Short answer
A lot is the unit used to measure the size of a forex trade. One standard lot is 100,000 units of the first currency in the pair, a mini lot is 10,000, a micro lot is 1,000 and a nano lot is 100. In most platforms you type the size in standard lots, so a mini lot is 0.10 and a micro lot is 0.01.
Lot sizes, drawn to scale
Each square = 1,000 units of the base currency
- Standard lot
- 1.00
- Units
- 100,000
- Pip value on EUR/USD
- $10
- Mini lot
- 0.10
- Units
- 10,000
- Pip value on EUR/USD
- $1
- Micro lot
- 0.01
- Units
- 1,000
- Pip value on EUR/USD
- $0.10
On this page
The four lot sizes at a glance
A lot measures how much currency your trade controls. The bigger the lot, the more each pip of price movement is worth.
| Name | Units of base currency | What you type in the platform | Value per pip on EURUSD |
|---|---|---|---|
| Standard lot | 100,000 | 1.00 | USD 10 |
| Mini lot | 10,000 | 0.10 | USD 1 |
| Micro lot | 1,000 | 0.01 | USD 0.10 |
| Nano lot | 100 | 0.001 (cent accounts only, in most cases) | USD 0.01 |
The pip values in the last column hold for every pair where the US dollar is the second currency, such as GBPUSD, AUDUSD and NZDUSD. On pairs where the dollar comes first, such as USDJPY, the value per pip changes with the price; the pip value calculator handles that.
You’ll also see sizes in between. 0.25 lots is 25,000 units and worth USD 2.50 per pip on EURUSD. 0.03 lots is 3,000 units and worth USD 0.30 per pip.
Why lot size matters more than your balance
Two traders with the same balance can take very different risks on the same trade, purely because of lot size. Take a 30-pip move against you on EURUSD:
| Position size | Loss from a 30-pip move |
|---|---|
| 1.00 lot | USD 300 |
| 0.10 lot | USD 30 |
| 0.01 lot | USD 3 |
On a USD 100 account, the first position loses three times the balance (in practice the platform would close it long before that), the second loses 30%, and the third loses 3%. The market moved the same distance each time; only the size was different.
That’s why position size, not the pair you choose or the leverage you set, decides how much a trade can hurt.
Lot size and leverage are different things
Beginners often mix these up:
- Lot size sets how much each pip is worth. 0.10 lots on EURUSD is USD 1 per pip, whatever leverage you use.
- Leverage sets how much margin the broker holds while the position is open. Higher leverage means less margin for the same lot size.
So high leverage doesn’t make a trade riskier by itself. It makes it possible to open a lot size that is far too big for your balance. See leverage and margin for worked examples.
How lots work on gold
Gold (XAUUSD) uses the same volume box, but one standard lot is usually 100 ounces instead of 100,000 units:
| Lots | Ounces | Value of a USD 1 move in the gold price |
|---|---|---|
| 1.00 | 100 | USD 100 |
| 0.10 | 10 | USD 10 |
| 0.01 | 1 | USD 1 |
Gold can move several dollars in a short time, so a lot size that feels small on EURUSD can be large on gold. Check the contract size in your platform’s symbol specification, and see gold pip value for how the “pip” on gold is defined.
Cent accounts and nano-sized trades
Most standard accounts won’t let you go below 0.01 lots. A cent account gets around that by counting in US cents. On a cent account where one cent lot equals 0.01 standard lots (as on Exness’s Standard Cent account):
- 1 cent lot = 1,000 units = USD 0.10 per pip on EURUSD;
- 0.1 cent lots = 100 units, the size of a nano lot = USD 0.01 per pip.
That makes cent accounts useful for practising with real money in very small sizes.
Choosing a lot size: start from risk
The safest way to choose a size is to start from what you’re prepared to lose and work backwards:
- Amount at risk = balance × the percentage you’re willing to lose on this trade.
- Loss per standard lot = your stop loss in pips × the pip value of one standard lot.
- Lot size = amount at risk ÷ loss per standard lot, rounded down.
Example (numbers for illustration): balance USD 300, risk 1% (USD 3), stop loss 15 pips on EURUSD.
- Loss per standard lot: 15 × USD 10 = USD 150
- Lot size: 3 ÷ 150 = 0.02 lots
The lot size calculator does this for you, including pairs like USDJPY.
Common lot-size mistakes
- Treating 1.00 lot as “one dollar”. One lot is 100,000 units of currency, not a dollar amount.
- Using all the margin available. The platform may let you open 1.00 lot on a small account with high leverage. That doesn’t mean the account can survive the swings.
- Forgetting that pip values differ. A pip on USDJPY or on gold isn’t worth the same as a pip on EURUSD.
- Increasing size after a loss to “win it back”. Size should come from your stop and risk, not your mood.
Practise choosing sizes on a demo account until working out a lot size takes you less than a minute.
Common questions
What is a standard lot in forex?
100,000 units of the base currency, the first currency in the pair. On EURUSD that is EUR 100,000, and on pairs ending in USD each pip is worth USD 10 per standard lot. It is shown as 1.00 in the volume box.
What is a micro lot in forex?
1,000 units of the base currency, entered as 0.01 in most platforms. On pairs ending in USD a micro lot is worth USD 0.10 per pip, so a 50-pip move changes your balance by USD 5.
What is a nano lot in forex?
100 units of the base currency, or 0.001 standard lots. Most standard accounts don't accept sizes below 0.01, so nano-sized trades are usually only possible on a cent account, where 0.001 standard lots appears as 0.1 cent lots.
How much is 0.01 lot in forex?
0.01 lots is 1,000 units of the base currency. On EURUSD, GBPUSD and other pairs ending in USD, it is worth USD 0.10 per pip before costs.
What lot size should a beginner use?
Work it out from your stop loss and the amount you're prepared to lose, not from your balance alone. For most small accounts that points to the smallest size available, 0.01 lots, or a cent account. The lot size calculator does the arithmetic.