In the following post I’ll provide a complete guide to understanding futures symbols. I’ll explain what a Futures symbol is and how to interpret the symbols.
I’ll also provide a detailed list of some of the most traded future contracts for easy reference.
Table of Contents
- Futures symbols explained
- Futures contract exchanges
- Futures symbols month codes
- Futures symbols and contract information
- Metals symbols
- Grains symbols
- Softs symbols
- Interest rates symbols
Futures symbols explained
Individual futures contracts are identified by a unique future contract symbol.
Unlike traditional stocks or currency pairs that can be traded in perpetuity and have no maturity date. Futures contracts expire after a specified period of time. The expiry of individual futures contracts depends on the commodity, Index or currency futures contract being traded. Typically contract durations are between one and three months.
Futures symbols help to identify individual contracts and their expiration date.
Futures symbols are categorized by the commodity, Index or currency. The month that the futures contract expires and the year the contract expires.
The table below illustrates a typical futures symbol code:ES H 22 Contract Symbol (S&P 500) Expiration month (March) Expiration year (2022)
The example above illustrates the S&P 500 index futures contract that expires in March 2022. The symbol for this contract would be SPH22.
Futures contract exchanges
Each futures and futures options contract can be traded through a specific exchange. It’s important that if you want to trade a specific futures contract you have the right data feed to the relevant exchange.
When you sign up for a brokerage account you will typically be given the option to select the a data feed for a single exchange or a package that includes several exchanges.
Exchange data is typical charged on a monthly basis. The cost of the exchange data will depend on the exchange plus data feed technology of the various providers.
The main Futures and futures options exchanges include: CME, CBOT, COMEX, KCBT, MGEX, ICE and NYMEX.
Futures symbols month codes
In the table below you can find the futures symbol codes for each month of the year.
Month symbols are used to identify what month a contract is due to expire.
Unfortunately the the monthly symbol code letters have little in common with each of the months. So it’s either you need to memorizer each letter or have the following table on hand for reference.Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun F G H J K M Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec N Q U V X Z
Futures symbols and contract information
The following sections provide information for the most common futures contracts. Each section lists the instrument symbol, futures contract being traded, exchange the instrument is listed on, contract expiration months, contract size, minimum tick size and the tick value:
Important note: The data above is sourced from time of writing. for the most up to date information please refer to the relevant exchanges.
Micro E-mini futures symbols & Micro futures symbols
| Futures Contract Name | Symbol | Exchange | Expiry month | Contract size | Min Tick / Tick $ Value |
| Micro E-mini S&P 500 | MES | CME | H,M,U,Z | $5 x S&P Index value | 0.25 / $1.25 |
| Micro E-mini Nasdaq100 | MNQ | CME | H,M,U,Z | $2 x Index value | 0.25 / $0.50 |
| Micro E-mini Dow | MYM | CBOT/CME | H,M,U,Z | $0.50 x DJIA Index value | 1.00 / $0.50 |
| Micro E-mini Russell 2000 | M2K | CME | H,M,U,Z | $5 x Russell 2000 Index value | 0.10 / $0.50 |
| Micro DAX | FDXS | Eurex | H,M,U,Z | €1 x Index value | 0.5/€0.50 |
| MicroAUD/USD | M6A | CME | H,M,U,Z | 10K AUD | 0.0001 / $1.00 |
| MicroGBP/USD | M6B | CME | H,M,U,Z | 6250 £ | 0.0001 / $0.625 |
| MicroCAD/USD | MCD | CME | H,M,U,Z | 10000 CAD | 0.0001/ $1.00 |
| MicroEUR/USD | M6E | CME | H,M,U,Z | 12500 € | 0.0001 / $1.25 |
| MicroJPY/USD | MJY | CME | H,M,U,Z | 1.25 mil ¥ | 0.000001 / $1.25 |
| MicroCHF/USD | MSF | CME | H,M,U,Z | 12500 CHF | 0.0001 / $1.25 |
| Micro WTI Crude Oil | MCL | NYMEX/CME | All | 100 Barrels | 0.01 / $1.00 |
Stock Indices futures symbols & Indices E-mini futures symbols
| Futures Contract Name | Symbol | Exchange | Expiry month | Contract size | Min Tick / Tick $ Value |
| E-mini S&P 500 | ES | CME | H,M,U,Z | $50 x Index value | 0.25 / $12.50 |
| E-mini Nasdaq100 | NQ | CME | H,M,U,Z | $20 x Index value | 0.25 / $5.00 |
| E-mini Dow ($5) | YM | CBOT/CME | H,M,U,Z | $5 x Index value | 1.00 / $5.00 |
| E-mini Russell 2000 | RTY | CME | H,M,U,Z | $50 x Index value | 0.1 / $5.00 |
| DAX | FDAX | Eurex | H,M,U,Z | €25 x Index value | 1.00/€12.50 |
| FTSE 250 Index | Y | ICE | H,M,U,Z | £2 x Index value | 0.5/£1 |
Currencies futures symbols & Currency E-mini futures symbols
| Futures Contract Name | Symbol | Exchange | Expiry month | Contract size | Min Tick / Tick $ Value |
| Australian Dollar | 6A | CME | H,M,U,Z | 100K AUD | 0.0001 / $10.00 |
| British Pound | 6B | CME | H,M,U,Z | 62.5K £ | 0.0001 / $6.25 |
| Canadian Dollar | 6C | CME | H,M,U,Z | 100K CAD | 0.00005 / $5.00 |
| Euro FX | 6E | CME | H,M,U,Z | 125K € | 0.00005 / $6.25 |
| Japanese Yen | 6J | CME | H,M,U,Z | 12.5 mil ¥ | 0.0000005 / $6.25 |
| New Zealand Dollar | 6N | CME | H,M,U,Z | 100K NZD | 0.00005 / $10.00 |
| Swiss Franc | 6S | CME | H,M,U,Z | 125K CHF | 0.0001 / $12.50 |
| E-mini Euro FX | E7 | CME | H,M,U,Z | 62.5K € | 0.0001 / $6.25 |
| E-mini Japanese Yen | J7 | CME | H,M,U,Z | 6.25 mil ¥ | 0.000001 / $6.25 |
Energies futures symbols & Energies E-mini futures symbols
| Futures Contract Name | Symbol | Exchange | Expiry month | Contract size | Min Tick / Tick $ Value |
| Crude Oil | CL | NYMEX/CME | All | 1000 Barrels | 0.01 / $10.00 |
| E-mini Crude Light | QM | NYMEX/CME | All | 500 Barrels | 0.025 / $12.50 |
| Natural Gas | NG | NYMEX/CME | All | 10000 mmBtu | 0.001 / $10.00 |
| E-mini Natural Gas | QG | NYMEX/CME | All | 2500 mmBtu | 0.005 / $12.50 |
| Futures Contract Name | Symbol | Exchange | Expiry month | Contract size | Min Tick / Tick $ Value |
| Gold | GC | COMEX/CME | G,J,M,Q,V,Z | 100 oz | 0.1 / $10.00 |
| E-mini Gold | QO | COMEX/CME | F,G,J,M,Q,V,Z | 50 oz | 0.25 / $12.50 |
| Copper | HG | COMEX/CME | All | 25K lbs | 0.0005 / $12.50 |
| E-mini Copper | QC | COMEX/CME | All | 12500 lbs | 0.002 / $25.00 |
| Silver | SI | COMEX/CME | F,H,K,N,U,Z | 5000 oz | 0.005 / $25.00 |
| E-mini Silver | QI | COMEX/CME | F,G,H,K,N,U,Z | 2500 oz | 0.0125 / $31.25 |
| Platinum | PL | NYMEX/CME | F,J,N,V | 50 oz | 0.1 / $5.00 |
Grains symbols
| Futures Contract Name | Symbol | Exchange | Expiry month | Contract size | Min Tick / Tick $ Value |
| Corn | ZC | CBOT/CME | H,K,N,U,Z | 5000 bu | 1/4 / $12.50 |
| Chicago SRW Wheat | ZW | CBOT/CME | H,K,N,U,Z | 5000 bu | 1/4 / $12.50 |
| Soybeans | ZS | CBOT/CME | F,H,K,N,Q,U,X | 5000 bu | 1/4 / $12.50 |
| Oats | ZO | CBOT/CME | H,K,N,U,Z | 5000 bu | 1/4 / $12.50 |
Softs symbols
| Futures Contract Name | Symbol | Exchange | Expiry month | Contract size | Min Tick / Tick $ Value |
| Lumber | LBS | CME | F,H,K,N,U,X | 110K board feet | 0.10 / $11.00 |
| Cocoa | CC | ICE | H,K,N,U,Z | 10 tons | 1.00 / $10.00 |
| Cotton | CT | ICE | H,K,N,V,Z | 50k lbs | 0.0001 / $5.00 |
| Coffee | KC | ICE | H,K,N,U,Z | 37.5k lbs | 0.0005 / $18.75 |
Interest rates symbols
| Futures Contract Name | Symbol | Exchange | Expiry month | Contract size | Min Tick / Tick $ Value |
| 2 Year US Treasury Note | ZT | CBOT/CME | H,M,U,Z | $200K note | 1/128 / $15.625 |
| 3 Year US Treasury Note | Z3N | CBOT/CME | H,M,U,Z | $300K note | 1/128 / $15.625 |
| 5 Year US Treasury Note | ZF | CBOT/CME | H,M,U,Z | $100K note | 1/128 / $7.8125 |
| 10 Year US Treasury Note | ZN | CBOT/CME | H,M,U,Z | $100K note | 1/64 / $15.625 |
If your interested in finding knowing the exact date that an individual futures contract expires check out my previous post by clicking the link.
