SI (Silver Futures)
The Silver futures contract on COMEX — 5,000 troy ounces per contract with $0.005 tick size and $25 per tick. Higher volatility cousin of gold; smaller liquidity but bigger swings.
What is SI (Silver Futures)?
SI is the symbol for the standard Silver futures contract, traded on COMEX (part of CME Group). Each contract represents 5,000 troy ounces of silver. At $30/oz, one SI contract represents $150,000 of notional exposure. The tick size is $0.005 per troy ounce, so each tick equals $25 in P&L (5,000 × $0.005).
Silver is gold’s higher-volatility cousin. Daily ranges of $0.50-$1.50/oz are normal ($2,500-$7,500 per SI contract dollar swing), and major macro events (FOMC, dollar shocks, industrial demand surprises) can produce $2-$5/oz moves in hours. Silver’s industrial demand component (electronics, solar, batteries) adds cyclical volatility on top of its precious-metal monetary characteristics — making it more volatile than gold both intraday and over multi-month cycles.
SIL (Micro Silver) is the smaller variant at 1,000 oz per contract (1/5 of SI). Most retail prop firm traders use SIL for sizing flexibility — a 1-SIL position is roughly equivalent to 0.2 SI exposure, which is appropriate for accounts under $100K.
How SI (Silver Futures) works
SI contract specifications (May 2026):
- Symbol: SI (sometimes SI1! or @SI)
- Exchange: COMEX Globex (CME Group)
- Underlying: Silver (physical bullion delivery available)
- Contract size: 5,000 troy ounces
- Tick size: $0.005 per troy ounce
- Tick value: $25 per tick
- Point value (per $1/oz move): $5,000 per contract
- Active months: March, May, July, September, December
- Trading hours: Sun 6:00 PM ET-Fri 5:00 PM ET, 1-hour daily break
- Settlement: Physical delivery available; most positions cash-settled or rolled
Margin:
- Day-trading margin: $2,000-$8,000 per contract at prop firms (varies by firm and current realized vol)
- COMEX initial margin: ~$15,000-$30,000 (the highest margin among precious-metal micros due to silver’s volatility)
SIL — Micro Silver: 1,000 troy ounces per contract (1/5 of SI). Tick value $5, point value $1,000 per $1 move. Preferred contract for retail.
Volatility profile:
- Daily range typically $0.50-$1.50/oz = $2,500-$7,500 per SI contract
- FOMC days: $1-$3/oz moves common = $5,000-$15,000 per contract
- Currency-shock events: $2-$5/oz overnight gaps possible during emerging-market crises
When prop firm traders use SI/SIL: Inflation hedge plays, industrial-demand cycles (solar/EV growth, semiconductor cycles), gold/silver ratio plays (ratio above 80 favors silver, below 60 favors gold), dollar-weakness trades.
Worked example
Setup: Trader on TPT $100K PRO+ funded account holds 1 SIL contract long from $30.05/oz, stop at $29.80 ($0.25 × $1,000 = $250 risk), target at $30.55 ($0.50 × $1,000 = $500 reward). Risk/reward 1:2.
Outcome — bullish gold catalyst spreads to silver:
- Gold breaks above key resistance, dollar weakens; silver follows.
- Price reaches $30.55 over next 4 hours.
- Gross P&L: +$0.50 × $1,000 = +$500
- Commission ~$4 round-trip → Net ~$496
Comparison vs 1 SI (full size):
- Same trade on 1 SI: +$0.50 × $5,000 = +$2,500 reward, $1,250 stop risk.
- 5x bigger dollar P&L for the same percentage move.
TPT no-consistency-rule advantage: Silver tends to produce lumpy P&L — quiet weeks punctuated by big moves. TPT PRO+ has no consistency rule, so a trader making most of their monthly profit on a single FOMC silver day doesn’t trigger payout blocks. Apex’s 30%/50% consistency rule can be a gating issue for silver-focused traders.
SI (Silver Futures) vs related concepts
Side-by-side comparison of SI (Silver Futures) against the most commonly confused alternatives.
| Concept | Definition | Category |
|---|---|---|
| SI (Silver Futures) this term | The Silver futures contract on COMEX — 5,000 troy ounces per contract with $0.005 tick size and $25 per tick. Higher volatility cousin of gold; smaller liquidity but bigger swings. | Specific Contracts |
| GC (Gold Futures) | The standard Gold futures contract on COMEX — 100 troy ounces per contract with $0.10 tick size and $10 per tick. The dominant gold trading vehicle for futures prop firms. | Specific Contracts |
| CL (WTI Crude Oil Futures) | The WTI Crude Oil futures contract on NYMEX — 1,000 barrels per contract with $0.01 tick size and $10 per tick. The most actively traded oil futures contract in the world. | Specific Contracts |
| NG (Natural Gas Futures) | The Natural Gas (Henry Hub) futures contract on NYMEX — 10,000 MMBtu per contract with $0.001 tick size and $10 per tick. One of the most volatile commodity futures. | Specific Contracts |
| Futures Contract | A standardized agreement to buy or sell a specific quantity of an underlying asset at a predetermined price on a specified future date — the foundational instrument of futures markets. | Futures Mechanics |
| Point Value | The dollar value of a one-point price movement on a futures contract — equal to the contract multiplier; a key input to position sizing math. | Futures Mechanics |
| Margin | The capital deposit required to open and hold a futures position — set by the exchange (initial margin) and broker (day-trade margin), typically 5-15% of contract notional value. | Futures Mechanics |
Why traders fail SI (Silver Futures)
Sizing silver like gold without volatility adjustment. Silver typical daily range is 2-3x gold’s range on a percentage basis. Position sizing that works on GC at 1 contract may need to be 0.3-0.5 SI contracts equivalent (i.e., 1-2 SIL) for similar dollar volatility exposure.
Confusing SI and SIL tick values. SI tick is $25 ($0.005/oz × 5,000 oz). SIL tick is $5 ($0.005/oz × 1,000 oz). Sizing in dollars is safest; sizing in ticks requires knowing which contract.
Holding silver overnight at full size during dollar-shock events. Silver opens with significant gaps ($0.20-$1.00/oz) on Sunday Globex if currency markets move during weekend. Stops can fill far from intended levels.
Ignoring the gold/silver ratio. The ratio (gold price / silver price) historically ranges 50-90. Above 80 typically signals silver underperformance reversal; below 60 signals gold underperformance reversal. Trading silver without checking the ratio context misses important regime signals.
Frequently asked questions about SI (Silver Futures)
What is SI futures?
SI is the standard Silver futures contract on COMEX (CME Group), representing 5,000 troy ounces of silver per contract. Tick size is $0.005 per troy ounce ($25 per tick), with a multiplier of $5,000 per $1/oz move. SIL (Micro Silver) is the 1/5-size variant at 1,000 oz per contract.
How much is one tick on SI?
One tick on SI is $0.005 per troy ounce and equals $25 in profit or loss ($0.005 × 5,000 oz). So a $0.50/oz move is 100 ticks ($2,500). A $1.00/oz move is 200 ticks ($5,000). Silver tick value is among the larger per-tick dollar amounts in retail-tradable futures.
Is silver more volatile than gold?
Yes, considerably. Silver typically has 2-3x gold's percentage daily range. Silver is partly an industrial commodity (solar, EVs, electronics) on top of its precious-metal monetary role, which amplifies volatility during cyclical demand shifts. The gold/silver ratio (typically 50-90) tracks this relationship.
What is the day-trading margin for silver futures?
Day-trading margin for SI is $2,000-$8,000 per contract at most futures prop firms — varies by firm and current realized volatility. SIL (Micro Silver) day margin is $400-$1,600 per contract. The COMEX exchange initial margin for overnight holds is approximately $15,000-$30,000 per SI contract.
Should I trade SI or SIL on prop firm accounts?
Choose SIL for accounts under $100K or when learning silver volatility — 1 SIL = 0.2 SI exposure, more manageable. Choose SI for $100K+ accounts and high-conviction macro events. Most prop firm traders use SIL exclusively for normal silver strategies.