Start with the fundamentals, then put them to work with the free calculators.
FxPro offers gold with competitive spreads, MT4/MT5 and Local cards and bank transfers in ZAR-friendly funding for traders in South Africa.
Open a live account →Start by learning what XAU/USD is: 1 standard lot equals 100 oz and one pip is 0.01. Then practise on a demo account before risking rand. Learn position sizing, margin, and how leverage is a cap rather than a target. Our position size and margin calculators let you test scenarios without money at stake.
There is no fixed answer because it depends on your lot size, the leverage your account is set to, and how much of your balance you are willing to risk per trade. Work backwards from risk: decide the rand amount you can lose on one trade, then use the position size calculator to find a lot size that fits.
Gold is a high-risk instrument and is not suitable for everyone. It moves quickly, leverage magnifies losses, and rand conversion adds a second variable. Beginners should treat it as something to learn slowly on demo, with small size and a written risk limit. Nothing here is advice; the decision and the risk are yours.
On XAU/USD one pip is 0.01, and many platforms quote gold to two decimals, so a move from 4275.00 to 4275.01 is one pip. Some platforms label the second decimal as a point. Always confirm the pip definition on your own platform, then use the pip value calculator so your rand risk is based on the correct unit.
Either order works, but gold rewards a specific focus because its drivers, volatility and contract size differ from currency pairs. A standard lot is 100 oz, so a dollar move is $100 before rand conversion. Learn gold's pip value and margin behaviour first, then add other instruments once your risk process is consistent.
