Position Size From Risk: How to Calculate Lot Size

Step 1 of 5

The two inputs

Risk in money: a fixed share of the account, for example 0.5% of $10,000 = $50. Stop distance: the price at which the trade idea is proven wrong, measured in pips, points or dollars per share.

Everything else follows from these two. You do not need the account balance, the leverage or a target to size the trade, only what you will lose if it is wrong. The order of work matters: choose the stop from the chart, then size the trade. Moving the stop to fit a size you wanted is how risk creeps up.

Risk 1R, reward 2R

Step 2 of 5

The formula on EURUSD

Position size = risk in money ÷ (stop distance × value per pip). On EURUSD one standard lot is worth about $10 per pip.

$50 risk, 25-pip stop: $50 ÷ (25 × $10) = 0.20 lots.
Widen the stop to 50 pips: $50 ÷ (50 × $10) = 0.10 lots.
Tighten it to 10 pips: $50 ÷ (10 × $10) = 0.50 lots.

The size changes; the money at risk stays $50 every time. Round the result down, never up, when the platform needs a step such as 0.01 lots.

Lot names you will meet: a standard lot (1.00) is 100,000 units of the base currency, a mini lot (0.10) is 10,000 and a micro lot (0.01) is 1,000. On EURUSD that is about $10, $1 and $0.10 per pip, so the 0.20 lots above are two mini lots at about $2 per pip.

Risk % sizing: the ticket shows the money at the stop and what it does to your limits · Demo account

InteractiveTry it: lots from risk and stopSet your risk per trade and stop in pips to get the EURUSD position size.

Step 3 of 5

Other instruments

Gold, silver and crypto: the same formula, with the value per point taken from the instrument details in the MyFundedCapital Terminal, where you can see contract size, leverage, commission and swap.

Pairs not quoted in US dollars, such as USDJPY or EURGBP: the Terminal converts profit, loss and your limits to US dollars at the live rate, so the value per pip is not $10. Check it before sizing.

US stocks on MFC Stocks: shares = risk ÷ stop per share. With $50 of risk and a stop $0.50 below a $40 entry, that is 100 shares. Leverage on stocks is 1:2.

Step 4 of 5

Leverage is not risk

Leverage decides how much margin a position needs: for forex it is 1:50 on the 1-Step, 1:100 on the 2-Step and 1:30 on Instant Funded, and 1:2 for crypto on Instant Funded. It does not change what you lose if the stop is hit. A 0.20-lot trade with a 25-pip stop risks $50 at any leverage. Sizing from the stop keeps risk the same whatever the leverage.

Step 5 of 5

Check it against the daily limit

Before the order goes in, compare the planned loss with your daily room. On a $10,000 1-Step the whole day may lose $500. At $50 per trade that is 10 full losses before the limit, and half that before a personal stop at half the limit. Add commission to the planned loss: it reduces equity too.

Three sizing mistakes cause most avoidable breaches:

Sizing from leverage: opening the largest position the margin allows instead of the size the stop allows.
Moving the stop to make a favourite lot size fit.
Ignoring the spread: a stop placed right at a level can be hit by the spread alone, especially around news.

Free toolPosition size calculatorEnter risk and stop distance and get the size.

Recap

Position size = risk in money ÷ (stop distance × value per pip or point).
Set the stop first, then let the size follow from it.
Leverage changes margin, not the loss when the stop is hit.

Check yourself

0 / 4

1Which two numbers give the position size?

2$50 risk, 25-pip stop on EURUSD (about $10 per pip per lot). Size?

3Does higher leverage increase the risk of a sized trade?

4$50 risk, $0.50 stop per share. How many shares?

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