By Katie
· Free tool · Reviewed October 13, 2026
Gold moves in dollars, not in the tiny pips of currency pairs, and one lot is usually 100 ounces. That makes it easy to trade too big. Enter your balance, your risk and your stop, and the calculator gives you the lot size for XAU/USD.
Your lot size
0.10 lots
Contents (10)
How to use the gold lot size calculator
- Enter your account balance and how much you are ready to lose on this trade.
- Enter the distance from your entry to your stop loss. You can type it in dollars, in pips or in points: a 5 dollar stop is 50 pips or 500 points.
- Check how many ounces one lot is on your platform. On most it is 100.
- Optional: add the gold price and your leverage to see the position value and the margin.
How much is 1 lot of gold?
On most platforms one lot of XAU/USD is 100 troy ounces of gold. When gold moves by 1 dollar, one lot gains or loses 100 dollars. A 0.01 lot is 1 ounce, so the same 1 dollar move is worth 1 dollar.
| Lots | Ounces | 1 dollar move | 1 pip (0.10) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0.01 | 1 | $1.00 | $0.10 |
| 0.05 | 5 | $5.00 | $0.50 |
| 0.1 | 10 | $10.00 | $1.00 |
| 0.5 | 50 | $50.00 | $5.00 |
| 1 | 100 | $100.00 | $10.00 |
| 20 | 2,000 | $2,000.00 | $200.00 |
The value of the position is the ounces times the price. At a gold price of 4,000 dollars, one lot is worth 400,000 dollars, which is why gold is traded with margin.
How to calculate lot size for gold
money at risk = balance × risk %
lot size = money at risk ÷ (stop distance in dollars × ounces per lot)
Example
You have 5,000 dollars and risk 1%, so you can lose 50 dollars. You buy gold at 4,000.00 with a stop at 3,995.00, a stop of 5 dollars.
50 ÷ (5 × 100) = 0.10 lots, which is 10 ounces. If the stop is hit, you lose 5 dollars × 10 ounces = 50 dollars. The position is worth 40,000 dollars, and with 1:100 leverage the platform holds 400 dollars as margin.
Pips and points on gold
This is where most of the confusion comes from. Gold has no single pip size. Most platforms show two decimals, like 4,000.25, and different traders call different steps a pip:
| Name | Price step | A 5 dollar move |
|---|---|---|
| Dollar | 1.00 | 5 |
| Pip (most common) | 0.10 | 50 pips |
| Point | 0.01 | 500 points |
If a video says “a 50-pip stop on gold”, it usually means 5 dollars. When in doubt, measure the stop in dollars on your chart and enter it that way.
Why gold needs a smaller lot size than EUR/USD
Gold moves much more than a currency pair. A move of several dollars in a few minutes is normal, and around news it can be much more. A stop that would be wide on EUR/USD can be tight on gold. So the same 1% risk usually means a smaller lot size on gold, and the calculator keeps that honest.
Common mistakes
- Using your forex lot size on gold. 0.20 lots on gold is 20 ounces, and a 10 dollar move costs 200 dollars.
- Mixing up pips and points. A “50-point” stop might be 50 cents or 5 dollars, depending on who says it.
- Not checking the contract size. Some platforms use 10 or even 1 ounce per lot.
- Trading through the news with a tight stop. The spread on gold widens, and the stop can fill far from where you set it.
Frequently asked questions
How do you calculate lot size in gold?
Divide the money you are ready to lose by the stop distance in dollars times the ounces per lot. With 50 dollars at risk, a 5 dollar stop and 100 ounces per lot: 50 ÷ 500 = 0.10 lots.
How much is 1 lot in XAUUSD?
On most platforms one lot is 100 ounces of gold. Every 1 dollar move in the price is 100 dollars of profit or loss. At a price of 4,000 dollars, the position is worth 400,000 dollars.
How much is 0.05 lot size in gold?
0.05 lots is 5 ounces. Every 1 dollar move is 5 dollars of profit or loss, and every 0.10 pip is 50 cents.
How much is 20 lots of gold?
20 lots is 2,000 ounces. Every 1 dollar move is 2,000 dollars. That is a very large position, far too big for most retail accounts.
What is a pip in gold?
Most platforms count a gold pip as a 0.10 dollar move, but some use 0.01. Check how your platform defines it, or measure your stop in dollars.
Can I use this calculator for silver?
Not directly: one lot of silver is usually 5,000 ounces. Use the position size calculator with the stop as a price and divide the units by your platform's lot size.
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Learn it properly
- 1How to Manage Risk in TradingThe two decisions and one division behind every lot size.
- 2How Much Money Do You Need to Start Trading?What a small account can and cannot do.
- 3When to Exit a TradeWhere the stop belongs, before you enter.
For education only, not financial advice. Trading carries a real risk of losing money. Nothing you enter is saved or sent anywhere: the calculator runs in your browser.