Risk Per Trade For Small Accounts

Most traders blow up not because their ideas are bad, but because their position size is too large relative to normal futures volatility. Here's how to size trades so your account survives long enough to matter.

1. Small Accounts Can’t Absorb Normal Futures Movement

A single ES candle can easily move 5–10 points. That’s $250–$500 per contract.

If your entire risk budget is only $100–$200 per trade, you can’t run full-size contracts:

• ES will destroy you
• NQ will destroy you faster
• MES / MNQ exist specifically for small accounts

2. The 1%–2% Rule Actually Matters In Futures

In futures, “1% per trade” is not a meme — it’s math.

• $2,000 account → $20 max risk per trade
• $3,000 account → $30 max risk
• $5,000 account → $50 max risk

If that sounds “too small,” it means you’re used to oversizing.

3. Convert Your Risk Into Ticks

Trading is easier when you translate risk into a tick budget.

Example: MES

• MES tick = $1.25
• $50 risk → 40 ticks

That means your ENTIRE trade — including wiggle — must survive within 40 ticks. If your stop requires 60 ticks to be placed safely, the trade is too big for your account.

4. Prop Evaluations Make Risk Smaller Than You Think

• Apex 50k daily loss limit ≈ $2,500
• Realistic “daily risk” should be $300–$500
• Per-trade risk should be $50–$100 max

You can hit trailing drawdown with 2–3 oversized trades, even if your ideas are correct overall.

5. How Many Contracts Can You Trade?

$2k–$4k personal account:

• 1–2 MES
• 1 MNQ if you can handle bigger swings

$5k–$10k personal account:

• 3–5 MES
• 1–2 MNQ

Prop 50k eval:

• 3–6 MES
• 1 MNQ
• Never more than 2 MNQ unless you’re asking to fail

6. The Goal Of Small Accounts: Survival First

If you size correctly:

• your stop survives normal noise
• you avoid daily loss limit violations
• your edge actually has time to play out

Your goal is to avoid the behavior that kills most beginners: trading a large idea with a small account.