BTCUSD
BTCUSD Lot Size Explained: How to Size Bitcoin and Ethereum Trades by Risk
On most CFD platforms, 1.0 lot of BTCUSD is 1 bitcoin. So every $1 move in the bitcoin price is worth $1 on 1.0 lot, $0.10 on 0.10 lot and $0.01 on 0.01 lot. The right BTCUSD lot size is your risk money divided by your stop distance in dollars. That is the whole formula, and it works the same way for ETHUSD.
The hard part is not the math. It is that bitcoin stops are measured in hundreds or thousands of dollars, platforms disagree on what a "point" is, and a few brokers use a different contract size. This Education guide walks through each trap with worked examples and ready tables. Every number uses the same preset as the free SIWAI BTCUSD lots calculator, so you can rerun any row with your own stop.
What one lot of BTCUSD actually is
BTCUSD is the price of one bitcoin in US dollars. When you trade it as a CFD, the lot is a number of coins, not 100,000 units of currency as in forex. Broker specification pages show the common setting: Tickmill's BTCUSD specification lists a contract size of 1 with a 0.01 lot minimum and step, and ThinkMarkets also lists a contract size of 1 and a 0.01 lot minimum.
So on a 1 coin contract:
- 1.00 lot controls 1 BTC
- 0.10 lot controls 0.1 BTC
- 0.01 lot controls 0.01 BTC
Exchange futures are sized differently, which is where some of the confusion comes from. The CME Group cryptocurrency futures FAQ lists Bitcoin futures at 5 bitcoin and Micro Bitcoin futures at 1/10 bitcoin, and Ether futures at 50 ether with Micro Ether at 1/10 ether. This guide is about CFDs quoted in lots. If you trade futures, swap the contract size in the formula below.
What 0.01, 0.10 and 1.0 lot of bitcoin are worth per move
The SIWAI preset values 1.0 lot at $1 per point, with one point equal to a $1 move in price. The table scales in a straight line, so you can read it as "coins times dollars."
| Lot size | Bitcoin | $1 move | $100 move | $500 move | $1,000 move | $2,000 move |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0.01 | 0.01 | $0.01 | $1 | $5 | $10 | $20 |
| 0.05 | 0.05 | $0.05 | $5 | $25 | $50 | $100 |
| 0.10 | 0.1 | $0.10 | $10 | $50 | $100 | $200 |
| 0.50 | 0.5 | $0.50 | $50 | $250 | $500 | $1,000 |
| 1.00 | 1 | $1 | $100 | $500 | $1,000 | $2,000 |
A 0.05 lot is 0.05 BTC, so a $1,000 move is $50. Spread, commission and overnight financing come on top, so the real cost of a losing trade is always a little larger than the table shows.
Points, ticks and decimals: the BTCUSD confusion
Bitcoin quotes come with different numbers of decimals on different platforms, and each platform calls its smallest step a point or a tick. The same $500 stop can therefore show up as three very different numbers:
| How the platform counts | One step equals | Value per step on 1.0 lot | A $500 stop equals |
|---|---|---|---|
| SIWAI preset (point = $1) | $1.00 | $1 | 500 points |
| Two decimal quote | $0.01 | $0.01 | 50,000 points |
| Three decimal quote | $0.001 | $0.001 | 500,000 ticks |
The third row is not hypothetical. The HFM #BTCUSD specification lists a minimum price increment of 0.001 and a tick value of 0.001 USD per lot. All three rows describe the same dollar risk. The danger is mixing them: typing "500" into a tool that expects $0.01 points gives you a $5 stop and a lot size 100 times too large. Think in dollars of bitcoin price first, then convert. SIWAI uses points of $1, which is why the BTCUSD calculator's default stop of 500 points means a $500 move.
The BTCUSD lot size formula
Position sizing always starts from the money you are willing to lose, as Investopedia's position sizing guide explains. On a 1 coin contract it reduces to three lines:
Risk money = account equity × risk percent
Risk per 1.0 lot = stop distance in dollars × contract size (1)
Lot size = risk money ÷ risk per 1.0 lot
Worked example: $5,000 account, 1% risk, long bitcoin with a $1,200 stop.
- Risk money: $5,000 × 1% = $50
- Risk per 1.0 lot: $1,200 × 1 = $1,200
- Lot size: $50 ÷ $1,200 = 0.0417, rounded down to 0.04 lot
- Check: 0.04 BTC × $1,200 = $48 at risk (0.96% of the account)
Always round down to your broker's volume step. Rounding up quietly turns a 1% rule into a 1.2% rule on small accounts. Place the stop where the chart says the idea is wrong, under the breakout base or the last higher low, then let the formula decide the lot. Never pick the lot first and squeeze the stop to fit it.
Bitcoin lot size tables for $1,000 to $25,000 at 1% risk
Each cell is the formula above, rounded down to a 0.01 volume step. "Below 0.01" means the smallest common order would risk more than 1%. Stops are in dollars of bitcoin price ($1,000 = 1,000 points on the SIWAI preset).
| Account | 1% risk | $500 stop | $1,000 stop | $2,000 stop | $4,000 stop |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| $1,000 | $10 | 0.02 | 0.01 | Below 0.01 | Below 0.01 |
| $2,500 | $25 | 0.05 | 0.02 | 0.01 | Below 0.01 |
| $5,000 | $50 | 0.10 | 0.05 | 0.02 | 0.01 |
| $10,000 | $100 | 0.20 | 0.10 | 0.05 | 0.02 |
| $25,000 | $250 | 0.50 | 0.25 | 0.12 | 0.06 |
Double the stop and the lot halves. A $2,000 stop on a $1,000 account would need 0.005 lot, which most platforms will not accept. For more instruments side by side on small accounts, see How Many Lots Can I Trade With $100, $500 or $1,000?
Rerun any row with your exact stop on the BTCUSD lots calculator, or use the position size calculator if you trade crypto next to forex pairs on the same risk rule.
The 0.01 lot check: the widest stop a small account can afford
Because 0.01 lot is 0.01 BTC, a $100 move costs $1. Flip that around and the widest stop you can afford on the minimum lot is your risk money times 100, in dollars of bitcoin price.
| Account | 1% risk | Widest stop at 0.01 lot | In SIWAI points |
|---|---|---|---|
| $500 | $5 | $500 | 500 |
| $1,000 | $10 | $1,000 | 1,000 |
| $2,500 | $25 | $2,500 | 2,500 |
| $5,000 | $50 | $5,000 | 5,000 |
If the chart needs a wider stop than that, the lot cannot shrink any further. You have three honest choices: wait for a tighter structure on a lower timeframe, knowingly accept a larger risk percent, or skip the trade. Shrinking the stop just to fit 0.01 lot usually means getting stopped out by normal bitcoin noise.
ETHUSD lot size: same formula, smaller stops
The SIWAI ETHUSD preset works exactly like bitcoin: 1.0 lot is 1 ether and a $1 move is $1 per lot. Ether trades at a much lower price than bitcoin, so stops in dollars are smaller and the lot sizes come out larger for the same risk.
| Account | 1% risk | $25 stop | $50 stop | $100 stop | $200 stop |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| $1,000 | $10 | 0.40 | 0.20 | 0.10 | 0.05 |
| $5,000 | $50 | 2.00 | 1.00 | 0.50 | 0.25 |
| $10,000 | $100 | 4.00 | 2.00 | 1.00 | 0.50 |
A bigger number in the lot box does not mean a bigger risk. 2.00 lots of ETHUSD with a $25 stop risks the same $50 as 0.05 lot of BTCUSD with a $1,000 stop. Check your broker's maximum lot per order as well, since some cap crypto CFD orders at a few lots. Run your own numbers on the ETHUSD lots calculator or the SOLUSD lots calculator for Solana.
Bitcoin and ether often move together. Holding a full 1% position in each can be closer to one 2% bet on the same move. Check the live BTC vs ETH correlation before stacking them, and see our correlation guide for how to split risk across related positions.
Leverage and margin: why they do not change your lot size
Leverage decides how much margin your broker holds, not how much you lose per dollar move. Margin is roughly lots × contract size × price ÷ leverage. At an example price of $100,000, the 0.04 lot from the worked example controls $4,000 of bitcoin. At 2:1 leverage the broker holds about $2,000 of margin; at higher leverage it holds less. In both cases a $1,200 move against you still costs $48.
Crypto leverage is also restricted for retail clients in some regions. ESMA's CFD product intervention measures set a 2:1 limit for cryptocurrency CFDs, and the UK's Financial Conduct Authority banned the sale of crypto derivatives to retail consumers from 6 January 2021. What you can trade, and at what margin, depends on where you live and which entity of your broker holds your account.
Size from the stop, then check the payoff. A target at least twice the stop distance gives you room to be wrong more often than right. Test it with the risk reward calculator and our guide on how to calculate risk reward ratio.
Check your broker before the first live bitcoin order
A 1 coin lot is common, not universal. In MetaTrader, right click the symbol in Market Watch and open Specification. The MetaTrader 5 help describes where to find it. The fields that matter:
- Contract size: coins per 1.0 lot. If it says 0.1 or 10 instead of 1, multiply your stop by that number in the formula.
- Digits and tick size: tell you what one point or tick is in dollars, so you can convert a stop in points into a stop in dollars.
- Tick value: money per tick on 1.0 lot. It confirms the math above in one number.
- Minimal volume, volume step and maximum volume: decide when a table cell is really "below 0.01" and how large one order can be.
Two crypto specific habits help as well. Bitcoin keeps trading on weekends, so a stop can trigger while stock and forex markets are closed. And spreads on BTCUSD are quoted in dollars of price, so include the spread in your stop distance rather than placing the stop right on the level. If you also trade gold or indices, the same logic applies with different contract sizes: see XAUUSD lot size and how to calculate lot size in forex.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much is 1 lot of BTCUSD?
On most CFD platforms, 1.0 lot of BTCUSD is 1 bitcoin, so every $1 move in the bitcoin price changes your profit or loss by $1. Some brokers use a different contract size, so check Contract size in your platform Specification before trading.
How much is 0.01 lot of bitcoin worth?
On a 1 coin contract, 0.01 lot is 0.01 BTC. A $100 move in bitcoin changes your profit or loss by $1, and a $1,000 move by $10, before spread, commission and financing.
How do I calculate lot size for BTCUSD?
Multiply account equity by your risk percent to get risk money. Divide that by your stop distance in dollars of bitcoin price times the contract size (usually 1). Round down to your broker volume step. Example: $5,000 at 1% is $50, and $50 divided by a $1,200 stop is 0.04 lot.
What lot size should I use for bitcoin with a $1,000 account?
At 1% risk you have $10 to lose. With a $500 stop that is 0.02 lot and with a $1,000 stop it is 0.01 lot. Any stop wider than $1,000 needs less than 0.01 lot, which most brokers will not accept.
Is ETHUSD lot size calculated the same way?
Yes. On the common 1 coin contract, 1.0 lot of ETHUSD is 1 ether and a $1 move is worth $1 per lot. Ether stops are smaller in dollars, so lot sizes come out larger for the same risk money.
Does leverage change my bitcoin lot size?
No. Leverage changes the margin your broker holds, not the loss per dollar move. Size from your stop and risk percent, then confirm you have enough free margin. Retail crypto leverage is capped at 2:1 under ESMA rules, and crypto derivatives are banned for UK retail clients.
Risk Disclaimer: Trading stocks, options, futures, forex, commodities, and cryptocurrencies involves substantial risk of loss and is not suitable for every investor. Cryptocurrency CFDs are highly volatile and are restricted or unavailable to retail clients in some countries. Past performance does not guarantee future results. This article is for educational purposes only and does not constitute financial advice. You should carefully consider your financial situation and risk tolerance before trading. Never trade with money you cannot afford to lose. Contract sizes, tick values and minimum volumes vary by broker. Confirm the Specification on your platform before sizing a live order.