What lot size should I use for a trade?

Your lot size should make the money you lose if the stop-loss is hit equal your chosen risk (often 1–2% of your account). Divide your risk amount by (stop distance in pips × pip value per lot) to get the lot size.

How is pip value calculated for different pairs?

For 100,000-unit standard lots where the quote currency is USD the pip value is $10 per pip per lot. For quotes like JPY, CHF or CAD the pip value is converted to USD using the current exchange rate. Gold and silver lot sizes follow their own contract conventions.

Do I need the number of pips before computing a lot?

No. Use Method 2 on this page: enter your entry price and stop-loss price and the tool works out the pip distance automatically, then calculates the lot size.

Home › Lot Size Calculator

Lot Size Calculator & Position Size Tool

Risk the right amount on every setup. Choose your account balance and risk %, then calculate your lot size by pips (Method 1) or by entry & stop-loss price (Method 2). Covers 31 live markets: 28 forex pairs, gold, silver, bitcoin and the Dow 30.

Educational tool. Results are estimates for standard-lot conventions and help you risk a fixed % per trade. Always confirm contract sizes, pip values and margin with your broker before placing an order.

1 By stop loss in pips

Already know the setup and the pips your stop is away? Fill in the risk box and lot size is one tap.

Account balance (USD)

Risk (%)

Stop loss (pips)

Instrument

2 By entry & stop-loss price

No pip counting needed — enter the two prices from your chart and everything is derived automatically.

Account balance (USD)

Risk (%)

Direction

Entry price

Stop-loss price

Instrument

FX reference rates: loading…

How to use the lot calculator

1 · Pick your market.
Choose the instrument you trade from our live list of forex pairs, XAUUSD gold, XAGUSD silver, BTCUSD and US30.

2 · Set balance & risk.
Enter your account balance in USD and the % you are willing to risk on this one trade (1–2% is standard).

3 · Enter the stop distance.
Either type the stop loss in pips (Method 1) or paste your entry and stop-loss price (Method 2).

4 · Get your lot size.
Hit Calculate and read the exact lot size, your money at risk and the pip value per standard lot.

Which method should you use?

Method 1 — by stop loss in pips is fastest when your strategy already expresses the stop in pips (for example “20-pip stop on EURUSD”).
Method 2 — by entry & stop-loss price is ideal when you are building a trade around a price level, e.g. a support/break-out level. The pip distance is worked out from your two prices, so you never have to count pips by hand.

Supported markets

Standard lot = 100,000 base units for forex. Gold, silver, bitcoin and index contract sizes follow common retail conventions shown next to each symbol.

What is a pip, and how is it counted?

A pip is the smallest standard price move in an exchange rate. For most pairs that is the 4th decimal place (0.0001); for pairs quoted with two decimals, such as USDJPY, a pip is the 2nd decimal place (0.01). Your stop loss “in pips” is simply the distance in decimals. If your stop is 20 pips on EURUSD then the stop is 0.0020 away; between 1.0850 and 1.0830 there are indeed 20 pips. When you use Method 2 the calculator counts this distance for you.

How lot size protects your capital

The core idea of trading psychology and money management is: risk a fixed percentage of your account, never a fixed dollar amount. If you always risk, say, 1%, a string of losing trades shrinks the account slowly and you protect yourself from the temptation to “make it back” with oversized positions. The formula behind this page is:

Lot size = (Account balance × Risk %) ÷ (Stop loss in pips × Pip value per 1.0 lot)

For a USD-quoted pair such as EURUSD, one standard lot moves $10 per pip. Risking 1% of a $1,000 account is $10 — so a 20-pip stop needs 0.05 lots. This page derives the same answer for every instrument while converting non-USD pip values using live reference rates when available.

Pip value by instrument type

Instrument	Quote	Pip value per 1.0 lot (approx.)
EURUSD, GBPUSD, AUDUSD, NZDUSD & other USD-quoted pairs	USD	$10 per pip (0.0001)
Paired with JPY (USDJPY, EURJPY, GBPJPY…)	JPY	= 1,000 JPY / (USD/JPY rate)
Paired with CHF, CAD (USDCHF, USDCAD, crosses)	CHF/CAD	= 10 units × conversion to USD
XAUUSD (gold)	USD	=$1 per lot per 0.01 (100 oz contract)
XAGUSD (silver)	USD	≈$50 per lot per 0.01 (5,000 oz)
BTCUSD (bitcoin)	USD	$0.10 per lot per 0.10 move (1 coin)

Frequently asked questions

What is a good lot size for a $100 account?

If you risk 1% ($1) with a 20-pip stop on a USD-quoted pair, you need 1 / (20 × 10) = 0.005 lots. On many brokers that is below the minimum order size, which is exactly why a $100 micro account is hard to trade profitably — consider a higher balance and micro lots.

Does this calculator give the exact same number as my broker?

Lot sizes match for standard accounts. Pip values for JPY, CHF and CAD instruments are converted from current FX reference rates, so your broker’s exact pip value can differ by a few cents. Always double-check with the broker’s own position-size tool.

Should a stop loss be wider or tighter for gold and BTC?

Volatile instruments need proportionally wider stops and therefore smaller lot sizes. This calculator feeds your stop size and pip value straight into the lot formula — so on volatile markets such as gold or bitcoin, a wider stop automatically produces a smaller, safer recommended lot size.