Futures
Micro vs Mini Futures: Which Should You Trade?
By MarketsBench · Published · 4 min read
Step 2 of 3 in Futures Essentials.
Micro futures are exactly one-tenth of their e-mini equivalent. Same underlying index, same trading hours, same tick size, same price feed — one tenth of the money per tick. For most retail accounts that is not a lesser version of the contract; it is the only version that fits.
The size comparison
| Pair | Point value | Tick value | Notional | Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ES / MES (S&P 500 at 5,000) | $50 / $5 | $12.50 / $1.25 | $250,000 / $25,000 | 10:1 |
| NQ / MNQ (Nasdaq at 18,000) | $20 / $2 | $5.00 / $0.50 | $360,000 / $36,000 | 10:1 |
| CL / MCL (Crude at $75) | $1,000 / $100 | $10.00 / $1.00 | $75,000 / $7,500 | 10:1 |
| GC / MGC (Gold at $2,400) | $100 / $10 | $10.00 / $1.00 | $240,000 / $24,000 | 10:1 |
Ten micros equal one e-mini in every respect that matters to a P&L.
The account size test
The question is not preference. It is arithmetic: can your risk budget absorb one contract's worth of stop?
Risk per contract = (stop in points ÷ tick size) × tick value
A 12-point stop on the S&P is 48 ticks — $600 on ES, $60 on MES. Applying a 1% risk limit:
| Account | 1% risk budget | MES contracts | ES contracts |
|---|---|---|---|
| $2,000 | $20 | 0 | 0 |
| $5,000 | $50 | 0 | 0 |
| $10,000 | $100 | 1 | 0 |
| $25,000 | $250 | 4 | 0 |
| $60,000 | $600 | 10 | 1 |
| $150,000 | $1,500 | 25 | 2 |
The threshold for a single ES contract on this stop is around $60,000. Below that, trading ES means breaking your own risk rule — and the accounts that fail are overwhelmingly the ones that traded ES at $10,000 because "one contract" sounded like a small position.
Note the top two rows. A $5,000 account cannot take even one micro on a 12-point stop at 1% risk. The honest options are a tighter stop (if the strategy genuinely supports one), a higher risk percentage accepted with open eyes, or a larger account.
Granularity is the underrated advantage
Beyond affordability, micros give you something e-minis cannot: the ability to scale.
On ES, position size moves in $600 steps for this stop. You hold one contract or two — there is no in-between, no partial exit, no adding on strength. On MES the same exposure is ten contracts of $60 each, so you can:
- Take a first target on a third of the position and trail the rest
- Add on confirmation rather than committing everything at entry
- Size 4 contracts on a B-grade setup and 8 on an A-grade one
Trade management is most of the difference between a strategy's theoretical and realised expectancy. Micros are what make it possible on a normal account.
What micros cost you
They are not free:
- Commission per contract. Broker fees are per contract, and ten micros cost more in commission than one e-mini. On a round turn this is typically a few dollars per micro against a similar total for the e-mini — a real drag on very short-term strategies, negligible on swing trades.
- Slightly wider spreads. Micros are liquid but not as liquid as the e-minis. Expect to cross one tick where ES might occasionally offer better.
- More to manage. Ten tickets instead of one, and a partial fill is more likely to leave you with an odd number.
For anything but high-frequency scalping, the granularity is worth the extra commission.
Choosing
Trade micros if your account is under roughly $50,000, you want to scale in or out, you are testing a new strategy live, or you are trading several markets at once and need small increments in each.
Trade e-minis if your account comfortably supports the per-contract risk, you take single-entry single-exit positions, and commission per unit of exposure is a meaningful part of your cost base.
Do both where it helps: a core e-mini position with micros around it for scaling is common on larger accounts.
The mistake worth avoiding is treating micros as a beginner's contract to be graduated from. Contract choice is a function of account size and stop distance. Traders move up when the arithmetic says so — not when they feel ready.