Micro E-mini Trading Hours
Micro E-mini trading hours are the same as the regular E-mini trading hours, which are:
Monday – Friday: 5:00 PM – 4:00 PM (EST) But ask your broker. You can day trade up to 4:55 p.m. EST, get out until 6:01 p.m. EST an hour and 6 minutes later and keep on day trading with day trading margins. But… if you hold a position over the maintenance cycle, you’ll get charged with overnight margins which is significantly higher than day trading margins.
Sunday: 5:00 PM – 4:00 PM Monday (EST)
The E-mini market is open for trading almost 24 hours a day, five days a week, except for a brief period of time each day when the market is closed for maintenance as mentioned above
It’s important to note that while the E-mini market is open for trading almost 24 hours a day, the volume of trading activity can vary significantly depending on the time of day. The peak trading hours for the E-mini market typically occur during the daytime, when the US stock market is open.
Micro E-mini contracts are a newer addition to the E-mini market, and they have slightly different trading hours than the regular E-mini contracts. Micro E-mini contracts are traded on the CME Globex electronic trading platform, which is open for trading 24 hours a day, five days a week.
The trading hours for Micro E-mini contracts are:
Monday – Friday: 5:00 PM – 4:00 PM (EST) with same intraday margin vs. overnight margin mentioned above. But bottom line, always ask your broker at your brokerage firm because they may have their own specific requirements. You MUST know YOUR broker’s rules.
Sunday: 5:00 PM – 4:00 PM Monday (EST)
It’s important to note that while the Micro E-mini market is open for trading almost 24 hours a day, the volume of trading activity can vary significantly depending on the time of day. The peak trading hours for the Micro E-mini market typically occur during the daytime, when the US stock market is open.
Micro E mini vs. Regular Sized Emini Differences
Here are the key differences between Micro E-mini futures contracts and regular-sized E-mini futures contracts:
Contract Size:
- Micro E-mini contracts are 1/10th the size of regular E-mini contracts.
- For example, the Micro E-mini S&P 500 (MES) has a contract value of $5 x S&P 500 index value, while the regular E-mini S&P 500 (ES) has a $50 x index value.[1][2]
Margin Requirements:
- Micro contracts require significantly less margin compared to regular contracts.
- Approximate margins: Micro E-mini S&P 500 (MES) ~$550, E-mini S&P 500 (ES) ~$6,000.[2]. But different brokers margin requirements differ even drastically. Intraday trading (day trading( emini on ES can go as low as $30 to $40
Tick Value:
- Both contracts have the same 0.25 index point tick size.
- But the tick value for Micro contracts is 1/10th of regular, e.g. MES $1.25 per tick vs ES $12.50 per tick.[1][2]
Trading Applications:
- Micro contracts are suited for smaller accounts and traders looking to gain experience before moving to larger contracts.
- Regular E-minis are preferred by more active and capitalized traders due to higher leverage and lower relative transaction costs.[2][3]
Liquidity and Spreads:
- E-mini contracts have higher trading volume and tighter bid-ask spreads around 0.25 index points.
- Micro contracts have slightly wider spreads around 0.5 index points but liquidity is increasing.[2]
The key advantage of Micro E-minis is lower capital requirements and risk per contract, making them accessible for traders with smaller accounts or those wanting to learn futures trading before upscaling position sizes.[1][2]However, regular E-mini contracts remain more popular for their higher leverage, lower relative costs, and better liquidity for active traders.[2][3]
Citations:
[1] https://offers.stonex.com/micro-emini-stock-index-comparison-guide
[2] https://www.leseup.com/blog/futures-trading-blog/e-mini-vs-micro-e-mini-sp-500-futures-a-complete-comparison-guide/
[3] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7CKETyvbyAo
[5] https://us.plus500.com/academy/micro-e-mini-futures-explained~5