Lot Size: Standard, Mini, Micro and Cent Explained
Macro Glossary, Forex Mechanics
By Ken Chigbo, macro trader and founder of KenMacro, 18+ years in markets.
Updated 2026-05-20
The desk’s answer
A lot is the contract size on a forex trade, measured in base currency units. A standard lot is 100,000 units, a mini lot is 10,000, a micro lot is 1,000, and a cent lot (where offered) is 100. On EUR/USD a standard lot moves 10 dollars per pip, a mini lot 1 dollar, a micro lot 10 cents, and a cent lot one cent. The right lot size is the one that converts your chosen stop distance into the risk-per-trade percentage you have set for the account, not the largest the broker will permit.
Defined term, Lot size
Lot size is the contractual position size for a forex trade, measured in units of the base currency. The standard lot is 100,000 base units, a mini lot is 10,000, a micro lot is 1,000, and a cent lot is 100. Lot size determines pip value, margin required and risk per pip, which makes it the working dial for matching position size to account balance and stop distance.
The four lot sizes and what they imply
Standard lot: 100,000 base units. On EUR/USD a 50-pip stop on a standard lot is 500 dollars at risk, which suits accounts of 50,000 dollars or more if risking 1 percent per trade. Mini lot: 10,000 base. The same 50-pip stop is 50 dollars at risk, appropriate for a 5,000-dollar account at 1 percent. Micro lot: 1,000 base. The 50-pip stop is 5 dollars at risk, the right scale for a 500-dollar account or for testing a strategy live with negligible cost. Cent lot: 100 base. The 50-pip stop is 50 cents at risk, the scale beginners need to learn execution and emotion without burning the account.
How lot size, pip value and margin interact
Pip value scales linearly with lot size. Margin required scales with lot size and leverage: a standard lot of EUR/USD at 1.0850 has a notional value of 108,500 dollars, so at 30:1 leverage it requires roughly 3,617 dollars of margin, at 200:1 leverage roughly 543 dollars. Higher leverage shrinks the margin requirement but does not change pip value or risk. The lot size is therefore the only dial that affects both pip value and money-at-risk together, which is why position sizing is done in lots not in money.
Position-sizing formula in lots
Lot size = (account balance times risk percent) divided by (stop distance in pips times pip value per lot). For a 10,000-dollar account risking 1 percent (100 dollars) on a 40-pip EUR/USD stop, with a pip value of 10 dollars per standard lot: lot size = 100 / (40 times 10) = 0.25 lots, or 2.5 mini lots. The formula does not care about leverage; it cares about account balance, risk percent and stop distance. Sizing by leverage instead of by stop distance is the single biggest reason beginner accounts evaporate.
Frequently asked
What is a standard lot in forex?
A standard lot is 100,000 units of the base currency. On EUR/USD a standard lot is 100,000 euros, with a pip value of approximately 10 dollars per pip. It is the reference size against which mini (10,000), micro (1,000) and cent (100) lots are scaled.
What lot size should I trade?
The size that makes your chosen stop distance equal your chosen risk percentage of account balance, not the largest the broker will permit. Use the position-size formula: lot size = (balance times risk percent) / (stop pips times pip value per lot).
Do I need a cent or micro account?
Yes, if the account is small enough that a micro lot of 10 cents per pip on a 40-pip stop (4 dollars at risk) is more than 1 percent of the balance. A cent lot of 100 base units lets a 100-dollar account size positions survivably at 1 percent risk per trade.
What this means at the desk
Size by stop distance, not by leverage. Leverage is the room the broker gives you to be wrong, not a target.
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