How prop firm drawdown works
Every futures prop firm evaluation has a maximum loss, also called the drawdown or max loss limit. Your account fails the moment your balance touches the liquidation floor. What makes it tricky is that on most accounts the floor doesn't stay put. There are three main types.
Static drawdown
The floor never moves. On a 50K account with a $2,000 static drawdown, you fail at $48,000 no matter how much you're up. It's the simplest and most forgiving type, and the least common in evaluations.
Trailing end-of-day (EOD) drawdown
The floor follows your highest closing balance, checked once when the session ends. Intraday swings don't move it, but a strong close does, and it never moves back down. Apex EOD, Topstep, Tradeify and MyFundedFutures evaluations all use a version of this.
Trailing intraday drawdown
The floor follows your highest balance in real time, including open profit on trades you haven't closed. If a trade runs $1,500 in your favour and you give it all back, your floor has still moved up $1,500. Apex Intraday evaluations work this way, and it's the type that catches the most traders out.
When the trailing stops
Some firms stop trailing once the floor reaches a set level. In the Topstep Trading Combine the maximum loss limit stops at your starting balance, so on a 50K Combine the floor can never go above $50,000. Once you're $2,000 up, every extra dollar of profit is pure cushion.
Daily loss limits
A daily loss limit is measured from your balance at the previous session close, not from where you started the account. If you closed yesterday at $50,800 with a $1,000 daily limit, today's daily floor is $49,800. At Topstep and on Apex EOD evaluations, hitting it ends your day rather than failing the account, but it still costs you a trading day.
Consistency rules
A consistency rule caps how much of your total profit can come from your best single day. If you break it, you don't fail; your effective profit target goes up instead.
Prop firm rules at a glance
Evaluation rules as of October 3, 2026. Firms change their rules often, so always confirm on the firm's own site (linked below).
| Firm & plan | Size | Profit target | Max loss | Drawdown | Daily loss | Consistency | Min days | Rules |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apex Trader Funding Intraday Evaluation | 50K | $3,000 | $2,000 | Trailing intraday | — | — | — | Official › |
| Apex Trader Funding Intraday Evaluation | 100K | $6,000 | $3,000 | Trailing intraday | — | — | — | Official › |
| Apex Trader Funding Intraday Evaluation | 150K | $9,000 | $4,000 | Trailing intraday | — | — | — | Official › |
| Apex Trader Funding EOD Evaluation | 50K | $3,000 | $2,000 | Trailing EOD | $1,000 | — | — | Official › |
| Apex Trader Funding EOD Evaluation | 100K | $6,000 | $3,000 | Trailing EOD | $1,500 | — | — | Official › |
| Apex Trader Funding EOD Evaluation | 150K | $9,000 | $4,000 | Trailing EOD | $2,000 | — | — | Official › |
| Topstep Trading Combine | 50K | $3,000 | $2,000 | Trailing EOD (stops at start) | $1,000 | 55% | — | Official › |
| Topstep Trading Combine | 100K | $6,000 | $3,000 | Trailing EOD (stops at start) | $2,000 | 55% | — | Official › |
| Topstep Trading Combine | 150K | $9,000 | $4,500 | Trailing EOD (stops at start) | $3,000 | 55% | — | Official › |
| Tradeify Select Evaluation | 50K | $3,000 | $2,000 | Trailing EOD | — | 40% | 3 | Official › |
| Tradeify Select Evaluation | 100K | $6,000 | $3,000 | Trailing EOD | — | 40% | 3 | Official › |
| Tradeify Select Evaluation | 150K | $9,000 | $4,500 | Trailing EOD | — | 40% | 3 | Official › |
| Tradeify Growth Evaluation | 50K | $3,000 | $2,000 | Trailing EOD | $1,250 | — | 3 | Official › |
| Tradeify Growth Evaluation | 100K | $6,000 | $3,500 | Trailing EOD | $2,500 | — | 3 | Official › |
| Tradeify Growth Evaluation | 150K | $9,000 | $5,000 | Trailing EOD | $3,750 | — | 3 | Official › |
| MyFundedFutures Rapid | 50K | $3,000 | $2,000 | Trailing EOD | — | 50% | 2 | Official › |
How to use this calculator
- Pick your firm, plan and account size. The rules load automatically. Use Custom for any other firm.
- Enter your current balance and your highest balance so far. For EOD accounts use your highest closing balance; for intraday accounts use the highest your balance reached, including open profit.
- Enter your balance at the last session close to see today's daily loss room.
- Add your best day and days traded to check the consistency rule and minimum days.
- Set your contract and stop to see the most contracts you can risk without breaching either limit.
Frequently asked questions
What is trailing drawdown in a prop firm account?
Trailing drawdown is a loss limit that follows your highest balance upward. On a 50K account with a $2,000 trailing drawdown, your floor starts at $48,000. If your balance peaks at $51,000, the floor moves up to $49,000. It never moves back down, so a winning streak followed by a pullback can fail the account even while you're still in profit.
What's the difference between EOD and intraday trailing drawdown?
End-of-day trailing drawdown only moves when the session closes, based on your closing balance. Intraday trailing drawdown moves in real time with your highest balance during the session, including open profit on trades you haven't closed yet. Intraday is stricter, because giving back open profit still raises the floor.
Does Topstep's maximum loss limit stop trailing?
Yes. In the Topstep Trading Combine the maximum loss limit trails your end-of-day balance until it reaches your starting balance, then stops. On a 50K Combine the floor starts at $48,000 and can rise no higher than $50,000.
How does the prop firm consistency rule work?
It limits how much of your total profit can come from your best day. With Topstep's 55% rule, if your best day is $2,000 your total profit must reach about $3,637 before you pass, even though the stated target is $3,000. Tradeify Select uses 40% and MyFundedFutures Rapid uses 50%.
Does hitting the daily loss limit fail my evaluation?
It depends on the firm. At Topstep and on Apex EOD evaluations, hitting the daily loss limit ends your trading for the day but doesn't fail the account. Always check your firm's current rules, because they change.
How many contracts can I trade with my remaining drawdown?
Divide your remaining room (the smaller of your max loss room and daily loss room) by the dollar risk per contract: your stop in points times the contract's value per point, plus fees. Then cap it at your firm's maximum position size. The contract sizer above does this for ES, MES, NQ, MNQ, YM, MYM, CL, MCL, GC and MGC.
Is this calculator official?
No. It's a free planning tool built by the makers of Trading Recorder Pro. Your firm's dashboard is always the official record, and firms count open losses in real time.
Trading Recorder Pro and Bouncing Ball Creations are not affiliated with, endorsed by or sponsored by Apex Trader Funding, Topstep, Tradeify or MyFundedFutures. All trademarks belong to their owners. This page is for information and planning only and is not financial advice. Futures trading involves substantial risk of loss.