PolyTerminal
How it works
An isolated position has its own equity and its own maintenance margin, and it is checked on its own. When it is liquidated, the exchange works through that position with closing orders, and it blocks new orders only on the affected market. The other side of the trade-off is that the position cannot borrow from your free balance, unlike a cross position.
Without any explicit or inherited setting, the exchange uses the market's maximum leverage and isolated margin.
Adding and removing margin
You can move collateral into an isolated position or out of it. A change is accepted only if the position's equity stays at or above the required initial margin. While the account is in a cross liquidation, or that position is being liquidated, margin can be neither added nor removed. Margin taken out returns to your free balance, and withdrawing it from the account is a separate step with its own reserve rule.
Switching the mode, and isolated-only markets
To change the mode of a market, close the position and cancel all orders in that market. The instrument list carries an isolated-only flag for each market: when it is false, both cross and isolated margin modes are supported. On Oct 19, 2026 the flag was set on none of the 89 listed markets, although the Perps FAQ says some markets are isolated-only.
Sources and checks
Every rule quoted in this article comes from the registry below. Each row names the official page and the day it was compared with the text.
All 9 rules used in this article
| Rule | Value | Official source | Checked |
|---|---|---|---|
| What backs an isolated position | only the collateral set aside for it | docs.polymarket.com/ | |
| Isolated liquidation blocks | blocks new orders only on the affected market | docs.polymarket.com/ | |
| Leverage and margin mode when you set nothing | the market's maximum leverage and isolated margin | docs.polymarket.com/ | |
| When an isolated margin change is accepted | only if the position's equity stays at or above the required initial margin | docs.polymarket.com/ | |
| Before you switch between isolated and cross margin | close the position and cancel all orders in that market | docs.polymarket.com/ | |
| What the isolated_only flag means | when it is false, both cross and isolated margin modes are supported | docs.polymarket.com/ | |
| Markets with the isolated_only flag set | none | api.perpetuals.polymarket.com/ | |
| Perps markets in the public instrument list | 89 | api.perpetuals.polymarket.com/ | |
| What the Perps FAQ says about isolated-only markets | some markets are isolated-only | docs.polymarket.com/ |
Related terms
Read the full guide
Perps · 8 min
Polymarket Perps Margin and Leverage
How margin and leverage work on Polymarket Perps: initial and maintenance margin, leverage tiers, isolated and cross margin, with worked numbers.
PolyTerminal is an independent interface for Polymarket and is not operated or endorsed by Polymarket. Orders placed through PolyTerminal carry PolyTerminal’s Polymarket builder code, and PolyTerminal may charge a builder fee on top of Polymarket’s own fees. This page is educational and is not investment advice. Rules were compared with the official documentation on Oct 19, 2026; check the source before you act on a number.