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Forex Lot Size Calculator

Work out the exact position size for any trade in seconds. Enter your balance, the risk you're comfortable with, and your stop loss — and get the precise lot size for forex, gold, silver, oil and indices.

1% of balance will be risked on this trade.

Recommended Position

Standard Lots
Mini / Micro lots
Money at risk
Potential reward
Risk : Reward
Value per point / pip
Required margin
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⚠️ Estimates only. Contract specs vary by broker — verify against your live account.

How to use the lot size calculator

  1. Enter your account balance and currency. This is the live balance of the account you'll place the trade from.
  2. Set how much you want to risk. Choose a percentage of your balance (1% is a common, conservative choice) or switch to a fixed cash amount.
  3. Pick your instrument. For forex pairs the live mid-price is pulled in automatically; for gold, oil and indices you can type the price you're trading at.
  4. Enter your stop loss in pips (or points). This is the distance from your entry to where you'd exit at a loss. A take-profit is optional and is used to show your reward-to-risk ratio.
  5. Press Calculate. You'll get the exact standard lot size, the equivalent mini/micro lots, the cash at risk, the required margin and a reward-to-risk verdict.

What is a lot size — and why position sizing matters

A lot is the unit of quantity you trade. In forex, one standard lot is 100,000 units of the base currency, a mini lot is 10,000 units (0.1 lots) and a micro lot is 1,000 units (0.01 lots). The bigger the lot, the more each pip of movement is worth — and the more money is on the line.

Position sizing is the process of choosing a lot size so that, if your stop loss is hit, you lose only the amount you decided to risk in advance — no more. It is the single most important risk-management habit a trader can build. Get it right and a losing streak is survivable; get it wrong and one bad trade can do outsized damage to your account.

The formula

This calculator works out lot size from a simple relationship:

Lot size = Risk amount ÷ (Stop loss in pips × Pip value per lot)

For example, on a $10,000 account risking 1% ($100) with a 20-pip stop on EUR/USD, where one pip is worth about $10 per standard lot: 100 ÷ (20 × 10) = 0.5 lots. The calculator handles the pip-value differences between forex, metals, energy and indices for you, but you should always confirm contract specs against your own broker.

A quick note on risk

Most professionals risk 1% or less of their account per trade. Smaller, consistent risk keeps you in the game through the inevitable losing runs. If the required margin for your position is larger than your balance, the calculator will warn you — that's a sign to reduce size or use lower leverage.

Frequently asked questions

What is a lot size in forex?
A lot is the standardised quantity of an instrument you trade. One standard lot is 100,000 units of the base currency, a mini lot is 10,000 units (0.1 lots) and a micro lot is 1,000 units (0.01 lots). Lot size determines how much each pip of movement is worth, so it's the lever you use to control risk.
How is forex lot size calculated?
Lot size = the amount you're willing to risk ÷ (your stop loss in pips × the pip value per lot). For instance, risking $100 with a 20-pip stop on EUR/USD, where one pip ≈ $10 per standard lot, gives 100 ÷ (20 × 10) = 0.5 lots. This tool does the maths across forex, metals, energy and indices automatically.
What's the difference between standard, mini and micro lots?
A standard lot is 100,000 units and moves about $10 per pip on most USD pairs. A mini lot (0.1) is 10,000 units and moves about $1 per pip. A micro lot (0.01) is 1,000 units and moves about $0.10 per pip. Smaller accounts use mini and micro lots to keep risk manageable.
How much should I risk per trade?
Most professional traders risk 1% or less of their account on a single trade, and rarely more than 2%. Risking small, consistent amounts means a losing streak won't wipe out your account. You can set risk here as a percentage of balance or as a fixed cash amount.
Does it work for gold, indices and oil?
Yes — as well as forex majors and crosses it covers gold (XAU/USD), silver (XAG/USD), WTI and Brent oil, and major indices such as the Dow, Nasdaq, S&P 500, DAX and FTSE. Contract sizes differ by instrument, so confirm the specs with your broker.
Is this lot size calculator free?
Yes — every tool on Pips Perspective is completely free with no sign-up, login or email required. Results are estimates for education only and are not financial advice.

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