Micro Futures: Smaller Contracts for Precise Position Sizing

For years, the smallest stock index futures contract was the E-mini, worth $50 per point on the S&P 500. For many traders, one contract was simply too large to fit sensible risk limits. Micro contracts, launched by CME Group in 2019 for equity indexes and later for other markets, are one tenth the size.

How micro contracts compare

For the S&P 500 index futures:

Micro versions exist for several major index, commodity, currency and crypto futures. Check the exchange's specifications for each, as sizes vary by product.

Why they matter for risk

Say your account is $25,000 and you risk 1% per trade: $250. Your stop is 8 points away.

• E-mini: 8 × $50 = $400 risk per contract. Even one contract exceeds your limit.
• Micro: 8 × $5 = $40 risk per contract. You can trade 6 contracts for $240 of risk.

Micros let you follow your position sizing rules instead of rounding up to a size that is too large.

Other benefits

• Scaling. With several micro contracts, you can take partial profits and trail the rest. See scaling in and out.
• Learning. New futures traders can trade live with small risk.
• Finer sizing as the account changes.

Things to watch

• Costs per point are higher. Commissions and fees per micro contract are usually less than for an E-mini but more than one tenth of it. Ten micros typically cost more to trade than one E-mini. See fees and commissions.
• Liquidity is good in major micro contracts but can be thinner in less popular ones.
• Leverage is still high. A micro contract still controls a large notional value relative to its margin. See leverage and margin.

Tracking micro and standard contracts together

If you trade both, your journal should apply the right multiplier to each and let you compare results. TradeThink applies each contract's multiplier automatically, so P&L is correct whether you trade minis or micros. Related: futures basics.