Rules verified 10 August 2026
How to Pass a Prop Firm Evaluation · verified 10 August 2026
How to pass a prop firm evaluation: a mechanical guide for futures traders
Rules verified 10 August 2026 · across 6 futures prop firms
Most guidance on passing an evaluation is about entries. That is the wrong problem. An evaluation is not a test of whether you can find a trade · it is a test of whether you can reach a target without touching a moving floor. This guide is about the floor.
1. Understand the rule that will actually close your account
Three facts decide the shape of your evaluation, and they differ by firm:
- How the drawdown trails. End of day, or intraday including profit you have not banked. Apex Trader Funding trails intraday, so an unrealised spike raises the floor permanently.
- Where the floor stops. At Tradeify it never stops · every new high raises it, which is why a profitable account there can still breach.
- Whether a consistency rule applies. Take Profit Trader at 50%, Topstep at 50%, Tradeify at 40%, MyFundedFutures at 50%. A consistency rule does not fail you · it raises the target until your other days catch up.
See the full comparison for all six side by side.
2. Size from the distance to the floor, not from your balance
This is the single change that separates traders who pass from traders who nearly pass.
A $50,000 account with a $2,000 trailing drawdown starts with a floor at $48,000. Make $3,000 and the floor follows to $51,000. Your balance is $53,000 but your room is still $2,000 · exactly what it was on day one. A trader sizing at "2% of the account" is now risking $1,060 against $2,000 of room, or more than half of everything they have left, while believing they are being conservative.
Size as a percentage of remaining room instead and the arithmetic self-corrects: risk shrinks automatically as room shrinks, and it is mathematically impossible to size yourself into a breach on a single trade.
3. Pace the target across the days you must trade anyway
If a firm requires five trading days, reaching the target on day one buys you nothing · you must trade four more days regardless, and every one of them is a chance to give it back. Dividing the target across the required days lowers the size you need each day, which lowers the risk of a breach.
| Firm | Account | Profit target | Min days | Target ÷ 5 days | Largest single day |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Take Profit Trader | 50K | $3,000 | 3 | $600 | $1,500 |
| Apex Trader Funding | 50K | $3,000 | 1 | $600 | no cap |
| Topstep | 50K | $3,000 | 2 | $600 | $1,500 |
| Tradeify | 50K | $3,000 | 3 | $600 | $1,200 |
| MyFundedFutures | 50K | $3,000 | 2 | $600 | $1,500 |
| Lucid Trading | 50K | $3,000 | 1 | $600 | $1,500 |
The final column is the consistency ceiling: the most any one day may contribute before the target starts moving away from you.
4. Set a daily stop before the session, not during it
Decide the maximum you will lose in a day as a fraction of remaining room · not as a fixed dollar figure, because a fixed figure becomes a larger share of your account exactly as your account becomes more fragile. When it is reached, the day is over. The floor does not move overnight, so tomorrow starts with the same room you have now.
5. Stop when the target is reached
Additional profit in an evaluation earns nothing. It cannot be withdrawn, it does not increase your funded account, and at a firm with a consistency rule it can actively delay you. Once the target and the minimum days are satisfied, the correct action is to stop trading that account.
Why most evaluations fail
Not on the target · on the floor. A trader reaches a peak, sizes against balance rather than room, gives part of it back, and breaches while still in profit for the evaluation. The trade that closed the account was usually a reasonable one. The sizing decision behind it was made against a number that had already moved.
Frequently asked questions
How do you pass a prop firm evaluation?
Reach the profit target without touching the trailing drawdown floor, having traded the minimum number of days and satisfied any consistency rule. Most traders fail on the second of those, not the first · the floor moves up behind you as you profit, so the room you think you have is not the room you actually have.
What percentage of traders pass a prop firm evaluation?
Firms rarely publish this and independent figures vary widely, so treat any single number with suspicion. What is measurable is why accounts fail: the drawdown floor, not the profit target. A trader who reaches the target and gives back part of it still fails, which is why survival matters more than speed.
How long should I take to pass an evaluation?
Longer than feels necessary. A consistency rule (Take Profit Trader at 50%, Topstep at 50%, Tradeify at 40%, MyFundedFutures at 50%) makes a single large day raise your effective target, so front-loading profit actively delays you. Spreading profit across more days lowers the size you need per day, which lowers the chance of a drawdown breach.
What is the biggest mistake traders make in evaluations?
Sizing against the account balance instead of against the distance to the floor. As the floor trails upward your true room can shrink even while your balance grows. Position size should come from remaining room, not from equity.
Can you pass a prop firm evaluation in one day?
At Apex Trader Funding and Lucid Trading yes · they require a single trading day and apply no consistency rule, so reaching the target in one session is enough. Everywhere else a minimum-days requirement or a consistency rule makes it impossible.