Futures Contract Specifications: How to Read Them

Contract Specifications

Contract specifications define a futures contract's size, tick, months, hours and settlement. Learn every field, with examples for E-mini S&P, crude oil and gold.

Intermediate3 min readUpdated 3 Oct 2026

Lesson 2 of 21

Every futures contract comes with a set of contract specifications, published by the exchange, that define exactly what is being traded. They tell you how big one contract is, how prices are quoted, the smallest price move and its dollar value, which months are listed, when trading stops and how the contract settles. Reading the specifications before trading is essential: two contracts on the same asset can differ by a factor of ten in size.

The main fields#

Field	What it tells you
Contract unit (size)	How much of the asset one contract represents
Price quotation	Units of the price, such as dollars per barrel or index points
Minimum price fluctuation (tick)	Smallest allowed price change and its value per contract
Listed contracts	Which months trade, and how far out
Trading hours	When the contract trades, including overnight sessions
Termination of trading	Last trading day rule
Settlement method	Cash or physical delivery
Delivery details	Grade, location and delivery period for physical contracts
Price limits	Maximum daily moves or circuit breakers, if any
Position limits	Maximum positions for speculators, if any
Product codes	Ticker symbols on different platforms

Examples of major contracts#

Contract	Exchange	Size	Tick	Tick value	Settlement
E-mini S&P 500 (ES)	CME	$50 × index	0.25 points	$12.50	Cash
Micro E-mini S&P 500 (MES)	CME	$5 × index	0.25 points	$1.25	Cash
WTI crude oil (CL)	NYMEX	1,000 barrels	$0.01 per barrel	$10.00	Physical
Gold (GC)	COMEX	100 troy ounces	$0.10 per ounce	$10.00	Physical
10 year Treasury note (ZN)	CBOT	$100,000 face value	1/64 of a point (half of 1/32)	$15.625	Physical (deliverable notes)
Euro FX (6E)	CME	€125,000	$0.00005 per euro	$6.25	Physical currency delivery
Corn (ZC)	CBOT	5,000 bushels	1/4 cent per bushel	$12.50	Physical

Specifications change from time to time; always check the exchange's current page.

Reading a specification#

Micro and mini contracts#

Exchanges list smaller versions of popular contracts to make them accessible:

Micro E-mini equity index futures: one tenth of the E-mini size.
Micro WTI crude oil: 100 barrels.
Micro gold: 10 troy ounces.
Micro Bitcoin and Ether futures on CME.

Smaller contracts let traders size positions more precisely, which matters for risk control. See Position Sizing.

Price limits and circuit breakers#

Some contracts have daily price limits or trading halts. Equity index futures on CME have circuit breakers tied to the S&P 500 market wide halts during regular hours and limits overnight; many agricultural contracts have daily limits that can expand after limit moves. When a market is "locked limit", trading can stop at that price, making it impossible to exit. See Trading Halts and Circuit Breakers.

Why specifications matter#

Risk per tick: knowing the tick value tells you the dollar risk of every stop. See Tick Size and Tick Value.
Expiry and roll dates: avoid delivery and plan rolls. See Contract Months and Expiration.
Liquidity: only some listed months are actively traded.
Hours: know when the market is open and when liquidity is thin. See Trading Sessions.

Common mistakes#

Confusing mini and micro contracts.
Ignoring the last trading day for physically delivered contracts.
Assuming all months are equally liquid.

Frequently asked questions#

What are futures contract specifications?#

The exchange defined terms of a futures contract, including size, price quotation, tick size and value, listed months, trading hours and settlement method.

Where can I find contract specifications?#

On the exchange's website, such as CME Group, ICE or Eurex, under each product's contract specifications page.

What is the difference between E-mini and Micro E-mini futures?#

Micro E-mini contracts are one tenth the size of E-mini contracts, so each tick is worth one tenth as much.

Next, calculate the dollar value of price moves in Tick Size and Tick Value.

Sources#

CME Group, E-mini S&P 500 contract specifications

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Next lessonTick Size and Tick ValueTick size is a future's smallest price move; tick value is what it is worth per contract. Learn to calculate P&L, risk per trade and position size from ticks.