Factual information, not advice. Every company is measured the same way, against published criteria. Nothing here recommends a firm, plan or trade, or knows your circumstances.
The short version
- 13 of 26 firms set a minimum hold time, from 5 sec to 2 min. Break it and you can lose the profit or the account.
- 8 more ban “tick scalping” without a number, so you can't tell in advance whether your style counts. Only 5 publish nothing at all.
- Best for news traders: Alpha Futures Advanced Account, 6.7/10 overall. Only 30 of 76 plans allow news once funded.
- Use the checker below to match the rules to how you actually trade.
What matters when you trade a lot
Our day trading guide covers the basics. If you're in and out many times a day, six rules matter more than price:
- Minimum hold time. A rule that trades must last a set time, or that only a share of your profit can come from short trades. The one that catches scalpers.
- Trade caps. A few firms put a number on “too many trades”. Most just ban high-frequency trading and decide case by case.
- News once funded. Many plans allow news in the challenge, then ban it or cut the profit once you're funded.
- How the drawdown moves. Intraday trailing follows your open profit, which punishes trades that run and come back. End-of-day trailing only moves at the close.
- Consistency once funded. Active traders have lumpy days. A rule capping your best day can hold up a payout after one great session.
- What the daily limit does. At some futures firms, hitting it just stops you for the day. On almost every CFD plan we track, it ends the account.
Minimum hold times, firm by firm
These are the 13 firms that put a number on how long a trade must last. Note how each one is measured: a rule on every trade is far stricter than one on half your profit.
| Firm | Minimum | Applies to | If you break it |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lucid Trading | 5 sec | Over half your profit from trades this short | A warning, then that profit is forfeited |
| Tradeify | 10 sec | Over half your trades, or of your profit | No payout until you're back over the line |
| Elite Trader Funding | 10 sec | Every trade | Payouts can be denied, or the account closed |
| FundedNext | 30 sec | 30% of a cycle's profit (warning at 20%) | Funded: that profit deducted, account closed at cycle end |
| Goat Funded Trader | 1 min | Every trade, funded accounts only | Profit from those trades removed at payout |
| Pipstone Capital | 1 min | Every trade | First time: split cut to 20% and the account closed |
| Instant Funding | 1 min | Profitable trades | Profit deducted twice, then the account breached |
| The Funded Room | 1 min | Over 10% of trades, or of profit | No payout until the share drops back |
| E8 Markets | 1 min | Over half your trades | Removed from the program, or funding refused |
| Alpha Futures | 2 min | A pattern of trades under 10 ticks as well | That profit voided |
| Alpha Capital Group | 2 min | Your average trade, and half your profit | Funded: all profit removed and the account reset |
| Blue Guardian | 2 min | Every trade | Can be flagged as tick scalping and closed |
| FundedSquad | 2 min | Every trade | Account closed and the payout rejected |
Two recent changes worth knowing: GOAT Funded Trader cut its minimum from 2 minutes to 60 seconds for accounts bought from 6 October 2026, and The Funded Room's terms also exclude funded profit from trades under 2 minutes, on top of the 1-minute rule on its rules page. Each firm name links to the page we read.
Banned, but never defined
FundingPips, The5ers, BrightFunded, Funded Trading Plus, FundedHive, Topstep, TradeDay, Bulenox ban tick scalping or scalping algorithms without a number. That leaves the decision to the firm after the fact. If you trade very short, ask support in writing what counts before you buy.
Check every plan
Active trader checker
Every plan we track at $100K (CFD) and $50K (futures). Tick what your trading needs and the list narrows to the plans that allow it.
- FTMO2-Step Swing · CFD7.5/10 overallNews: allowedDrawdown: staticNo consistency rule once funded5% a day, 10% in totalNo hold-time rule publishedNo more than 2,000 server requests a day from EAs
- The5ersHigh Stakes · CFD · $4557.2/10 overallNews: no trades ±2 minDrawdown: staticConsistency rule, varies4% a day, 8% in totalTick scalping and HFT banned, no threshold given ↗
- FTMO2-Step · CFD · €5406.8/10 overallNews: no trades ±2 minDrawdown: staticNo consistency rule once funded5% a day, 10% in totalNo hold-time rule publishedNo more than 2,000 server requests a day from EAs
- FTMO1-Step · CFD · €4996.8/10 overallNews: no trades ±2 minDrawdown: trailing, end of dayBest day ≤ 50% of profit3% a day, 10% in totalNo hold-time rule publishedNo more than 2,000 server requests a day from EAs
- Alpha FuturesAdvanced Account · Futures · $209/mo6.7/10 overallNews: allowedDrawdown: trailing, end of dayNo consistency rule once fundedNo daily limit, $1,750 drawdownBans a pattern of trades under 10 ticks and 2 minutes ↗No more than 100 trades a day
- FundedNextStellar 2-Step · CFD · $549.996.6/10 overallNews: 40% of profit ±5 minDrawdown: staticBest day ≤ 40% of profit5% a day, 10% in total"Quick Strike": too much profit from trades under 30 seconds costs you ↗No more than 200 trades a day
- FundedNextStellar 1-Step · CFD · $569.996.4/10 overallNews: 40% of profit ±5 minDrawdown: staticConsistency once funded: none on record3% a day, 6% in total"Quick Strike": too much profit from trades under 30 seconds costs you ↗No more than 200 trades a day
- Alpha FuturesStandard Account · Futures · $129/mo6.3/10 overallNews: no trades ±2 minDrawdown: trailing, end of dayBest day ≤ 40% of profitNo daily limit, $2,000 drawdownBans a pattern of trades under 10 ticks and 2 minutes ↗No more than 100 trades a day
- Alpha FuturesZero Account · Futures · $139/mo6.3/10 overallNews: no trades ±2 minDrawdown: trailing, end of dayBest day ≤ 40% of profit$1,000 daily limit, pauses the dayBans a pattern of trades under 10 ticks and 2 minutes ↗No more than 100 trades a day
- Earn2TradeTrader Career Path · Futures · $190/mo6.0/10 overallNews: allowedDrawdown: trailing, end of dayNo consistency rule once funded$1,100 daily limitNo hold-time rule published
- Earn2TradeThe Gauntlet Mini · Futures · $170/mo6.0/10 overallNews: allowedDrawdown: trailing, end of dayNo consistency rule once funded$1,100 daily limitNo hold-time rule published
- FXIFYTwo Phase (Standard) · CFD · $5495.9/10 overallNews: allowedDrawdown: trailing, on closed balanceConsistency once funded: none on record4% a day, 10% in totalNo hold-time rule published
Overall is the site's usual score: 40% rules, 60% reputation. It isn't a day-trading score, which is why the checker lets you filter by the rules that matter to you instead.
Picks by how you trade
- 1FTMO2-Step · €5406.8
- 2Earn2TradeTrader Career Path · $190/mo6.0
- 3FXIFYTwo Phase (Standard) · $5495.9
- 1Alpha FuturesAdvanced Account · $209/mo6.7
- 2Earn2TradeTrader Career Path · $190/mo6.0
- 3FXIFYTwo Phase (Standard) · $5495.9
- 1FTMO2-Step · €5406.8
- 2Alpha FuturesAdvanced Account · $209/mo6.7
- 3Earn2TradeTrader Career Path · $190/mo6.0
- 1Alpha FuturesAdvanced Account · $209/mo6.7
- 2Earn2TradeTrader Career Path · $190/mo6.0
- 3BulenoxQualification · end-of-day drawdown · $1755.5
Picks are the highest Overall scores among plans that meet each need, one plan per firm. We left out swing accounts (FTMO sells one), which are built for holding trades; they're still in the checker. Read the firm's full rules before you buy: a plan can fit one need and fail another.
Try itRun your own numbersTrades per day, risk per trade and win rate, checked against each plan's limitsFutures plans that pay daily
If you trade every day, being paid every day helps. These futures plans allow daily payout requests on the funded account itself, in the firm's own words:
- Take Profit Trader · PRO“From there you move to a PRO account and become eligible for day-one and daily payouts.”Homepage
- Lucid Trading · LucidDaily“LucidDaily funded accounts offer daily payout requests, no consistency rule, and a 90/10 profit split.”LucidDaily funded account
- MyFundedFutures · Rapid“Rapid Plan Payouts (Intraday and EOD Plans) Payout Frequency: Daily First payout eligible 24 hours after first trade (buffer & minimum profit required)”Payout policy overview
- TradeDay · Quick Pay“Day one on Quick Pay. Once funded, you can request a payout from any positive balance, no buffer to clear, no minimum trading period.”Homepage
- Tradeify · Select Daily“Get Paid Every Day Ability to request payout within the first week you start. Make money Thursday, withdraw Friday.”Select plan, paid daily
- Bulenox · Fast Track and Momentum“Payout requests on Fast Track and Momentum accounts are processed every day; on a regular Master Account payouts are processed every Wednesday.”FAQ
Daily payouts usually come with a minimum profit or a buffer to clear first, and a cap on each request. Topstep, Alpha Futures and Elite Trader Funding also pay daily, but only once you're moved to a live account.
Questions traders ask
Which prop firm is best for scalping?
Look for a firm with no minimum hold time first. Of the firms we track, 5 publish none. The best-scoring plan among them here is FTMO's 2-Step. Be careful with firms that ban “tick scalping” without saying what it means: 8 do, and you can't check in advance whether your trades count.
What is the minimum hold time at prop firms?
Where a firm sets one, it runs from 5 sec (Lucid Trading) to 2 min (FundedSquad and others). Some apply it to every trade, others only to a share of your trades or profit. The table in this guide lists each one.
Can I trade news on a funded account?
At some firms. 30 of the 76 plans in our checker allow news trading on the funded account with no window and no profit cut. The rest either ban trades a few minutes around releases or take back the profit made in that window.
Do prop firms limit how many trades I can make?
A few put a number on it: FTMO (no more than 2,000 server requests a day from EAs); FundedNext (no more than 200 trades a day); E8 Markets (no more than 2,000 positions a day); Alpha Capital Group (no 3 or more positions on one idea within 60 seconds); The Funded Room (4 orders the same way on one asset within 3 minutes counts as HFT); Alpha Futures (no more than 100 trades a day); TradeDay (no more than 200 trades a day). Most others ban “high-frequency trading” without a number.
Which futures prop firms pay out daily?
On the funded account itself: Take Profit Trader (PRO), Lucid Trading (LucidDaily), MyFundedFutures (Rapid), TradeDay (Quick Pay), Tradeify (Select Daily), Bulenox (Fast Track and Momentum). Some others only pay daily once you're moved to a live account.
Is a trailing drawdown bad for day traders?
The intraday kind is the hardest. It follows your open profit during the day, so a trade that runs and then comes back can raise your floor without you banking anything. 13 of the 76 plans in our checker use it. An end-of-day trailing drawdown only moves at the close, which suits active traders better.
Hold-time, trade-cap and daily-limit rules were read from each firm's own pages on 9 October 2026; where a help centre blocks automated reading, from dated Internet Archive copies of the firm's own pages. Other rules and prices come from the firm pages on this site, each quoted with its source. Not financial advice.
Keep reading
- What Is a Prop Firm? How Prop Trading Works (2026)Challenges, funded accounts, profit splits and the rules that decide whether you get paid, explained with real figures.
- Best CFD Prop Firms to Compare in 2026Every CFD prop firm we track, ranked on rules and reputation, with what each one costs and what to watch.
- Best Futures Prop Firms to Compare in 2026Monthly fees, activation fees, trailing drawdown and payout caps: the futures firms side by side.
- Funded Accounts for Day Trading: Pros, Cons, and What to CheckWhat a funded account does well for a day trader, where it hurts, and the rules to read first.
- FundingPips Review 2026: Rules, Payouts and Trustpilot, CheckedPrices, rules, payout conditions, the company behind it, and a close read of its Trustpilot reviews.
- The5ers Review 2026: Rules, Payouts and Trustpilot, CheckedTen years in, one UK company, and a 4.7 on Trustpilot. What the rules and the reviews really show.
- FundedNext Review 2026: Rules, Payouts and Trustpilot, CheckedThe most-reviewed CFD firm we track. Its rules, its payout fine print, and a Trustpilot profile that almost never replies.
- The Funded Room Review 2026: Rules, Payouts and Trustpilot, CheckedCheap challenges and fast payouts on paper. A 2.5 on Trustpilot, and eight places where its own pages disagree.
- Best Instant Funding Prop Firms in 2026: Compared and CheckedSkip the challenge? Every instant account we track, side by side, with a finder and an instant-vs-challenge cost calculator.
- Tradeify Review 2026: Rules, Payouts and Trustpilot, CheckedA 4.4 on Trustpilot and one-off fees. Then twelve places where its own pages disagree, and a run of one-star reviews about blocked payouts.
- Best Prop Firms in India 2026: Checked Against the RBI Alert ListTwo prop firms are on the RBI's Alert List. Every firm we track, checked for India, with how each one pays.
- Cheapest Instant Funding Prop Firms in 2026: Prices ComparedEvery instant account we track, priced at every size and per dollar of room to lose. Plus what cheap costs you.
- Prop Firm Consistency Rule Explained: How It Works, Firm by FirmWhy traders hit the target and still don't get paid. The maths, a calculator, and every firm's rule.
- Straight to Funded Prop Firms in 2026: How Soon You Get PaidNo evaluation doesn't mean no conditions. How long each straight-to-funded account makes you wait to be paid, and what it takes.