Apex Trader Funding Review: rules, challenges and payouts

Platforms6

• RithmicRithmicData feed / broker
• TradovateTradovateData feed / broker
• WealthChartsWealthChartsData feed / broker
• NinjaTraderNinjaTrader
• TradingViewTradingView
• R Trader ProR Trader Pro

The details

Data feed / broker

Rithmic · Tradovate · WealthCharts

Assets

IndicesFXEnergyMetalsRatesAgricultureCrypto

Instruments

CME Group futures only: equity indices (ES, NQ, YM, RTY, NKD and micros), FX futures (6A–6S, M6A, M6E), energies (CL, QM, NG, QG, HO, RB, MCL), metals (GC, SI, HG, PL, PA, MGC, SIL, back after a 2026 halt), Treasuries (ZT to UB), grains and livestock, and Micro Bitcoin / Micro Ether. Some contracts are Tradovate-only. No spot forex, stocks or options.

Leverage and limits

Evaluation caps: 4, 6, 8 and 12 minis (40/60/80/120 micros) on 25K/50K/100K/150K. A PA starts lower and scales by tier from the prior close, up to 2, 4, 6 and 10 contracts. Apex Live starts at 3 minis / 30 micros.

Commissions

Charged per side and deducted from your balance; profit targets are net of them. Rithmic: ES $1.99/side ($3.98 round turn), MES $0.51 ($1.02). Tradovate: ES $1.55/side ($3.10), MES/MNQ $0.52 ($1.04). Non-professional market data is included; professional CME data is $115+ per exchange per month.

Max allocation

$3MApex caps you by account count: 20 active PAs per household (Legacy, EOD and Intraday combined). With $150,000 the largest size sold now, 20 × $150,000 = $3,000,000 is our arithmetic; Apex publishes no dollar cap. Evaluations are unlimited.

Legal entity

Apex Trader Funding, Inc.

1. 01

   Trailing drawdown (EOD or intraday)

   Strict

   The threshold is the lowest your balance may touch at any moment, open P&L included. Intraday Trail moves it up in real time behind your highest balance, open profit counted. EOD Trail recalculates it once a day from the 4:59:59 PM ET close, but enforces it during the session. It never moves down, and in a PA it stops at starting balance + $100. Touch it and the evaluation fails or the PA closes.

   Example

   50K, $2,000 drawdown, threshold $48,000. A trade runs to +$1,500 open profit and you exit at breakeven. Intraday Trail: the threshold is now $49,500, leaving $500 of room. EOD Trail: still $48,000, because only the $50,000 close counts. In a PA either one locks at $50,100.

2. 02

   30 days of access, no resets

   Strict

   An evaluation runs 30 calendar days from purchase, weekends and holidays included, and cannot be extended or paused. There are no resets: a breach or expiry ends it and you buy a new one. Once it is marked Passed (after 6 PM ET), you have 7 calendar days to activate the PA, or the pass is forfeited.

   Example

   Buy a 50K Intraday Trail on 1 October and it expires on 30 October. Reach the target on 30 October and you can still activate the PA until 6 November. Touch the threshold on 12 October and that fee is gone.

3. 03

   Banned trading practices

   Strict

   Banned: any automation (bots, algos, AI, HFT), opposite positions in correlated markets including across your accounts, two-sided bracket orders around news, all-in max-size trades, buying cheap evaluations to blow through, and sharing devices, IPs or trade copying with other people. Every trade needs a stop, pending or mental. Penalties include closure and forfeiture of balances.

   Example

   Long ES in one PA while short MES, or short YM, in another counts as hedging.

4. 04

   Flat by 4:59 PM ET

   Strict

   Close every position and cancel every order before 4:59 PM ET each day; Apex's auto-flatten at 4:59 PM is a last resort, not something to rely on. No overnight or weekend holds. The trading day runs 6 PM to 4:59 PM ET, and early holiday closes move the deadline earlier.

   Example

   A stand-alone order not attached to a position is not cancelled for you; if it fills after the close it can breach the account.

5. 05

   50% consistency on PA payouts

   Watch out

   The evaluation has none. For a PA payout, no single profitable day may make up 50% or more of the profit since your last approved payout. Apex's formula: best day ÷ 0.5 = the net profit you need before requesting. Until then you keep trading; the count restarts after each approved payout.

   Example

   On a 50K PA your best day is $1,500. By Apex's formula you need at least $3,000 of net profit since the last payout before you can request one.

6. 06

   Safety net, payout caps and the six-payout limit

   Watch out

   The safety net is your drawdown + $100 and must hold for the life of the PA. Only profit above it can be withdrawn, and you can request only with the balance at least $500 above it. Each payout has a cap that rises with the payout number, the minimum is $500, and after the sixth payout the PA closes for good.

   Example

   50K EOD PA: safety net $52,100, so you need $52,600 to request. At $54,000 there is $1,900 above the net, but payout 1 is capped at $1,500.

7. 07

   Daily loss limit (a pause, not a breach)

   Watch out

   EOD Trail evaluations have a fixed daily loss limit ($500/$1,000/$1,500/$2,000); Intraday Trail evaluations have none. Every PA has one that rises with its scaling tier. Open losses count. Hitting it flattens you and stops trading until 6 PM ET, but the account stays alive.

   Example

   On a 50K EOD evaluation you are down $1,000 on the day, realised plus open: positions close and you resume next session. The $2,000 drawdown threshold still applies separately.

8. 08

   PA contract scaling tiers

   Watch out

   A PA starts with fewer contracts than the evaluation. Its tier, which sets the contract cap and daily loss limit, comes from the prior session's 4:59:59 PM ET close and never changes mid-session. It drops again if the balance falls.

   Example

   50K PA: $0–$1,499 profit = 2 contracts, $1,000 DLL; $1,500–$2,999 = 3 contracts; $3,000–$5,999 = 4 contracts, $2,000 DLL; $6,000+ = 4 contracts, $3,000 DLL. Close day one at $51,500 and you trade 3 contracts tomorrow.

9. 09

   PA inactivity

   Watch out

   In every rolling 30 calendar days a PA needs at least two trading days that close with $50+ net profit; trading flat does not count. It goes dormant at 15 days, gets a second notice at 20 and closes at 30, losing payout eligibility for good.

   Example

   Activate a PA on 1 October; without two days of $50+ profit by 30 October, it is closed.

Trading styles

• News trading

  With conditions

  Allowed with your normal directional strategy; orders on both sides of the market around a release are banned.

• EAs / bots

  Not allowed

  Any automation, algorithm, AI or HFT is banned on every account type; the penalty is closure and forfeiture.

• Copy trading

  With conditions

  Copying across your own PAs (personal and business name) is allowed if every copy is the same direction; copying with other traders is banned.

• Hedging

  Not allowed

  Directional only: never long and short in correlated markets at once, in one account or across accounts.

• Holding overnight

  Not allowed

  Flat before 4:59 PM ET.

• Holding over the weekend

  Not allowed

• Scalping

  With conditions

  Short-term trading is fine; HFT and exploiting simulated fills count as banned manipulation.

1. 01 · First payout

   After 5 qualifying trading days in the PA, each meeting a minimum daily profit ($100–$350 by size and type, e.g. $250 on a 50K EOD), with the 50% consistency check met and the balance at least $500 above the safety net.

2. 02 · After that

   Up to weekly: each request needs a fresh set of 5 qualifying days. A PA allows 6 payouts, then closes.

3. 03 · Profit split

   100% of each approved payout on PAs (simulated); the invitation-only Apex Live program pays 90/10.

Minimum

$500 per request

Caps

Per payout, rising with the payout number: 25K $1,000 each; 50K $1,500 → $3,000; 100K $2,000 → $4,000; 150K $2,500 → $5,000 (EOD and Intraday tables differ slightly). Six payouts per PA, and only profit above the safety net can be withdrawn.

Payout methods

• ACH (US only)
• Plane (outside the US)

Before you can request

• 5 qualifying days at the minimum daily profit: EOD $100/$250/$300/$350, Intraday $100/$200/$250/$300 (25K/50K/100K/150K).
• No single day at 50% or more of the profit since the last payout.
• Balance at or above the safety net + $500 ($52,600 on 50K); only profit above the safety net ($52,100 on 50K) is payable.
• No rule violations, and at least $500 requested.
• The bank account must be in your declared country of residence; non-US traders must choose the International payout type.

What we read

1. 01Apex: Restricted Countries
2. 02Apex: EOD Evaluations
3. 03Apex: Intraday Trailing Drawdown Evaluations
4. 04Apex: EOD Drawdown Explained
5. 05Apex: Intraday Trailing Drawdown Explained
6. 06Apex: EOD Performance Accounts (PA)
7. 07Apex: Intraday Trailing Drawdown Performance Accounts (PA)
8. 08Apex: EOD Payouts
9. 09Apex: Intraday Trailing Drawdown Payouts
10. 10Apex: 50% Consistency Requirement
11. 11Apex: Scaling Levels (PA) Explained
12. 12Apex: Daily Loss Limit Explained
13. 13Apex: Evaluation Plan Fees and Access Explained
14. 14Apex: PA Activation Process & Deadline Explained
15. 15Apex: No Activation Fee Evaluations
16. 16Apex: Inactivity Policy on Performance Accounts (PA)
17. 17Apex: Prohibited Activities
18. 18Apex: Payout Method – International Users
19. 19Apex: Coupon Codes
20. 20Apex: Rithmic Commissions & Instruments
21. 21Apex: Tradovate Commission & Instruments
22. 22Apex: Live Prop Trading Program FAQ
23. 23Apex: Legacy Products Overview
24. 24Third party – DamnPropFirms: Apex review and prices (Oct 2026)
25. 25Third party – helloweekends: Apex rules (checked 26 Sep 2026)
26. 26Third party – 5th-anniversary sale press release (6 Oct 2026)

XSR may earn a commission when you buy with a partner code; it never changes the order of firms. Prop-firm evaluations are simulated accounts sold as a product — most buyers do not pass, and no firm is regulated as a category. Nothing here is investment advice.