Apex Trader Funding Rules (Drawdown, 50% Consistency, Prohibited Activities)
- The new Apex Trader Funding evaluation has 2 rules to follow: hit the profit target and stay above the maximum drawdown (EOD also has a daily loss limit). There is no minimum number of trading days, no consistency rule during the evaluation, and you have 30 days from purchase (checked 2026-11-04).
- The 50% consistency rule applies only to PA payouts. The 30%, 5:1, MAE and 7-day minimum rules belong to Legacy and are not used on the new products.
- Close all positions by 4:59 PM ET. Hedging, automated trading and trading without a stop are prohibited.
What are the Apex Trader Funding evaluation rules? 2 numbers and a 30-day limit
On the new Apex Trader Funding products (from 2026-03-01), you pass the evaluation by reaching the profit target without touching the maximum drawdown (DD). The EOD Trail evaluation adds a daily loss limit (DLL). There is no minimum number of trading days, so you can pass in 1 day. There is also no consistency rule and no scaling during the evaluation.
The evaluation is a one-time payment and lasts 30 calendar days from purchase. It expires at 6:00 PM ET on Day 30, with no extensions or resets.
| Item | 25K | 50K | 100K | 150K |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Profit target | $1,500 | $3,000 | $6,000 | $9,000 |
| Max DD (Intraday and EOD) | $1,000 | $2,000 | $3,000 | $4,000 |
| DLL (Intraday) | None | None | None | None |
| DLL (EOD, fixed) | $500 | $1,000 | $1,500 | $2,000 |
| Max contracts | 4 mini / 40 micro | 6 / 60 | 8 / 80 | 12 / 120 |
| Time limit | 30 calendar days | 30 calendar days | 30 calendar days | 30 calendar days |
Hitting the EOD DLL does not fail you. It only stops trading for that day. The trading day rolls over at 6:00 PM ET, and you can resume on the next trading day.
Sources for this section (5)
Source: Official site / Official site 2 / Official site 3 / Official site 4 / Official site: Daily loss limit
How does the Apex Trader Funding drawdown work? (Intraday Trail vs. EOD Trail)
The Apex Trader Funding maximum drawdown is a threshold that rises as your balance grows and never moves down. If your balance touches it, the evaluation fails or the PA closes. Intraday Trail and EOD Trail differ in when the threshold is recalculated.
Intraday Trail: follows your peak balance including open profit
With Intraday Trail, the threshold sits a fixed amount below your peak balance including open profit. When open profit grows during a trade, the threshold rises with it, and it does not reset each day. If you touch it, all positions are closed and you fail.
In a 50K example, the starting threshold is $48,000. If your balance including open profit reaches $51,000 during a trade, the threshold stays at $49,000 even if you give back the profit before closing.
EOD Trail: recalculated at the 4:59:59 PM ET close
With EOD Trail, the threshold is recalculated at the close at 4:59:59 PM ET each trading day. The threshold is your highest closing balance minus the DD amount. Open profit during the day does not raise it.
However, the recalculated threshold applies in real time during the next session. As with Intraday, touching it with an open loss still fails you.
Whether the threshold stops during the evaluation depends on the platform
On Rithmic and WealthCharts evaluations, the threshold locks once it reaches a certain level. In the official example for 50K, it locks when the threshold reaches $53,000 (the balance at the profit target). On Tradovate evaluations, the threshold does not lock and keeps trailing until the deadline.
The official text is inconsistent about where it locks. The example in the Intraday Trail drawdown article says it locks at a $53,000 threshold for 50K, while the FAQ in the same article says "Profit Target Balance + $2,000." Apex does not say which is correct, so this page lists both.
On the PA, it stops at "starting balance + $100"
On the PA, trailing stops once the threshold reaches the starting balance + $100. On a 50K PA, the threshold locks at $50,100 once your peak balance reaches $52,100. The structure is the same for Intraday PA and EOD PA.
1Sources for this section (6)
Source: Official site / Official site 2 / Official site 3 / Official site 4 / Official site 5 / Official site 6
Does Apex Trader Funding have a consistency rule? 50%, at payout only
On the new Apex Trader Funding products, the consistency rule applies only to PA payouts. Evaluations do not have it. To request a payout, your best day must be under 50% of your net profit since the last approved payout.
Not meeting it does not fail you or close the account. The request button just does not appear. A rough guide to the net profit you need is best day / 0.5, and the calculation resets after each approval.
The 30% consistency rule is a Legacy PA rule (the Windfall rule). If you hold a new PA, look at the 50% condition. The idea behind consistency rules is the same across firms; what differs is whether a firm applies it during the evaluation or at payout.
See Apex Trader Funding payout conditions and a 50% consistency example
Sources for this section (3)
Source: Official site: Consistency / Official site / Official site: Payouts
What are the Apex Trader Funding PA rules? (Scaling and DLL)
On an Apex Trader Funding PA (sim funded account), maximum contracts are smaller than in the evaluation, and contracts and the DLL widen in steps as you make profit. Your profit at the previous close (4:59:59 PM ET) sets the next session maximum contracts and DLL, and they do not change during the session.
| PA | Profit range → max contracts / DLL |
|---|---|
| 25K | $0-999: 1 contract/$500 → $1,000-1,999: 2 contracts/$500 → $2,000 or more: 2 contracts/$1,250 |
| 50K | $0-1,499: 2 contracts/$1,000 → $1,500-2,999: 3 contracts/$1,000 → $3,000-5,999: 4 contracts/$2,000 → $6,000 or more: 4 contracts/$3,000 |
| 100K | $0-1,999: 3 contracts/$1,750 → $2,000-2,999: 4 contracts/$1,750 → $3,000-4,999: 5 contracts/$1,750 → $5,000-9,999: 6 contracts/$2,500 → $10,000 or more: 6 contracts/$3,500 |
| 150K | $0-1,999: 4 contracts/$2,500 → $2,000-2,999: 5 contracts/$2,500 → $3,000-4,999: 7 contracts/$2,500 → $5,000-9,999: 10 contracts/$3,000 → $10,000 or more: 10 contracts/$4,000 |
- Max DD is $1,000 for 25K, $2,000 for 50K, $3,000 for 100K and $4,000 for 150K (same as the evaluation)
- You never drop below level 1
- 10 micro count as 1 mini
- Orders over the limit are rejected automatically (no penalty)
- The DLL is checked in real time including open losses. If you hit it, everything is closed and trading stops for the day; the account stays open and resumes at 6 PM ET
- There are no resets on a PA
For the PA drawdown type, Intraday PA trails intraday and EOD PA uses EOD.
Sources for this section (5)
Source: Official site: Scaling / Official site: Daily loss limit / Official site / Official site 2 / Apex Trader Funding official site
Apex Trader Funding inactivity policy and account limits
A new Apex Trader Funding PA closes if you leave it untraded. On a rolling 30 calendar day basis, you need at least 2 trading days with $50 or more in net profit.
- Notices are sent on day 15 and day 20
- The account closes on day 30. It cannot be restored, and you lose payout eligibility
- A new PA counts the purchase date as Day 1
- The same policy applies to resold Legacy accounts bought on or after 2026-03-01
- Legacy PAs bought before 2026-03-01 need 1 day with $150 or more in net profit within 30 calendar days
Account limits
There is no limit on evaluation accounts. PAs are limited to 20 per household in total, counting Legacy, EOD and Intraday together. The official text says exceeding 20 accounts can lead to forfeiture of all funds, closure of all PAs and a permanent ban.
You can have up to 1 individual and 1 business user account. Creating an account in the name of another person in your household to get around the limit is also prohibited.
Sources for this section (4)
Source: Official site / Official site 2 / Official site 3 / Official site 4
What are the Apex Trader Funding trading hours? No overnight holding
An Apex Trader Funding trading day runs from 6:00 PM ET to 4:59 PM ET the next day, up to about 23 hours. You must close all positions by 4:59 PM ET, and that is your responsibility. Official times are given in US Eastern Time (ET).
| Time (ET) | What happens |
|---|---|
| 6:00 PM | Trading day starts. The EOD DLL and PA DLL also reset here |
| 2:05 PM | Close-out deadline for HE, LE, GF |
| 2:20 PM | Close-out deadline for ZC, ZW, ZS, ZM, ZL |
| 4:59 PM | Close-out deadline for all other positions. The 4:59:59 PM close sets the EOD threshold and pass/fail |
Holding through the close (overnight) and over the weekend is not allowed. It is a prohibited activity, and violations can lead to forfeiture of the account and balance. Plan your trading so that no position is left open at the deadline.
CME trading hours and US daylight saving time dates are the same for every firm. What to watch for at Apex is that agricultural close-out deadlines are earlier than for other products.
Sources for this section (3)
Source: Official site / Official site: Prohibited conduct / Official site 2
What is prohibited at Apex Trader Funding, and what happens if you break a rule?
Apex Trader Funding lists prohibited activities in its help center article on prohibited activities. The main items are below.
Hedging
Hedging is not allowed at all. Opposite positions in the same or correlated instruments (mini and micro, ES and YM, NQ and ES, and so on), opposite positions across your own accounts, and opposite positions with people in your household or related parties are all prohibited. Violations close the PA.
News trading
You can still trade your normal strategy during economic releases. What is prohibited is a "news trading strategy" that chases the market or places orders on both sides before a release to bet on the outcome.
Automated and algorithmic trading, HFT
Automated trading and algorithms are not allowed. HFT (high-frequency trading) is also prohibited as manipulation or abuse of the sim environment. Non-directional trading with brackets on both sides is treated the same way.
Other prohibited activities
- Trading without a stop
- Small take-profits combined with oversized stop-losses (the official example is a 5 tick target with a 150 tick stop)
- Using the drawdown threshold as a stop
- Buying discounted evaluations in bulk and using them as throwaway accounts
- Masking your identity or location with a VPN, proxy or cloud server
- Sharing accounts or holding multiple user accounts
- Copy trading with other traders (copying in the same direction between PAs in your own name is allowed)
What happens after a violation
If Apex finds a violation, it may move you to Trader Probation, close accounts, forfeit balances or ban you. Violations also cause payout requests to fail, so the payout page covers the same items.
See why Apex Trader Funding payouts are denied
Sources for this section (3)
Source: Official site: Prohibited conduct / Official site: Hedging / Official site
What are the Apex Trader Funding Legacy rules? (Old products)
Apex Trader Funding Legacy refers to the old products whose regular sale ended on 2026-03-01. They are now being resold for a limited time. Legacy accounts bought before 2026-03-01 keep their original rules with no retroactive changes.
| Size | Profit target | Trailing DD | Max contracts |
|---|---|---|---|
| 25K | $1,500 | $1,500 | 4 (40 micro) |
| 50K | $3,000 | $2,500 | 10 (100 micro) |
| 100K | $6,000 | $3,000 | 14 (140 micro) |
| 150K | $9,000 | $5,000 | 17 (170 micro) |
| 250K | $15,000 | $6,500 | 27 (270 micro) |
| 300K | $20,000 | $7,500 | 35 (350 micro) |
Legacy evaluation
- Minimum of 7 trading days (not necessarily consecutive; the text also mentions an exception allowing a pass in 1 day)
- No DLL and no scaling during the evaluation
- Trailing follows your peak balance including open profit. During the evaluation, Rithmic and WealthCharts stop at the profit target balance; Tradovate does not stop
- The old lineup also included 100K Static (2 mini, DD $625)
Legacy PA
- You can use only half of maximum contracts until trailing stops
- 30% Negative P&L (MAE): open loss is limited to 30% of the profit balance at the start of the day, or 50% once you reach 2 times the Safety Net
- 5:1 risk-reward: your stop must be within 5 times your profit target
- One Direction: one direction at a time only. Non-directional strategies with orders on both sides are prohibited
- 30% consistency (Windfall): until the 6th payout or a move to Live
The new products dropped the 5:1 risk-reward and MAE rules. "7-day minimum," "5:1," "MAE 30%" and "30% consistency" are all Legacy rules. You can hold new and Legacy products at the same time, but you cannot convert Legacy to the new products.
Compare Apex Trader Funding new and Legacy prices
Sources for this section (6)
Source: Official site / Official site 2 / Official site: Payouts / Official site 3 / Official site 4 / Official site 5
Apex Trader Funding rule change history
Apex Trader Funding updates its help articles often, and rule articles were rewritten again in fall 2026. The main changes and article update dates are below.
| Date | Change |
|---|---|
| 2026-03-01 | New products (Intraday / EOD) launched. One-time payment, 30 days, no resets. MAE and 5:1 dropped. Old products became Legacy |
| From 2026-03-01 | New inactivity policy for new PAs and resold Legacy (2 days with $50 or more in 30 days) |
| 2026-04-20 | Trading hours article updated |
| 2026-07-31 | Prohibited activities article and Legacy PA rules article updated |
| 2026-10-15 | Legacy evaluation rules article updated |
| 2026-10-21 | Hedging and correlated instruments article updated |
The figures on this page were checked in the Apex official help center on 2026-11-04. Before you trade, confirm the latest official rules for the product you bought (new or Legacy) and your platform.
See how to choose an Apex Trader Funding platform
Sources for this section (7)
Source: Official site / Official site 2 / Official site 3 / Official site: Prohibited conduct / Official site 4 / Official site 5 / Official site: Hedging
Apex Trader Funding FAQ
Does the Apex Trader Funding evaluation have a minimum number of trading days?
What percentage is the Apex Trader Funding consistency rule?
Is it true the Apex Trader Funding drawdown never stops on Tradovate?
During the evaluation, yes. On Rithmic and WealthCharts evaluations the threshold locks at a certain level, but on Tradovate evaluations it does not lock and keeps trailing. The official text is inconsistent about where it locks: the drawdown article example says $53,000 for 50K, and the FAQ in the same article says "Profit Target Balance + $2,000." On the PA, it stops at the starting balance + $100 on every platform.
Does Apex Trader Funding have a daily loss limit (DLL)?
Can you hold positions overnight or over the weekend at Apex Trader Funding?
Can you use automated trading or hedging at Apex Trader Funding?
What happens if you do not trade an Apex Trader Funding PA?
A new PA closes on day 30 if it does not have at least 2 trading days with $50 or more in net profit in the last 30 calendar days, and it cannot be restored. Notices are sent on day 15 and day 20.