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Forex lot size calculator

Pick how much you're willing to lose on one trade and where your stop-loss sits. We work out how many to trade so the stop costs exactly that. 63 forex pairs, metals, oil, gas and 25 indices, in US dollars. Also called a position size calculator.

Your account

Example values
USD

$10,000 in your trading account right now.

Your risk

% of balance

What you'd lose if the is hit. Many careful traders use 0.5% to 2%.

The trade

Market
pips

How far your stop is from your entry, in . 20 pips is a 0.0020 move in price.

Your position size

Rounded down to 0.01
0.50standard

= 5 mini lots · 50 micro lots

Money at risk

$100.00

1.00% of balance

Risk at this size

$100.00

1.00% of balance

Units

50,000 EUR

1 lot = 100,000

Value per pip, 1 lot

$10.00

per standard lot

Each pip moves this trade by$5.00

Position size 0.50 lots. Money at risk $100.00.

Save to my journal

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How this is calculatedThe exact formula, with a worked example you can check.

Position size is set by three things: how much you want to risk, how far away your stop is, and what one (or point, or $1 move) is worth on one lot.

The formula

money at risk  = balance × risk % ÷ 100
lots           = money at risk ÷ (stop distance × value per pip for 1 lot)
tradeable lots = lots rounded DOWN to 0.01

Value per pip (or point) for 1 standard lot

EUR/USD, GBP/USD : 0.0001 × 100,000        = $10 per pip
USD/JPY          : 0.01 × 100,000 = ¥1,000 → ¥1,000 ÷ USD/JPY price
Other pairs      : pip × 100,000 in the 2nd currency, turned into $
XAU/USD (gold)   : 100 oz × $1              = $100 per $1 move
XAU/EUR, XAU/GBP : 100 oz × €1 or £1, turned into $
XAG/USD (silver) : 5,000 oz × $1            = $5,000 per $1 move
USOIL, UKOIL     : 1,000 barrels × $1       = $1,000 per $1 move
US30, NAS100     : your platform's value     (often $1 per point)
GER40, UK100     : € or £ per point, turned into $ (often 1 per point)

Worked example

Example
  1. 1Balance $10,000, risk 1%, EUR/USD, stop 20 pips
  2. 2Money at risk = 10,000 × 1 ÷ 100 = $100
  3. 3Lots = 100 ÷ (20 × $10) = 0.50
  4. 4Tradeable: 0.50 lots (5 mini lots), and the stop costs exactly $100
  5. 5Same trade with a 30-pip stop: 100 ÷ (30 × $10) = 0.333, round down to 0.33 lots ($99)

Contract sizes for indices, oil and copper differ between platforms, so check yours. For gold, the gold lot size calculator also shows a ready table of lot sizes.

Know your lot size? Check what one pip is worth with the pip value calculator. Lesson F2 of the Calm Doji course explains standard, mini and micro lots.

Questions

How do I calculate lot size in forex?
Take the money you are willing to lose (balance × risk %) and divide it by your stop distance in pips times the value of one pip for 1 lot. Round down to 0.01. The formula and a worked example are in How this is calculated above.
What are standard, mini and micro lots?
A standard lot is 100,000 units of the base currency, a mini lot is 10,000 (0.10 lots) and a micro lot is 1,000 (0.01 lots). On EUR/USD one pip is worth $10, $1 and $0.10 for each.
Is this the same as Nifty or Bank Nifty lot size?
No. NSE sets fixed lot sizes for Nifty and Bank Nifty futures and options. This tool sizes forex, gold, oil and index trades in US dollars. If you live in India, read Forex if you live in India first.

Educational tool, not advice. Always check sizes against your own platform before you trade. Trading is risky and most traders lose money.

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