MES Tick Value
MES moves in ticks of 0.25. Each tick is worth $1.25 per contract, so one full point is $5.
Commissions, exchange fees and slippage come off on top. This is the move times the tick value, nothing else.
What MES moves are worth
MES is the Micro E-mini S&P 500 future, traded on CME. One contract is five dollars times the S&P 500 index, so every point the index moves is worth $5 on one contract. The table runs the same sum for a few common sizes, before commissions.
| Move | Ticks | 1 contract | 2 contracts | 5 contracts | 10 contracts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 point | 4 | $5.00 | $10.00 | $25.00 | $50.00 |
| 2 points | 8 | $10.00 | $20.00 | $50.00 | $100.00 |
| 5 points | 20 | $25.00 | $50.00 | $125.00 | $250.00 |
| 10 points | 40 | $50.00 | $100.00 | $250.00 | $500.00 |
| 20 points | 80 | $100.00 | $200.00 | $500.00 | $1,000.00 |
| 50 points | 200 | $250.00 | $500.00 | $1,250.00 | $2,500.00 |
The sum is always the same. Ticks moved, times $1.25, times the number of contracts. The calculator above does it for any move.
MES and ES
MES is one tenth of ES, the E-mini S&P 500 future. Both move in ticks of 0.25, but one point on ES is worth $50 where it is worth $5 on MES.
So ten MES contracts carry the same dollar move as one ES. The micro lets you trade the same market at a tenth of the size, or add and take off size in smaller steps.
Setting an MES stop in NinjaTrader
NinjaTrader uses exactly these numbers. In the Control Center open Tools, then Instruments, search for MES and open it with a double-click or the Edit button. Its tick size reads 0.25 and its point value reads 5. We checked every value on this page against that list.
In the ATM strategy dialog a stop set in Ticks is a distance. A 16-tick stop on MES is 4 points away and risks $20.00 on one contract, or $40.00 on two. The distance stays the same whatever size you trade, so a template saved in Ticks places the stop at the same distance on any quantity. The dollars it risks still grow with the size.
A stop set in Currency works differently. NinjaTrader treats the dollar figure as the total for the whole order, not per contract. A $20 Currency stop on MES lands 16 ticks away on one contract, but only 8 ticks away on two. We measured this with real fills on templates with one stop and one target. Templates with several targets may divide differently, and we have not verified them. The position size calculator gives you both values for any size.
Common questions
How much is one point on MES?
$5 per contract. It is 4 ticks of $1.25 each.
How much is a 5-point move on MES?
$25.00 on one contract and $250.00 on ten. That is 20 ticks of $1.25.
Is the MES tick value the same at every broker?
Yes. The tick size and the tick value are set by the exchange, CME. Commissions and margin differ from broker to broker, the tick value does not.
Does the price level change the tick value?
No. One tick on MES is worth $1.25 at any price.
More tick values
- MNQ tick value, Micro E-mini Nasdaq-100 future
- NQ tick value, E-mini Nasdaq-100 future
- ES tick value, E-mini S&P 500 future
- GC tick value, Gold future
- MGC tick value, Micro Gold future
- All futures tick values, every contract in one table
This page does arithmetic on exchange contract specifications. It is not trading advice. Futures trading carries substantial risk of loss. See our risk disclosure.