Which prop firm is right for you?

Challenge price — The upfront fee for the evaluation phase. Lower isn't always better — some cheap firms have stricter rules that fail more traders, so we weight price relative to rule flexibility when scoring.

Profit split — The percentage of trading profits you keep after passing the evaluation. We score firms on the actual split you receive on day one, not the maximum achievable after scaling milestones.

Max drawdown — The largest total loss you can take before your account is closed. A higher max drawdown gives you more room to recover from losing streaks — critical for swing traders and position traders.

Payout speed — How quickly the firm processes your first and subsequent withdrawal requests. We track reported payout windows from verified trader reviews, not marketing copy on the firm's own site.

Instruments offered — The full list of tradeable assets — forex pairs, indices, commodities, crypto, and futures. If you trade a non-standard instrument, many firms will disqualify your account, so instrument coverage is a hard filter.

Platforms supported — Whether the firm supports MetaTrader 4, MetaTrader 5, cTrader, or a proprietary platform. Your existing setup and EAs will only work on compatible platforms, which eliminates some firms outright.

Evaluation steps — Whether you must pass a 1-step, 2-step, or 3-step challenge before getting funded. More steps means more time and more fees if you fail — but some multi-step programs have more lenient rules per phase.

Time limits — Whether the firm imposes a minimum or maximum number of trading days per phase. Firms with no time limits suit traders with flexible schedules; strict day-count rules can disqualify part-time traders.

Trustpilot rating — The firm's current star rating and review count on Trustpilot, pulled directly from the platform. We weight both score and volume — a 4.8 from 200 reviews carries more signal than a 4.9 from 12.

Payout reliability — Separate from payout speed, this factor captures whether the firm has a documented history of refusing or delaying payouts. A single credible denial scandal drops a firm's score significantly here.

Customer support — Responsiveness and quality of support — measured by community reports and our own test inquiries. Poor support is a leading indicator of account disputes being handled badly when real money is at stake.

Broker partner — The underlying broker that executes the simulated trades. Execution quality, spread sizes, and slippage differ by partner, and some traders have strong preferences based on past trading experience.