Select 2 or more firms to compare evaluation costs, drawdown rules, profit splits, payout structures, and trading restrictions across all 14 CME futures prop trading firms.
Specific tiers and funded paths from the selected firms, ranked with public-rule fit and blockers visible.
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| Category | Alpha Futures· Zero ✓ Verified 17 days ago | Apex Trader Funding· Intraday Trail ✓ Verified 17 days ago |
|---|---|---|
| Account Size | $25K | $25K |
| Overall Score | ||
| Trader Friendliness | 70/100Good | 72/100Good |
| Cost Summary | ||
| Eval Cost | $79/mo | $199$20(Regular price $199; current public one-time price $19.9.)90% offSAVENOW |
| Total to Start | $79(first mo + activation) | $268$89(eval + activation) |
| Monthly Cost (Funded) | — | — |
| Activation Fee | $0 | $69 |
| Reset Fee | $69 | — |
| Evaluation Rules | ||
| Profit Target | $1,500 (6%) | $1,500 (6%) |
| Min Trading Days | 1 day | 1 day |
| Min Days to Funded | 1 days | 1 days |
| Pass Rate | N/A | N/A |
| Drawdown Rules | ||
| Type | EOD Trailing | Intraday Trailing |
| Max Drawdown | $1,000(4%) | $1,000(4%) |
| Daily Loss Limit | $500 | None |
| DLL Breach Type | Soft | Soft |
| Lock Behavior | Locks at $25,000 after $1,000 profit | Trails indefinitely |
| Strictness | Moderate | Strict |
| Trading Restrictions | ||
| News Trading | Evaluations have no news trading restrictions. Premium and Advanced Qualified accounts have no news restriction. Standard legacy and Zero Qualified accounts may hold through news but cannot execute orders within 2 minutes before or after high-impact news. All paths still prohibit all-or-nothing gambling behavior. | News trading is allowed for your normal trading strategy. Using news trading strategies that chase the market or place orders on both sides to gamble the outcome of news is not allowed. Non-directional bracket trading (orders left open on both sides) to catch windfall moves is also prohibited. |
| Automation | Semi-Auto Only | Banned |
| Hedging | Banned | Banned |
| Scalping Rules | Trades under 10 ticks AND under 2 minutes flagged as microscalping(min 2min) | None |
| Overnight Holds | ||
| Must Be Flat By | 4:20 PM ET | 4:59 PM ET |
| Inactivity Limit | 10 days | — |
| Weekend Holding | Unknown | Unknown |
| Account Rolling | No Restriction | No Restriction |
| Min Payout | $200 | $500 |
| Funded Account | ||
| Payout Accessibility | 74/100 | 59/100 |
| Consistency Rule | 40% max/dayModerate | 50% max/dayFavorable |
| Funded Rules | ||
| Funded Consistency | 40% max/day | 50% max/day |
| Funded DLL | $500(soft) | $1,250(soft) |
| Buffer Requirement | None | $1,100 |
| Activation Fee | $0 | $69 |
| Min Profitable Days | 5 days | 5 days |
| Profit Split | 90% | 100% |
| Payout Frequency | On Demand | Weekly |
| Max Payout | $1,000 | $1,000 |
| Winning Days | 5 days | 5 days($100+) |
| Days Between Payouts | — | 5 trading days |
| Qualifying Day Min | $200/day | $100/day |
| Max Payout % | 50% of profit | — |
| Min Balance for Payout | — | $26,600 |
| Min Balance After Payout | — | $26,100 |
| Max Payouts | — | 6 total |
| Account Closure | — | total_payouts: 6 (closes) |
| Min Payout | $200 | $500 |
| Withdrawal Fee | Free | Free |
| Processing Time | 48 business hours | 5-11 business days |
| Payout Methods | Rise | ACH direct deposit (US), Plane (international) |
| Max Contracts | 1 full / 10 micro | 4 full / 40 micro |
| Max Accounts | 5 accounts | 20 accounts |
| Platforms | Tradovate, NinjaTrader, TradingView, Quantower | Rithmic, Tradovate, NinjaTrader, TradingView, WealthCharts |
| Live Transition | +$40K payable balance or 5 payouts per account; Alpha may move the trader to LIVE earlier after review | — |
| Buffer Amount | — | $1,100 |
| Min Payout | $200 | $500 |
| Max Per Request | $1,000 | $1,000 |
| Funded Fee | — | $0/mo |
| Payout Caps | No cap | $1,000 → $1,000 → $1,000 → $1,000 → $1,000 → $1,000 |
| Account Lifecycle | ||
| Max Funded Accounts | 5 | 20 |
| Inactivity Limit | 10 days | None |
| Quick Math | ||
| True Cost to Start | $79 $79/mo eval | $268$89 $20 eval + $69 activation (SAVENOW) |
| Daily Profit Target | $1,500/day over 1 day | $1,500/day over 1 day |
| First Payout Timeline | ~8 days 1d eval + 5d winning + 2d processing | ~17 days 1d eval + 5d winning + 11d processing |
| Best Profit Split | 90% | 100% |