Futures Position Size Calculator
How many contracts to trade, and whether your stop makes sense against what the market actually does. Built for ES, NQ, YM, RTY and the micros.
Volatility data measured from CME front-month contracts, 15 June to 24 July 2026.
Most position size calculators do one sum: risk budget divided by risk per contract. This one does that for 32 futures contracts, then checks your stop against how much the market actually moves, measured from 1-minute bars over the last 29 sessions.
Contract specifications and measured volatility
Point values and tick sizes are set by the exchange. The volatility columns are measured from front-month CME data between 15 June and 24 July 2026, using the cash session from 9:30 to 4:15 ET.
| Contract | Per point | Tick | Avg session range | Avg 1-min bar at open | Avg 1-min bar 2-3pm | Session range in $ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ES | $50 | 0.25 / $12.50 | 71.15 pts | 5.45 pts | 2.72 pts | $3,558 |
| MES | $5 | 0.25 / $1.25 | 71.15 pts | 5.45 pts | 2.72 pts | $356 |
| NQ | $20 | 0.25 / $5.00 | 494.90 pts | 42.02 pts | 17.27 pts | $9,898 |
| MNQ | $2 | 0.25 / $0.50 | 494.90 pts | 42.02 pts | 17.27 pts | $990 |
| YM | $5 | 1 / $5.00 | 497.89 pts | 44.55 pts | 15.60 pts | $2,489 |
| MYM | $0.50 | 1 / $0.50 | 497.89 pts | 44.55 pts | 15.60 pts | $249 |
| RTY | $50 | 0.10 / $5.00 | 42.59 pts | 3.70 pts | 1.51 pts | $2,130 |
| M2K | $5 | 0.10 / $0.50 | 42.59 pts | 3.70 pts | 1.51 pts | $213 |
| CL | $1,000 | 0.01 / $10.00 | Crude oil, 1,000 barrels | |||
| MCL | $100 | 0.01 / $1.00 | Micro crude oil, 100 barrels | |||
| GC | $100 | 0.10 / $10.00 | Gold, 100 troy ounces | |||
| MGC | $10 | 0.10 / $1.00 | Micro gold, 10 troy ounces | |||
| NG | $10,000 | 0.001 / $10.00 | Natural gas, 10,000 MMBtu | |||
| SI | $5,000 | 0.005 / $25.00 | Silver, 5,000 troy ounces | |||
| ZB | $1,000 | 1/32 / $31.25 | 30-year Treasury bond | |||
| ZN | $1,000 | 1/64 / $15.63 | 10-year Treasury note | |||
The calculator covers 32 contracts across equity index, energy, metals, interest rates, agriculture, crypto and currencies. Volatility figures are currently measured for the four index futures. Always confirm specs with your broker before trading.
Position Sizing Questions
What is a position size calculator and why should traders use it?
It works out how many contracts to trade based on your account size, the percentage you're willing to risk, and where your stop goes. Instead of guessing at size or copying someone else's, you get a number that keeps every loss the same size. That consistency is what stops one bad trade from undoing a good week, and it's the difference between risk management as an idea and risk management as a habit.
How do you calculate position size in futures?
Multiply your account size by the percentage you're willing to risk, which gives your risk budget in dollars. Multiply your stop distance by the contract's point value to get the risk of one contract. Divide the budget by that and round down. A $10,000 account risking 1% gives a $100 budget, and an 8 point stop on MES at $5 a point risks $40 per contract, so you trade 2 contracts.
How is position size calculated for ES and MES futures?
ES is $50 per point and MES is $5 per point, so the same stop costs ten times more on the full contract. With a $25,000 account risking 1%, your budget is $250. A 10 point stop on ES risks $500 per contract, which is over budget, but the same stop on MES risks $50, so you could trade 5 MES. The calculator flags this and gives you the micro count automatically.
How is position size calculated for crude oil (CL) futures?
CL is 1,000 barrels, so every $1.00 move in crude is worth $1,000 per contract and one tick of $0.01 is $10. On a $50,000 account risking 1%, your budget is $500, and a $0.50 stop risks $500 per contract, so you can trade one CL. Micro crude (MCL) is a tenth of that at $100 per dollar of movement, so the same stop risks $50 and lets you size in smaller steps.
Can I use the calculator for gold, silver, natural gas and other commodities?
Yes. It covers gold (GC and MGC), silver (SI and SIL), copper (HG and MHG), natural gas (NG and MNG), Treasury futures (ZB, ZN, ZF, ZT), corn, soybeans, wheat, micro bitcoin and ether, and the major currency futures, alongside the equity index contracts. Pick the symbol and it applies the correct point value, tick size and unit, so gold is priced per dollar of movement while corn is priced per cent.
Does the contract I choose change the calculation?
Yes, and it's usually the biggest variable. Each contract has its own point value, so an identical stop distance means completely different money. A 10 point stop is $500 on ES, $200 on NQ, $50 on YM and $500 on RTY. The calculator handles this for you, and it also changes the input label so you're entering points on the index futures, dollars on crude and gold, cents on grains and pips on the currency futures.
What percentage should I risk per futures trade?
1 to 2% of the account per trade, and treat 2% as a ceiling rather than a target. At 2% risk, five losing trades in a row costs you 10% of the account, which is a normal losing streak rather than a disaster. Above that, an ordinary run of losses turns into a hole that is hard to climb out of.
Should I use margin to decide position size?
No. Day trade margin tells you what your broker will allow, not what your account can survive. A broker may let you trade one ES on $500 of margin, but a normal 8 point stop on that contract costs $400, which would be 40% of a $1,000 account. Position size comes from your stop distance and your risk percentage, never from margin.
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Sizing right is the easy part. Doing it every day when you're down money is the hard part.
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