The Complete FTMO Rules Guide for 2026

The FTMO rule framework, as of May 2026, is built around two parallel evaluation paths that share a core logic but diverge on three structural mechanics: the daily loss limit, the max loss model, and the profit split. The 1-Step Challenge uses a tighter 3% daily loss line and a 10% trailing max loss that rises end-of-day as the account grows; it pays 90% of profit from the first withdrawal. The 2-Step Challenge uses a more lenient 5% daily loss line and a 10% static max loss that never moves; it starts at an 80% profit split and reaches 90% only after the trader hits the Scaling Plan thresholds. Both paths share the same 4-day minimum, the same five account sizes from $10,000 to $200,000, and the same Standard versus Swing variant logic governing news trading and overnight holds.

Read carelessly, the FTMO rulebook can look like a generic forex-prop framework. Read carefully against the 1-Step versus 2-Step structural split, it resolves into a single decision the trader makes at signup that locks in fundamentally different risk math for the life of the account. The 1-Step trades a tighter daily loss for a higher base profit split and a trailing floor that follows a growing balance; the 2-Step trades a looser daily loss and a static floor for a longer evaluation runway and a profit split that requires earning. Layered on top of that decision sit the Standard versus Swing variant rules, which determine whether news trading and weekend holds are permitted once the account reaches the funded FTMO Account stage. Together, these four choices define the rule set a trader will operate under, often for years.

Paul has traded FTMO for ~4 years and withdrawn $15K+ in real payouts across multiple accounts. He scalps the 1-Step Challenge primarily on Standard $50K and $100K sizes. FTMO was one of Paul's first prop firms as a European trader, and the long tenure across the 1-Step path means the experience reported here covers the daily loss line, the trailing max loss, the Best Day consistency mechanic, and the Standard variant restrictions in real practice rather than in theory. The notes that follow combine that personal track record with FTMO's published trading objectives, the scaling plan documentation, and the December 2025 OANDA acquisition context that has reshaped FTMO's regulatory posture going into 2026.

What rules apply at FTMO?

The FTMO ruleset, as of May 2026, divides into four buckets that map to the two evaluation paths and the two account variants. Path-level rules differ between 1-Step and 2-Step. Variant-level rules differ between Standard and Swing. Shared rules apply equally across both paths and both variants. Funded-stage rules carry over from the variant used to qualify, with profit-split mechanics that depend on the path.

Path-level rules govern the evaluation. The 1-Step Challenge uses a 10% profit target, a 3% daily loss limit, and a 10% trailing end-of-day max loss. It pays 90% of simulated profits from the first reward withdrawal. The 2-Step Challenge uses a 10% Phase 1 profit target, a 5% Phase 2 profit target, a 5% daily loss limit, and a 10% static max loss. It pays 80% of simulated profits at the base level and 90% on the Scaling Plan.

Variant-level rules govern news trading and position holding on the live FTMO Account stage. Standard accounts restrict news trading on high-impact macro releases and require all positions to be closed before each session close on weekdays and the weekend close on Fridays. Swing accounts permit news trading and overnight or weekend holding without restriction, with the trade-off that Swing pricing carries a small premium on the 1-Step product line.

Shared rules apply across paths and variants. A 4-day minimum trading days requirement governs both 1-Step and 2-Step evaluations and each 2-Step phase independently. There is no time limit on either path. Prohibited strategies include high-frequency trading abuse, latency arbitrage, group trading, copy trading from external signal providers, and hedging across accounts to game risk. Account sizes run from $10,000 through $25,000, $50,000, $100,000, and $200,000.

Funded-stage rules carry over from the path and variant. Daily loss and max loss percentages remain the same as the challenge that qualified the account. The profit target disappears. The Scaling Plan opens 25% account-size increases every four months on consistent payout history, and the profit split upgrades from 80% to 90% on 2-Step accounts when scaling triggers. For the path-by-path account sizes and pricing matrix see the accounts overview pillar. For the platform mechanics across MT4, MT5, and cTrader see the platforms cluster pillar. For the strategy implications of each variant see the strategy cluster pillar. For the payout mechanics including bi-weekly cadence and 100% fee refund see the payout rules pillar.

What's the difference between 1-Step and 2-Step rules?

The 1-Step and 2-Step Challenges differ across five concrete mechanics. The differences are structural enough that a trader who passes one path easily can struggle on the other despite running the same strategy on the same instrument.

The 1-Step is structured for traders who want a faster path to capital and accept tighter daily loss discipline in exchange. A 3% daily loss line on a $100,000 account caps daily drawdown at $3,000, which can be reached in a single bad session for a high-leverage scalper. The trailing max loss follows the closing balance higher each day, which means a profitable run does not earn permanent buffer; it earns a floor that climbs alongside.

The 2-Step is structured for traders who want a longer evaluation runway and more daily volatility tolerance. A 5% daily loss line on the same $100,000 account caps daily drawdown at $5,000, giving more room for a rough session to recover. The static max loss sits at 90% of the initial balance and never moves, which means every dollar of profit earns permanent buffer that cannot be eroded by a future winning streak followed by a drawdown.

The choice between the two paths comes down to three trader-side variables: how tight the daily loss line can be without breaching during normal volatility, whether the trader wants 90% from the first payout or is willing to earn it via scaling, and whether the strategy requires Swing flexibility (which 1-Step does not offer). For the path-specific deep dives see the 1-Step Challenge rules article and the 2-Step Challenge rules article.

How does the daily loss limit work?

The FTMO daily loss limit is a hard floor calculated from the prior day's closing equity that resets at 00:00 CE(S)T each day. The percentage differs between the two paths. On the 1-Step Challenge it equals 3% of the initial account balance. On the 2-Step Challenge it equals 5% of the initial balance. The percentages apply equally during evaluation and on the funded FTMO Account stage that carries over from each path.

The mechanic includes closed losses, floating losses on open positions, swap costs, and commission costs. A trader on a $100,000 1-Step account with $1,800 in closed losses and $900 in unrealized losses on open positions sits at $2,700 toward the $3,000 daily loss line. One additional $300 unrealized move triggers the breach the moment it prints, regardless of whether the trader closes the position or holds. The platform-side enforcement means manual intervention by support is not required to record the breach; the system flags it automatically.

The reset at 00:00 CE(S)T matters for traders running US-session strategies. The CET reset corresponds to 18:00 ET (or 19:00 ET during US daylight saving time differences with European DST). A trader who closes the New York session at 17:00 ET and re-engages on the Tokyo or Sydney open faces a reset that occurs mid-Asian-session, which can interact awkwardly with Asian-session breakouts that span the reset window. The 1-Step's tighter 3% line makes the timing more consequential than the 2-Step's 5% line.

The structural reason the 1-Step has a tighter daily loss than the 2-Step traces back to the trailing max loss design. The trailing floor on 1-Step rises end-of-day, which means a daily breach can wipe out multiple days of accumulated buffer if the floor has trailed up. FTMO uses the tighter 3% to keep daily volatility bounded relative to the trailing buffer; if the daily limit matched the 2-Step's 5%, traders running larger position sizes would frequently breach the trailing line on a single bad day before the floor caught up.

A consequence of the design is that 1-Step traders running scalp or short-hold strategies operate close to the daily limit on volatile sessions in a way that 2-Step traders rarely do. Paul's 1-Step experience over four years includes sessions where the daily line was the binding constraint on continuing to trade; the 5% on a 2-Step would not have flagged. For the full daily-loss mechanics across both paths see the daily loss article.

How does the max loss work?

The max loss is the FTMO ruleset's hardest-stop guardrail and the mechanic differs in two structurally distinct ways across the 1-Step and 2-Step paths. The differences matter more than account size for almost every trader.

On the 1-Step Challenge, the max loss is 10% trailing on an end-of-day basis. The floor starts at 90% of the initial balance and rises with the closing balance each day. Once the account reaches a closing balance that is higher than the initial balance plus the 10% buffer, the floor locks at the initial balance plus the 10% buffer and stops trailing further. After payouts are processed, the floor resets to the post-payout balance minus 10%, and the trailing mechanic re-engages. The end-of-day update means intraday spikes do not move the floor; only closing balance matters.

A worked example clarifies the 1-Step trailing mechanic. A trader on a $100,000 1-Step account starts with a $90,000 floor. After a winning week that closes Friday at $105,000, the floor moves to $95,000. After another week that closes at $112,000, the floor locks at $100,000 (initial balance plus the 10% buffer) and stops trailing. The lock-at-initial-balance design means the trader cannot lose more than the original deposit-equivalent during the evaluation phase, even on a deeply profitable account.

On the 2-Step Challenge, the max loss is 10% static. The floor sits at 90% of the initial balance and never moves, regardless of how high the account grows. A trader on a $100,000 2-Step account who runs the balance to $115,000 still has a floor at $90,000, meaning $25,000 of buffer protects every position decision. The static design rewards profitable runs with permanent buffer and forgives larger drawdowns later in the account's life that the 1-Step's trailing floor would not.

The structural distinction reframes risk management on each path. The 1-Step trader operates within a buffer that grows alongside the account during the trailing phase, then locks once profitable, which means risk-sizing should reference the trailing floor rather than the initial balance. The 2-Step trader operates within a permanent buffer that grows linearly with profit, which means risk-sizing can scale with account growth without recalculating the floor.

The max loss applies on both the evaluation and the live FTMO Account funded stage, with the reset-on-payout mechanic on the 1-Step funded accounts being the trader-friendly design choice that keeps the trailing buffer from compressing permanently after each withdrawal. For the full max-loss mechanics including reset timing and the interaction with the Scaling Plan, see the max loss article.

What's the consistency rule at FTMO?

FTMO applies a consistency mechanic on the 1-Step Challenge called the Best Day Rule. As of May 2026, the rule states that no single profitable day can represent more than 50% of total positive days' profit at the moment a payout request is reviewed. The rule does not exist on the 2-Step Challenge during evaluation, and behavior on the 2-Step funded stage may vary; this section anchors on the verified 1-Step mechanic.

The Best Day Rule is payout-gated rather than account-gated. A trader whose biggest day represents more than 50% of total positive-day profit does not auto-breach the account; instead, the payout request is held until the percentage is diluted through additional profitable days. A 1-Step trader who books $4,000 on day one and another $2,000 across days two through ten ends with a day-one ratio of 67% ($4,000 of $6,000 total positive-day profit), which would block a payout. Adding another $2,000 of profit across days eleven through twenty drops the ratio to 50% ($4,000 of $8,000), at which point the rule clears.

The mechanic exists to prevent a single fortunate trade from carrying a payout that otherwise would not reflect consistent strategy execution. It is structurally softer than auto-breach consistency rules at some competitors, which disqualify accounts whose best day exceeds the cap at any point. The FTMO design lets the trader keep trading and dilute the percentage rather than ending the account.

The 2-Step Challenge does not enforce the Best Day Rule during evaluation. A 2-Step trader can hit the 10% Phase 1 target on a single explosive day and pass to Phase 2 without consistency review. This is a meaningful divergence between the two paths and one of the under-discussed reasons traders running concentrated strategies prefer the 2-Step over the 1-Step despite the longer evaluation timeline.

The interaction between the Best Day Rule and the trailing max loss on 1-Step accounts is worth flagging. A trader who books a large day-one profit and then trades small for the rest of the evaluation has both a Best Day Rule problem and a trailing max loss buffer that has not advanced (because trailing only updates on closing balance). Adding more positive days to dilute the percentage while protecting the trailing floor is the dual constraint Paul navigates regularly on the 1-Step path. For the full consistency mechanics and dilution math see the consistency rule article.

What's the minimum trading days requirement?

FTMO requires a minimum of 4 trading days per challenge phase. The rule applies on both the 1-Step Challenge and the 2-Step Challenge, with the 2-Step counting Phase 1 and Phase 2 as separate phases each requiring their own 4-day minimum. As of May 2026, the rule has not changed in either direction across the past 12 months.

A trading day is any calendar day on which at least one position is opened. Days do not need to be consecutive; only cumulative. A trader can trade days 1, 2, 7, 12, and the evaluation closes successfully on day 12 if the profit target is hit and the four other rules pass. The non-consecutive design is trader-friendly relative to firms that require five-day-in-a-row participation.

The 4-day minimum is the lowest in its peer group. The5ers requires longer minimums on certain products. FundedNext and most US futures firms typically require 5 days. Lucid Trading uses different cadence rules entirely. The FTMO 4-day minimum reflects the firm's confidence that 4 days is enough to demonstrate strategy execution against the daily loss and trailing max loss constraints, given the simpler ruleset overall.

A subtle interaction with the time-limit removal: FTMO operates without a time limit on either path. A trader who hits the profit target on day 1 must continue to trade for at least three more days before the evaluation closes successfully, but those three additional days can be spaced out over weeks if needed. The flexibility lets traders complete the minimum without forcing themselves into low-conviction trades; one trade per qualifying day is sufficient.

For traders coming from firms with 30-day or 60-day evaluation windows, the absence of a maximum and the low 4-day minimum reframes the evaluation as a quality benchmark rather than a speed test. The strategic implication is that FTMO traders rarely complete in fewer than two weeks even when the profit target is reached early; instead, they take the time to dilute consistency exposure, manage trailing floor buffer, and approach payout requests with cleaner metrics. For the full minimum-days mechanics see the minimum trading days article.

Can you trade news at FTMO?

It depends on the variant chosen at signup. As of May 2026, Standard accounts restrict news trading on the live FTMO Account funded stage. Swing accounts permit news trading without restriction at any stage. During the evaluation phase itself, the news restriction does not apply on either variant; the rule activates only once the trader reaches the funded stage.

The Standard news restriction covers high-impact macro releases. Positions must be flat through the release window, which typically extends from two minutes before the scheduled release time to two minutes after. The release calendar follows the major economic events that move forex markets: NFP, FOMC, CPI, ECB rate decisions, BOE rate decisions, and similar high-impact prints. Lower-impact data releases are not covered by the restriction.

Swing accounts permit holding through any release without policy concern. The Swing premium reflects the cost FTMO accepts for the additional risk-management exposure on news-driven volatility, but for traders running event-trading or news-fade strategies, the Swing variant is structurally required rather than optional. The variant cannot be changed after account creation; a Standard trader who later wants to trade news must purchase a fresh Swing account.

The asymmetry between evaluation (no news restriction) and live FTMO Account (news restriction on Standard) catches traders who pass the evaluation running news-event strategies and then hit a wall on the funded stage. Paul's 1-Step Standard accounts do not run through major macro releases for this reason; the strategy is scalp-style intraday that closes well before the release windows. Traders coming from firms without news restrictions need to map their strategy against the Standard versus Swing choice before signup.

The 1-Step Challenge does not offer a Swing variant. A trader on the 1-Step path who needs news flexibility has only the Standard variant available, which means the news restriction is binding on the funded stage. The 2-Step Challenge offers both Standard and Swing variants at the same fee tier, making it the path of choice for news traders. For the full news-trading mechanics including the release calendar and post-release re-entry rules see the news trading article.

Can you hold positions overnight or over weekends?

Standard accounts require all positions to be closed before each daily session close on weekdays and before the Friday close ahead of the weekend. Swing accounts permit overnight and weekend holding without restriction. As of May 2026, the rule applies on the live FTMO Account funded stage rather than during evaluation, but the variant choice at signup determines which rules apply when funded.

The Standard daily session close follows the broker's daily session reset, typically at the end of the New York session for forex pairs and at the relevant exchange close for indices and commodities. A position held through the daily reset triggers a policy violation on the Standard variant. The platform-side enforcement runs at the broker level, which means traders cannot hold via order-management workarounds; the policy applies to actual position state.

The Friday weekend rule extends the same logic across the two-day market closure. Standard accounts must be flat before the Friday session close, with no positions carried into the weekend regardless of size or P&L. Sunday evening reopen permits new positions; the weekend window itself is the closed period. Swing accounts skip both the daily and weekend restrictions, which is the structural reason swing strategies are unworkable on the Standard variant.

The strategic implication for traders evaluating the variant choice is that Standard is structurally unsuited for any strategy that holds positions multiple days. Trend-following strategies, breakout-and-hold strategies, and certain carry-style approaches all require Swing. Pure intraday scalping, range-fading, and event-driven strategies that close before session reset can run on Standard without compromise.

Pricing differs between Standard and Swing variants on the 1-Step product line, with Swing carrying a small premium that reflects the additional overnight and weekend exposure FTMO accepts. On the 2-Step path, Swing is priced at parity with Standard, which is the underrated reason 2-Step is the path of choice for swing-style traders even before the daily-loss difference is considered. For the full overnight and weekend rules see the weekend holding article.

Which strategies are prohibited?

FTMO maintains a small but enforced list of prohibited strategies that apply across the 1-Step Challenge, the 2-Step Challenge, and the live FTMO Account funded stage. As of May 2026, the prohibited categories are five.

High-frequency trading abuse covers strategies that exploit broker-side latency or feed delays to enter positions ahead of price moves. The rule does not prohibit fast manual or semi-automated trading; it specifically targets exploitation of execution-side weaknesses. Detection runs on order-flow analysis and timing patterns relative to feed updates, and the rule applies regardless of whether the strategy is manually executed or automated.

Latency arbitrage is closely related and runs as a separate prohibition. The strategy involves trading the same instrument across a faster feed and a slower one, profiting from the lag. FTMO disqualifies accounts whose execution patterns match latency arbitrage profiles, which includes EAs designed for the strategy and manual traders running multi-broker setups that exploit feed differences.

Group trading covers coordinated execution across multiple traders' accounts. The rule prevents groups from sharing entries and exits to coordinate position direction, which would effectively pool risk across accounts and undermine the per-account risk management. Detection runs through trade-pattern correlation analysis, and accounts found to be coordinating are all disqualified, not just the leader.

Copy trading from external signal providers is prohibited. The rule does not prevent trader-side automation of personal strategies; it specifically targets accounts that mirror external signal services. A trader running their own algorithm is permitted; a trader subscribing to a signal service and copying its trades is not. Detection again runs through trade-pattern correlation across accounts that subscribe to the same signal source.

Hedging across accounts to circumvent risk rules is the fifth category. The rule prevents traders from running long on one FTMO account and short on the same instrument on a different FTMO account, which would create artificial risk-free arbitrage between accounts. Detection runs at the platform level via cross-account monitoring tied to KYC identity, not just account email.

Permitted automation includes EAs that execute trader-defined strategies, semi-automated tools like one-click trading panels, and bracket-order managers. The line FTMO draws is between strategies that require trader-initiated decisions (permitted) and strategies that exploit market structure or other accounts to generate risk-free returns (prohibited). For the full prohibited-strategies matrix including edge cases around scalping, news-event execution, and multi-account management see the restricted instruments and strategies article.

What rules change after you reach Funded status?

Reaching the funded FTMO Account stage at FTMO changes three rules and carries over the rest from the challenge variant used to qualify. As of May 2026, the changes are: the profit target disappears, the profit-split mechanic activates, and the Scaling Plan opens.

The profit target removal is the largest psychological shift. During evaluation, every trade is in service of a 10% (or 5% on Phase 2) target with a fixed deadline-free runway. On the funded stage, no target exists. Traders trade freely against the daily and max loss constraints inherited from the challenge variant, with payouts scheduled bi-weekly and processed in roughly 8 hours on average.

The profit-split mechanic depends on the path. On 1-Step accounts, the split is 90% from the first payout; the funded stage carries the same payout economics as the challenge purchase price implied. On 2-Step accounts, the split starts at 80% at the base level. The 80% base persists until the trader meets the Scaling Plan thresholds, at which point the split upgrades to 90%. The Scaling Plan trigger requires hitting at least 10% net profit over a four-month period and processing at least two payouts in the same window.

The Scaling Plan opens on both paths but operates differently. On the 1-Step, the scaling benefit is the 25% account-size increase only, since the split is already 90%. On the 2-Step, scaling delivers both the 25% size increase and the upgrade from 80% to 90% profit split. The size increase compounds across consecutive scaling rounds, with no stated cap on the number of rounds, which means a $100,000 starting balance can scale to $125,000, then $156,250, then $195,312, and so on, with each round subject to the same 4-month, 10% profit, 2-payout requirements.

Daily loss and max loss rules carry over from the challenge variant. A trader who qualified on the 1-Step keeps the 3% daily loss and the 10% trailing max loss on the funded stage. A trader who qualified on the 2-Step keeps the 5% daily loss and the 10% static max loss. The Standard versus Swing variant choice continues to govern news-trading and overnight-hold permissions on the funded stage. For the full Scaling Plan mechanics including round-by-round size progression and the interaction with payout timing see the scaling plan article. For the full payout cadence, processing time, and 100% fee refund mechanics see the payout rules pillar.

How the rule framework evolved through 2025 and 2026

The FTMO rulebook has remained structurally stable through the major business changes of the past 18 months, with the core 1-Step versus 2-Step framework, the daily loss and max loss percentages, and the Standard versus Swing variant logic all unchanged across the period. The business changes that have reshaped FTMO's market position have not (yet) translated into rule changes traders need to track.

The OANDA acquisition (February to December 2025) is the dominant business-side anchor. FTMO acquired OANDA, one of the oldest regulated forex brokers, completing the deal in December 2025 with all five regulatory approvals in place. FTMO founders Otakar Šuffner and Marek Vašíček became OANDA co-CEOs in March 2026. The acquisition does not change FTMO's prop-trading rules but does signal a regulatory posture shift that may eventually flow into the funded-stage mechanics, particularly around US trader access and broker-side execution. The October 2025 Zerohash investment hints at upcoming crypto payout infrastructure that could change the payment-method matrix.

The US relaunch (August 2025) reopened FTMO to US traders via OANDA partnership on MT5. The relaunch made FTMO the only prop firm offering MT5 to US traders as of mid-2025, and it brought US-side rules into alignment with the global rule set rather than creating a separate US-specific framework. US traders run the same 1-Step versus 2-Step mechanics, the same Standard versus Swing variants, and the same Scaling Plan as European and Asian traders.

The India market opening (December 2025) added the largest new geographic segment in the prop industry. India represents roughly 40% of major prop firms' web traffic, and FTMO's previously closed status excluded a significant trader base. The opening did not change the rule set; Indian traders run the same global rules as everyone else.

The 1-Step Challenge launch is the most consequential rule-side change of the past 12 months, though the launch date itself is not publicly documented. The 1-Step added a single-phase path with the 3% daily loss line, 10% trailing max loss, and 90%-from-day-one split, which restructured the evaluation choice that traders face at signup. Before the 1-Step, FTMO offered only the 2-Step; the addition turned the path selection into the first rule decision a trader makes.

The cumulative effect of the changes is that the May 2026 rulebook is functionally identical to the late-2024 rulebook on the 2-Step side, with the 1-Step addition being the only material framework expansion. The OANDA acquisition has not yet produced rule changes traders need to track, though the regulatory posture shift may eventually flow into news-trading or weekend-hold mechanics on the live stage. For now, the framework is stable and the editorial anchors are the path choice, the variant choice, and the Scaling Plan progression. For the FTMO main review covering the full firm context including the OANDA acquisition see the M1 page.

The bottom line

The FTMO rule framework is coherent once you internalize the two-path structure and the variant-level overlay that determines news and overnight permissions. The 1-Step Challenge rewards traders who can manage a tighter 3% daily loss and a trailing max loss in exchange for 90% from day one. The 2-Step Challenge rewards traders who want the more lenient 5% daily loss and the static max loss in exchange for an 80% base split that scales to 90% via the Scaling Plan. Variant choice (Standard versus Swing) determines whether news trading and overnight or weekend holds are permitted on the funded stage. Across both paths, the 4-day minimum applies, no time limit caps the evaluation, and the 100% fee refund on the first payout remains one of the most trader-friendly policies in the industry.

FTMO is the right firm for traders who want a stable rule framework with clear path-and-variant choices made at signup, who can accept the Standard restrictions or pay the small Swing premium, and who are comfortable with a 4-day minimum and bi-weekly payout cadence. It is the wrong firm for futures traders (FTMO is forex and CFD focused, with no futures product), for traders who want US-style intraday-only mechanics with no overnight rule choices, or for traders who prefer firms with much shorter evaluation timelines forced by aggressive time limits. Comparison shoppers evaluating FTMO against firms with structurally different rule frameworks should read FTMO vs The 5%ers and FTMO vs FundedNext to see how the two-path model trades off against single-path competitors elsewhere in the forex-prop space.

For the full plan-by-plan pricing, profit targets, and account-size matrix see the accounts overview pillar. For the platform mechanics across MT4, MT5, and cTrader see the platforms cluster pillar. For the strategy implications of each path-and-variant combination see the strategy cluster pillar. For the full FAQ corpus across rules, accounts, payouts, platforms, and strategy see the FTMO FAQ mega-guide.

Frequently Asked Questions

What rules apply at FTMO?

FTMO runs two evaluation paths with different rule sets. The 1-Step Challenge uses a 10% profit target, 3% daily loss limit, and a 10% trailing end-of-day max loss with a 90% profit split from day one. The 2-Step Challenge uses 10% then 5% targets, a 5% daily loss limit, a 10% static max loss, and an 80% base split that scales to 90% through the Scaling Plan. Standard variants restrict news and overnight holding; Swing variants do not.

What is the difference between FTMO 1-Step and 2-Step rules?

The 1-Step Challenge has a tighter 3% daily loss limit and a trailing max loss that rises end-of-day as the account grows. The 2-Step Challenge has a more lenient 5% daily loss limit and a static 10% max loss that never moves. The 1-Step pays 90% from day one; the 2-Step starts at 80% and reaches 90% via the Scaling Plan. Both share a 4-day minimum and the same Standard versus Swing variant logic.

How does the FTMO daily loss limit work?

The daily loss limit is a hard floor based on the prior day's closing equity that resets at 00:00 CE(S)T each day. On the 1-Step Challenge it equals 3% of the initial account balance. On the 2-Step Challenge it equals 5% of the initial balance. Closed losses, floating losses, and swap or commission costs all count toward the limit. Touching the limit closes the account immediately, regardless of whether positions are open or flat.

How does the FTMO max loss work?

On the 1-Step Challenge the max loss is 10% trailing on an end-of-day basis. The floor rises with the closing balance, locks at the initial balance plus the 10% buffer once the account reaches profit, and resets each time a payout is withdrawn. On the 2-Step Challenge the max loss is 10% static. The floor sits at 90% of the initial balance and never moves, regardless of how high the account grows.

What is the FTMO consistency rule?

On the 1-Step Challenge, FTMO applies a Best Day Rule: no single profitable day can represent more than 50% of total positive days' profit at the moment a payout request is reviewed. The rule does not auto-breach the account; instead, the trader continues to dilute the percentage by adding more profitable days before requesting a payout. On the 2-Step Challenge, the Best Day Rule does not apply during evaluation.

What is the minimum trading days requirement at FTMO?

FTMO requires a minimum of 4 trading days per challenge phase. A trading day is any calendar day on which at least one position is opened. Days do not need to be consecutive; only cumulative. The rule applies to both 1-Step and 2-Step paths, and to each phase of the 2-Step independently. There is no maximum trading-days cap and no time limit on completing the evaluation.

Can I trade news at FTMO?

It depends on the account variant. Standard accounts restrict news trading on the live FTMO Account stage, with positions required to be flat through high-impact macro releases. Swing accounts permit news trading without restriction at any stage. During evaluation, the news restriction does not apply on either variant. Traders running news-event strategies should select Swing at signup; the variant cannot be changed after account creation.

Can I hold positions overnight or over weekends at FTMO?

On Standard accounts, all positions must be closed before the daily session close on weekdays and before the Friday close ahead of the weekend. On Swing accounts, overnight and weekend holding is permitted without restriction. The Standard restriction applies on the live FTMO Account stage rather than during evaluation, but the variant choice at signup determines which rules apply when funded.

Which strategies are prohibited at FTMO?

FTMO prohibits high-frequency trading abuse, latency arbitrage, hedging across accounts to circumvent risk rules, group trading where multiple traders share entries to coordinate direction, and copy trading from external signal providers. Use of automated strategies is permitted within reason but EAs that exploit feed delays or quote desynchronization are flagged and disqualified.

What rules change after I reach Funded status at FTMO?

Daily loss and max loss rules carry over from the challenge variant used to qualify. The profit target disappears. On 1-Step accounts the profit split is 90% from the first payout. On 2-Step accounts the profit split starts at 80% and upgrades to 90% via the Scaling Plan after consistent payouts. Standard variants apply news and overnight restrictions on the funded stage; Swing variants do not.

How does the FTMO Scaling Plan work?

The Scaling Plan increases the account balance by 25% every four months when the trader hits at least 10% net profit over the four-month period and has processed at least two payouts. On the 2-Step Challenge, the profit split upgrades from 80% to 90% on scaling. The 1-Step Challenge already pays 90% from day one, so its scaling benefit is the size increase only. There is no cap stated on the number of scaling rounds.

Is there a time limit on the FTMO Challenge?

No. FTMO removed the time-limit constraint from both 1-Step and 2-Step Challenges. Traders can take as long as needed to hit the profit target, subject only to the 4-day minimum and the daily and max loss limits. The removal puts FTMO in the camp of evaluation-firms that prioritize completion quality over speed, contrasting with firms that enforce 30-day or 60-day windows.

What happens if I breach a rule on the FTMO Challenge?

A daily loss or max loss breach closes the account immediately and ends the evaluation. The challenge fee is forfeit, and the trader must purchase a new challenge to attempt again. There is no reset option mid-challenge; only a fresh purchase. Soft-rule violations like Best Day Rule on the 1-Step do not auto-breach but block payout approval until the percentage is diluted through additional profitable days.

Does FTMO refund the challenge fee?

Yes. FTMO refunds 100% of the initial challenge fee with the first reward withdrawal once the trader reaches the funded FTMO Account stage and processes a payout. The refund applies once per evaluation and only to the original purchase price. Subsequent challenges purchased after a breach are not refundable. The refund is one of the longest-running trader-friendly policies in the prop industry.