Compare spot XAUUSD, GC and MGC: contract size, risk math, data feeds and costs. Choose the correct gold instrument before backtesting.
CL prints a deceptively small quote while paying $10 a tick and $1,000 a full point. What the spec really means for your risk, when crude actually moves, two setups precise enough to test — and why most traders should start on MCL.
GC gold futures have a $10 tick and 100-ounce contract. Compare MGC sizing, work through a replay example and check the correct TestMax access.
One tick on ES is $12.50. One tick on CL is $10 — but one point is $1,000, and misreading that quote is how beginners blow a week's risk budget on a single trade. The full spec table, a 20-tick stop worked out on every contract, and the sizing formula that turns a risk number into a contract count.
NQ pays $20 a point and ES pays $50, yet a routine NQ day usually swings more dollars per contract than an ES day. This guide works through the specs, the stop math, and the session behavior of both contracts, then gives an honest answer on which one to specialize in.
No PDT rule, micro sizing, 23-hour access — futures fit small-account day trading better than stocks. The full path: contract choice, session timing, strategy archetypes, risk framework, the evaluation-challenge route, and the practice loop that comes first.
Micro futures are 1/10th-size E-minis: MES $5/point, MNQ $2, same markets and hours. Full spec table, the commission catch nobody mentions, margin reality, and the exact point where micros stop making sense.
The first 90 minutes of the US session carry most of the volume and cleanest moves in index futures — but the full picture is hour-by-hour. A session breakdown for NQ and ES, and how to measure your own best hours.
NQ moves $20 per point, MNQ $2. Same index, same hours, 10x difference in risk. Contract specs side by side, the real cost differences, ES vs NQ, and how to decide which one fits your account.
NQ moves $20 per point and $5 per tick. Compare MNQ exposure, check session times and learn how to practice a setup with a complete trade record.
We use cookies to keep you signed in and to understand how our app is used. You choose what to allow.