Earn2Trade offers two paths: Trader Career Path (TCP, 5-stage ladder $25K → $200K live) and Gauntlet Mini (single-phase eval, funded at eval size $50K-$200K). Education library and webinars bundled into TCP subscriptions. Full account-type breakdown in my Earn2Trade accounts guide, or read the complete review. Sign up at Earn2Trade.
The Earn2Trade Gauntlet Mini is a single-phase futures evaluation program. You choose a funded account size, meet a defined profit target while respecting the drawdown and daily loss rules, and move directly to a funded LiveSim or Live account at that same size. No ladder. No stage-by-stage progression. One phase, one outcome.
As of May 2026, the Gauntlet Mini sits alongside the Trader Career Path as one of two active evaluation programs offered by Earn2Trade. Where the TCP is designed for traders who want to grow incrementally from a $25K evaluation up through a structured five-stage career ladder, the Gauntlet Mini is built for traders who want a more direct route to a larger funded account.
What is the Earn2Trade Gauntlet Mini?
Earn2Trade describes the Gauntlet Mini as a path for traders who want faster access to funded capital without navigating a multi-step progression ladder. The core mechanic is simple: pick your account size, pass a single evaluation phase, and receive a funded account at that size.
The program is futures-only. Earn2Trade operates exclusively on CME, COMEX, NYMEX, and CBOT markets. Stocks, forex, options, cryptocurrency, and CFDs are explicitly prohibited across both of Earn2Trade's evaluation programs. This is among the stricter asset-class policies in the funded futures space, so traders entering the Gauntlet Mini should be clear that the scope is futures instruments only.
The Gauntlet Mini has been part of Earn2Trade's product lineup since before 2026. The firm has not announced a replacement or successor program as of the May 2026 recon date. It remains the firm's primary alternative for traders who find the TCP's stage-by-stage structure a poorer fit for their trading approach.
How does single-phase evaluation work?
The Gauntlet Mini compresses what the TCP spreads across five stages into a single evaluation phase. You trade a simulated account at your chosen size, hit the profit target, stay within the drawdown limits, satisfy the minimum trading day requirement, and pass. There is no Phase 1, Phase 2, or intermediate live step to clear before reaching funded status.
Once you pass:
- Your LiveSim account becomes accessible immediately (following Earn2Trade's March 2026 faster LiveSim Access update; see Earn2Trade March 2026 Changes).
- You complete KYC and compliance documentation, which is required before requesting any withdrawal.
- You trade the LiveSim account under the same funded account rules.
- When your account meets the conditions for conversion, you can move to a Live account with real capital.
This is a meaningful structural difference from programs that require multiple separate evaluations or a graduated step-down before granting funded status. The evaluation and the funded account size are the same. If you evaluate on a $100K Gauntlet Mini, you receive a $100K funded account, not a smaller introductory size.
The EOD (end-of-day) drawdown mechanic applies during both the evaluation and LiveSim phases. Drawdown is calculated at the close of each trading day rather than intraday. This is more forgiving than intraday drawdown, which can be triggered by temporary mid-session equity swings. When your account converts to a Live account, the drawdown shifts to trailing: a different risk structure that traders should understand before scaling into live trading. For a full breakdown of how drawdown mechanics work across both programs, see Earn2Trade Drawdown Rules Explained.
What sizes does Gauntlet Mini cover?
As of May 2026, Earn2Trade offers the Gauntlet Mini in four account sizes:
- $50K (GAU50)
- $100K (GAU100)
- $150K (GAU150)
- $200K (GAU200)
This range differs slightly from the TCP ladder, which starts at $25K and does not include a $150K tier. The Gauntlet Mini's $150K size fills a gap between the $100K and $200K funded account levels and gives traders more granularity when choosing their target funded size.
The $200K ceiling on the Gauntlet Mini matches the TCP's maximum individual funded account size. Earn2Trade's $400K maximum funding figure cited across industry sources may refer to total capital across multiple accounts rather than a single account ceiling. Verify this directly with Earn2Trade before assuming a single Gauntlet Mini account can exceed $200K.
Traders who want to manage multiple funded accounts simultaneously should review Earn2Trade Account Limits for the firm's current policy on holding more than one funded account at the same time.
Pricing per size
The table below shows confirmed and unconfirmed pricing as of May 2026. Earn2Trade operates on a monthly subscription model with no upfront activation fee. You pay the monthly fee for access to the evaluation account.
| Size | Monthly Fee | Profit Target | Daily Loss Limit | Max Drawdown |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| $50K (GAU50) | From $69/mo | $3,000 | $1,100 | $2,000 EOD |
| $100K (GAU100) | Verify on earn2trade.com | Verify on earn2trade.com | Verify on earn2trade.com | Verify on earn2trade.com |
| $150K (GAU150) | Verify on earn2trade.com | Verify on earn2trade.com | Verify on earn2trade.com | Verify on earn2trade.com |
| $200K (GAU200) | Verify on earn2trade.com | Verify on earn2trade.com | Verify on earn2trade.com | Verify on earn2trade.com |
The $69/month figure for the GAU50 is a floor confirmed from the live site as of May 2026. The live site's homepage also listed a "$69/mo" starting point for the TCP25, suggesting this may be a promotional or introductory rate. The standard pricing page showed TCP25 at $150/month. Traders should confirm the current effective rate for each Gauntlet Mini tier directly at earn2trade.com before subscribing, as promotional pricing can expire without notice.
Reset fees for Gauntlet Mini accounts were not confirmed from available sources. The TCP reset fee is $65; the Gauntlet Mini reset may be similar but should be verified at earn2trade.com.
There is no active promo code for Earn2Trade as of the May 2026 recon date. For comparison, see how Earn2Trade pricing compares to Apex Trader Funding and TradeDay.
What rules apply on Gauntlet Mini?
The Gauntlet Mini evaluation phase has five core rules traders need to meet simultaneously to pass.
1. Profit target
The $50K Gauntlet Mini requires a $3,000 net profit before expenses during the evaluation period. This represents a 6% gain relative to the account size, a realistic but not trivial target for a futures-focused account. Profit targets for the $100K, $150K, and $200K sizes should be confirmed at earn2trade.com.
2. End-of-day drawdown
The maximum drawdown for the $50K evaluation is $2,000. This is calculated at end-of-day, meaning the firm looks at your account balance at the close of each trading session, not at intraday low points. If your end-of-day balance falls $2,000 or more below your starting balance (or any subsequent high-water mark on trailing variants), you breach the account. Because EOD drawdown ignores intraday fluctuations, strategies that may temporarily dip below the drawdown threshold intraday but recover by session close are not disqualified. This is a structural advantage over intraday drawdown programs.
3. Daily loss limit
The $50K evaluation carries a $1,100 daily loss limit. This is an intraday rule: if your account loses $1,100 in a single trading session (measured from that day's opening balance or a reset point; verify the exact calculation at help.earn2trade.com), the account is stopped for that day. Repeated daily limit breaches can result in account failure. This rule is stricter in practice than it appears on paper: a $1,100 daily limit on a $50K account is 2.2% of account size per day, which is tighter than some competitors offer.
4. Minimum trading days
A minimum of 10 trading days must be completed before the profit target qualifies for a pass. This prevents traders from passing on a single lucky session and is a standard risk-control feature across funded futures programs. There is no maximum time limit enforced within a subscription cycle.
5. Consistency rule
Earn2Trade lists a consistency requirement for the Gauntlet Mini, but the specific percentage threshold is not published on the product page as of May 2026. This rule typically limits the proportion of total profit that can come from a single trading day — it ensures that pass performance reflects consistent execution rather than one outsized winning session. Traders should verify the current consistency threshold at help.earn2trade.com before trading toward a pass.
For a comparison of how these rules stack up against other single-phase programs, see Earn2Trade vs Bulenox and Earn2Trade vs Elite Trader Funding.
How fast can you pass the Gauntlet Mini?
The absolute minimum is 10 trading days. There is no hard upper time limit within a subscription period, so traders are not forced to rush.
Whether a trader can realistically pass in 10 days depends on two factors: the profit target and the consistency rule. Hitting $3,000 in profit on a $50K account in 10 trading days means averaging $300 per day (roughly 1.5 Micro contracts of ES or NQ making a reasonable daily move, depending on entry and exit precision). This is achievable for an experienced futures trader operating a well-defined strategy, but it requires consistency across all 10 days rather than concentrated gains.
Traders who approach the evaluation with an oversized position or an aggressive compounding plan risk breaching the daily loss limit early. The $1,100 daily limit on the $50K evaluation is a hard cap. One bad session can end the attempt if not managed carefully.
The practical implication: most Gauntlet Mini passes will take longer than 10 days. Traders who treat the evaluation as a minimum-10-day sprint tend to overtrade and breach. A more measured pace, completing the target over 15 to 25 trading days, allows time to recover from losing sessions without violating the consistency or daily loss rules.
Unlike the TCP, where passing all five stages can take months of subscription fees, the Gauntlet Mini compresses the capital commitment. One subscription period, one pass, funded. For traders confident in their futures edge, this is the principal advantage of the Gauntlet Mini over the TCP.
For more context on Earn2Trade's broader pass rate data, the firm publicly discloses an 8.89% pass rate across its evaluation programs, one of the few prop firms to publish this figure. That figure reflects the TCP more than the Gauntlet Mini (which has a smaller user base), but it signals the difficulty level traders should expect. See Earn2Trade Pass Rate and Transparency Data for more detail.
When does Gauntlet Mini make sense vs TCP?
The decision between the Gauntlet Mini and the Trader Career Path comes down to three variables: starting capital, trading experience, and how much you value Earn2Trade's educational layer.
Choose Gauntlet Mini if:
- You already have a defined futures strategy and trade it consistently.
- You want to evaluate at your target funded size immediately rather than building up through five stages.
- You prefer a single subscription cycle to reach funded status rather than an extended ladder.
- You are comfortable with the tighter daily loss limit and EOD drawdown structure.
- Your goal is to reach a $100K, $150K, or $200K funded account without passing through $25K and $50K stages first.
Choose TCP if:
- You are developing your trading approach and want the incremental pressure of smaller account stages.
- You value the free video library, study guides, and webinar access bundled into TCP subscriptions.
- You want the lowest entry cost: TCP25 starts at a lower monthly fee than GAU50.
- You prefer the slower ramp of a $25K eval before committing to a larger account size.
- The TCP's multi-stage pass structure allows you to treat early stages as lower-stakes skill-building rather than a single high-stakes evaluation.
The key structural difference is that the TCP is explicitly designed as a trader development ladder, functioning as an education-prop hybrid product rather than just an evaluation tool. The Gauntlet Mini removes the education scaffold and functions as a pure evaluation. Neither is better in absolute terms; the right choice depends on where the trader is in their development.
For traders comparing Earn2Trade against firms that offer only single-phase programs, see Earn2Trade vs Topstep and Earn2Trade vs TakeProfitTrader.
What changes after passing the Gauntlet Mini?
Passing the Gauntlet Mini evaluation triggers the funded account sequence. As of Earn2Trade's March 2026 update, this sequence is faster than it was previously.
Immediately on passing:
- Your LiveSim account becomes accessible. You can log in and begin trading the LiveSim funded account without waiting for full onboarding to complete.
- Earn2Trade notifies you of the pass and initiates the compliance documentation process.
Before the first withdrawal:
- KYC documentation must be submitted and approved.
- The compliance agreement and any required trader agreements must be signed.
- Only after this compliance gate clears can you request a withdrawal.
LiveSim vs Live:
The Gauntlet Mini funded account starts as a LiveSim account, not a Live account. Earn2Trade's own 2025 data showed that 94.77% of passers across both programs stayed on LiveSim accounts; only 5.23% progressed to live funded accounts. The firm pays out from its own funds on LiveSim accounts, so traders are still receiving real money, but the distinction matters for traders who specifically want to trade real capital.
The path from LiveSim to Live account is not clearly defined on Earn2Trade's product pages as of May 2026. This is a point worth confirming at help.earn2trade.com before signing up if Live account status is a priority for you.
Withdrawals:
Earn2Trade's minimum withdrawal is $100. Payouts are trader-initiated on a weekly cadence. The "Anytime" framing on some sources appears to mean no lock-up period beyond the compliance gate, not literally any time of day. Crypto payouts are available. Wire and ACH options should be verified at earn2trade.com given the December 2025 withdrawal fee structure update.
A fee is deducted from profits on the first withdrawal only. The exact fee amount is not published on the product page. This changed in December 2025 and the full details are not recoverable from public sources as of May 2026. Verify the current first-withdrawal fee at earn2trade.com before planning your withdrawal.
The profit split is 80% to the trader on both LiveSim and Live accounts. There is no published scaling split; the 80% rate applies regardless of account tier.
For a full breakdown of the payout process, see Earn2Trade Withdrawal and Payout Guide.
The bottom line
The Earn2Trade Gauntlet Mini is a well-structured single-phase evaluation for futures traders who have already developed a working strategy and want to skip Earn2Trade's five-stage TCP ladder. The EOD drawdown mechanic is more forgiving than intraday drawdown during the evaluation, the 10-day minimum creates a real performance floor without being onerous, and the March 2026 faster LiveSim Access update means funded accounts are now accessible immediately on passing.
The program has real constraints: the daily loss limit is tight relative to account size, the consistency rule threshold is unpublished, and the pricing for all sizes above $50K requires manual verification at earn2trade.com. Traders who are still building their strategy will likely get more value from the TCP's educational layer and lower-stakes early stages.
For experienced futures traders who want a faster path to a $50K-$200K funded account without a ladder, the Gauntlet Mini is Earn2Trade's most direct route. Compare it against alternatives in Earn2Trade vs Apex Trader Funding and the broader Earn2Trade review before making a decision.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the Earn2Trade Gauntlet Mini?
The Gauntlet Mini is Earn2Trade's single-phase evaluation program. You trade one funded-size account, hit the profit target while respecting the drawdown and daily loss rules, and you pass — no ladder required. Once you pass, you receive a funded account at the same size as the evaluation account.
How does the Gauntlet Mini differ from the TCP?
The Trader Career Path requires climbing five stages from $25K to $200K over multiple phases, with educational resources bundled in. The Gauntlet Mini skips all of that — you evaluate at your chosen size and move directly to funded status once you pass a single phase.
What sizes does the Gauntlet Mini come in?
As of May 2026, Earn2Trade offers the Gauntlet Mini in four sizes: $50K, $100K, $150K, and $200K. The $150K tier is unique to the Gauntlet Mini and does not exist in the TCP ladder.
What is the profit target for the Gauntlet Mini $50K?
The $50K Gauntlet Mini requires a $3,000 profit target during the evaluation phase (6% of account size). Profit targets for the $100K, $150K, and $200K tiers should be verified at earn2trade.com.
What drawdown type does the Gauntlet Mini use?
End-of-day (EOD) drawdown during the evaluation and LiveSim phases — calculated at session close, not intraday. On a live funded account, drawdown converts to trailing drawdown. See Earn2Trade Drawdown Rules Explained for the full mechanics.
How much does the Gauntlet Mini $50K cost per month?
The GAU50 starts from $69/month as of May 2026. Pricing for the $100K, $150K, and $200K tiers should be confirmed at earn2trade.com, as Earn2Trade adjusts pricing periodically.
Do I need to meet a profit target after passing the Gauntlet Mini?
No. Once you pass the evaluation and move to LiveSim or Live, there are no additional profit targets required to request a withdrawal. This is a practical advantage over programs that maintain performance targets at the funded stage.
How fast can someone pass the Gauntlet Mini?
The minimum is 10 trading days. There is no hard upper time limit within a subscription cycle. Realistically, most successful passes take 15 to 25 trading days to satisfy both the profit target and the consistency rule without running into the daily loss limit.
What happens immediately after passing the Gauntlet Mini?
As of March 2026, Earn2Trade's faster LiveSim Access update means traders can log into their LiveSim account and begin trading immediately after passing, without waiting for full onboarding. KYC and compliance documentation must be completed before the first withdrawal is processed.
Does the Gauntlet Mini have a consistency rule?
Earn2Trade lists a consistency requirement, but the exact percentage threshold is not published on the product page as of May 2026. Verify the current threshold at help.earn2trade.com before designing your trading strategy around it.
What is the profit split on the Gauntlet Mini?
80% to the trader — the same split applied to TCP funded accounts. There is no published scaling split for higher-tier Gauntlet Mini sizes as of May 2026.
Can I hold positions overnight on the Gauntlet Mini?
Earn2Trade's overnight and weekend holding policy is not detailed on the main Gauntlet Mini product page. Check help.earn2trade.com for the current position-holding rules before trading.
Which trading platforms work with the Gauntlet Mini?
Five platforms are supported: Tradovate, NinjaTrader, Rithmic, TradingView, and Finamark (Earn2Trade's own branded platform). All are available at no extra cost during the evaluation. See Earn2Trade Supported Platforms for setup details.
Is the Gauntlet Mini good for experienced traders?
It suits traders who have developed a futures strategy and want to skip a multi-stage ladder. The single-phase structure rewards consistent execution over a 10-day minimum without requiring months of stage-by-stage progression. If you are earlier in your trading development, the TCP's educational layer and lower-stakes early stages may be a better fit.