Futures traders are broken down into the following categories: 1. day traders, 2. position traders, and 3. hedgers.

Day Traders
Day traders attempt to take advantage of intra-day market movements by buying and selling futures within the same trading session (usually the same day). As an example, if you buy one emini S&P500 contract at 1475.00 and sell one emini S&P500 contract at 1476.00 you would have made $50 minus commissions and fees. Alternatively if you buy one emini S&P500 contract at 1475.00 and sell one emini S&P500 contract at 1474.00 you would have lost $50 plus commissions and fees. If these trades are completed within the same day then the trader made a day trade. The traders is "flat" at the end of the day. In other words, the trader is not carrying a position after the close of the market for that day. A day trader may open and close one trade per day or many traders per day or may not make a trade on any given day.

Position Traders
Position traders typically hold a long or short position(s) for a period of time greater than a day. A typical position trade may be held for several days, weeks, or even months.

Hedgers
Hedgers typically take a position in a futures market opposite to a position they hold in the cash market. They do this to to minimize the risk of financial loss from an adverse price change, or purchase or sell futures as a temporary substitute for a cash transaction that will occur later. One can hedge either a long cash market position (e.g., one owns the cash commodity) or a short cash market position (e.g., one plans on buying the cash commodity in the future). An example would be a farmer who will have inventory after an upcoming harvest, which he hedges with a futures position.

Commissions and Fees
It is the industry standard for commissions and fees to be charged on a per contract basis not per trade basis.