Topstep is the only active prop firm in 2026 with an uninterrupted payout track record dating back to 2012, which means 13 consecutive years of paying funded traders on CME futures. According to statistics published on Topstep's official website, 16.8% of Trading Combines initiated advance to funded status, and 51.8% of individual participants who attempt the Combine reach funded level at least once. Knowing the exact rules before you pay for an evaluation is the difference between a calculated bet and an expensive guess.
What is Topstep and how does it work?
Company background (founded 2012)
Topstep was founded in Chicago in 2012 by Michael Patak, with the goal of funding skilled traders on CME futures without requiring personal capital. By 2026, the firm has 13 consecutive years of operation and a community of over 174,000 traders on Discord, making it one of the most established futures prop firms globally.
The model runs in three stages:
Standard Path vs Consistency Path 2026
Topstep offers two distinct evaluation paths, letting each trader choose based on their trading style:
| Criteria | Standard Path | Consistency Path |
|---|---|---|
| Minimum winning days | 5 days at $150 or more each | 3 days with 40% consistency ratio |
| First payout cap ($50K account) | $5,000 | $6,000 |
| Best suited for | Traders with daily discipline | Traders with a few strong consistent sessions |
Which path should you choose?
The Standard Path rewards daily regularity: five days at $150 minimum each. The Consistency Path is more flexible on day count but requires profits distributed across a 40% ratio. If your edge tends to concentrate on two or three strong sessions, the Consistency Path typically fits better.
Trading Combine evaluation rules
Profit target and intraday trailing MLL
The profit target varies by account size. The Maximum Loss Limit (MLL) is an intraday trailing drawdown: it follows your highest equity in real time and never moves back down, which makes scalping and holding large floating positions particularly risky.
| Account size | Profit target | Daily Loss Limit | Max Loss Limit (trailing) |
|---|---|---|---|
| $50,000 | $3,000 | $1,000 | $2,000 |
| $100,000 | $6,000 | $2,000 | $3,000 |
| $150,000 | $9,000 | $3,000 | $4,500 |
For a deeper look at how trailing drawdown mechanics work across prop firms, see our dedicated guide: Trailing drawdown prop firm explained.
Daily Loss Limit ($1K/$2K/$3K)
The Daily Loss Limit (DLL) resets daily at 5:00 PM CT. If you hit this limit during a session ($1,000 on a 50K account, $2,000 on 100K, $3,000 on 150K), your positions are auto-liquidated and you cannot trade again that day.
The DLL is independent from the MLL: you can have several bad days in a row without hitting the global MLL, but each individual day has its own loss cap that triggers immediately when reached.
Consistency rule: 50% cap and $150 winning day
The consistency rule is the single rule most traders fail to account for until it eliminates them.
The principle: your single best trading day cannot represent more than 50% of your total cumulative profit for the current cycle.
Example: if you have made $4,000 in profit across 8 trading days, your single best day cannot have exceeded $2,000. If that threshold is crossed in one exceptional session, you fail the consistency requirement even if the overall profit target is met.
The most common Topstep failure point
Many traders hit their profit target in one large session, then discover they have not satisfied the consistency rule. The fix: voluntarily cap your position size on days when the market moves heavily in your favor, so that one exceptional day never exceeds 50% of your total accumulated profit.
On the Standard Path, you also need at least five winning days with individual profit of $150 or more each.
The Express Funded Account
EOD trailing locking at $0
Once you are in the Express Funded Account (XFA), the drawdown rules change. The trailing MLL now operates end-of-day (EOD) rather than intraday: it updates once per day at session close, based on realized balance, not in real time during the session.
The key difference: the XFA MLL cannot drop below the account's starting balance. Once your equity has exceeded the starting balance by more than the initial MLL amount, the trailing locks permanently at zero, meaning the opening balance level.
Payout structure changes (April 2026)
Since January 2026, the profit split has moved to 90/10 for all new accounts. Topstep keeps 10% of profits, the trader receives 90%. Payouts are processed via Wise or direct wire transfer, typically within 5 to 7 business days after the request is validated.
You can hold up to 5 Express Funded Accounts at once
Topstep allows operating up to five XFA accounts in parallel. This is useful for traders who want to diversify risk across multiple sessions or multiple CME instruments, provided overall risk management stays consistent across all open positions.
Strategy to pass the Combine
Risk management: 0.5-1% per trade max
The most decisive rule for surviving the Combine is not finding winning setups: it is never getting eliminated by a single badly managed position. On a $50,000 account, the Daily Loss Limit is $1,000. One overleveraged trade can end your Combine before lunch.
The recommended practice: cap risk per trade at 0.5% of balance ($250 on a 50K account) and never exceed 1% ($500). This gives you 2 to 4 consecutive losing trades before hitting the DLL.
Before spending on a Topstep evaluation, you can simulate your strategy precisely with Backtrex: the tool lets you apply the exact drawdown and consistency rules to your strategy against real historical data, so you only enter the evaluation when your edge is proven. For broader context on testing before committing, see our guide on backtesting prop firm rules.
Position close rules: Friday 3:10 PM CT
Topstep requires all positions to be closed before 3:10 PM Chicago time (CT) every Friday. Positions still open at that time are auto-liquidated by the platform.
This rule exists to avoid weekend gap exposure on CME futures. Plan your Friday afternoon trades with this hard cutoff in mind.
Allowed instruments: CME futures only
Only instruments listed on the CME Group are permitted in the Combine. The most commonly traded include:
- E-mini S&P 500 (ES) and Micro E-mini S&P 500 (MES)
- E-mini NASDAQ-100 (NQ) and Micro E-mini NASDAQ-100 (MNQ)
- E-mini Dow Jones (YM) and Micro E-mini Dow Jones (MYM)
- Gold futures (GC), crude oil (CL), Euro FX (6E)
Crypto assets, individual equities, and ETFs are not permitted in the Trading Combine or the Express Funded Account. The full list of authorized instruments is available on the CME Group official website.
Topstep vs other futures prop firms
Advantages and limitations
| Criteria | Topstep | Newer firms (Apex, Tradeify) |
|---|---|---|
| Years operating | 13 years (since 2012) | 1 to 4 years |
| Combine drawdown | Intraday trailing (strict) | Often EOD or static |
| Instruments | CME only | CME plus sometimes crypto |
| Profit split | 90/10 (since Jan 2026) | 80/20 to 90/10 depending on firm |
| Simultaneous accounts | Up to 5 XFA | Varies by firm |
The intraday trailing drawdown of the Combine is Topstep's main competitive disadvantage against firms that use EOD trailing or static drawdown. For scalpers or traders who hold large floating positions intraday, this model is more punishing. For day traders who close all positions at session end, the difference is less significant.
Who should choose Topstep?
Topstep fits traders who prioritize reliability and the security of a firm with a verified long-term payout history. The best-fit profiles:
- Day traders and swing traders who close all positions before daily close
- Traders with a tested strategy and documented performance data
- Traders who want an established partner with a verifiable 13-year payout track record
If you do not yet have reliable performance data on your strategy, the risk of failing the Combine is high. The most rational approach is to backtest your strategy against the Combine's exact rules using a dedicated tool before buying the evaluation. Our article on prop firm trading strategies covers this in detail.
Important Risk Warning
Conclusion
Topstep remains in 2026 the benchmark futures prop firm for traders who want an established partner with a solid payout history. The Trading Combine rules are clear but demanding: intraday trailing MLL, daily DLL, and the 50% consistency rule. The consistency rule is consistently the most underestimated failure point.
The key to passing: understand these rules deeply and verify that your strategy can respect them on real historical data before spending on the evaluation. That is exactly what Backtrex enables: simulate your edge against the exact parameters of a prop firm to know, with real numbers, whether you are ready to pay for the Combine.
The Trading Combine requires reaching the profit target ($3,000 on the 50K account) while respecting the Daily Loss Limit ($1,000 per day) and the Maximum Loss Limit ($2,000 intraday trailing). On the Standard Path, you need at least five winning days at $150 or more each. Your single best day cannot exceed 50% of your total cumulative profit (the consistency rule).
The consistency rule states that your best single trading day cannot represent more than 50% of your total accumulated profit for the current cycle. If you made $4,000 in total, your best day cannot have exceeded $2,000. This rule is designed to reward consistent performance over a single lucky windfall session.
Yes. Topstep has operated since 2012 with an uninterrupted payout track record spanning 13 years, the longest of any active prop firm in 2026. According to Topstep's own statistics, 33.3% of traders who reach funded level receive payouts.
The Standard Path requires a minimum of five winning days at $150 each, with a first payout cap of $5,000 on the 50K account. The Consistency Path requires three winning days with a 40% consistency ratio and offers a slightly higher payout cap of $6,000. The Consistency Path suits traders whose performance is concentrated in a few strong sessions.
Yes. Backtrex lets you set the exact drawdown trailing and consistency rules and apply them to your strategy on real historical CME data. You get precise statistics on your simulated pass rate before spending on the real evaluation.
Only CME Group instruments are permitted: E-mini and Micro E-mini S&P 500 (ES/MES), NASDAQ-100 (NQ/MNQ), Dow Jones (YM/MYM), Russell 2000 (RTY), gold (GC), crude oil (CL), and major FX futures (6E, 6J, etc.). Crypto, equities, and ETFs are not available.
All positions must be closed before 3:10 PM Chicago time (CT) on Fridays. Positions still open at that time are automatically liquidated. This corresponds to 9:10 PM Paris time (CEST) in summer.