MNQ Point Value: What One Move Is Worth in the Micro Nasdaq
If you trade the Micro E-mini Nasdaq-100, the single most useful number to memorize is what one move is worth in dollars. For MNQ, the answer is clean: $2 per index point and $0.50 per tick, per contract. Everything about your sizing and risk flows from those two figures. According to the CME Micro E-mini Nasdaq-100 (MNQ) specifications, the contract is $2 times the index and one-tenth the size of the E-mini described in the CME Micro E-mini overview.
The MNQ spec in plain English
MNQ is the “micro” version of the Nasdaq-100 futures. Its contract multiplier is $2 times the Nasdaq-100 index, so a one-point move in the index changes the contract value by $2. The smallest increment the price can move — the tick — is 0.25 index points, which works out to $0.50.
- Point value: $2 per index point, per contract.
- Tick size: 0.25 index points.
- Tick value: $0.50 per tick (four ticks make one point: 4 × $0.50 = $2).
- Settlement: cash-settled, expiring quarterly (third Friday of March, June, September, and December).
Turning a chart move into dollars
The math is just multiplication. Take the size of the move in points, multiply by $2, then multiply by the number of contracts. A 10-point move on one MNQ contract is $20. The same 10-point move on five contracts is $100. The chart did not change — your dollar exposure changed because your contract count did.
MNQ vs NQ: the trap to avoid
The full-size E-mini Nasdaq-100 (NQ) is worth $20 per point and $5 per tick — exactly ten times MNQ. They print nearly identical charts, so a trader who learns sizing on one and switches to the other without checking can end up with ten times more or less exposure than intended. Always confirm the symbol you are actually trading.
Why point value is really a risk tool
Point value is what lets you size a trade on purpose instead of by feel. Decide the dollars you are willing to lose, measure your stop distance in points, and divide. If you will risk $100 and your stop is 25 points away, that is $50 of risk per MNQ contract (25 × $2), so two contracts puts you right at your limit. In a funded, simulated account with a daily loss limit, this is the calculation that tells you whether a trade fits inside the rules before you click — not after.
$0.50 per tick
Fine-grained risk control
$5 per tick
10× the dollar risk
From entry to stop on the chart.
That’s your dollar risk per contract.
Point value is really a risk tool.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the point value of MNQ?
The Micro E-mini Nasdaq-100 future, MNQ, is worth $2 per index point, so a ten-point move in the Nasdaq-100 changes one MNQ contract by $20. It is one tenth the size of the full E-mini Nasdaq-100, NQ.
What is one tick worth on MNQ?
MNQ moves in ticks of 0.25 index points, and each tick is worth $0.50. That makes it a fine-grained, low-dollar way to trade the Nasdaq-100, which is why many traders learn on it before scaling to NQ.
How does MNQ compare to NQ?
MNQ is exactly one tenth of NQ. NQ is $20 per point and MNQ is $2 per point, on the same chart and the same index. The micro lets you size risk precisely instead of being forced into the larger contract.
Why trade MNQ instead of NQ?
Because the smaller dollar value lets you keep risk per trade inside a funded account's limits while still trading the Nasdaq-100. It is the sensible place to build consistency before stepping up to NQ sizing.
Does MNQ track the same market as NQ?
Yes. Both track the Nasdaq-100 index and move on the same price action; only the dollars per point differ. The chart is identical, so a plan built on MNQ transfers directly to NQ at ten times the dollar risk.
What is the point value of MNQ in a funded account?
MNQ is worth $2 per index point, and its minimum tick is 0.25 index points, so each tick is $0.50. In a funded account, that small point value makes MNQ easy to size: you can calculate exactly how many ticks of adverse movement fit inside your per-trade and daily loss limits.
How do I calculate dollar risk on MNQ?
Multiply the number of index points from your entry to your stop by $2 per point, then by the number of contracts. Because MNQ is $2 per point, the math is simple, which is why funded traders use it to keep each trade's defined risk inside their account limits.
Put the math to work in a funded account
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