Topstep
Apex Trader FundingAt a glance
Starting price
Compared on the lowest price you can pay: with a verified code where the provider shows one, else the list price. Not compared: one bills monthly, the other once.
Drawdown type
No edge: depends on the plan or not in our data.
Consistency
Shown, not scored: firms measure consistency differently.
Profit split
Activation fee
Tie.
Best for…
Edges follow fixed rules (cheaper with the same billing, EOD on every account, higher split, no activation fee) applied to our dataset. Commercial relationships play no part. Your plan, size and stage can change the picture.
Full firm reviews: Topstep review and rules · Apex Trader Funding review and rules
Compare with another firm → Add up to two more firms, pick the account size and plans.
Side-by-side comparison
| Rule | Topstep | Apex |
|---|---|---|
| Cheapest evaluation | $49 | $167$16.70 with SAVENOW |
| Billing | Monthly | One-time (Legacy monthly) |
| Activation fee | $149 or no-fee plan | $59–$159 or a no-activation-fee option |
| Drawdown | EOD | Intraday / EOD |
| Daily loss limit | Optional (RTA) · required on LFA | In EOD eval and PA (tiered) |
| Consistency | 55% in Combine · XFA Consistency 40% | None in eval · 50% on PA (Legacy 30%) |
| Profit split | 90/10 | 100% (Legacy: 100% of first $25K, then 90%) |
| Payouts | 5 winning days $150+ · LFA daily after 30 days | 5 qualifying days |
| News trading | Allowed (no slippage refunds) | Allowed |
| Max accounts | Unlimited Combines · 5 XFA · 1 LFA | 20 PA · Live up to 5 |
| Profit target (50K) | Standard: $3,000 | Intraday Trail: $3,000 EOD Trail: $3,000 Legacy (back on sale): $3,000 |
| Max contracts (50K, mini / micro) | Standard: 5 / 50 | Intraday Trail: 6 / 60 EOD Trail: 6 / 60 Legacy (back on sale): 10 |
| Plans | Standard, No Activation Fee, XFA & RTA | Intraday Trail, EOD Trail, Legacy (back on sale) |
| Max funding | $750K | $3M |
| Platforms | TopstepX only | Rithmic, Tradovate, NinjaTrader, TradingView, WealthCharts, DeepChart (Rithmic accounts, connection only) |
| Discount code | — | SAVENOWPublic promo (not a partner code) |
Futures trading involves substantial risk of loss. Prop firm evaluations are paid products; most traders do not pass. Not financial advice.
Prices are the lowest list price before any coupon; the lowest price with a code is shown underneath where the provider displays one (or as a marked estimate). Each firm has several plans with different rules — open the full rulebook for size-by-size tables.
Topstep
- Best for EOD traders — EOD drawdown on every account · checked Oct 1
The industry veteran (since 2012, $1B+ paid out). Trading Combine → XFA → LFA, traded on TopstepX only.
Pros
- Longest-running firm, $1B+ in payouts
- 2 payment paths + RTA with doubled payout caps
- Back2Funded — reinstate an XFA without a new Combine
- No dollar cap on LFA payouts
- Same-day payouts for US traders
Watch out for
- Closed platform — TopstepX only
- $149 activation on the standard plan; one LFA only
- 55% Combine consistency
- Strict single max-loss rule at every stage
Promotions recorded in the dataset
- No firm-wide promo listed right now.
Apex Trader Funding
- Best for low budget — $16.70 after code · checked Oct 5
- Best profit split — 100% profit split · checked Oct 1
Up to 20 PA accounts at once and up to $3M combined. 30-day one-time evaluations, 100% of approved payouts on the new plans — and Legacy is back.
Pros
- Up to 20 PAs; copying same-direction trades across your own PAs is allowed
- 100% of approved payouts on the new plans
- Pass in one day — no minimum days, no eval consistency
- No MAE or 5:1 rule on the new plans
- Real-time data and NinjaTrader included
Watch out for
- Evals expire after 30 days, no resets
- Only 7 days to activate a PA, no extensions
- New PAs close after 6 payouts
- EOD costs 2×+ Intraday
- Payout rules differ across Intraday, EOD and Legacy
Promotions recorded in the dataset
- Legacy – 90% off the first month — Renewals 80% off; resets $80. (Limited time)
SAVENOW Up to 90% off evaluations Public promo (not a partner code) · manually verified Sep 30, 2026 on the official site
Visit Apex ↗ Full rulebook →How to choose between them
- Drawdown: Topstep — EOD; Apex — Intraday / EOD. EOD drawdown only moves on the daily close, intraday drawdown also trails open profit.
- Consistency: Topstep — 55% in Combine · XFA Consistency 40%; Apex — None in eval · 50% on PA (Legacy 30%). Check whether the rule applies in the eval, when funded, or both.
- Real cost: Topstep is monthly with activation $149 or no-fee plan; Apex is one-time (legacy monthly) with activation $59–$159 or a no-activation-fee option. Add resets to the math.
- Payouts: Topstep — 5 winning days $150+ · LFA daily after 30 days; Apex — 5 qualifying days.
Explore the comparison
See the futures prop firm comparison table, browse individual firm data, or read our comparison methodology.