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.
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| Category | Alpha Futures· Zero No recent check | Apex Trader Funding· Intraday Trail No recent check | E8 Markets· E8 Signature No recent check |
|---|---|---|---|
| Account Size | $25K | $25K | $25K |
| Overall Score | |||
| Trader Friendliness | 70/100Good | 72/100Good | 67/100Good |
| Cost Summary | |||
| Eval Cost | $79/mo | $199$20(Regular price $199; current public one-time price $19.9.)90% offSAVENOW | $110GIBBS |
| Total to Start | $79(first mo + activation) | $268$89(eval + activation) | $110(eval + activation) |
| Monthly Cost (Funded) | — | — | — |
| Activation Fee | $0 | $69 | — |
| Reset Fee | $69 | — | — |
| Evaluation Rules | |||
| Profit Target | $1,500 (6%) | $1,500 (6%) | $1,500 (6%) |
| Min Trading Days | 1 day | 1 day | 1 day |
| Min Days to Funded | 1 days | 1 days | 1 days |
| Pass Rate | N/A | N/A | 17.7% |
| Drawdown Rules | |||
| Type | EOD Trailing | Intraday Trailing | EOD Trailing |
| Max Drawdown | $1,000(4%) | $1,000(4%) | $1,000(4%) |
| Daily Loss Limit | $500 | None | None |
| Daily Loss Limit Breach | Soft | Soft | Soft |
| Lock Behavior | Locks at $25,000 after $1,000 profit | Trails indefinitely | Locks at $25,000 after $1,000 profit |
| Strictness | Moderate | Strict | Moderate |
| 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. | E8 One Challenge: no news restrictions. E8 One Performance (funded): 5 min before and 5 min after high-impact news, no new orders, no closing trades, no SL/TP triggers, no pending orders. Profits within 10-min window are stripped (no account violation). Speeches: 5 min before until 5 min after end. Non-targeted instruments unaffected. |
| Automation | Semi-Auto Only | Banned | Banned |
| Hedging | Banned | Banned | Banned |
| Scalping Rules | Trades under 10 ticks AND under 2 minutes flagged as microscalping(min 2min) | None | 50% of profits from trades held 10+ seconds(min 10s) |
| Overnight Holds | |||
| Must Be Flat By | 4:20 PM ET | 4:59 PM ET | 3:10 PM CT |
| Inactivity Limit | 10 days | — | 7 days |
| Weekend Holding | Unknown | Unknown | Unknown |
| Account Rolling | No Restriction | No Restriction | No Restriction |
| Min Payout | $200 | $500 | $100 |
| Funded Account | |||
| Payout Accessibility | 74/100 | 59/100 | 76/100 |
| Consistency Rule | 40% max/dayModerate | 50% max/dayFavorable | 35% max/dayModerate |
| Funded Rules | |||
| Funded Consistency | 40% max/day | 50% max/day | 35% max/day |
| Funded Daily Loss Limit | $500(soft) | $1,250(soft) | $500(soft) |
| Buffer Requirement | None | $1,100 | $1,000 |
| Activation Fee | $0 | $69 | $0 |
| Min Profitable Days | 5 days | 5 days | 5 days |
| Profit Split | 90% | 100% | 80% |
| Payout Frequency | On Demand | Weekly | On Demand |
| Max Payout | $1,000 | $1,000 | — |
| Winning Days | 5 days | 5 days($100+) | 5 days |
| Days Between Payouts | — | 5 trading days | — |
| Qualifying Day Min | $200/day | $100/day | $75/day |
| Best Day Cap | — | — | 35% max |
| 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 | $100 |
| Withdrawal Fee | Free | Free | Free |
| Processing Time | 48 business hours | 5-11 business days | 2-5 business days |
| Payout Methods | Rise | ACH direct deposit (US), Plane (international) | Rise |
| Max Contracts | 1 full / 10 micro | 4 full / 40 micro | 2 full / 20 micro |
| Max Accounts | 5 accounts | 20 accounts | 5 accounts |
| Platforms | Tradovate, NinjaTrader, TradingView, Quantower | Rithmic, Tradovate, NinjaTrader, TradingView, WealthCharts | Tradovate, NinjaTrader, TradingView |
| Live Transition | +$40K payable balance or 5 payouts per account; Alpha may move the trader to LIVE earlier after review | — | — |
| Buffer Required | No buffer | No buffer | Yes, must clear buffer before payouts |
| Buffer Amount | — | $1,100 | $1,000 |
| Min Payout | $200 | $500 | $100 |
| 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 | $1,000 → $1,000 → $1,250 → $1,250 → $1,500 |
| Account Lifecycle | |||
| Max Funded Accounts | 5 | 20 | — |
| Inactivity Limit | 10 days | — | 7 days |
| Quick Math | |||
| Eval + Activation | $79 $79/mo eval | $268$89 $20 eval + $69 activation (SAVENOW) | $110 $110 eval |
| Daily Profit Target | $1,500/day over 1 day | $1,500/day over 1 day | $1,500/day over 1 day |
| First Payout Timeline | Needs model proof Missing public evidence: Funded Monthly Fee, Selected Economic Product. | Needs model proof Missing public evidence: Activation Fee, Buffer Clearance Required, Fee Monthly|Fee Onetime, Funded Monthly Fee, Min Trading Days, Payout Processing Time, Selected Economic Product. | Needs model proof Missing public evidence: Activation Fee, Buffer Clearance Required, Funded Monthly Fee, Max Payout Per Request, Min Payout Amount, Min Profitable Days Before Payout, Min Trading Days, Payout Processing Time, Selected Economic Product. |
| Best Profit Split | 90% | 100% | 80% |