Position Size Calculator
Risk-aware sizing · Pip & dollar based · Free utility
Calculate exactly how many contracts or lots to trade based on your stop distance, account size and risk tolerance. Switch between pip-based and dollar-based stops, choose forex, futures or stocks. Everything client-side — your numbers never leave the browser.
The COT-Reports position size calculator computes the correct contract size, dollar-risk and lot quantity for any futures or forex trade given your account size, risk percentage and stop-loss distance — supporting all CFTC-listed futures markets and the most common forex pairs.
= $250.00
Target risk
$250.00
1.00% of balance · 8 ticks
2 contracts
Actual risk: $200.00
3 contracts
Actual risk: $300.00
Stop distance
8 ticks
Risk / contract
$100.00
Profit targets
How to use the calculator
- 1
Enter your account balance
Type in the total capital in your trading account. Use the real balance, not what you plan to deposit later.
- 2
Set your risk percentage
Pick how much of that balance you are willing to lose on a single trade. Professionals almost never go above 2%. 1% is a common safe default.
- 3
Choose your instrument and stop loss
Select the futures contract, forex pair, crypto coin or stock you are trading, then enter the distance from your entry to your stop loss — in ticks, pips or price.
- 4
Read the result
The calculator instantly shows how many contracts, lots or shares to trade so that hitting your stop loss costs exactly the dollar amount you risked. Profit targets at 1:1, 1:2 and 1:3 are shown for reference.
The formula
Every flavor of this calculator boils down to the same equation:
Position size = Dollar risk ÷ (Stop distance × Value per unit)
Dollar risk = Account balance × Risk percentage. Example: a $25,000 account risking 1% per trade = $250 at risk on that trade.
Stop distance is how far, in ticks or pips or price, the market has to move against you before you are stopped out.
Value per unit is what one tick, pip or point is worth for one contract/lot/share. ES ticks are $12.50 each, EUR/USD pips are $10 per standard lot, etc. — the calculator uses the correct values from CME contract specs.
Why position sizing matters more than entries
Most losing traders do not lose because their entries are bad — they lose because they trade too big. Entries are a coin flip. Position size is math.
If you size every trade so the worst outcome is a known, survivable loss, the bad trades stop being catastrophic. A 50% drawdown takes a 100% gain to recover. A 5% drawdown takes a 5.3% gain. Small losses stay small. Compounding can work.
Fixed percentage risk (1-2% of current balance, recalculated every trade) is the standard professional approach. This calculator gives you the exact size for that risk, every time.
Frequently asked questions
What is a position size calculator?+
A tool that tells you how many contracts, lots or shares to trade so that if the price hits your stop loss, you lose exactly the amount of money you decided to risk — no more, no less. It removes guesswork from trade sizing.
How much should I risk per trade?+
Most professional traders risk between 0.5% and 2% of their account on a single trade. 1% is a popular default. Going above 2% is aggressive, above 5% is very aggressive and can blow up an account quickly on a losing streak.
What is the difference between risk and position size?+
Risk is the dollar amount you are willing to lose on a trade (e.g. $250 on a $25,000 account at 1%). Position size is how many contracts or lots to buy so that, if your stop is hit, you lose exactly that dollar risk.
How do I calculate position size for futures?+
Position size = Dollar risk ÷ (Stop loss ticks × Tick value). For example, on ES (tick value $12.50) with an 8-tick stop and $250 risk: 250 ÷ (8 × 12.50) = 2.5 contracts — round down to 2.
How do I calculate position size for forex?+
Position size in standard lots = Dollar risk ÷ (Stop loss pips × Pip value per standard lot). A standard lot is 100,000 units. For EUR/USD the pip value is $10, so risking $200 on a 20 pip stop = 200 ÷ (20 × 10) = 1 standard lot.
Does this calculator work for stocks?+
Yes. Switch to the Stocks / CFDs tab, enter your entry price and stop loss price, and the calculator returns the number of shares to buy so that hitting the stop costs exactly your dollar risk.
Is this calculator free?+
Yes, completely free, no signup required, no feature paywall, no account to create. Built by the COT-Reports.com team as a service to futures and forex traders.
Should I always round down the position size?+
Yes. If the calculator says 2.7 contracts, trade 2 — never round up. Rounding up pushes your actual risk above the amount you decided to risk, which defeats the purpose.
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