Futures Tick Value and Contract Specifications: ES, NQ, RTY, YM, CL, and GC Explained

Why Tick Value Is the Foundation of Every Futures Trade

Tick value determines how much money you make or lose on each minimum price move. Before entering any futures trade, you need to know: what is the minimum price increment (tick size), and how much is that tick worth in dollars? Without this, position sizing is guesswork and risk management is impossible.

This guide covers the six futures instruments YMI actively trades — ES, NQ, RTY, YM, CL, and GC — with full contract specifications, tick values, and the dollar-per-point calculations you need for daily position sizing.

E-mini S&P 500 (ES) Contract Specifications

• Underlying: S&P 500 Index
• Contract size: $50 × S&P 500 Index value
• Tick size: 0.25 index points
• Tick value: $12.50 per tick
• Point value: $50 per full point (4 ticks)
• Margin (approx): $500–$1,500 intraday depending on broker
• Trading hours: Sunday 6 PM – Friday 5 PM ET (Globex), 15-minute break at 5 PM daily
• Micro contract: MES — 1/10th size, $5 per point, $1.25 per tick

ES is the most liquid futures instrument in the world. A 10-point stop on ES is $500 per contract. Most YMI strategies use 6–15 point stops on ES depending on market regime.

E-mini Nasdaq-100 (NQ) Contract Specifications

• Underlying: Nasdaq-100 Index
• Contract size: $20 × Nasdaq-100 Index value
• Tick size: 0.25 index points
• Tick value: $5 per tick
• Point value: $20 per full point
• Margin (approx): $1,000–$2,000 intraday
• Micro contract: MNQ — 1/10th size, $2 per point, $0.50 per tick

NQ moves more points per session than ES due to tech-sector volatility. A 20-point NQ stop = $400 per contract. NQ requires wider stops relative to point distance than ES — account for this in your risk calculations. At $20/point, NQ is the most dollar-efficient instrument per tick in the equity futures space.

E-mini Russell 2000 (RTY) Contract Specifications

• Underlying: Russell 2000 Index (small-cap stocks)
• Contract size: $50 × Russell 2000 Index value
• Tick size: 0.10 index points
• Tick value: $5 per tick
• Point value: $50 per full point
• Micro contract: M2K — $5 per point, $0.50 per tick

RTY is more sensitive to risk-on/risk-off sentiment than ES and NQ. It tends to lead broad market direction changes — RTY strength before ES breakouts is a confirming signal. Less liquid than ES/NQ; wider bid-ask spreads increase slippage cost per trade.

E-mini Dow Jones (YM) Contract Specifications

• Underlying: Dow Jones Industrial Average
• Contract size: $5 × DJIA value
• Tick size: 1 point
• Tick value: $5 per tick (1 point)
• Point value: $5 per point
• Micro contract: MYM — $0.50 per point

YM moves in large point numbers (the DJIA itself is 35,000–40,000 range) but dollar-per-point is small at $5. A 50-point YM stop = $250 per contract. YM is correlated with ES but more influenced by heavyweight DJIA components (Apple, Microsoft, UnitedHealth).

Crude Oil (CL) Contract Specifications

• Underlying: WTI Light Sweet Crude Oil
• Contract size: 1,000 barrels
• Tick size: $0.01 per barrel
• Tick value: $10 per tick
• Point value: $1,000 per full dollar move
• Trading hours: Sunday 6 PM – Friday 5 PM ET (Globex)

CL is highly volatile and carries significant gap risk around geopolitical events, EIA inventory reports (Wednesdays at 10:30 AM ET), and OPEC announcements. A $1 CL move = $1,000 per contract. Most beginners underestimate CL's dollar exposure. Not recommended for new futures traders; start with ES/MES first.

Gold (GC) Contract Specifications

• Underlying: Gold (troy ounces)
• Contract size: 100 troy ounces
• Tick size: $0.10 per troy ounce
• Tick value: $10 per tick
• Point value: $100 per full dollar move ($1/oz)
• Micro contract: MGC — 10 troy ounces, $1 per tick

GC moves as a safe-haven asset, often inversely correlated with equity futures during risk-off events. A $10 GC move = $1,000 per contract. Gold has lower intraday volatility than CL but significant overnight gap risk around Fed announcements and currency events.

Quick Reference: Dollar Risk Per Stop Distance

To calculate dollar risk per trade: (stop distance in points) × (point value) × (contracts). Examples:

• ES, 10-point stop, 1 contract: 10 × $50 = $500
• NQ, 20-point stop, 1 contract: 20 × $20 = $400
• MES, 10-point stop, 1 contract: 10 × $5 = $50
• MNQ, 20-point stop, 1 contract: 20 × $2 = $40
• CL, $1.00 stop, 1 contract: 1 × $1,000 = $1,000
• GC, $10 stop, 1 contract: 10 × $100 = $1,000

Always calculate the exact dollar risk before entry, not after. The instrument with the largest apparent point move is not necessarily the highest dollar risk — NQ's large point moves at $20/point often produce smaller dollar losses than CL's smaller moves at $1,000/point.

Apply contract knowledge to a live strategy framework. YMI Intro Trader includes daily KPL levels for ES and NQ, the YMI course covering all instrument specifications, and the structured framework for building systematic position sizing across all six futures instruments.