positions opened with leverage outside the model’s assumptions land elsewhere. Leverage on other exchanges is not included.