Alerts
Crypto Alerts: Price, Spread, Funding Rate, Liquidation Distance
Updated Ninja Terminal team
Short answer
Ninja Terminal alerts watch four metrics: price, spread in basis points, funding rate, and the distance from mark price to your liquidation price. Each rule triggers above or below a threshold, on a chosen exchange, market, and symbol, and fires once or repeatedly. Notifications appear as toasts, with sounds and browser notifications.
Alerts exist so that you do not have to stare at a screen. In Ninja Terminal you describe a condition once, and the app watches it for you across every connected exchange. Rules are created in Settings under Alert Rules.
Which metrics can I alert on?
| Metric | Unit you enter | What it compares |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Quote currency | The last traded price, or the mark price when no last price exists |
| Spread | Basis points | Best ask minus best bid, divided by the mid price |
| Funding rate | Percent | The current funding rate per funding interval |
| Liquidation distance | Percent | Distance from mark price to liquidation price of an open position |
Price, spread, and funding rules are tied to one exchange, one market (futures or spot), and one symbol. Liquidation distance is different. It is not tied to a market. It watches your open positions across all accounts, and an optional symbol filter limits it to one market. See funding rate, bid-ask spread, and liquidation price for the definitions.
Funding rate alerts apply to perpetual futures, because spot markets have no funding.
How do I create a rule?
- Open Settings, then Alert Rules, and choose Add alert.
- Pick the metric.
- For market metrics, pick the exchange, the market, and the symbol.
- Choose a condition, Above or Below, and enter the threshold.
- Choose a trigger, Every time or Only once.
- Optionally give the rule a name, then select Create alert.
Each saved rule has its own on/off switch and a delete button, so you can park a rule without losing it.
How do triggers behave?
A rule is armed while its condition is false. When the condition becomes true, the rule fires and disarms. It arms again only after the condition goes false.
- Only once: the rule disables itself after it fires.
- Every time: the rule fires again after the condition has cleared and been met again. Repeat alerts are spaced at least one minute apart, which protects you from a flood when a value oscillates around your threshold.
Liquidation distance rules track each position separately, so two positions near their liquidation prices produce two alerts.
How are alerts delivered?
When a rule fires, Ninja Terminal shows a toast, adds an entry to the notification bell history, and plays a sound if sounds are on. If the browser tab is hidden and browser notifications are enabled, it also sends a browser notification. Liquidation distance alerts use the warning level.
Preferences let you:
- Switch all notifications off with one master toggle.
- Turn sounds on or off and set the volume, with a test sound button.
- Enable browser notifications.
Are there limits?
Yes, and they matter.
- Rules run in your browser while the app is open. A closed tab means no evaluation.
- Rules are evaluated every two seconds, so they are not a tick-by-tick trigger.
- An alert tells you that a condition is met. It does not place or cancel orders.
- Ticker data must be live. If an exchange stops sending data for a symbol, the rule has nothing to compare.
For news, there is a separate system. Secret Words and importance filters alert you on headlines, and push notifications for breaking news can reach your phone when the app is closed. Check your live exposure in positions and orders.
Alerts are tools for attention, not investment advice or a guarantee that you will be warned before a liquidation.
Frequently asked questions
Can I set a funding rate alert?
Yes. Choose the funding rate metric, pick an exchange, a futures market, and a symbol, then set an above or below threshold in percent. The rule compares it with the current funding rate the exchange reports.
Do alerts work when the app is closed?
Alert rules are evaluated inside the running app, every two seconds, so the app must be open in a browser tab. Browser notifications can appear when that tab is hidden. Push notifications for breaking news work separately.
What is the difference between once and every time?
A once rule fires one time and then disables itself. An every-time rule re-arms when the condition clears, and fires again the next time it is met, at least a minute after its last alert.
What does the liquidation distance alert measure?
It measures how far the mark price is from the liquidation price of an open position, as a percentage of mark price. You can limit it to one symbol, or let it watch every open position.