Calculate the exact position size for any trade based on your account balance, risk percentage, and stop loss distance.
Position Size
5.00
Standard Lots
Risk Amount
$1,000.00
Stop Loss
20 pips
Mini Lots
50.00
Micro Lots
500.00
Your total trading account balance in USD. This is the amount you use to calculate risk.
Most professional traders risk 0.5% to 2% per trade. For prop firm challenges, 0.5-1% is recommended.
For Forex, enter pips. For Futures, enter ticks. For Crypto/CFD, enter the stop loss price level.
The calculator shows the exact lot size (Forex), contracts (Futures), or units (Crypto) to trade.
Position Size = Risk Amount / (Stop Loss Distance x Value Per Pip/Tick)
Risk Amount = Account Balance x Risk Percentage. If your account is $100,000 and you risk 1%, your risk amount is $1,000.
Stop Loss Distance = the number of pips, ticks, or price points between your entry and stop loss.
Value Per Pip/Tick = how much each pip or tick is worth in dollar terms. This varies by instrument. For EUR/USD, 1 pip = $10 per standard lot. For ES futures, 1 tick = $12.50.
Position sizing is the single most important risk management decision you make on every trade. Trading too large risks blowing your account on a losing streak. Trading too small means you never reach your profit targets.
For prop firm traders, position sizing is critical. Most prop firms have daily loss limits (typically 2-5% of account) and maximum drawdown limits (5-12%). If you risk 2% per trade and hit 3 losses in a row, you could breach the daily limit and fail the challenge.
The recommended approach: risk 0.5-1% per trade for prop firm challenges, and 1-2% per trade for personal accounts. This gives you enough runway to survive drawdowns while still growing the account.
TradeLog's free 3-in-1 EA for MT4/MT5 includes a built-in position size calculator that draws SL/TP lines on your chart and calculates lot size automatically based on your risk settings.
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