Step 1 of 5
The formula
Three numbers decide the size: the money you are willing to lose, the distance to your stop, and what one pip is worth per lot. On EURUSD, one standard lot moves about $10 per pip.
On a $10,000 account at 0.5% risk you can lose $50. With a 25-pip stop, one lot would lose $250. So the volume is $50 ÷ $250 = 0.20 lots. With a 40-pip stop it is $50 ÷ $400 = 0.12 lots. The risk stays at $50; only the volume changes.
On gold, silver and crypto the value per point is different, which is why the next step matters.
Step 2 of 5
Vol mode or Risk % mode
The ticket has two sizing modes.
- Vol. You type the volume in lots or use the quick buttons. The ticket then shows what the stop would cost.
- Risk %. You enter Risk per trade … % of equity, for example 0.5, and set the stop. The ticket works out the volume for that stop on that symbol.
Risk % is the easier way to stay consistent across EURUSD, XAUUSD and BTCUSDT, because you never convert points to dollars yourself. Whichever mode you use, read Risk at SL before you send: on the example above it should show about $50.
Step 3 of 5
Your floors in dollars
Two limits apply to every trade at once. On a $10,000 1-Step Challenge account:
| Limit | Size | Full stops at 0.5% ($50) |
|---|---|---|
| Daily loss limit | $500 (5%) | 10 |
| Overall loss limit | $1,000 (10%) | 20 |
The account panel shows Daily loss limit … left and Overall loss limit … left. The smaller of the two is your real room. Under Details you can set a personal daily loss limit below the plan’s, which many traders put at about half.
Step 4 of 5
Fit to limits is a ceiling
Fit to limits sets the largest volume that fits the room you have left. That is useful as a check when a typed volume runs too far. It is not a size: on most days the largest volume that fits is many times what a sensible risk per trade allows.
Open Order value & limits to see the execution price, order value, initial margin, applied leverage and commission. Leverage decides the margin you need, not how much you lose at the stop. A trade with low margin and a wide stop can still be too big.
Step 5 of 5
A sizing routine
- Mark the stop on the chart, beyond structure.
- Choose Risk % and enter your fixed risk, for example 0.5.
- Add the stop and the take profit.
- Check Risk at SL, the share of the daily loss left it uses, and the box If the stop loss hits.
- If the account panel shows less left on the overall limit than on the daily one, size from the overall figure.
Use the same routine on every trade, including the ones that look obvious. Most sizing mistakes happen on the trade that felt too good to check.
Recap
- Size from the stop and a fixed risk; the volume is the result, not the starting point.
- Risk % mode sizes from a share of equity and shows Risk at SL before you send.
- Fit to limits is a ceiling. Your own risk per trade is usually far below it.
Check yourself
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