FTMO Rules Explained: Daily Loss, Maximum Loss and Payout Conditions

30 September 2026 · 13 min read

FTMO is the firm most people compare every other firm to, so its ruleset is worth understanding in detail even if you buy elsewhere. The structure is the classic one: a maximum daily loss measured on equity, a maximum overall loss that does not reset, a minimum number of trading days, and a consistency consideration at payout. The numbers differ between the 1-Step and 2-Step products, and they have changed more than once — so this page explains how each rule works and tells you where to confirm the current figure.

The three numbers that define an FTMO account

Then two thresholds that decide whether you can actually finish and be paid: a minimum trading days requirement and, at payout, a consistency consideration.

FTMO's maximum daily loss and the 3% rule

The maximum daily loss is the amount the account's equity may fall within a single day before the evaluation ends. Two details matter more than the number:

• Equity, not balance. Open positions count. A floating loss on a trade you have not closed is a real loss against the limit, and commissions and swaps are included too.
• Measured from the day's starting point. The reference is the balance or equity at the start of the trading day — commonly the previous day's close. That has a practical consequence worth internalising: after a profitable day, your daily allowance in currency terms is slightly larger, because the percentage applies to a higher base.

This is the rule behind the "3% rule" you will see discussed. On FTMO's 1-Step product the maximum daily loss has been published at a tighter percentage than on the 2-Step product, which has been around 5%. The asymmetry is deliberate: a one-phase evaluation has to be at least as demanding as a two-phase one, so the one-phase version compensates with a tighter daily cap.

Worked example. A $100,000 account with a 5% maximum daily loss allows $5,000 in a session. If you already hold a position showing −$1,200 floating, your remaining room is $3,800, not $5,000. If you plan three setups a day, your maximum risk per trade for the rest of the day is about $1,266. Sizing to any larger number puts a single ordinary loss at the daily limit's edge. The general arithmetic is set out in drawdown types explained.

FTMO's maximum loss: the 10% figure

The maximum loss caps how far the account may fall from its initial balance across the entire evaluation, and it does not reset from day to day. Published figures have sat around 10% on the standard two-step structure.

The critical property is that it is static on the standard product — the floor does not trail your peak. That is the single most important structural difference between FTMO-style evaluations and the futures-style products where a trailing drawdown follows your profit upward.

Why it matters: on a static floor your buffer grows as you profit. Reach +6% and your distance from the failure line is no longer 10% but roughly 16% of the starting balance. On a trailing floor that distance would be unchanged, and unrealised profit would already have moved the line. If you are choosing between a static and a trailing product at a similar price, the static one is worth paying more for.

FTMO minimum trading days

FTMO uses a minimum trading-day requirement per phase rather than a fixed time limit. Published figures have been four trading days per phase, which means the full two-phase evaluation has a floor of eight trading days before targets or consistency are even considered. Confirm the current number for your product.

The practical effect is that FTMO has no overall deadline, but also no possibility of a same-week pass. Traders who hit the target on day two must keep trading small, inside the daily limit, until the counter fills. That stretch — target reached, minimum days pending — is where careless accounts die, because the objective is now purely to survive and the temptation is to trade for entertainment. See minimum trading days.

What is the FTMO Best Day Rule?

This is the FTMO rule most often described wrongly, including by sites that summarise it as a payout condition. It is not. FTMO publishes the Best Day Rule as a trading objective — a condition of passing — on the products that carry it.

The requirement is that your single most profitable day does not represent more than 50% of your positive days' profit. The ceiling is product-specific rather than universal: FTMO's Futures PRO product applies a 50% best-day objective and the Futures GROWTH product applies 40%, and the 1-Step account has carried a 50% requirement.

FTMO has also written about the same concept as a "discipline score", where a score of 60% corresponds to a most-successful day worth 40% of total profit. The two framings measure the same ratio from opposite ends — a higher discipline score means a lower best-day share — so whichever number your dashboard displays, the behaviour being assessed is identical.

Worked example. You finish a phase with $8,000 of profit, of which a single session produced $5,000. That day is 62.5% of your total, above a 50% ceiling, so the objective is not met even if the profit target is. To bring a $5,000 day under 50%, total profit must reach at least $10,000 — the same backwards arithmetic used in the consistency rule explained.

The safe operating assumption at FTMO, as at any firm with a distribution requirement, is the same: keep your winning days comparable in size. Confirm the exact percentage and whether it applies to your evaluation or only to payouts inside your own dashboard, because FTMO adjusts these values across products.

FTMO 1-Step vs 2-Step: the rules that differ

The design logic is the same at every firm offering both: the one-phase product must be harder in the rules, because it removes a filter. If you are deciding between them, the framework in one-step vs two-step applies directly — choose on which failure mode your own trading is less likely to trigger, not on which sounds easier. For a structural comparison against another firm's ruleset, see FTMO vs FundedNext.

FTMO payout rules: what to check

The payout conditions are a separate document from the evaluation rules and are, at most firms, the stricter of the two. The items to confirm for your product:

• Payout cycle. Whether withdrawals are on-demand or on a fixed schedule, and the minimum interval between them.
• Profit minimum. A threshold that must be reached before a request is possible.
• Consistency consideration. As above — how a dominant day affects the withdrawal.
• Profit split and whether it steps up. See profit split and scaling.
• Buffer or minimum balance retained. How much must stay in the account after a withdrawal.
• Whether the challenge fee is refunded, and at what point.

Because these stack, "first payout after X days" is usually X days for eligibility plus a profit minimum plus review time. The realistic end-to-end shape is covered in how long payouts take.

FTMO restrictions: news, weekend and automation

These sit outside the three headline numbers and are the rules traders breach by accident:

• News. Restrictions around high-impact scheduled releases vary by product and have been applied differently between evaluation and funded stages. Never assume the rule that applied during your evaluation still applies after funding — re-read it. See news trading rules.
• Weekend and overnight holding. FTMO's normal FX and CFD structure does not prohibit overnight or weekend holding in the way futures-style evaluations do, but instrument and product specifics matter, so check rather than assume. See weekend holding.
• Automation. Expert advisors are permitted subject to a prohibited-practices list covering high-frequency and latency-based methods, and the terms address third-party and copy trading separately. See EA and copy trading rules.

What actually fails FTMO accounts

Given the static floor, the failures cluster in an unusual place:

1. The daily loss limit, not the maximum loss. Because the maximum is static and relatively wide, the frequent killer is one oversized session against the daily cap. This is the opposite of a trailing-drawdown product, where the maximum floor is the common failure.
2. Oversizing after a loss. The behaviour described in why traders fail.
3. A dominant day at payout. Passing is one thing; getting a full withdrawal is another.
4. Impatience in the minimum-days window after the target is reached.

Frequently asked questions

Is FTMO's maximum loss trailing?

On the standard two-step product it has been published as a static maximum loss measured from the initial balance, which is a significant structural advantage over trailing-drawdown products. Confirm for the specific product you buy, because terms differ across account types.

Does the daily loss limit include open trades?

Yes. FTMO measures maximum daily loss on equity including open positions, commissions and swaps, so a floating loss counts against the limit before you close.

Can I hold over the weekend on FTMO?

FTMO's FX and CFD products have generally permitted overnight and weekend holding under normal conditions, unlike futures-style evaluations that often require flat positions. Check your specific product's rules, and check whether the position's size still leaves room for a Monday gap against your drawdown limits.

How many trading days do I need?

Published requirements have been a minimum number of trading days per phase. Confirm the current figure, and note that this sets a floor on the evaluation length that no amount of skill removes.

Is the FTMO challenge fee refunded?

FTMO has offered a refund of the challenge fee on passing, as part of its first payout structure. Confirm the current conditions and whether the refund counts toward any minimum. See challenge costs and refunds.

For the rules above turned into an actual plan — which product to pick, how to size against the daily cap, and what the Best Day Rule changes about your finish — see how to pass the FTMO challenge.

Summary

• Three numbers define the account: maximum daily loss, maximum loss, and the profit target.
• The daily loss is measured on equity, includes open positions, and is the rule that fails most accounts.
• The maximum loss is static on the standard product — your buffer grows as you profit.
• There is no time limit, but there is a minimum trading-day requirement per phase.
• The 1-Step product carries a tighter daily cap than the 2-Step, by design.
• Payout conditions are stricter than evaluation rules — read them before debating strategy.