Funding Traders vs FTMO 2026 — Full Comparison: Rules, Drawdown & Pass Probability

Funding Traders vs FTMO — Full Comparison 2026

One firm has been around since 2015 and has 43,000 Trustpilot reviews. The other launched in 2022 and has a 100% profit split on its 1-Step model. FTMO is the benchmark every other prop firm measures itself against — not because it's the cheapest or the most generous, but because 11 years of consistent payouts and clear rules have built a track record nobody else in the industry can match yet. Funding Traders counters with a lineup that covers more ground — PRO6, PRO10, 1-Step, Instant Funding and a 2-Step Swing model — and a 100% profit split that FTMO's standard models don't offer. Both are worth understanding before you decide.

Full FTMO Review — Full Funding Traders Review

Quick Comparison Table

Profit Targets

FTMO

▪ 2-Step Challenge: Phase 1: 10%, Phase 2: 5% — $10K–$200K, from $89

▪ 1-Step Challenge: 10% — $10K–$200K, from $79, 90% profit split

View all FTMO challenges & prices

Funding Traders

▪ 2-Step PRO6: Phase 1: 6%, Phase 2: 6% — $10K–$200K, from $49, 100% split

▪ 2-Step PRO10: Phase 1: 10%, Phase 2: 5% — $10K–$200K, from $69, 100% split

▪ 1-Step PRO: 10% — $10K–$200K, from $49, 90-100% split

▪ Instant Funding: no target — from $99, 90-100% split

▪ 2-Step Swing: Phase 1: 6%, Phase 2: 6% — $10K–$200K, from $69, 80% split

View all Funding Traders challenges & prices

Funding Traders wins on model variety and profit split — five distinct programs, 100% split on PRO models, and a PRO6 with twin 6% targets that's more accessible than FTMO's 10%/5% structure. FTMO keeps it simpler — two models, well-documented, no surprises. The FTMO 2-Step at $89 for a $10K account is competitively priced given the track record behind it. Funding Traders' PRO6 at $49 is the more affordable entry point with a more forgiving 6% phase target.

🏆 Winner: Funding Traders

Drawdown & Risk Rules

FTMO

Funding Traders

Both firms offer static drawdown on their standard 2-Step models — predictable and easy to plan around. FTMO's 1-Step uses trailing drawdown, as does Funding Traders' 1-Step PRO. The Funding Traders Instant Funding trailing drawdown that locks after 3% profit is the tightest mechanism in this comparison — once your floor locks in, it's permanently higher than your starting balance regardless of what happens next. The 2-Step Swing at 6%/12% static is the most generous drawdown structure in this comparison by a significant margin.

🏆 Winner: Draw

News Trading

FTMO

▪ Evaluation accounts: fully allowed on both models

▪ Standard funded accounts: restricted — no trading 2 minutes before or after high-impact news

▪ Swing funded accounts: fully allowed — no restrictions

Funding Traders

▪ PRO6/PRO10/1-Step PRO funded: allowed — but news-influenced profits must not exceed 30% of total PnL

▪ Trades held 5+ hours before news release: exempt from the 30% rule

▪ Any position opened, held or closed within 5 minutes of news counts as a news trade

▪ Instant Funding: restricted — no trading 10 minutes before or after high-impact news

Neither firm gives news traders a completely free hand on funded accounts. FTMO's 2-minute window is tighter and simpler — you either comply or you don't. Funding Traders' 30% PnL cap is more nuanced and arguably more dangerous: you can trade the news, make consistent profits from it, and still have your payout delayed because too much of your total profit came from news trades. The Swing account at FTMO is the only fully unrestricted news trading option in this comparison on a funded account.

🏆 Winner: Draw

Weekend Holding

FTMO

▪ Swing accounts: fully allowed

▪ Standard accounts: allowed — with standard warnings about widened spreads

Funding Traders

▪ PRO6/PRO10/1-Step PRO: allowed — with warnings about widened spreads and swap rates

▪ Instant Funding: not allowed — all trades must be closed by market close on Friday

▪ 2-Step Swing: fully allowed

Both firms allow weekend holding on their standard evaluation models. Neither imposes restrictions beyond the standard spread and swap warnings — which are market realities, not firm-specific rules. Swing traders are comfortable at either firm, with the caveat that Funding Traders' Instant Funding forces Friday closure.

🏆 Winner: Draw

Expert Advisors

FTMO

▪ EAs allowed — maximum 2,000 server requests per day

▪ Popular third-party EAs: risk of hitting $400K aggregate cap across multiple users — may trigger suspension through no fault of your own

▪ Switching between EA and manual trading between challenge and funded account: not allowed

▪ HFT and arbitrage EAs: forbidden

Funding Traders

▪ EAs allowed — risk management purposes only

▪ Off-the-shelf bots: forbidden

▪ Grid, hedge, martingale, arbitrage EAs: forbidden

▪ HFT: not allowed — defined as trades lasting 15 seconds or less

▪ Volume-Weighted Average Holding Time below 2 minutes: account termination

Both firms allow EAs the way some restaurants allow outside food — technically yes, but only under very specific conditions that eliminate most of what you'd actually want to bring.

FTMO's EA policy is broader — "allowed" with specific technical limits. Funding Traders' "risk management only" definition is the most restrictive in this comparison and excludes most automated strategies beyond basic stop management. If your EA does anything beyond managing stops and position sizing, FTMO is the safer choice.

🏆 Winner: FTMO

Copy Trading

FTMO

▪ Between own FTMO accounts: allowed — subject to $400K aggregate cap

▪ From third parties: strictly prohibited

▪ Coordinating trades with other users: not allowed

Funding Traders

▪ Between own Funding Traders accounts: allowed

▪ Sharing signals or copying to outside accounts: prohibited

Both firms allow copy trading between your own accounts and prohibit external signal services. Standard across the industry — nothing to separate them here.

🏆 Winner: Draw

Payouts

FTMO

▪ Profit split: 80% on 2-Step, 90% on 1-Step

▪ Scaling: up to $400K standard, $600K Prime, $1M Supreme Prime

▪ FTMO Points system — failed challenge fees converted to points, reusable for future purchases

▪ 14-day withdrawal right if no trade opened

Funding Traders

▪ Profit split: 80-90% default, 100% with add-on depending on model

▪ Payout frequency: every 14-21 days, minimum $200

▪ Scaling: up to $2,000,000

▪ First 3% profit on Instant Funding: non-withdrawable — serves as drawdown buffer

▪ Payout denied if account breaches within 48 hours of payout request — amount credited back, not paid

▪ Risk Management Group can affect payouts at any time, including during active requests

Funding Traders wins on profit split ceiling and scaling potential — 100% split and $2M max allocation vs FTMO's 90% and $1M with Supreme Prime. FTMO counters with the FTMO Points system — which softens the financial blow of a failed challenge in a way Funding Traders doesn't offer. The 48-hour breach rule at Funding Traders is the detail most traders miss — a breach within two days of your withdrawal request means the payout doesn't happen and the amount goes back to your balance.

🏆 Winner: Funding Traders

Risk Management Group — Funding Traders Only

Funding Traders operates a Risk Management Group that can be triggered at any time — including during active payout requests. Criteria include:

▪ Risking 2% or more per trade idea

▪ All-or-nothing approaches

▪ Excessive leverage or max lot usage

▪ Speculative news trading

▪ Extreme scalping or inconsistent trade durations

▪ Risking across multiple accounts to exploit the system

Being placed in the RMG can result in payouts being withheld while an assessment is completed — and you are required to participate in interviews and answer questions about your strategy fully and promptly. Unlike Hantec Trader's RMG which restricts leverage as a second chance, Funding Traders' RMG is primarily an investigation mechanism that can delay payouts without prior notice.

Forbidden Trading Practices

Funding Traders' Volume-Weighted Average Holding Time below 2 minutes triggering immediate termination is the most specific enforcement mechanism in this comparison. It's more precise than FTMO's discretionary framework — but also more automatic. You don't get a warning. You get terminated.

Comparing FTMO and Funding Traders is a bit like comparing a law firm with 11 years of case history to a newer practice that offers better billing rates. The newer one might actually be better value for the right client. The older one has a track record that answers questions before you have to ask them.

Pass Probability Analysis

FTMO at 37%, Funding Traders at 31%. A meaningful gap given that both firms offer comparable challenge structures at similar price points. Check FTMO trader reviews and Funding Traders trader reviews for first-hand pass experience.

FTMO — by model:

▪ 2-Step Challenge: highest probability — 10%/5% targets with static drawdown, no time limit, most predictable structure

▪ 1-Step Challenge: lower — 10% single-phase target with trailing drawdown and tighter 3% daily limit

Funding Traders — by model:

▪ 2-Step PRO10: highest probability — 10%/5% with generous static drawdown

▪ 2-Step PRO6: moderate — twin 6% targets, tight 3%/6% drawdown limits leave little room for variance

▪ 1-Step PRO: lower — trailing drawdown with 50% best day consistency rule on funded accounts

▪ Instant Funding: lowest — 15% best day consistency rule, 1% floating PnL cap, VWAHT enforcement

The PRO6's combination of 3% daily and 6% max drawdown is the tightest standard evaluation structure in this comparison — tighter than FTMO's 2-Step despite the lower 6% profit target. Traders who have a bad day early on in a PRO6 will feel it significantly more than in an FTMO 2-Step.

🏆 Winner: FTMO

Difficulty Score

FTMO scores easier overall — static drawdown on the 2-Step, no consistency rules, broader EA policy and a news restriction that's simpler to comply with than Funding Traders' 30% PnL cap. Funding Traders scores harder because of the VWAHT enforcement, the IF 15% best day rule, the RMG mechanism that can delay payouts without notice, and the 48-hour breach rule on withdrawal requests.

Best For Each Trading Style

Final Score

Final Verdict

FTMO wins this comparison — and not by a narrow margin.

The track record is the decisive factor. 43,037 Trustpilot reviews at 4.8/5 with 92% five-star is not a marketing number — it's 11 years of consistent payouts, documented rules and a community large enough that virtually every trading scenario has already been experienced and discussed publicly. The Hidden Rules Meter of 1.7/10 — lowest in the industry — reflects a ruleset that's written where you can find it before you pay for a challenge.

Funding Traders has real advantages that matter for specific traders. The 100% profit split on PRO models is the highest available in this comparison. The $2M scaling ceiling is double FTMO's standard cap. The PRO6 entry at $49 is the most accessible challenge in this comparison. And the five-model lineup covers trading styles — particularly swing trading — that FTMO's two-model structure doesn't specifically cater to.

The rules worth reading twice on each side: FTMO's strategy switching prohibition between EA and manual trading — if you pass with an EA and want to trade manually on the funded account, that's a violation. Funding Traders' 48-hour breach rule — if your account hits its limit within two days of a withdrawal request, the payout doesn't go through and the amount is credited back to your balance, not paid. Both rules are enforced automatically. Neither is obvious from the homepage.

The 22% one-star rate on Funding Traders' Trustpilot profile across 3,301 reviews is the number worth paying attention to. It's more than three times FTMO's 3% one-star rate and significantly above the industry average for a firm in this category. Most negative reviews cite payout issues and account terminations. Not a dealbreaker on its own — but worth factoring in alongside the rest of the data before you commit.

Current Offers

▪ FTMO Offers & Discounts

▪ Funding Traders Offers & Discounts