What 1 pip is on XAUUSD
Gold is priced in US dollars per troy ounce, and Capital.com, BlackBull Markets and Purple Trading all publish a contract size of 100 for it (table below). Profit = price move × 100 × lots, already in dollars.
What traders call a gold pip varies. The calculator, like most position size tools, counts 0.10 as a pip, so a $3.00 stop is 30 pips. MetaTrader counts in points, the last digit of the quote: 0.01 on a 2-digit feed (4000.25) and 0.001 on a 3-digit feed (4000.255). The money doesn't change, $3.00 × 100 oz = $300 per lot, only the number you type does.
XAUUSD pip value per lot
Value of one pip (0.10 in price): 0.1 × 100 = $10 per 1.00 lot, with a contract size of 100.
| Position | 1 pip | 30 pips (3.00) |
|---|---|---|
| 1.00 lot | $10.00 | $300.00 |
| 0.10 lot | $1.00 | $30.00 |
| 0.01 lot | $0.10 | $3.00 |
Worked example: 1% of $10,000
- Risk: 1% × $10,000 = $100.00.
- Stop: 30 pips = 3.00 in price.
- Value of 1 pip per 1.00 lot: $10.00.
- Lot size = $100.00 ÷ (30 × $10.00) = 0.3333, rounded down to the 0.01 step: 0.33 lots.
On a 2-digit quote, 300 points = $3.00 = 30 pips in the calculator. The exact size is 0.3333 lots, rounded down to 0.33.
"300 points" on a 3-digit quote: a $0.30 stop: $100.00 ÷ (3 × $10.00) = 3.33 lots.
Contract size and tick value in MT5
In MetaTrader 5, right-click XAUUSD in Market Watch and choose Specification: it shows Contract size, Digits, Profit currency and the volume limits. Tick size and tick value are what MQL5 reads with SYMBOL_TRADE_TICK_SIZE and SYMBOL_TRADE_TICK_VALUE; the script below prints them for your account.
| Contract size | 100 (troy ounces) at the three brokers below |
|---|---|
| Digits | 2 at the three brokers below (4000.25); a 3-digit quote is possible, so check yours |
| Tick size (SYMBOL_TRADE_TICK_SIZE) | 0.01 on a 2-digit quote, 0.001 on a 3-digit quote |
| Profit currency | USD |
| Tick value, 1.00 lot (SYMBOL_TRADE_TICK_VALUE) | $1.00 per 0.01 tick with 100 oz ($0.10 per 0.001 tick) |
| Loss per lot at the stop | stop in dollars × contract size |
Published values, checked on 2026-11-12. Specifications change and can differ by account type: your own Specification window is the reference.
| Source | Symbol there | Contract size | Price step |
|---|---|---|---|
| Capital.com | Gold | 100 | 2 digits |
| BlackBull Markets | XAUUSD | 100 | 0.01 |
| Purple Trading | XAUUSD | 100 | 0.01 |
MQL5: lot size from a money risk
A script that sends no order: it reads the contract size, tick size, tick value and volume limits your broker sets for XAUUSD, then prints the lot size that risks 1% of the balance at the stop. The stop is a price distance (3.00), so the result is the same on 2-, 3- or 5-digit quotes. Save it as MQL5/Scripts/LotSize_XAUUSD.mq5 and compile it in MetaEditor (F7): 0 errors, 0 warnings.
//+------------------------------------------------------------------+
//| LotSize_XAUUSD.mq5 |
//| Lot size that risks a % of the balance at a given stop distance|
//+------------------------------------------------------------------+
#property script_show_inputs
input string InpSymbol = "XAUUSD"; // Symbol, exactly as in Market Watch
input double InpRiskPercent = 1.0; // Risk per trade, % of balance
input double InpStopDistance = 3.00; // Stop-loss distance in price (3.00 = 30 pips)
// Lots that lose about riskMoney at the stop, rounded down to the volume step.
// Returns 0 when even the minimum volume would risk more than riskMoney.
double LotsForRisk(const string symbol, const double riskMoney, const double stopDistance)
{
double tickSize = SymbolInfoDouble(symbol, SYMBOL_TRADE_TICK_SIZE);
double tickValue = SymbolInfoDouble(symbol, SYMBOL_TRADE_TICK_VALUE); // 1.00 lot, one tick, account currency
double step = SymbolInfoDouble(symbol, SYMBOL_VOLUME_STEP);
double minLot = SymbolInfoDouble(symbol, SYMBOL_VOLUME_MIN);
double maxLot = SymbolInfoDouble(symbol, SYMBOL_VOLUME_MAX);
if(tickSize <= 0.0 || tickValue <= 0.0 || step <= 0.0 || stopDistance <= 0.0)
return 0.0;
double lossPerLot = stopDistance / tickSize * tickValue; // money lost by 1.00 lot at the stop
double lots = MathFloor(riskMoney / lossPerLot / step + 1e-9) * step;
if(lots < minLot)
return 0.0;
int volumeDigits = (int)MathMax(0.0, MathCeil(-MathLog10(step) - 1e-9));
return NormalizeDouble(MathMin(lots, maxLot), volumeDigits);
}
void OnStart()
{
if(!SymbolSelect(InpSymbol, true))
{
PrintFormat("%s not found: use the exact name from Market Watch (some brokers add a suffix)", InpSymbol);
return;
}
int digits = (int)SymbolInfoInteger(InpSymbol, SYMBOL_DIGITS);
double point = SymbolInfoDouble(InpSymbol, SYMBOL_POINT);
double contract = SymbolInfoDouble(InpSymbol, SYMBOL_TRADE_CONTRACT_SIZE);
double tickSize = SymbolInfoDouble(InpSymbol, SYMBOL_TRADE_TICK_SIZE);
double tickVal = SymbolInfoDouble(InpSymbol, SYMBOL_TRADE_TICK_VALUE);
string currency = AccountInfoString(ACCOUNT_CURRENCY);
double risk = AccountInfoDouble(ACCOUNT_BALANCE) * InpRiskPercent / 100.0;
double lots = LotsForRisk(InpSymbol, risk, InpStopDistance);
PrintFormat("%s: contract size %g, %d digits, tick size %s, tick value %g %s per lot",
InpSymbol, contract, digits, DoubleToString(tickSize, digits), tickVal, currency);
PrintFormat("Stop %s = %.0f points. Risk %.2f %s",
DoubleToString(InpStopDistance, digits), InpStopDistance / point, risk, currency);
if(lots > 0.0)
PrintFormat("Lot size: %g", lots);
else
Print("Even the minimum volume risks more than that: widen the risk or tighten the stop");
}
The key line is stopDistance / tickSize * tickValue: the money one lot loses at the stop, already converted to your account currency by the terminal. Dividing the risk by it and flooring to SYMBOL_VOLUME_STEP gives the volume to pass to CTrade::Buy() or CTrade::Sell().
Pine Script v6 equivalent
The same sizing on a TradingView chart, from syminfo.pointvalue (money per 1.0 of price per unit) and syminfo.mintick (the chart's tick). Checked by Edgoro Pine Check; paste it into TradingView's Pine Editor to add it to a chart.
//@version=6
indicator("XAUUSD lot size for a money risk", overlay = true)
riskMoney = input.float(100.0, "Risk per trade (account currency)", minval = 0.01)
accountCcy = input.string("USD", "Account currency")
stopDistance = input.float(3.00, "Stop-loss distance (price)", minval = 0.0)
contractSize = input.float(100.0, "Units per 1.00 lot at your broker", minval = 0.0)
// One unit of the symbol gains or loses syminfo.pointvalue (in syminfo.currency) per 1.0 of price
fx = request.currency_rate(syminfo.currency, accountCcy)
lossPerUnit = stopDistance * syminfo.pointvalue * fx
units = lossPerUnit > 0 ? riskMoney / lossPerUnit : na
lots = contractSize > 0 ? math.floor(units / contractSize * 100) / 100 : na
var table info = table.new(position.top_right, 2, 3, bgcolor = color.new(color.gray, 80))
if barstate.islast
table.cell(info, 0, 0, "Stop")
table.cell(info, 1, 0, str.tostring(stopDistance / syminfo.mintick, "#") + " ticks of " + str.tostring(syminfo.mintick))
table.cell(info, 0, 1, "Units")
table.cell(info, 1, 1, str.tostring(units, "#.####"))
table.cell(info, 0, 2, "Lots (rounded down)")
table.cell(info, 1, 2, str.tostring(lots, "#.##"))
On a CFD chart syminfo.pointvalue is usually 1, so units is the number of ounces: set the contract size input to your broker's value. On a futures chart, syminfo.pointvalue already includes the contract multiplier, so units are contracts and the contract size input should be 1.
Common mistakes on XAUUSD
- Points on a 3-digit quote. "300 points" on a 3-digit feed is $0.30, not $3.00, and sizing for it gives 3.33 lots for a $100 risk: ten times the intended position, losing about $1,000 at a real $3.00 stop. Read Digits in the Specification window, or think in dollars.
- Forex pips on gold. Gold has no 0.0001 pip. Counting a $3.00 move as "300 pips" at $10 a pip sizes 0.03 lots instead of 0.33: the trade risks a tenth of what you planned.
- Another contract size. 100 oz is what the brokers below publish, but a mini, micro or cent account can differ. If Contract size says something else, the value per lot changes in proportion.
- Spread inside a short stop. If your spread is $0.30, it is a tenth of a $3.00 stop. Size for the stop plus the spread.
Lot size sets how much a trade loses if the stop is hit at its price. It doesn't make a trade a good one, and gaps or slippage can make the loss larger. Trading involves substantial risk of loss and is not suitable for every investor. Edgoro is a software tool, not a broker or financial adviser: nothing it produces is investment advice, and past or backtested performance does not guarantee future results.