Rule tags
Make a tag for each rule, like "A+ setup", "Moved stop" or "Oversized", plus one for "Followed plan". The free plan gives you 5 tags and 2 per trade. Premium removes both limits.
A trading discipline app should make rule breaks hard to ignore. In Mantis you tag each trade with the rule you followed or broke, write a line on why, and log how you felt. Later you can see P/L by tag and the R-multiple on every position with a stop. It all stays on your iPhone, with no account.
Journaling won't make you profitable on its own. It shows you where your process slips, so you know which habit to fix. If the problem is feelings more than rules, start with the trading psychology app page; if it's too many trades, see overtrading.
Download on theApp Store
Opens the App Store
Why traders use Mantis
Notes on every override
When you break the plan, add a note to the trade or the whole position. Each trade also takes an emotion, from calm to FOMO to revenge, with its own short note.
P/L by tag
Analytics groups results by tag, so "Moved stop" trades sit next to "Followed plan" trades. You can also filter the P/L calendar by tag. The full tag breakdown is Premium.
R-multiples
Set a stop and Mantis works out the R-multiple for the position. A rule break that turned a planned 1R loss into a 3R loss shows up as −3R, not just a dollar amount. See the R-multiple guide or the calculator.
Discipline score and logging streak
Each week Mantis scores how completely you journaled: details filled in, tags and notes used, and how steady your win rate is. A streak counter shows how many days in a row you've logged a trade. Both measure the journaling habit, not whether you followed your rules. Tags do that part.
What a broken rule costs (illustrative example)
Say you log 20 trades in a month. 14 are tagged "Followed plan" and average +0.6R. 6 are tagged "Broke a rule" and average −1.1R. The plan trades made +8.4R and the rule breaks gave back 6.6R, so the month closes at +1.8R. Without tags that's just a so-so month. With them you can see the strategy worked and six trades cost you most of it. These numbers are made up to show the math. They aren't Mantis user data.
Set it up in Mantis in 3 steps
- Write down 3 or 4 rules and make a tag for each, plus a "Followed plan" tag. That fits inside the free plan's 5 tags.
- After every trade, add the tags, pick an emotion and set your stop so the R-multiple fills in. If you overrode the plan, write one line saying why.
- Once a week, open Analytics and compare P/L for each tag. Premium users also get the weekly report with a Sunday reminder. Pick one rule to work on next week.
Frequently asked questions
How does journaling improve trading discipline?
Writing your rules down and tagging every trade against them turns "I mostly follow my plan" into a count you can check. You either followed the rule or you didn't, and the tags show which.
Can I track specific rule violations in Mantis?
Yes. Make a tag for each rule (entry, exit, sizing, stop placement) and add a note when you override one. Then filter the P/L calendar by tag, or check P/L by tag in Analytics (full breakdown on Premium), to see which rules you break most and what they cost.
What if I'm too inconsistent to have a 'system' yet?
Start by journaling what you actually do—every entry reason, every exit trigger—then review a week's data to find the one or two behaviors that worked. Turn those into your first written rules and measure adherence going forward.
Does Mantis sync discipline data across devices?
No. Mantis keeps your trades, notes and tags on your iPhone. There's no account and no cloud sync, so your rule-break history stays private.
How often should I review my discipline metrics?
A quick look each day, while you still remember why you took each trade. Weekly is where patterns show up: Mantis updates your discipline score every week, and Premium adds a weekly report with a Sunday reminder. Once a month, check whether your rule-break tags are getting rarer.
Important: Mantis is a trading journal and analytics tool. This page is not investment advice, not financial advice, and not a recommendation to buy or sell any security or instrument. Trading involves risk; past performance does not guarantee future results. Consult a qualified professional before making financial decisions.