Compare prop firms on one radar
Pick up to four CFD or futures prop firms, or a specific challenge from each, and see where each one is strong or weak on eight axes. Move the sliders to weight what matters to you; the overall scores update as you go.
| Axis | The5ers FuturesDay Trade - 1-Step 50K · $100 | DayTradersStatic - 1-Step - 25K · $40 | FundedNextStellar Challenge - 1-Step 200K · $1,099.99 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Overall score your weights | 68 | 80 | 76 |
| Profit Split weight 5 | 6080% profit split | 100 (best)100% profit split | 6080% profit split |
| Drawdown Flexibility weight 5 | 90 (best)$2,000 EOD trailing max loss (4.0% of $50K) · no daily limit | 81$750 static max loss (3.0% of $25K) · no daily limit | 516% static max loss · daily limit 3% of initial balance |
| Payout Speed & Frequency weight 5 | 40Bi-weekly (14-day cycle) once funded; evaluation fee refunded with the 3rd payout (14 days) | 65Every 8 days of $100 (8 days) | 80 (best)First reward after 5 business days, then every 5 business days (5 days) |
| Evaluation Cost Efficiency weight 5 | 89$100 for $50K · $2.00 per $1K | 92 (best)$40 + $5 activation for $25K · $1.80 per $1K | 74$1,099.99 for $200K · $5.50 per $1K |
| Rules Freedom weight 5 | 78Consistency: 40% Consistency Rule Per Position - No single trade may account for more than 40% of your total… · Min days: none listed · Daily loss limit: none | 72Consistency: Evaluation: 50% max per day | Funded: 30% max per day · Min days: 2 · Daily loss limit: none | 84 (best)Consistency: none · Min days: 2 · Daily loss limit: yes |
| Platform & Tools weight 5 | 36BlackArrow | 100 (best)ATAS Orderflow Trading, Bookmap, Finamark, Jigsaw Daytradr, MotiveWave, Quantower, R Trader Pro, Sierra Chart, VolFix | 84cTrader, Match Trader, MT4, MT5 |
| Scaling Potential weight 5 | 65Funded accounts scale at every 10% profit milestone: balance +5% and +1 mini / +10 micro contracts per step, up to $500K (each step reviewed by the risk team) | 45Risk Team review once the drawdown locks (+1 contract) | 90 (best)+25% of balance per scale-up (4 Performance Rewards with 4%+ growth in each cycle, 2+ months active; reward share rises to 90%); up to $4M |
| Reliability / Payout Trust weight 5 | 86 (best)Trust 86/100 (A - High trust) · Trustpilot 4.7 from 39,497 reviews | 83Trust 83/100 (A - High trust) · Trustpilot 4.6 from 503 reviews | 83Trust 83/100 (A - High trust) · Trustpilot 4.5 from 81,222 reviews |
Best prop firms for your level
Ranked by a combined score of the radar axes, rules friendliness, evaluation ease and cost, and payout trust, weighted for each level. Only firms with a trust score of 70 or more and at least 250 Trustpilot reviews qualify. How it works.
Best for Beginners
Forgiving drawdown, simple rules, a low fee and an easier evaluation, from firms with solid reviews. Accounts from $5K to $50K.
- The5ers FuturesDay Trade - 1-Step 50K · $100Combined score 77
Forgiving drawdown + low fee for the size
Why this firm?
- Radar score (level weights)75 × 45%
- Rules friendliness71 × 20%
- Evaluation ease and cost81 × 25%
- Payout trust86 × 10%
- Combined score77
- TopstepNo Activation Fee - 1-Step 50K · $95 / monthCombined score 75
Forgiving drawdown + low fee for the size
Why this firm?
- Radar score (level weights)76 × 45%
- Rules friendliness67 × 20%
- Evaluation ease and cost79 × 25%
- Payout trust73 × 10%
- Combined score75
- Blue Guardian FuturesExpress - 1-Step 50K · $130Combined score 75
Forgiving drawdown + few restrictive rules
Why this firm?
- Radar score (level weights)77 × 45%
- Rules friendliness71 × 20%
- Evaluation ease and cost75 × 25%
- Payout trust73 × 10%
- Combined score75
Best for Intermediate Traders
A balanced score across split, rules, payout speed and reliability, at a fair cost. Accounts from $25K to $100K.
- DayTradersStatic - 1-Step - 25K · $40Combined score 80
High profit split + wide platform choice
Why this firm?
- Radar score (level weights)80 × 65%
- Rules friendliness83 × 15%
- Evaluation ease and cost70 × 10%
- Payout trust83 × 10%
- Combined score80
- FTMOStandard Challenge - 2-Steps 100K · €540Combined score 77
Forgiving drawdown + clear scaling path
Why this firm?
- Radar score (level weights)75 × 65%
- Rules friendliness87 × 15%
- Evaluation ease and cost65 × 10%
- Payout trust88 × 10%
- Combined score77
- TradeifySelect Flex - 1-Step 50K · $165Combined score 76
Wide platform choice + forgiving drawdown
Why this firm?
- Radar score (level weights)78 × 65%
- Rules friendliness71 × 15%
- Evaluation ease and cost66 × 10%
- Payout trust87 × 10%
- Combined score76
Best for Expert Traders
The highest split, fastest payouts, room to scale and freedom from rules, at firms with a strong payout record. Fee matters least. Accounts from $100K.
- FundedNextStellar Challenge - 1-Step 200K · $1,099.99Combined score 79
Clear scaling path + fast payouts
Why this firm?
- Radar score (level weights)77 × 90%
- Rules friendliness90 × 10%
- Combined score79
- Top One FuturesIgnite - Instant Funding - 150K · $799Combined score 75
Fast payouts + strong payout trust
Why this firm?
- Radar score (level weights)77 × 90%
- Rules friendliness63 × 10%
- Combined score75
- Funded Futures FamilyPrime Standard - 1-Step 150K · $365 / monthCombined score 74
Fast payouts + high profit split
Why this firm?
- Radar score (level weights)74 × 90%
- Rules friendliness70 × 10%
- Combined score74
TransparencyHow scoring works
Every score comes from the rules and fees each firm publishes, from our database of 59 forex/CFD and futures firms and 1,410 plans, last checked 9 October 2026. Scores run from 0 to 100, and higher is always better for the trader. If a firm does not publish a figure, the table shows n/a and that axis is left out of the plan's overall score, except payout speed, where a missing cycle scores 0 so it can never beat a published one.
The eight radar axes
- Profit Split
- The share of profits you keep on the funded account, at the starting split (the first tier when the split rises with profit). 50% scores 0 and 100% scores 100.
- Drawdown Flexibility
- Maximum loss as a share of the account, discounted for trailing drawdown (balance or end-of-day trailing x0.8, equity or intraday trailing x0.6) and for having a daily loss limit (x0.85). A drawdown the firm does not state as static or end-of-day counts as intraday trailing, the worst case. When the funded account has different limits from the evaluation, the stricter of the two stages is scored, and the table shows both. Ranked against plans in the same market, because a $50K futures account and a $50K forex account do not carry the same risk.
- Payout Speed & Frequency
- The regular payout cycle after the first payout, in days (daily or on demand counts as 1): 1 day scores 100, 7 days 70, 14 days 40, 30 days 5. The table also shows the firm's wording for the first payout. If only the firm's payout text gives the cycle, we read the days from it; a plan with no published cycle scores 0, so missing data never beats a published figure.
- Evaluation Cost Efficiency
- List fee plus any activation fee per $1,000 of account size, ranked against plans in the same market. Cheaper per $1,000 scores higher. Monthly plans count one month. Euro fees are converted to US dollars at the ECB euro reference rate of 16 October 2026 (€1 = $1.1253) for this score only; the table keeps the firm's euro price. A plan with a cost score below 10, the most expensive tenth or so of its market per $1,000, cannot be a level pick.
- Rules Freedom
- Starts at 100. Minus 22 for a consistency rule on evaluation and funded (20 funded only or checked at payout, 12 evaluation only, 8 if optional or not published), 5 more if it is 20% or stricter, 10 for other profit-day or risk rules, 3 per minimum trading day (up to 20) and 10 for a daily loss limit on either stage. An instant account has no evaluation, so its rule counts as funded only. News trading rules are not in our data, so they are not scored.
- Platform & Tools
- How many established trading platforms the firm supports: one platform scores 36, each extra platform adds 16, five or more score 100. It measures choice, not platform quality.
- Scaling Potential
- How far the published scaling plan can take you: a stated plan with a cap of $2M or more, or no cap, scores 90; $1M to $1.5M scores 80; a stated percentage plan with a lower cap 65; a level or doubling plan 50; contract-size or split-only scaling 45. Scaling that is "offered" with terms not published, or only by the firm's invitation, scores 35 whatever size is claimed, below any published plan; no scaling 20, none listed 10. Scaling is firm-wide unless the firm gives a plan its own terms, such as a plan left out of its scaling plan.
- Reliability / Payout Trust
- Our trust score out of 100: Trustpilot rating weighted by review count, independent trader ratings, the share of one-star reviews and replies to negative reviews, minus points for a closed or suspended review profile. It is the only place the Trustpilot rating is counted.
Overall score and your weights
The overall score is the weighted average of the eight axes, using your slider weights from 0 to 10. A weight of 0 drops that axis. The presets set these weights:
| Preset | Split | Drawdown | Payout | Cost | Rules | Platforms | Scaling | Trust |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Balanced | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 |
| High Split Focus | 10 | 4 | 6 | 3 | 4 | 3 | 6 | 6 |
| Rules Freedom | 4 | 8 | 4 | 3 | 10 | 3 | 3 | 5 |
| Budget Friendly | 3 | 6 | 3 | 10 | 5 | 3 | 2 | 5 |
| Fast Payouts | 6 | 4 | 10 | 3 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 8 |
Best for your level
Each level gets its own combined score, built from up to four signals:
- Radar score: the weighted radar average, with weights tuned to the level (below).
- Rules friendliness: 60% rules freedom plus 40% drawdown type (static 100, balance or end-of-day trailing 60, equity or intraday trailing, or trailing of a type the firm does not state, 30; the stricter of the evaluation and the funded account).
- Evaluation ease and cost: 60% how hard the evaluation is and 40% the cost score. Difficulty is 70% the odds of reaching each profit target before the max loss if prices moved at random: for each step, the room to lose divided by the target plus the room to lose, multiplied over the steps, with odds of 50% or better scoring 100. The room to lose is the evaluation's max loss, discounted for trailing as on the drawdown axis. The other 15% is the number of steps (1-step 75, 2-step 55, 3-step 40, instant 100) and 15% the minimum trading days (10 points off per day). An instant account has no target to reach, so it scores full odds, but it usually costs more.
- Payout trust: the trust score, the same as the Reliability axis. It already includes the Trustpilot rating, so reviews are not counted a second time.
| Level | Accounts | Combined score | Radar weights (Split / Drawdown / Payout / Cost / Rules / Platforms / Scaling / Trust) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Beginners | $5K to $50K | 45% radar score with the level weights + 20% rules friendliness + 25% evaluation ease and cost + 10% payout trust | 3 / 9 / 4 / 8 / 8 / 4 / 2 / 7 |
| Intermediate Traders | $25K to $100K | 65% radar score with the level weights + 15% rules friendliness + 10% evaluation ease and cost + 10% payout trust | 5 / 5 / 5 / 5 / 5 / 5 / 5 / 5 |
| Expert Traders | $100K to $400K | 90% radar score with the level weights + 10% rules friendliness | 9 / 4 / 9 / 1 / 8 / 4 / 9 / 8 |
Put together, this is how much each input counts in each level's combined score (rounded):
| Level | Split | Drawdown | Payout | Cost | Rules | Platforms | Scaling | Trust | Drawdown type | Evaluation difficulty |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Beginners | 3% | 9% | 4% | 18% | 20% | 4% | 2% | 17% | 8% | 15% |
| Intermediate Traders | 8% | 8% | 8% | 12% | 17% | 8% | 8% | 18% | 6% | 6% |
| Expert Traders | 16% | 7% | 16% | 2% | 20% | 7% | 16% | 14% | 4% | 0% |
Who can be recommended: firms with a trust score of 70 or more, at least 250 Trustpilot reviews and an open review profile; plans that are open to new traders and publish their split and payout cycle; plans with a drawdown score of at least 25 (40 for beginners), so a plan with very little room to lose never tops a list; and plans with a cost score of at least 10, so the most expensive plans per $1,000 in each market are never recommended, even for experts, whose score gives the fee little weight. A plan whose figures we could not confirm on the firm's own pages stays in the comparison tool but is left out of the picks. Each firm's best plan in the level's account range is compared, and the columns fill in rank order, so each firm appears once, in the column where it ranks best with a slot still free, and a firm left out of every column ranks below all the firms shown in the columns it qualifies for (a firm repeats only to fill a column that would otherwise have fewer than three picks).
Scores describe published rules, not your results. Prop firms change rules often; check the firm's own site before you buy. Some links on this site are affiliate links, and commission never changes a score or a pick. Nothing here is financial advice.