Founder and Editor, PropFirmElite
Ben Yee has traded the options and futures markets for over 20 years and has taken payouts from numerous prop firms. He is the founder and editor of PropFirmElite, an independent platform tracking evaluation rules, pricing, drawdown terms and payout policies across prop trading firms, and maintains the firm catalog and the review methodology behind it.
FTMO (Prague, since 2015) is a simulated FX/CFD evaluation brand: 2-Step Challenge + Verification vs 1-Step, Standard vs Swing, up to 90% rewards. Catalog SKUs are 2-Step only. 1-Step fees start from €79 on the official table — confirm checkout. No tracked PropFirmElite affiliate link.
FFF’s four-plan lineup (Prime, Premier+, Velocity, S2F) with official Sep 2026 rules: 90/10 from dollar one, no activation fee, no daily loss limit, Rise payouts. Catalog sizes still Prime-only — PENDING for non-Prime fee rows.
Bulenox now sells three paths into Master Accounts: Qualification (monthly + activation), Fast Track (OTP instant funded), and Momentum (one fee covers eval + $0 Master activation). Max live size is $150K — the $250K SKU is withdrawn. Catalog-verified Aug 2026.
PENDING verification: Phidias 2.0 rebuilt the futures lineup into Express to Live (static, first payout→LIVE), Fundamental (EOD 80/20), and Premium (overnight holds, split to 100%). Official rules-page numbers only.
$3K Challenge: $49, two rounds, fixed $3,000. As of 2026-08-27 /labs markets Drop #001 $25K Static (Claim Yours; PENDING inventory); $3K stays help-center-only; no Drop #004.
Take Profit Trader cut the Test minimum from 5 trading days to 3 for new accounts purchased on or after August 17, 2026. Existing tests and resets stay on 5. Official flash code 50AND3 is 50% off evals plus $0 activation through August 24.
MyFundedFutures launched a limited $50K Rapid EOD plan in August 2026: EOD drawdown on both eval and funded, no DLL, 90/10 daily payouts, and a 30% eval-only consistency rule. Here's how it differs from Flex, Rapid, and Pro — using official help-center numbers only.
LucidDaily is Lucid Trading's fourth public path: customizable eval drawdown and optional DLL, then an intraday-funded account with daily payouts, a buffer, and no funded consistency. Official Help Center numbers versus Flex, Pro, and Direct.
Alpha discontinued Premium on July 12, 2026, ended its NinjaTrader/Tradovate partnership, and migrated remaining Zero / Advanced / Direct accounts to AlphaTrader. Official first Premium payout batch was 10%. Here is what to do if you still have an Alpha account.
A roster-only roundup of futures firms on PropFirmElite that sell a true skip-evaluation path: Tradeify Lightning, LucidDirect, Elite Trader Funding DTF, Blue Guardian Direct, and Top One Instant/Ignite. Phidias Express-to-Live is still an evaluation. Cost vs eval, who should skip, who should not.
TradeDay (Chicago, 2020) sells Quick Pay and Fast Pass on Tradovate. Official Fast Pass help still grandfathered funded consistency and payout caps on July 26, 2026. PENDING verification — official help vs our catalog.
Top One Futures sells Elite Challenge, Elite Daily V2 (launched May 11, 2026 — not a July relaunch), and skip-eval Instant / Ignite paths. Official Daily V2 tables, Challenge catalog rows, and Instant 2.0 caps from July 27, 2026. PENDING fees on several SKUs.
Official Blue Guardian Futures help now catalogs Reserve, Standard, Express, and Direct — not the old Instant / 1-2-3 Step seed language. Direct rules dated July 21 (DLL) and July 27 (drawdown). PENDING vs our $100K-only JSON.
FundedNext is a UAE CFD + futures brand. Official General Rules cover Stellar 2-Step, 1-Step, Lite, and Instant on CFDs, plus Futures Flex, Legacy, and Rapid. Labs / FNL:002 is an expired limited-seat experiment — not the core product.
The5ers (since 2016) is a CFD scaling shop: Hyper Growth / Pro Growth (1-step), High Stakes (2-step), Bootcamp (3-step), plus a separate Instant Funding CFD SKU and a distinct futures Day Trade / Swing page. Official High Stakes is 10% then 5% — not the 8% line on a The5ers blog table. PENDING on some futures fees.
Pick by rule, not by headline size: 1-Step if you can protect open profit, Static for a fixed floor, EOD for a session-close trail, Diamond Hands to hold overnight, Fast Track to test cheap, DTF to skip the eval.
LucidFlex/Pro/Direct vs MFFU Flex/Rapid/Pro: splits, activation, EOD vs plan drawdowns, platforms, and which payout lifestyle fits you.
PENDING verification: Lucid Trading's three futures paths (Flex, Pro, Direct), 90/10 split, EOD drawdown, and Flex payout rules explained with official Help Center numbers.
Apex pays 100% up to 6 payouts; Bulenox pays 100% of your first $10K then 90/10. Here's which structure actually pays more depending on how you trade.
Topstep Combine vs Take Profit Trader Test→PRO: evaluation math, buffer vs XFA payout paths, pricing, platforms, and who should pick which in 2026.
Micro futures let you trade with 1/10th the risk of a standard contract. Here's why nearly every prop firm's smaller accounts are built around them.
Futures prop firms fund futures contracts, not options. Here's the actual difference between the two, and why it matters before you pick an evaluation.
Profit splits range from 50% to 100% depending on the firm, plan, and payout number. Here's how to compare them accurately across firms.
NinjaTrader is the deepest charting and automation platform available to futures prop traders. Here's what it costs and how it compares to browser-based alternatives.
Tradovate is the most widely supported platform across futures prop firms. Here's how it works, what it costs, and which firms use it.
We compared the top 8 futures prop firms on pricing, profit splits, drawdown rules, and payouts. Here's which one actually fits your trading style in 2026.
Funding Ticks shut down on January 18, 2026, offering refunds as low as $59 on $50,000 funded accounts. Here's what happened and how to protect yourself with other firms.
My Funded Futures runs three evaluation plans with no activation fees and a 90% split on Rapid. Here's how Flex, Rapid, and Pro actually differ.
NinjaTrader terminated its contract with Alpha Futures on July 12, 2026. Premium was discontinued, remaining Zero/Advanced/Direct accounts migrated to AlphaTrader.
Bulenox pays traders 100% of the first $10,000 in Master Account profits. Here's how the Qualification-to-Master path, drawdown options, and weekly payouts work.
Apex offers 100% profit split with a Safety Net; My Funded Futures offers a 90% split with daily payouts on Rapid. Here's a side-by-side breakdown.
Take Profit Trader's one-step Test account leads to day-one PRO withdrawals and a 90/10 PRO+ live path. Here's how the buffer, profit split, and pricing actually work.
Alpha Futures now sells Zero, Advanced, and Direct after discontinuing Premium on July 12, 2026. NinjaTrader and Tradovate are no longer current platforms.
A quantitative finance graduate revealed his entire prop firm trading strategy that generated over $1.2M in payouts in 12 months. Here's the full breakdown — fair pricing theory, entry triggers, risk management, and why it only works on prop firms.
A detailed look at prop firm payout frequency, methods, buffers, and which futures firms emphasize faster withdrawals.
We analyzed evaluation structure, drawdown type, minimum days, and profit targets to answer: what is the easiest futures prop firm to pass?
Learn exactly how to calculate your daily drawdown on every major prop firm -- with formulas, examples, and a calculator you can use today.
The 1% rule is the most important risk management principle for prop firm traders. Learn why it works and exactly how to apply it to your strategy.
Starting with futures prop trading? Here are the best firms for beginners in 2026, ranked by ease of use, education, drawdown style, and beginner-friendly rules.
Every prop firm rule explained in plain English: daily loss limits, consistency rules, trailing drawdown, and what actually matters for your strategy.
Why journaling is the single most important habit for passing prop firm challenges, with a free template and real examples.
Most futures firms here: no weekend holds. Flatten for the daily break when catalog hours say so. Weekend holding is true only at FundedNext (CFD 24/5, not futures overnight), Blue Guardian Futures, and Phidias.
Learn how to calculate your exact risk per trade when dealing with trailing drawdown, with real formulas and examples for Topstep, Apex, and more.
Head-to-head comparison of Topstep, Apex Trader Funding, and Tradeify for futures prop traders — rules, cost, brand, and who should pick which.
Trailing drawdown vs static drawdown: how each destroys accounts, with math examples for futures prop evaluations.
The definitive step-by-step guide to passing futures prop firm challenges, covering strategy, risk management, and the math behind drawdown rules.
Full Tradeify review for 2026: Growth vs Select vs Lightning, EOD trailing drawdown math, consistency rules, payout paths, AUG promo pricing, Elite live capital, and who should skip the firm.
Full Apex Trader Funding review for 2026: EOD vs intraday drawdown, account sizes, activation fees, 100% payout split with six-payout PA caps, 50% consistency, and code PROFIT for 90% off.
In-depth Topstep review for 2026 covering the modern Trading Combine, Maximum Loss Limit, account sizes, 90/10 payout language, education edge, and who should still pay more for the brand.