So, what exactly is a lot? In trading, a lot is just a standardised way of measuring how big your trade is. When placing a trade on a platform like MetaTrader or cTrader, you have to choose the lot size or the volume you want to trade.  Understanding what these lot sizes are is crucial because the value of every 1-pip movement depends on the lot size you have chosen as a trader. There are three basic lot sizes namely, Standard Lots, Mini Lots and Micro Lots. 

• A standard lot is equal to 100,000 units of the base currency and means every 1-pip move will be worth $10. 

• A Mini lot is equal to 10,000 units of the base currency and means every 1-pip move will be worth $1. 

• A micro lot is equal to 1,000 units of the base currency and means every 1-pip move with be worth $0.10. 

So, let’s look at a practical example. Let’s take this 1-pip move illustrated with the EURUSD. If you are a trader that was trading a standard lot, this 1-pip move will be worth $10. If you are a trader that was trading a mini lot, this 1-pip move will be worth $1. And if you are trader that was trading a micro lot, this 1-pip move will be worth $0.10. Lets quickly turn to a trading platform to show you what this would like like. Remember, we know that a standard lot is a volume of 1.00, and a mini lot is a volume of 1.0, while a micro lot is a volume of 0.01. So, to trade a standard lot in the MetaTrader 5 platform for example, you can select a volume of 1.00, to trade a mini lot, you can change the trading volume to 0.1, and to trade a micro lot, you can change the lot volume to 0.01.