What Is a Prop Firm Account? Meaning, Types and Rules 2026

A prop firm account is a trading account that a proprietary trading firm gives you after you pay a fee and, in most cases, pass an evaluation. You trade futures under fixed rules, mainly a maximum loss and a profit target, and the firm pays you a share of the profits: 80% at Phidias on Express to Live and Fundamental, 90% on a Topstep Express Funded Account.

Updated on 12 November 2026

The account is simulated until the firm moves you to a live account, and your risk is the fee, not the trading loss. Below: what the account is, the types firms sell, and how one works day to day.

What is a prop firm account? The meaning in plain words

A prop firm account is the account a proprietary trading firm lets you trade in exchange for a fee and a profit split. The firm sets the size (25K, 50K, 150K), the loss limit and the profit target. You bring the trading. When you make money within the rules, the firm pays you your share.

A prop firm, short for proprietary trading firm, is the company behind it. In futures, the modern model is simple: you buy an evaluation, prove you can respect a loss limit, then trade a funded account that pays out. Our beginner guide to futures prop firms covers the business model in depth.

What a prop firm account is not: a loan, or, while it is simulated, money you can lose beyond the fee. If the account hits its loss limit, it closes and you do not owe the loss. At Phidias, the rules page puts it in one line:

We bear the risk and share the profits.

Phidias Propfirm rules, section 2, read 12 November 2026 (phidiaspropfirm.com/rules)

The three stages of a prop firm account

Most futures prop firm accounts go through the same stages: evaluation, funded account and, at firms that offer one, a live account. The names change from firm to firm, the logic does not.

• Evaluation: you pay a fee and must reach a profit target without hitting the maximum loss. Topstep calls it the Trading Combine, Bulenox the Qualification account.
• Funded account: once you pass, profits count toward payouts. This account is still simulated: Phidias calls it CASH, Topstep the Express Funded Account.
• LIVE account: real money in the market. Each firm decides when and how you get there.

The Express Funded Account® (XFA) is the simulated funded-level account you earn after passing your Trading Combine.

Topstep Help Center, Express Funded Account parameters, read 12 November 2026 (help.topstep.com)

Apex says the same in its footer: all activity occurs in a simulated environment using virtual funds. The payouts are real; the funded balance is not. We go firm by firm in do prop firms use real money.

Evaluation

Pay a fee, hit a profit target without touching the maximum loss

→

Funded account

Simulated, same kind of rules, profits now count toward payouts

→

Payout

The firm pays your share: 80% on Phidias Express to Live and Fundamental, 90% on a Topstep Express Funded Account

→

LIVE account

Real money in the market, on the firm's terms

Which account types do prop firms sell?

Prop firms sell the same ladder with different rules, and the rules are what you are really buying. Five choices separate one account from another:

• The drawdown: static (the floor never moves), end-of-day trailing (it rises with your closes) or intraday trailing (it follows your open profit). Apex uses an intraday trailing drawdown of $2,000 on its 50K intraday evaluation, before a funded Performance Account; Topstep’s $2,000 maximum loss limit on the 50K trails the end-of-day balance and locks once it reaches the starting balance.
• Minimum days: from none to 3 or more before you can pass.
• Consistency: a cap on how much of your profit one day can represent.
• Overnight holding: most intraday accounts force you flat before the close.
• The payment model: a monthly subscription plus an activation fee when you pass, or one payment.

Some firms make you pick at checkout. Bulenox sells three account types (Qualification, Fast Track, Momentum) and two drawdown models:

This choice is locked for the life of the account.

Bulenox, Accounts and Pricing, read 12 November 2026 (bulenox.com)

On cost, the activation fee is the line to read. A Bulenox 50K Qualification costs $175 (trailing option, price displayed on 12 November 2026), then the Master account needs a separate one-time activation fee of $148: $323 in total. The full cost breakdown is in our funded trading account guide.

The account types at Phidias in 2026

Phidias sells three account families: Express to Live, Fundamental and Premium. Express to Live replaced the old Static account and Premium replaced the old Swing account, so a page that still lists Static or Swing is out of date.

Express to Live: the static prop firm account

Express to Live comes in 25K, 50K, 100K and 150K, with a static drawdown that never trails: $500, $650, $800 and $1,000. On a 25K the account is liquidated at $24,500 and that line never moves. There are no minimum days, no consistency rule and no daily loss limit (no Phidias family has one).

E2L accounts have no profit consistency rule and no daily loss limit.

Phidias Propfirm rules, section 10, read 12 November 2026 (phidiaspropfirm.com/rules)

You reach the target on the evaluation ($1,500 on a 25K), then again on the CASH account. The Switch to Live step then credits a fixed bonus at 80/20 ($1,000 on a 25K, so $800 to you), adds a $500 LIVE credit, and the first payout converts the account to a LIVE account. More on the drawdown type in our static drawdown prop firms guide.

Fundamental and Premium

Fundamental is the classic intraday account: 50K, 100K or 150K, an end-of-day trailing drawdown of $2,500, $3,000 or $4,500, a profit target of $4,000, $6,000 or $9,000, 3 minimum days to pass and an 80/20 split. Premium keeps the same drawdowns and targets but needs 1 minimum day, allows overnight and over-week holds, pays every 5 trading days and moves the split from 75% to 100% from the 5th payout.

Phidias account	Sizes	Drawdown	Min. days to pass	Consistency	Overnight	Split	Path to LIVE
Express to Live	25K to 150K	Static, never trails	None	None	Not permitted	80/20	First payout converts it
Fundamental	50K to 150K	EOD trailing	3	30% on CASH	Not permitted	80/20	Risk team review
Premium	50K to 150K	EOD trailing	1	30% on CASH	Allowed	75% rising to 100%	Risk team review

Compare the three Phidias accounts

How a prop firm account works day to day

Day to day, a prop firm account is a loss limit you trade around. Everything else (contracts, hours, news) is secondary to one number: the balance at which the firm closes your account.

On a 50K Fundamental, that number starts at $47,500. It is recalculated only at the close: end the day at $50,500 and the floor moves to $48,000. During the session it does not move, whatever your open profit does.

Your liquidation price remains fixed for the day.

Phidias Propfirm rules, section 4, read 12 November 2026 (phidiaspropfirm.com/rules)

On the funded account, that trailing stops at $50,100 on a 50K. On Express to Live there is nothing to recalculate: the floor is static from the first trade.

• Hours: Fundamental and Express to Live positions are closed before the end of the day; on Fundamental, by 9:59 PM UTC. Premium can hold overnight.
• Size: a maximum number of contracts per account, for example 2 E-mini on a 25K Express to Live and 10 E-mini on a 50K Fundamental.
• News: allowed on every Phidias account.
• Consistency: on Fundamental and Premium CASH accounts, no single day can exceed 30% of total profit. None on Express to Live.

How you get paid from a prop firm account

You get paid by requesting a payout once the funded account meets the firm’s conditions, and the firm keeps its share. At Phidias, the conditions depend on the family.

• Fundamental: 10 trading days between payouts, a trading day counts only from $150 of profit on a 50K, $500 minimum, up to $2,000 per period on a 50K ($2,500 on a 100K, $2,750 on a 150K), 80/20 split.
• Premium: a payout every 5 trading days, same caps, split 75% then 80%, 85%, 90% and 100% from the 5th payout.
• Express to Live: no payout request. Once the target is reached on CASH, the Switch to Live step credits the fixed bonus to your Phidias Wallet at 80/20 and converts the account to LIVE.

Speed is where firms really differ. 90% of Phidias payouts are processed in under 30 minutes, and all of them within 24 hours. On Express to Live, a payout on day 1 is possible on every size: our record from purchase to payout is 6 hours 18 minutes.

Eligibility differs too. Topstep’s standard payout path asks for 5 winning days of $150 or more; its Consistency path asks for 3 trading days with no day above 40% of the profit.

With several accounts, each one pays separately: you can withdraw up to the maximum from each account in each period. More than 50,000 traders have been funded at Phidias.

When a prop firm account becomes a live account

A prop firm account becomes live when the firm moves you from the simulated funded account to a real brokerage account. Each firm sets its own trigger.

• Phidias Express to Live: the first payout converts the account to LIVE. It is a product rule, written in the account rules.
• Phidias Fundamental and Premium: you become eligible for review after 5 successful payouts or $100,000 in cumulative profits across all accounts. The decision belongs to the risk team; the old threshold of 3 payouts or $75,000 is deprecated.
• Topstep: a call-up to the Live Funded Account, and all Express Funded Accounts close. Of the balance that transfers, 20% is available to trade immediately and 80% is held in reserve.

On a Phidias LIVE account, the split is 80/20 for everyone and payouts are available every day, with no maximum. That includes Premium traders who were at 100% on CASH.

Start with Express to Live

Managing several prop firm accounts

Most traders who scale do it by adding accounts, not by waiting for one account to grow. At Phidias you can run up to 5 accounts per family at the same time: 5 Express to Live, 5 Fundamental and 5 Premium, so 15 in total, and unlimited evaluation accounts. Topstep allows up to 5 active Express Funded Accounts.

Three rules make account management simple. Payout caps apply per account, so five 50K Fundamental accounts can each pay up to $2,000 in the same period. Copy trading is allowed within those limits, with third-party software at your own risk. And a 150K Fundamental or Premium CASH account counts as two slots; a 150K Express to Live counts as one.

Payouts from your CASH accounts land in the same Phidias Wallet, where you can withdraw to Rise or buy new evaluations; LIVE profits go straight to Rise.

Which Phidias account fits the way you trade?

↓

You want the fastest payout

Express to Live

Static drawdown, no minimum days, no consistency rule, payout on day 1 possible

↓

You day trade with a wider stop

Fundamental

EOD trailing drawdown of $2,500 on a 50K, 80/20 split

↓

You hold overnight

Premium

Overnight and over-week holds, payouts every 5 trading days, split rising to 100%

Is a prop firm account worth it?

A prop firm account is worth it if your strategy fits its rules, because the rules decide whether you get paid. The fee replaces the capital you would need to trade the same size on a personal account, and you never owe a loss made on the simulated accounts. The price is the rule set and the share the firm keeps.

Read three lines before you buy: the drawdown type (a floor that trails your closes leaves less room after every winning day), the conditions before the first payout (minimum days, consistency) and the path to LIVE (a rule, or a review). If you fail, our guide to what happens if you lose prop firm money explains what you owe on a simulated account: nothing beyond the fee. For a wider view, see are prop firms worth it.

Test: which prop firm account fits you?

Four questions on your payout timing, overnight holding, loss limit and trading days. The result points to one of the three Phidias families and the rules behind it: the drawdown type, the minimum days and the moment the account can become LIVE. It runs in your browser, with no email to give.

Prop firm account: frequently asked questions

What is a prop firm account?

A prop firm account is a trading account that a proprietary trading firm gives you after you pay a fee and, in most cases, pass an evaluation. You trade futures under fixed rules, such as a maximum loss and a profit target, and the firm pays you a share of the profits: 80% at Phidias on Express to Live and Fundamental, 90% on a Topstep Express Funded Account.

Is a prop firm account real money?

Not at first. At Topstep, Apex and Phidias, the funded account is simulated: Topstep calls its Express Funded Account a simulated funded-level account, Apex says all activity occurs in a simulated environment, and Phidias CASH accounts are simulated. The payouts are real. Real money enters when the account becomes LIVE: on Phidias Express to Live, the first payout converts the account to a LIVE account.

What types of prop firm accounts are there?

Most firms sell an evaluation that leads to a simulated funded account, then a live account on their terms. They differ on the drawdown (static, end-of-day trailing or intraday trailing), the minimum days, the consistency rule, overnight holding and the payment model (monthly subscription plus activation fee, or one payment). Phidias sells three families: Express to Live, Fundamental and Premium.

How does a prop firm account work day to day?

You trade inside a loss limit that the firm checks in real time. On a 50K Fundamental at Phidias, the account is liquidated if the balance reaches $47,500 on day one; the floor is recalculated only at the close, and positions are closed before the end of the day. On Express to Live the floor is static: $24,500 on a 25K, whatever the balance does.

How do you get paid from a prop firm account?

You request a payout once the account meets the firm’s conditions. On Phidias Fundamental: 10 trading days between payouts, $500 minimum, up to $2,000 per period on a 50K, at 80/20. On Express to Live, reaching the target on the CASH account credits a fixed bonus to your Phidias Wallet at 80/20 and converts the account to LIVE. 90% of Phidias payouts are processed in under 30 minutes.

Can you lose more than you pay for a prop firm account?

On the simulated accounts, no: your cost is the fee you paid, plus any activation fee or reset you choose to buy. If the account hits its loss limit, it is closed and you do not owe the trading loss. At Phidias the rules sum it up as: we bear the risk and share the profits.

How many prop firm accounts can you have?

It depends on the firm. At Phidias you can run up to 5 accounts per family at once, so 15 in total across Express to Live, Fundamental and Premium, with unlimited evaluation accounts. Topstep allows up to 5 active Express Funded Accounts.

Risk disclosure: trading futures involves substantial risk of loss and is not suitable for every investor. Phidias CASH accounts are simulated until they are converted to LIVE. Competitor rules and prices were read on their websites and help centers as of November 2026 and can change; check the firm’s own pages before buying. Nothing here is investment, tax or legal advice.