ZS Futures (Soybeans): Tick Value, Expiries, Order Flow
ZS, the CBOT Soybeans future, covers 5,000 bushels with a tick of 1/4 cent per bushel, worth $12.50. ZSX6, the front month on September 25, 2026, has its first notice day October 30, 2026 and last trading day November 13, 2026.
Senzoukria · Futures contracts · Updated September 2026
Contract specifications
- Exchange
- CBOT (CME Group)
- Contract unit
- 5,000 bushels
- Tick size
- 1/4 cent per bushel
- Tick value
- $12.50
- Value of one cent per bushel
- $50
- Listed months in Senzoukria
- F, H, K, N, Q, U, X (Jan, Mar, May, Jul, Aug, Sep, Nov)
- Last trading day
- Business day before the 15th of the contract month
- Settlement
- Physical delivery
- Front month on Sep 25, 2026
- ZSX6
ZS contract specifications
The contract unit is 5,000 bushels, quoted in cents per bushel. The minimum fluctuation is 1/4 cent per bushel, worth $12.50 per contract, and one cent per bushel is worth $50 per contract. Open contracts are settled by delivery no later than the second business day after the last trading day. Senzoukria's contract table holds the tick as 0.25 with a multiplier of 50 on the CBOT venue code.
ZS last trading day and next contracts
No trades are made after the business day preceding the 15th calendar day of the contract month.
Senzoukria's expiry engine keys on the last trading day, not on first notice day, so its default switch comes after first notice. For ZSX6, the default moves to the next listed month on November 9, 2026 (4 calendar days before November 13, 2026), and ZSX6 stays selectable with its badge until that date.
| Contract | Delivery month | First notice day | Last trading day |
|---|---|---|---|
| ZSX6 | November 2026 | Oct 30, 2026 (Fri) | Nov 13, 2026 (Fri) |
| ZSF7 | January 2027 | Dec 31, 2026 (Thu) | Jan 14, 2027 (Thu) |
| ZSH7 | March 2027 | Feb 26, 2027 (Fri) | Mar 12, 2027 (Fri) |
| ZSK7 | May 2027 | Apr 30, 2027 (Fri) | May 14, 2027 (Fri) |
| ZSN7 | July 2027 | Jun 30, 2027 (Wed) | Jul 14, 2027 (Wed) |
ZS tick value and P&L arithmetic
- One tick = 0.25 × $50 = $12.50 per contract.
- One cent per bushel = 4 ticks = $50 per contract.
- 20 ticks (5 cents) = $250 per contract, $750 on 3 contracts.
- One tick of slippage in the automatic backtest costs $12.50 per contract on each entry.
Reading ZS order flow
With row resolution off, a ZS footprint has one row per tick of 0.25 cents. The fixed steps give 2 ticks = 0.5, 4 ticks = 1, 8 ticks = 2, 16 ticks = 4, 32 ticks = 8 cents per row.
Soybeans list seven months in Senzoukria's catalogue (F, H, K, N, Q, U, X): January, August and November appear and December does not, unlike the five months of corn and wheat (H, K, N, U, Z). The quarter-cent tick makes four ticks per cent, so the fixed 4-tick step gives one row per cent. ZS, ZM and ZL form the soybean complex, three books with three different units and tick values.
Using ZS in Senzoukria
- Symbol picker on a Rithmic or Databento CME source: type ZS; on September 25, 2026 the listed contract is ZSX6 (November 2026), in the Grains family.
- Heatmap and DOM show that contract's book with CBOT as the venue in the ladder header.
- Replay lists ZS in the Grains group. In the automatic backtest, set Point value ($) to 50; the field defaults to 2, the MNQ value.
Related pages
- ZM — Soybean Meal
- Tick value
- Front-month contract
- Front month and expiry rules in Senzoukria
- Symbol picker
- Footprint charts
In the same section
Sources
- CBOT Rulebook, Chapter 11: Soybean futures (2026-09-25)
- CME Group, Soybeans futures calendar (2026-09-25)
This page in other languages
Frequently asked questions
- How much is one ZS tick worth?
- $12.50. The tick is 1/4 cent per bushel on 5,000 bushels; in Senzoukria's units that is 0.25 × $50 = $12.50.
- Why does soybean have a November contract but no December?
- Because the soybean calendar listed by the exchange, and mirrored in Senzoukria's catalogue, runs January, March, May, July, August, September and November. Corn and wheat use March, May, July, September and December.