Markets Home

Active trader

Hear from active traders about their experience adding CME Group futures and options on futures to their portfolio.

Find a broker

Search our directory for a broker that fits your needs.

CREATE A CMEGROUP.COM ACCOUNT:

MORE FEATURES, MORE INSIGHTS

Get quick access to tools and premium content, or customize a portfolio and set alerts to follow the market.
Market Data Home

Real-time market data

Stream live futures and options market data directly from CME Group.

E-quotes application

Access real-time data, charts, analytics and news from anywhere at anytime.

CME DATAMINE:

THE SOURCE FOR HISTORICAL DATA

Explore historical market data straight from the source to help refine your trading strategies.
Services Home

Uncleared margin rules

Understand how CME Group can help you navigate new initial margin regulatory and reporting requirements.

Calculate margin 

Evaluate your cleared margin requirements using our interactive margin calculator.
Education Home

Now live: ESG solutions

Manage the risk associated with renewable energies, environmental change and sustainable investments.

Create a CMEGroup.com Account: More features, more insights

Get quick access to premium educational content, including expert-led webinars, a real-time trading simulator, and more.
      Course Overview
      • Definition of a Futures Contract
      • Learn About Contract Specifications
      • Understanding Contract Trading Codes
      • Get to Know Futures Expiration and Settlement
      • Tick Movements: Understanding How They Work
      • What are Price Limits and Price Banding?
      • About Contract Notional Value
      • Mark-to-Market
      • Margin: Know What's Needed
      • Understanding Futures Expiration & Contract Roll
      • Price Discovery
      • Calculating Futures Contract Profit or Loss
      • Understanding the Role of Speculators
      • Understanding the Role of Hedgers
      • Trading Venues (Pit vs. Online)
      • Midwest Grain Trade: History of Futures Exchanges
      • Futures Contracts Compared to Forwards
      • What is Volume?
      • Open Interest
      Introduction to Futures
      You completed this course.Get Completion Certificate

      Understanding Contract Trading Codes

        • Also available in

        • 简体中文
        • 한국어
        • עברית

      Video not supported!

      What are Trading Codes?

      The display format of futures contract codes is fundamental to understanding pricing across multiple expirations.

      Contract display codes are typically one- to three-letter codes identifying the product followed by additional characters indicating the month and year of expiration. The format of a contract code varies according to the asset class and trading platform. Many contract codes originated on the trading floor to convey maximum information with the fewest characters and migrated intact to the electronic environment.

      For this exercise, let’s first look at the E-mini S&P 500 futures contract. The CME Globex contract code this product is ES, which is also the contract code used on CME ClearPort. Now let’s look at the Eurodollar futures contract. On CME Globex, this contract is identified by the code GE. On CME ClearPort, this product is identified by the code ED.  It is therefore important to be aware that contract codes can vary across platforms.

      For contract expiration, additional characters added to the right of the contract code indicate month and year.

      Each calendar month expiration is identified by a single letter as follows:

      • January – F
      • February - G
      • March -H
      • April -J
      • May - K
      • June - M
      • July - N
      • August - Q
      • September -U
      • October - V
      • November -X
      • December -Z

      Available contract expiration months may vary by product, but the letter following the contract code always indicates expiration month.  The expiration year is indicated following the month as a numeric value.

      Let’s construct the display code for the E-mini S&P 500 futures contract expiring January 2019. The first determining factor is trading platform and for this example we will use CME Globex. For CME Globex the E-mini S&P contract code is ES. Following ES, we add the expiration month, which for January is the letter F. Finally, we add a 9 for 2019. Therefore the display code for the E-mini S&P 500 futures contract expiring in January 2019 is: ESF9.

      These general rules apply to the format of futures contract codes, but it is important to be aware that codes and available expirations can vary across platforms.


      Test your knowledge

      Related Courses
      /content/cmegroup/en/education/courses/introduction-to-futures/understanding-contract-trading-codes
      • {{ course.name }}
      Previous Lesson
      Next Lesson
      Course Overview
      Get Completion Certificate
      Previous Lesson Next Lesson
      • YouTube
      • Twitter
      • Facebook
      • LinkedIn
      • Instagram
      • Rss

      CME Group is the world's leading and most diverse derivatives marketplace. The company is comprised of four Designated Contract Markets (DCMs). 
      Further information on each exchange's rules and product listings can be found by clicking on the links to CME, CBOT, NYMEX and COMEX.

      © 2021 CME Group Inc. All rights reserved.

      Disclaimer  |  Privacy Policy  |  Cookie Policy  |  Terms of Use  |  Data Terms of Use  |  Modern Slavery Act Transparency Statement  |  Report a Security Concern