FTMO vs Topstep

FTMO suits traders who work in forex, indices, gold and other CFDs, want to pay a single fee with no time limit, and want to hold positions overnight on MetaTrader, cTrader or TradingView. Topstep suits futures day traders who want CME Group contracts, a low monthly entry price and payouts that can start after a handful of winning days, and who close every position by 3:10 pm Central time. The choice is first between markets and then between two business models, one priced once in euros and one billed monthly in dollars.

All prices are list prices at the time of review in September 2026. Both firms run frequent discounts, so the checkout price is often lower.

FTMO vs Topstep at a glance

The closest like for like pairing is the FTMO Challenge 1 Step at $100,000 and the Topstep 100K Trading Combine on the Standard path. Both are single phase evaluations with a maximum loss that trails the end of day balance, a best day rule and a 90% split. The FTMO 2 Step is covered in the rules section.

Two markets and two models

The FTMO Challenge evaluates traders on CFDs covering forex, indices, commodities, stocks and crypto, with leverage of up to 1:100 on Standard accounts. Topstep evaluates traders on CME Group futures, from equity index contracts such as ES and NQ to crude oil, gold, Treasury, currency and agricultural futures, with position size capped by contract count rather than leverage. On the 100K Combine the cap is 10 minis or 100 micros.

The same headline size therefore means different things. FTMO’s $100K 1 Step allows $10,000 of loss before failure, while Topstep’s 100K Combine allows $3,000. Traders comparing the two should look at loss room in dollars against the positions they actually take, not at the account label. The forex vs futures prop firms guide sets out the wider differences between the two markets.

The business models differ too. FTMO charges one fee per challenge and sets no time limit. Topstep bills the Combine every month until the trader passes or cancels. Once funded, an FTMO account keeps its simulated $100,000 balance, while a Topstep Express Funded Account starts at a $0 balance and the trader’s profit builds from there.

Rules and drawdown

Both products use a trailing maximum loss calculated at the end of the day. FTMO recalculates the 1 Step limit at midnight Central European time from the highest end of day balance, and the daily limit is a fixed 3% of the initial balance, deducted from the midnight balance, with equity required to stay above it. Topstep’s Maximum Loss Limit rises with the end of day balance, never moves down and locks permanently once it reaches the starting balance, although it is enforced in real time on open profit and loss. Topstep’s daily limit is optional and soft: reaching it flattens positions for the session without breaking a rule. The end of day drawdown guide explains the mechanics, and the drawdown calculator shows where the floor sits after a run of days.

In the funded stage Topstep’s limit behaves differently. The Express Funded Account starts with the limit below zero, trails the end of day balance, and locks at $0 once the balance reaches $3,000 on 100K or after any payout.

Both firms apply a best day rule on these products. FTMO’s 1 Step stops the most profitable day from exceeding half the profit of all positive days, on the challenge and the funded account, and exceeding it means more profit is needed rather than a breach. Topstep’s Combine requires the best day to stay at or below 55% of total profit, so passing takes at least two days. The consistency rule calculator checks a set of daily results against both limits.

FTMO’s 2 Step is the alternative for traders who prefer a fixed floor. It costs €540 for $100K, asks for 10% and then 5%, with at least four trading days in each phase, and sets a 5% daily limit and a 10% static maximum loss. It has no best day rule and refunds the fee with the first reward.

Holding, news and automation

Holding rules separate the firms most clearly. Topstep requires every position to be closed by 3:10 pm Central time each weekday, with no overnight or weekend holding. FTMO allows overnight and weekend holding during the evaluation. Funded Standard accounts must close before the weekend and before market breaks longer than two hours, and the Swing account type, offered on the 2 Step only, removes that rule at leverage of up to 1:30. The weekend and overnight holding rules guide compares approaches across firms.

On news, FTMO funded Standard accounts cannot open or close trades on affected instruments from two minutes before to two minutes after selected releases, while evaluations and Swing accounts have no restriction. Topstep allows news trading but prohibits placing the full maximum position size directly into a scheduled major release.

FTMO allows expert advisors if the strategy could be replicated in real markets, with a capital allocation limit of $400,000 per trader or strategy. Topstep allows custom automation only through the TopstepX API, at $29 a month with a 50% discount for Topstep traders, and not on Live Funded Accounts. It also bans high frequency trading, VPS and VPN use.

Pricing, resets and activation fees

FTMO charges €499 for the $100K 1 Step and €540 for the $100K 2 Step. At the time of review it offered them at €399 and €439 to traders without an active challenge of that size. Only the 2 Step fee is refunded, with the first reward. FTMO adds a 3% fee on PayPal, Skrill and crypto payments, and because fees are priced in euros the dollar cost moves with the exchange rate.

Topstep’s Standard 100K costs $99 a month plus $149 on passing, so a trader who passes in the first month pays $248 and each further month adds $99. The No Activation Fee path costs $149 a month, or $129 when a daily loss limit is added at checkout, which also doubles payout caps. Each rebill includes one free reset, and further resets cost the monthly price. Level 1 CME data is included, Level 2 costs $38 a month, and TopstepX commissions are $3.78 per round turn on ES and NQ. A fast pass costs less at Topstep, while a slow one can overtake FTMO’s single fee. The prop firm challenge cost guide covers how these models add up.

Payouts

FTMO rewards can be requested from the 14th day after the first trade, and each withdrawal starts a new cycle. FTMO reviews requests within one to two business days, typically sends funds within one to two business days of invoice approval and charges no commission. Methods include bank wire from $20, card payouts up to $20,000, Skrill and crypto. The Scaling Plan adds 25% to the balance every four months for traders with at least 10% net profit and two processed rewards, up to $2 million, and lifts 2 Step accounts from 80% to 90%.

Topstep pays 90/10 from the first qualifying payout, with a $125 minimum. On 100K each Express Funded request can take up to half the balance, capped at $3,000 on the Standard path or $4,000 on the Consistency path, which needs a best day of no more than 40% of net profit. US traders using Aeropay can be paid instantly after approval if their bank supports real time payments, while ACH and wire transfers carry a $30 fee. Live Funded Accounts move to daily payouts after 30 winning days. Topstep reports that 16.8% of Trading Combines were completed in 2025 and that 33.3% of traders who reached the funded level received a payout. The payout calculator models take home pay under each split.

Platforms and markets

FTMO supports MetaTrader 4, MetaTrader 5, cTrader and TradingView, with forex, indices, commodities, stocks and crypto. Clients in the United States are served through an affiliated entity and clients in Australia through a separate site, and support runs around the clock in 21 languages.

Topstep centres on TopstepX, which runs in a web or mobile browser with TradingView charts, and its help centre covers a Quantower connection. Markets span CME Group equity index, currency, energy, metals, interest rate, agricultural and micro crypto futures. Topstep is based in Chicago, and its ineligible countries include Nigeria, Pakistan, Kenya and Turkey.

Who should choose each firm

Choose FTMO if

• You trade forex, gold, indices or stocks as CFDs on MetaTrader, cTrader or TradingView.
• You hold positions overnight, or want the Swing account for weekends and news.
• You prefer a single fee with no time limit, or the fixed floor of the 2 Step.

Choose Topstep if

• You day trade CME futures and are flat by the afternoon close anyway.
• You expect to pass within a month or two and want a low entry cost.
• You want payouts after a few winning days rather than a fixed wait.

Read the FTMO review and Topstep review, see both firms in the three way FTMO vs The5ers vs Topstep comparison, or look at FTMO alternatives and Topstep alternatives. Filter every firm in the comparison table, browse more comparisons, or start from the CFD prop firms and futures prop firms hubs.