ES futures trading hours
When E-mini and Micro E-mini S&P 500 futures trade on CME Globex, with price limits and expiry dates.
- Globex session
- Sun 6:00 p.m. to Fri 5:00 p.m. ET
- Daily break
- 5:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. ET
- Contract size
- ES $50, MES $5 × the index
- Next expiry
- Fri, Dec 18, 2026
Checked on · CME Rulebook, Chapter 358 · By helloweekends Editors
ES futures trading hours on CME Globex run from Sunday 6:00 p.m. to Friday 5:00 p.m. ET, with a one-hour break every weekday from 5:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. ET. The Micro E-mini S&P 500 (MES) trades the same hours. Price limits change during the day, and an expiring contract stops trading at 9:30 a.m. ET on the third Friday of March, June, September and December.
ES and MES session times in ET, CT, PT and UTC
CME sets its hours in US Central Time (CT). The E-mini S&P 500 (ES) is a futures contract on the S&P 500 stock index, the benchmark of 500 large US companies. It trades nearly 24 hours a day, five days a week. A new trading day starts in the evening: the session that opens on Monday at 6:00 p.m. ET belongs to Tuesday.
| Session | ET | CT | PT | UTC (US daylight time) | UTC (US standard time) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Weekly open, Sunday | 6:00 p.m. | 5:00 p.m. | 3:00 p.m. | 22:00 | 23:00 |
| Daily break, Monday to Thursday | 5:00 p.m.–6:00 p.m. | 4:00 p.m.–5:00 p.m. | 2:00 p.m.–3:00 p.m. | 21:00–22:00 | 22:00–23:00 |
| US stock market open | 9:30 a.m. | 8:30 a.m. | 6:30 a.m. | 13:30 | 14:30 |
| US stock market close | 4:00 p.m. | 3:00 p.m. | 1:00 p.m. | 20:00 | 21:00 |
| Weekly close, Friday | 5:00 p.m. | 4:00 p.m. | 2:00 p.m. | 21:00 | 22:00 |
ES keeps trading for an hour after the US stock market closes at 4:00 p.m. ET. From Friday 5:00 p.m. to Sunday 6:00 p.m. ET, 49 hours, it does not trade at all. On Sunday, November 1, 2026, US clocks go back one hour, so from that week the open and the break come one hour later in UTC. Every product group's hours are on our futures market hours page.
ES vs MES: the contract facts
The Micro E-mini is one tenth of the E-mini. Both are cash-settled: no shares change hands, and open positions are paid out in cash at expiry.
| Fact | E-mini S&P 500 (ES) | Micro E-mini S&P 500 (MES) |
|---|---|---|
| Contract value | $50 × S&P 500 Index | $5 × S&P 500 Index |
| Minimum tick | 0.25 index points = $12.50 | 0.25 index points = $1.25 |
| Globex hours (ET) | Sun–Fri 6:00 p.m.–5:00 p.m., break 5:00–6:00 p.m. | Same as ES |
| Expiry months | March, June, September, December | March, June, September, December |
| Last trading | 9:30 a.m. ET (NYSE open) on the third Friday of the expiry month | Same as ES |
| Final settlement | Cash, at a special opening quotation of the index that day | Same as ES |
| CME rulebook | Chapter 358 | Chapter 353 |
A tick is the smallest price step. One point on ES is worth $50 and on MES $5, so a 10-point move is $500 on one ES contract and $50 on one MES.
Price limits change during the day
CME caps how far ES can move in some periods of the day. The limits are set each day from a reference price: the average traded price of ES between 3:59:30 and 4:00 p.m. ET on the previous business day, and percentages of the S&P 500 close. MES uses the same reference price and the same limits.
| Time (ET) | What applies |
|---|---|
| 6:00 p.m. to 9:30 a.m. | No trading more than 7% above or below the reference price |
| 9:30 a.m. to 3:25 p.m. | Downside limits of 7%, 13% and 20%. When the stock market halts on a 7% or 13% fall in the S&P 500, ES halts too and resumes 10 minutes later. On a 20% fall ES stops for the rest of the session |
| 3:25 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. | Only the 20% downside limit |
| 4:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. | 7% above or below the new reference price, but not below the day's 20% limit |
The overnight session also has dynamic price fluctuation limits under CME Rule 589. These short pauses are not shown here.
Expiry dates and the roll
Each ES and MES contract expires on the third Friday of its month. Trading in the expiring contract stops at the scheduled open of the New York Stock Exchange, 9:30 a.m. ET, that morning. The contract then settles in cash at a special opening quotation of the S&P 500, built from the opening prices of its stocks. Traders who want to keep a position move it to the next quarter before then, which is called the roll.
| Contract month | Last trading day |
|---|---|
| December 2026 | Friday, December 18, 2026 |
| March 2027 | Friday, March 19, 2027 |
| June 2027 | Friday, June 18, 2027 |
| September 2027 | Friday, September 17, 2027 |
ES on the next holidays
Holidays shorten or cancel ES sessions. Equity index futures follow the same holiday schedule.
| Date | Holiday | ES and MES |
|---|---|---|
| Thu, Nov 26, 2026 | Thanksgiving | Halt 1:00 p.m., reopens 6:00 p.m. |
| Fri, Nov 27, 2026 | Day after Thanksgiving | Early close 1:15 p.m. |
| Fri, Dec 25, 2026 | Christmas | Closed |
| Fri, Jan 1, 2027 | New Year's Day | Closed |
Christmas EveCME's Christmas settlement notice sets early settlement for equity index futures at 12:00 p.m. CT (1:00 p.m. ET) on Thursday, December 24, 2026. A settlement time is not the same as a trading close. Check CME before you trade that day.
The full list is in the CME holiday calendar 2026 and the CME holiday calendar 2027.
What ES hours mean in a prop firm account
ES and MES are among the contracts most traded in futures prop firm evaluations, the paid tests on simulated accounts that firms sell. Each firm sets a flat-by time, by which every position must be closed. It falls before the 5:00 p.m. ET close, so the last hour of ES trading is usually off limits.
| Firm | Flat-by time | Before the ES close |
|---|---|---|
| Topstep | 4:10 p.m. | 50 minutes |
| FundedNext Futures | 4:10 p.m. | 50 minutes |
| MyFundedFutures | 4:10 p.m. | 50 minutes |
| Lucid Trading | 4:45 p.m. | 15 minutes |
| Tradeify | 4:45 p.m. | 15 minutes |
| Earn2Trade | 4:50 p.m. | 10 minutes |
| Take Profit Trader | 4:55 p.m. | 5 minutes |
| Apex Trader Funding | 4:59 p.m. | 1 minute |
| Bulenox | 4:59 p.m. | 1 minute |
A flat-by time of 4:10 p.m. ET falls 10 minutes after the stock market close, when ES moves to the evening 7% limit band. On holiday early closes the flat-by time moves too: Tradeify, for example, requires positions to be closed by 12:59 p.m. ET. Which firms let you hold ES past the close is in our guide to prop firm weekend holding.
Exchange hoursThese are CME Group's exchange hours and rules. A prop firm's own cut-off can be earlier. A prop firm evaluation is a paid service with simulated trading. Most people who buy one do not pass it, and firms change their rules, pause payouts and close. Not investment advice.
Questions
What time do ES futures open on Sunday?
At 6:00 p.m. ET (5:00 p.m. CT). That is 22:00 UTC while US daylight time lasts and 23:00 UTC in US standard time, from November 1, 2026.
Do ES futures trade 24 hours a day?
Almost. ES trades from Sunday 6:00 p.m. to Friday 5:00 p.m. ET with a one-hour break each weekday from 5:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. ET, about 23 hours a day.
Are MES trading hours the same as ES?
Yes. The Micro E-mini S&P 500 trades the same Globex hours, uses the same price limits and expires on the same days. It is one tenth of the size: $5 times the index instead of $50.
When does the December 2026 ES contract expire?
Trading in the December 2026 contract ends at 9:30 a.m. ET on Friday, December 18, 2026, the third Friday of the month. It settles in cash at a special opening quotation of the S&P 500.
Why does ES trade after the stock market closes?
ES trades on CME Globex, not on a stock exchange. Its trading day runs to 5:00 p.m. ET, an hour after the 4:00 p.m. ET stock close. In that hour CME limits moves to 7% around the price set at the stock close.
Sources
- CME Rulebook, Chapter 358: E-mini S&P 500 futures
- CME Rulebook, Chapter 353: Micro E-mini S&P 500 futures
- CME Group: Micro E-mini S&P 500 futures
- CME Group: E-mini S&P 500 futures
- CME Group: E-mini S&P 500 product overview (quarterly expiries)
- CME Group: E-mini S&P 500 options FAQ (Globex hours and maintenance period)
- CME Group: Holiday and Trading Hours
- CME Group: Christmas holiday settlement times 2026
CME pages checked on ; holiday hours and firm flat-by times on September 26, 2026, from the firm pages linked above.