{"slug":"mark-price","term":"Mark Price","category":"Derivatives","definition":"Mark price is the fair-value price an exchange uses to calculate unrealized PnL and trigger liquidations, usually built from the index price plus a smoothed basis. It exists so a single manipulated wick on one order book can't liquidate positions — your liquidation fires on mark price, not the last traded price.","street":"The price the exchange actually judges you on — your liq triggers on this one, not on the wick somebody painted.","depth":["A typical construction: mark price = index price + a moving average of the perp-index gap, refreshed every few seconds. The smoothing is the whole point — if someone slams the book and prints a 4% wick on last price, mark barely flinches, so positions priced off mark survive the print. Unrealized PnL and liquidation triggers run on mark; last price only decides where your orders fill.","Two misreads cost money here. First, panicking because last price wicked through your liq level — check whether mark did, because mark is the number that fires. Second, assuming mark protects you in a real move: it smooths manipulation, not trends, and in a cascade mark follows the index down all the way. The mark-last gap is itself a tell — when last trades persistently above mark, the perp is running hot and funding is about to make longs pay for the privilege."],"live":{"label":"Mark price and funding on every perp","href":"/tools/funding-rates"},"related":["index-price","liquidation","wick","perpetual-futures"]}