Methodology: how we check prop firm payouts and rules

What “payout-verified” means, and its limits

Payout-verified means we looked for public evidence that a firm pays its traders, graded how strong that evidence is, and showed you the sources with dates.

It does not mean we were paid. We have not bought challenges, traded funded accounts or requested payouts. Every page is built from what anyone can check:

the firm’s terms of service, rulebook and FAQ, quoted with the date we read them, with a copy archived;
payout reports the firm publishes about itself, labelled as self-reported;
independent records: on-chain transfers, regulator notices and filings, press reports;
dated community reports that link to their source.

Limits you should know:

Public evidence can be incomplete. A firm can pay most traders and still deny some payouts, and the reverse.
A payout report the firm publishes about itself is not proof on its own. We say so each time.
Trustpilot ratings alone are not evidence. Neither are coupon sites, firm marketing pages or screenshots without a source.
Some firms block automated access to their websites. When we could only read a rule through an official mirror or a search result, the page says “via mirror” or “via search snippet”, and the value is treated as weaker than one read on the firm’s own page.

Evidence grade scale

The grade rates the public evidence that a firm pays out. It does not rate the firm, its rules or whether it suits you.

A · CorroboratedThe firm's payout figures are corroborated by an independent source: on-chain transfers, a regulator filing or press with its own reporting.

B · Self-reported onlyOnly the firm's own figures or posts. Plausible, but nobody outside the firm has confirmed them.

C · Community reports onlyDated third-party reports with links (forums, videos, threads). Trustpilot alone never counts.

D · None or contradictoryNo usable evidence, or the sources contradict each other.

Every grade on the site shows its word and the date we checked it. The letter is never shown alone.

What we check for every firm

For each firm we review, we look for the same set of facts:

an excerpt of the terms or rulebook, with the check date and an archived copy;
the profit split in the marketing next to the split in the terms;
the payout cap per cycle, payout frequency, timing of the first payout and payout methods;
the drawdown type (static, trailing or end-of-day trailing) and any consistency rules;
prices by account size, in the currency the firm charges, with the date;
the legal entity behind the firm and its country;
regulator lookups (FCA, FINMA, CONSOB, CNMV, FSMA, ASIC, IOSCO I-SCAN, and CFTC/NFA where relevant), with the date;
the history of rule changes we can document;
country restrictions;
payout evidence, with a grade from the scale above.

When we cannot find a fact, we say so. “Not published by the firm” means the firm does not state it. “Not checked yet” means we have not verified it, with the date of the next check.

How to read the rule gauge

Each gauge shows one programme at one account size. The scale is the same on every page: from −12% to +12% of the starting balance. Zero is the balance you start with. Because the scale never changes, you can compare two firms by eye: whose floor sits closer to zero, and whose target sits further out.

account closed below this
floor can trail up to the lock
trailing floor stops here
daily loss limit
profit target
0 = starting balance · scale −12…+12%

Floor. The hatched zone on the left is where the account is closed. The edge of that zone is the maximum loss, for example “−10% out”.

Daily limit. The dashed tick is the most you can lose in one day. Some firms measure it from the prior day’s balance rather than the starting balance; the caption says so when that is the case. If the terms say there is no daily limit, the gauge says “no daily limit”.

Target. The bar on the right is the profit target. Two-step evaluations show both phase targets. Instant funding programmes have no target, and the gauge says so.

Static, trailing and end-of-day trailing. The drawdown type changes how the floor behaves:

Static: the floor stays where it starts, a fixed percentage below the starting balance.
Trailing: the floor rises as your balance or equity makes new highs, usually until it reaches the starting balance and locks there. The gauge draws a dashed band up to the lock point.
End-of-day trailing: the floor moves only at the daily close, not during the day. The band carries small day-step ticks.

A trailing floor can end your account after a profitable week. That is why the type is drawn on the gauge and not only written in a table.

Futures firms that quote dollars. We convert the dollar amount into a percentage of the named account size and show both. For example, a $2,000 drawdown on a $50,000 account is −4%. The account size is always in the caption.

Values beyond the scale. If a rule falls outside −12% to +12%, it sits at the edge with its true number and a chevron. We never stretch the scale for one firm.

Missing values. We draw only what we have confirmed. “Not published” means the firm does not state the value. “Not checked yet” means we have not verified it. We never draw a guessed value and never show a missing value as zero.

The numbers on the gauge are also written out as text on the same page, in the rules table or the figure line.

What we never do

We do not claim to have traded, passed a challenge or been paid. We have no accounts with the firms we review.
We do not show screenshots of our own dashboards or payout certificates.
We do not accept payment for a review, a ranking or a better grade.
We do not hand-write a grade to suit a page. Every grade comes from the scale above.

How rankings are set

When we rank firms, the order is set by these criteria, in this order:

the evidence grade for payouts;
the profit split as written in the terms, not in the marketing; where the terms offer several splits, we use the one available without extra conditions;
the payout cap per cycle: a cap the firm publishes ranks above one we could not find, because you can plan around a known limit; between published caps, the higher one ranks first;
the cost of one attempt.

The order is fixed before any link to a firm is added to the page. Commission is not a criterion. A firm we earn nothing from can rank first, and a firm we earn from can rank last. How we earn is explained on How we make money.

How often we recheck

Prop firm rules and prices change often, sometimes monthly. Every rule, price and payout cap on the site carries the date we checked it.

We recheck rules and prices every month.
A gauge checked more than 45 days ago is marked “due for recheck”.
A gauge checked more than 90 days ago is hidden and replaced by “Rules not on file” until we recheck it.

Always confirm the current terms on the firm’s own site before you buy.

Corrections and right of reply

If you find a mistake, write to us through the contact page with the page, the claim and a source. If the source holds up, we correct the page and change its updated date. Corrections that change a number, a grade or a ranking are noted on the page.

Firms we review can reply in the same way. We read every reply. We publish a correction when the evidence supports it, and we may add a short note that the firm disputes a point. A reply does not change a grade unless it comes with evidence. More on this in our editorial policy.