Free Trading Journal Template — What to Track

The essential fields every trading journal should capture, from basic trade data to psychology and process metrics.

A trading journal template should have three sections: trade data (objective), trader data (subjective), and review data (reflective). Trade data: date, symbol, direction, entry, exit, size, P&L, commissions. Trader data: emotion, setup type, grade, followed plan (yes/no), mistakes. Review data: notes, chart screenshot, lessons learned.

The minimum viable journal has 8 fields: date, symbol, direction, entry price, exit price, position size, P&L, and one subjective note. Start here. You can always add fields later, but starting with too many fields creates friction that kills the habit.

Advanced fields to add after 30 days of consistency: risk amount (what you planned to risk), R-multiple (actual result / planned risk), time of entry, time of exit, trading session, tilt level (1-5), and whether the trade was part of your planned setups or an impulse.

Don't track what you won't review. If you add a "market conditions" field but never filter by it, remove it. Every field in your template should serve a specific analytical purpose. Dead fields create clutter and slow you down.