Best Prop Firms for Large Funded Accounts

How traders reach a large funded account

A funded account of $1 million or more is usually reached in stages rather than bought in one go. There are three common routes: a scaling plan that raises the balance of a funded account after set targets, several accounts held at once up to the firm's total allocation limit, and a move to a larger or live account for traders with a long record. The firms listed above can take a trader to $1 million or more by at least one of these routes, and the list changes as firms rewrite their scaling terms and limits.

A worked example

Take a made up $200,000 funded account under a made up plan that raises the balance by 25% every four months when the trader makes 10% net profit and takes at least two payouts in that period. The figures are an illustration, not any firm's plan.

Both rows show the fastest case, in which every review is passed. A breach usually ends the account and the progress with it. Holding accounts in parallel reaches the figure differently: five $200,000 accounts make $1,000,000 at a firm whose allocation limit allows it, but each account is judged on its own rules and can be lost on its own. The loss side grows too: a 10% maximum loss on $1,000,000 is $100,000.

Who this suits

Large accounts suit traders who already have funded accounts, a record of payouts and a strategy that produces steady returns with modest drawdowns over many months. They suit traders who think in years rather than in single evaluations. They do not suit traders looking for a quick route to a large balance, since every route depends on time, profit and payouts.

The trade offs

A headline maximum is a ceiling, not a forecast. Scaling plans set conditions such as net profit over a period, a minimum number of payouts and a positive balance at review, and missing one usually means no increase for that period. Rules can also change as balances grow: an account may move to live capital with a risk manager and different terms, or face lower leverage or position caps. Holding several accounts to reach a large total means several sets of rules to keep, and copying trades between them falls under the firm's copy trading and allocation rules.

How firms differ

Firms differ on how the balance grows: a percentage of the starting balance, a percentage of the current balance, a fixed ladder of sizes or a move to live capital. They differ on what triggers an increase, whether time, profit, payouts or a combination. The limit itself varies, as does whether it applies per account or across every account a trader holds, and whether accounts can be merged. Some raise the profit split at each step and some keep it fixed.

What to check before you buy

• The scaling conditions. Read the profit, payout and time requirements for each increase and what happens if one is missed.
• How the increase is calculated. Check whether it is based on the starting or current balance, and whether each step is capped.
• The allocation limit. Find the maximum per trader and whether it counts every account, including evaluations.
• Rule changes at size. Check whether leverage, position caps, drawdown or the profit split change as the account grows.
• Live capital terms. If the route ends in a live account, read how the split, payouts and risk limits work there.

How to compare the firms listed

Compare the route rather than the headline figure. For each firm, work out how many increases and how many months it would take to reach $1,000,000 from the account size you would buy, if every review were passed. Then compare what each review asks for in profit, payouts and time. Add the allocation limit and whether several accounts can be combined, then the terms that apply once the account is large. Each firm's profile sets out its scaling plan and limits, and the comparison table filters firms by platform and country.

Prop firm scaling plans explained covers how increases are earned, and the payouts and scaling guides cover the payout side. For the choice between one account and several, see the guide to account size and copy trading rules. Large starting sizes are listed under $200K accounts.