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SCUTA

Interactive tool

Futures Calculator

Size contracts from a risk budget, or solve the stop distance a fixed size can afford. Read dollars first: margin is only a door fee.

Illustrative only. Outputs are not forecasts, fills, or advice. Risk disclosures

How to use · Futures Calculator

Plans a futures trade end to end: pick a contract and direction, then either solve your stop from risk ÷ contracts or solve contracts from your stop. Get exact tick and point P&L, risk:reward, account risk and margin, plus a sizing matrix and a per-contract spec sheet.

Steps

  1. 01Pick the market. Each contract carries its own tick size, point value and margin, seeded with a sensible reference price.
  2. 02Choose a direction (long or short), then pick what to solve for. Solve for stop derives the stop distance from risk ÷ contracts; Solve for contracts sizes the position from your stop. The solved field is locked.
  3. 03Enter the account size and risk per trade, as a % of the account or a flat $ amount.
  4. 04In Solve for stop, set contracts and a risk:reward (the 1:1, 1:2 and 1:3 chips or a custom R) and the stop and target are computed for you. In Solve for contracts, set entry, stop and target and the contract count is solved from your risk.
  5. 05Read the result tiles, contract specs, P&L profile, trade ladder and sizing matrix. Copy trade summary puts the whole plan on your clipboard.

Reading the output

Profit at target / loss at stop
Dollar gain if the target hits and dollar loss if stopped out, for the whole position.
P&L=points×point value×contracts\text{P\&L} = \text{points} \times \text{point value} \times \text{contracts}
Risk : reward (R)
Reward distance ÷ risk distance, shown as 1 : R. Above 1:1 means the target pays more than the stop costs.
Account risk %
The stop-out loss as a share of account size. The number to keep small; most professionals cap it near 1–2%.
Margin / notional
Indicative margin to hold the position and its full notional value: how much market exposure the account is controlling.
Position sizing matrix
Contracts that fit each risk budget at the current stop distance. Click a row to apply that risk % and size.

Tips

  • Tick value = tick size × point value. P&L is computed from points × point value so it is exact, with ticks shown for convenience.
  • Solve for contracts floors to whole contracts whose worst case stays at or under your risk %, so actual risk is usually a hair under budget.
  • A “wrong side of entry” hint means the stop or target is on the invalid side for the direction; the trade won't compute until it is fixed.
  • Margin lets you hold far more notional than the account. Leverage cuts both ways, so size by risk %, not by how many contracts margin allows.

Market

Solve for

Set risk and contracts: the stop distance is solved and the target follows from R:R.

$

Risk per trade

%

Most you'll lose if the stop is hit · 1% of account = $500.00

Risk budget ÷ contracts sets your stop distance.

Stop lossSolved
5,790.00

40 ticks · 10 pts

Take profitSolved
5,820.00

80 ticks · 2.00R

Risk : reward

Solid setup

Risking 1% to make $1,000 at a 2.00R payoff.

Risk : reward

1 : 2.00

80 vs 40 ticks

Profit @ target

$1,000

1 × $1,000

Loss @ stop

−$500.00

1 × $500.00

Account at risk

1%

Of $50,000

Margin required

$500.00

Indicative · per broker

Notional value

$290,000

1 × 5,800.00 × $50.00

P&L profile

1 × ES · long

Trade ladder

Reward
80 ticks · 20 pts
Risk
40 ticks · 10 pts
R:R
1 : 2.00

Position sizing matrix

Contracts that fit each risk budget at the current 40-tick stop. Click a row to apply it.

Risk %Risk $ContractsProfit @ TP
0.25%$125.000—
0.50%$250.000—
0.75%$375.000—
1.00%$500.001$1,000
1.25%$625.001$1,000
1.50%$750.001$1,000
1.75%$875.001$1,000
2.00%$1,0002$2,000
2.25%$1,1252$2,000
2.50%$1,2502$2,000
2.75%$1,3752$2,000
3.00%$1,5003$3,000
3.25%$1,6253$3,000
3.50%$1,7503$3,000
3.75%$1,8753$3,000
4.00%$2,0004$4,000
4.25%$2,1254$4,000
4.50%$2,2504$4,000
4.75%$2,3754$4,000
5.00%$2,5005$5,000
5.25%$2,6255$5,000
5.50%$2,7505$5,000
5.75%$2,8755$5,000
6.00%$3,0006$6,000
6.25%$3,1256$6,000
6.50%$3,2506$6,000
6.75%$3,3756$6,000
7.00%$3,5007$7,000
7.25%$3,6257$7,000
7.50%$3,7507$7,000
7.75%$3,8757$7,000
8.00%$4,0008$8,000
8.25%$4,1258$8,000
8.50%$4,2508$8,000
8.75%$4,3758$8,000
9.00%$4,5009$9,000
9.25%$4,6259$9,000
9.50%$4,7509$9,000
9.75%$4,8759$9,000
10.00%$5,00010$10,000

ES contract specs

E-mini S&P 500

Tick size
0.25
Tick value
$12.50
Point value
$50.00
Contract size
$50 × index
Intraday margin
$500.00 approx
Exchange
CME
Trading hours
Sun–Fri 18:00–17:00 ET (1h break)
Currency
USD

Margin is indicative and varies by broker. Verify with your broker before trading.

P&L by R move

Moves past −1R are gaps or slippage through the stop.

MovePointsP&L
−2R-20−$1,000
−1R-10−$500.00
−0.5R-5−$250.00
+0.5R5$250.00
+1R10$500.00
+2R20$1,000
+3R30$1,500

Questions this tool usually raises

How is futures P&L calculated?
From points moved, not ticks. Each contract has a point value, so P&L is the price move in points times the point value times the number of contracts. Ticks (tick size × point value = tick value) are shown for convenience, but the dollar math runs off points so it stays exact.
P&L=(exit−entry)×point value×contracts\text{P\&L} = (\text{exit} - \text{entry}) \times \text{point value} \times \text{contracts}
What is the “Solve for” toggle?
It picks which field the calculator works out for you. Solve for contracts takes your stop and solves the largest whole number of contracts whose stop-out loss stays within your risk budget (account size × risk %), rounding down so actual risk lands at or just under your %. Solve for stop takes your contracts and risk and works backward to the stop distance that fits the budget, then sets the target from your risk:reward. The solved field is locked so the math always balances.
contracts=⌊account×risk%stop points×point value⌋\text{contracts} = \left\lfloor \dfrac{\text{account} \times \text{risk\%}}{\text{stop points} \times \text{point value}} \right\rfloor
What is a good account-risk percentage per trade?
Most professional traders risk a small, fixed slice per trade, commonly around 1–2% of the account. The Account risk tile shows where your current size lands; keeping it small is what lets you survive an inevitable losing streak.
Why does it say “wrong side of entry”?
For a long, the stop must sit below entry and the target above it; for a short, the reverse. When you type or step a stop or target, the calculator clamps it to the nearest valid level (one tick past entry), so you mostly see this hint only mid-edit. In Solve for stop the stop and target are derived, so they can never land on the wrong side.
What is the difference between margin and risk?
Margin is the deposit your broker requires to hold the position, and it can be a tiny fraction of the notional value. Risk is what you actually lose if the stop is hit. Margin tells you what you can trade; risk % tells you what you should. Always size by risk, not by how many contracts margin allows.
Does the risk:reward preset change my stop?
No. The 1:1, 1:2 and 1:3 chips keep your stop where it is and set the target that many times the stop distance away from entry. Move your stop first, then pick the reward multiple.