Mini Contracts
The standard E-mini futures contracts (ES, NQ) — the full-size instruments most prop firm profit targets are built around, and the size you graduate into as your buffer grows.
“Mini” is shorthand for the E-mini futures contracts that dominate US index trading. The E-mini S&P 500 (ES) is $50 per index point, and its 0.25-point minimum tick is worth $12.50. The E-mini Nasdaq-100 (NQ) is $20 per point, so each 0.25-point tick is worth $5.00. They’re deep, liquid, and open nearly 24 hours a day — which is exactly why almost every futures prop firm builds its evaluations around them.
Minis are ten times the size of their micro equivalents. One ES equals ten MES; one NQ equals ten MNQ. Nothing else changes — same tick increments, same order book, same hours.
That 10x multiplier is the whole story for risk:
| Scenario | Contracts | Adverse move | Dollar loss |
|---|---|---|---|
| Trading NQ | 1 NQ | 25 points (100 ticks) | $500 |
| Trading MNQ | 1 MNQ | 25 points (100 ticks) | $50 |
| Trading MNQ | 5 MNQ | 25 points (100 ticks) | $250 |
On a funded account with a $2,000 drawdown cushion, a single NQ contract can move $500 against you in the time it takes to reach for the mouse. The traders who last are the ones who match contract size to cushion size — often starting in micros and stepping up to minis only once their profit buffer can absorb a normal losing trade without threatening the account.
Minis earn their place once you have room. Fewer contracts to manage, tighter commissions per dollar of exposure, and profit targets that arrive in far fewer trades. A 20-point winner in 2 ES is $2,000 — a meaningful chunk of most evaluation targets in a single move.
Master the sizing ladder — micros to prove it, minis to scale it — and you’re playing the same game the funded traders are. Learn how firms cap your maximum size in max contracts and position sizing, then compare contract limits across firms in our directory.