Forex Margin Calculator
A forex margin calculator shows how much of your account is set aside as margin to open a position. Required margin = lots × contract size × price ÷ leverage, so 1 lot of EURUSD at 1.1000 with 1:30 leverage needs $3,666.67.
How do you calculate forex margin?
Required margin = lots × contract size × price ÷ leverage, the deposit your platform sets aside to keep a leveraged position open. The first three terms give the position value; dividing by the leverage gives the deposit the position ties up.
If the price is quoted in a different currency from your account, the result is converted at the exchange rate you enter.
Margin as a share of the position is 1 divided by the leverage: 10% at 1:10, 3.33% at 1:30 and 1% at 1:100.
What is a worked example of margin?
At 1:30 leverage, one standard lot of EURUSD at 1.1000 needs $3,666.67 of margin, and 0.10 lot needs $366.67. One lot is 100,000 euros, so its position value is 1 × 100,000 × 1.1000 = $110,000, and the margin is that value divided by 30.
| Leverage | Margin for 1 lot ($110,000 position) | Margin for 0.10 lot ($11,000 position) |
|---|---|---|
| 1:30 | $3,666.67 | $366.67 |
| 1:100 | $1,100.00 | $110.00 |
At 1:30, $110,000 ÷ 30 = $3,666.67, and a tenth of the size needs a tenth of the margin, $366.67.
Leverage and margin, and why the same price move is magnified in both directions, are explained in the lesson Leverage in Forex: How Leverage and Margin Work.
What does each input mean?
The calculator needs the instrument's contract size and quote currency, your position size, today's price and the leverage on your account. Your account currency sets the currency of the result, and an exchange rate field appears when the price is in another currency. The pip value calculator uses the same symbol settings.
- Instrument: fills in an example contract size and quote currency for common symbols. Choose Other to enter your own.
- Account currency: the currency your account is held in. The margin is shown in it.
- Contract size: the number of units in 1.00 lot, for example 100,000 for most currency pairs.
- Quote currency: the currency the price is quoted in, the second currency of a pair.
- Position size (lots): how many lots the position is.
- Price: the current price of the instrument. Enter today's price from your platform.
- Leverage (1:x): the leverage that applies to the position, entered as the number after the colon, for example 30 for 1:30.
- Exchange rate: appears only when the quote currency differs from your account currency. Enter today's rate; the calculator never fetches prices.
What are the assumptions and limits?
The result is the margin to open one position at the price and leverage you enter, using generic contract sizes rather than an account's specification. Margin is a deposit, not a cap on losses. To see the margin level of all your open positions, use the margin level calculator.
- The presets are generic market conventions, not the specification of any account. Contract size and leverage vary by instrument, account type and region, so check the symbol's specification in MetaTrader 5 and use those values.
- The price and any exchange rate are the ones you enter. Margin changes as the price and the exchange rate move.
- Margin is a deposit, not a fee and not a limit on losses. A position can lose more than the margin it ties up.
- The calculator shows the margin to open one position. It does not show margin level, margin calls or stop-out, and it does not suggest any leverage or position size. Nothing you enter is stored.
Frequently asked questions
Is margin a fee?
No. Margin is a deposit set aside from your account while a position is open, and it is released when you close the position. Trading costs such as spread, commission and swap are separate.
What does 1:30 leverage mean for margin?
It means the margin is 1/30 of the position value, about 3.33%. A $110,000 position needs $3,666.67 of margin at 1:30.
Why does the required margin change when the price moves?
Because the position value is lots × contract size × price. When the price rises, the same number of lots is worth more, so it needs more margin; when the price falls, it needs less.
Can you lose more than the margin?
Yes. Margin is only the deposit the position ties up. Your profit or loss is calculated on the full position value, so a move against you can cost more than the margin, and a fast or gapping market can take a loss past the money in your account unless it has negative balance protection.
How is margin shown in an account that is not in dollars?
The arithmetic is the same; the result is converted into your account currency at the current exchange rate. Choose your account currency and enter today's rate from your platform, and the calculator shows the margin in that currency.
Sources
- MetaQuotes, MetaTrader 5 Help: Margin Calculation (accessed 20 October 2026): forex margin is volume in lots × contract size ÷ leverage in the margin currency (1 lot of EURUSD at 1:100 needs EUR 1,000), converted into the deposit currency at the current exchange rate. https://www.metatrader5.com/en/terminal/help/trading_advanced/margin_forex
- MetaQuotes, MetaTrader 5 Help: Market Watch (accessed 20 October 2026): the symbol specification shows the contract size (units in one lot), the margin currency and the profit currency. https://www.metatrader5.com/en/terminal/help/trading/market_watch
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