Futures Margin & Leverage Calculator
Work out how much of your account a position ties up, and how many contracts your equity supports. Enter the margin your broker actually charges — this site deliberately does not publish margin figures, and the section below explains why.
Why this calculator asks you to type the margin yourself
Futures margin is not a fixed percentage and it is not a property of the contract alone. Two things move it:
- The exchange sets a minimum — CME, ICE and Eurex publish initial and maintenance margin per contract and revise them, sometimes weekly, when volatility changes.
- Your broker adds a buffer — most brokers require more than the exchange minimum. The same ES contract can require different amounts at two brokers on the same day.
Any website that prints a margin table without a revision date is telling you something that was true once. Look up the live number on the exchange site or in your broker's platform, then put it in the box above.
Initial margin vs maintenance margin
| Initial margin | Maintenance margin | |
|---|---|---|
| When it applies | To open a position | To keep a position open |
| Typical size | Higher — often 110–125% of maintenance | Lower |
| What happens if breached | You cannot add exposure | Margin call — you must deposit funds or the position is liquidated |
The gap between the two is your buffer. On a $2,500 initial / $2,275 maintenance contract you can lose $225 per contract before the call. On a fast market that can happen in minutes.
The thing margin calculators hide
Low margin is not a benefit. A contract with a small margin requirement is not "cheaper" — it is more leveraged, which means the same price move wipes out a larger share of your account. Margin tells you the minimum you must post, not the amount you should risk.
Position sizing should come from your stop distance, not from available margin. If your stop is 10 points on ES ($500 per contract), then risking 2% of a $25,000 account ($500) means one contract — even if the margin would allow you to hold ten.
Overnight and intraday margin are different
Many brokers charge a reduced intraday margin during the session and require the full exchange margin to hold the position overnight. A position that fits your account at 14:00 may trigger a call at the settlement. Always check the overnight requirement separately.
Most-looked-up contracts
- E-mini S&P 500 (ES)
- E-mini Nasdaq-100 (NQ)
- Crude Oil (CL)
- Gold (GC)
- Euro FX (6E)
- Corn (ZC)
- Silver (SI)
- Natural Gas (NG)
- Copper (HG)
Complete list of all 135: futures contract specifications.