GLOSSARY
Lot
The unit forex trades are measured in — and the number that decides how much each pip is worth to you.
Updated 2026-09-04 · Educational content · No broker owns this site
Quick answer. A lot is the standard unit of trade size in forex. One standard lot is 100,000 units of the base currency, a mini lot is 10,000 units and a micro lot is 1,000 units. Lot size decides how much money each pip is worth.
When you place a forex trade you do not choose a dollar amount — you choose a number of lots. A lot is simply a block of currency units. Brokers quote three standard blocks, and platforms let you trade fractions of them (0.10 lots, 0.01 lots), which is how the mini and micro sizes actually appear on screen.
The size you pick has one practical consequence: it sets the cash value of a pip. Everything else about the trade — entry, exit, the spread you pay — is the same whether you trade one micro lot or ten standard lots. Only the money attached to each pip changes.
How big is each lot size?
| Name | Units of base currency | Shown on platform as | Value of 1 pip* |
|---|---|---|---|
| Standard lot | 100,000 | 1.00 | $10.00 |
| Mini lot | 10,000 | 0.10 | $1.00 |
| Micro lot | 1,000 | 0.01 | $0.10 |
*On a pair quoted to four decimals with the US dollar as the quote currency, held in a US dollar account. A nano lot of 100 units exists at a few brokers but is rare.
How do you work out what a lot is worth?
Multiply the size of one pip by the number of units you hold. On EUR/USD one pip is 0.0001, so:
- 1 micro lot: 0.0001 × 1,000 = $0.10 per pip
- 1 mini lot: 0.0001 × 10,000 = $1.00 per pip
- 1 standard lot: 0.0001 × 100,000 = $10.00 per pip
So a 30-pip move is worth $3 on a micro lot, $30 on a mini lot and $300 on a standard lot. Same chart, same idea, same 30 pips — the only difference is the size you chose before you clicked.
What do beginners get wrong about lot size?
The common mistake is treating lot size as a setting to leave alone, then adjusting the stop loss to whatever feels affordable. That is backwards. The stop belongs where the trade idea is wrong; the lot size is what you adjust so that distance costs an amount you accepted in advance.
The second mistake is jumping from micro to standard lots after a good week. Multiplying size by 100 multiplies the loss on a bad day by 100 too. Trading on base currency blocks this large is how small accounts disappear.
Related terms
- Standard lot · Mini lot · Micro lot
- Pip — the unit a lot puts a price on
- Currency pair · Base currency
Frequently asked questions
What is 0.01 lots?
0.01 lots is one micro lot — 1,000 units of the base currency. On a four-decimal pair quoted in US dollars, one pip on that position is worth about $0.10.
Can I trade less than a micro lot?
A few brokers offer nano lots of 100 units, but most retail platforms stop at 0.01 lots. If a micro lot still feels too large for your account, the position is a sign the account is too small for that trade, not a reason to widen the stop.
Does lot size change the spread I pay?
The spread stays the same in pips, but its cash cost scales with lot size. A 1.2 pip spread costs about $0.12 on a micro lot and about $12 on a standard lot.