Futures position size calculator
Pick a contract, enter your risk and your stop in ticks or points, and get the number of whole contracts to trade, with a micro-contract fallback and a futures P&L calculator.
Contract size
Tick 0.25 = $12.50 · 1 point = $50.00 per contract
USD
Prop-firm check (optional)
Futures P&L
Contract: ES · E-mini S&P 500
Enter entry, exit and contracts.
Why futures sizing is different
A forex position can be sized to two decimal places. A futures position cannot: you trade whole contracts, so the honest answer to “how much” is always rounded down, and the risk you actually carry can be well under your budget. When even one contract is too much, the micro contracts exist precisely so the plan does not have to bend.
Frequently asked
How many futures contracts should I trade?
Divide the dollars you are willing to lose by the dollars one contract loses at your stop. One contract loses the stop distance in ticks multiplied by the tick value. Round down, because futures cannot be split: if the answer is below one, switch to the micro contract or tighten the plan.
What is a tick worth on ES and NQ?
ES moves in 0.25-point ticks worth $12.50, so a full point is $50. NQ also ticks in 0.25 points, worth $5.00, so a point is $20. The micros, MES and MNQ, are one tenth of those: $1.25 and $0.50 per tick.
When should I use micro contracts?
When one full contract at your stop risks more than your plan allows. A 20-point ES stop risks $1,000 per contract; on MES the same stop risks $100, so a $300 risk budget becomes three micros instead of an oversized single ES.
How does this relate to prop-firm drawdown?
Futures prop firms usually trail the maximum drawdown during the day and cap the daily loss. Enter those limits in the optional prop-firm check to see what share of each one a single stop would use before you place the trade.
Keep the record, not just the maths
Import your futures trades from Tradovate, NinjaTrader or a CSV and see which setups actually pay. See what The Pips Project does, or try the forex position size calculator.
Tick sizes and values follow CME Group's published contract specifications. This tool performs arithmetic on numbers you provide; it is not financial advice and does not account for slippage, gaps or exchange fees beyond the commission you enter. See our disclaimer.