Best Prop Firms for Three Step Challenges

How a three step challenge works

A three step challenge splits the evaluation into three phases. You reach a profit target in each phase without breaking the daily or maximum loss limit, meet any minimum trading days, and move to the next phase on a fresh balance. After the third phase the firm offers a funded account. Targets per phase are usually lower than in one step or two step challenges, and some firms price three phase programs below their other formats. The firms listed above sell at least one three phase program, and the list changes as firms add or retire programs.

A worked example

The table compares three made up programs on a $100,000 example account for a trader who averages 1% of profit a week. It is an illustration only: real returns are uneven, and no firm's targets are shown.

Each phase starts again from the starting balance, so profit does not carry over. The three step trader makes more profit in total and spends longer being tested, but each target is smaller, which means less pressure to take large positions in any one phase. Each phase is also another chance to hit a loss limit, so low targets do not make a program automatically easier to pass. Minimum trading days add time as well: three phases with a four day minimum means at least twelve trading days, however fast the trader is.

Who this suits

Three step programs suit traders whose returns are steady but modest, such as those who risk a small share of the account per trade and take a handful of trades a week. They suit traders who are not in a hurry and who prefer smaller targets per phase to a single large one. They suit traders less well if they want funding quickly, or if their results come in occasional large wins, since each extra phase adds time and another set of limits.

The trade offs

The lower targets come with a longer test. More phases mean more time between buying and a first payout, and more points at which a single bad day can end the attempt. Some three step programs pair the low targets with tighter loss limits, a lower starting profit split or a smaller payout cap on the funded account. Where a fee refund is offered, it usually comes with the first payout, which is further away. Keeping the same discipline across three separate phases is a test in its own right.

How firms differ

Firms set the phase targets differently: equal targets in each phase, falling targets, or a larger first target followed by smaller ones. Some keep the same daily and maximum loss across all three phases, while others change them. Minimum trading days, time limits per phase and rules on news trading or weekend holding can also differ between phases. On the funded side, firms differ on the profit split, first payout timing and whether the fee is refunded.

What to check before you buy

• Every phase's target and limits. Write down the target, daily limit and maximum loss for each phase, not just the first.
• How the maximum loss is measured. Check whether it is static or trailing and whether it resets with each phase.
• Minimum days and time limits. Add them up across all three phases.
• The move between phases. Check how long each new account takes to be issued and whether any rule changes on the way.
• Funded account terms. Confirm the split, payout schedule and any consistency rule once you pass.

How to compare the firms listed

Add up the profit needed across all three phases and set it against the maximum loss in each, since the ratio of target to room says more about the test than the number of phases. Then compare the drawdown type, the minimum days in total and whether any phase has a deadline. Look at the fee as a price per $1,000 of account size and compare it with the same firm's two step program, which may be priced differently for a shorter test. Finish with the funded terms. Each firm's profile sets out its programs phase by phase, and the comparison table narrows the field by platform and country.

Firms offering shorter formats are listed under one step challenges and two step challenges, and one step vs two step challenges compares those formats. How long it takes to pass a challenge covers timelines, and programs without deadlines are listed under challenges with no time limit.