Topstep Pricing and Plans: Monthly Fees, Activation Fee, Reset Costs and Refunds

How much does Topstep cost?

The core Topstep cost is the monthly subscription for the Trading Combine evaluation. It renews automatically every 30 days and continues until you pass or cancel. There is no deadline to pass.

The other cost is the activation fee when you pass and start the simulated funded account (XFA). On the Standard plan it is $149 each time you pass; on the No Activation Fee plan it is $0. In exchange, No Activation Fee has a higher monthly price.

• Monthly: 50K is $49 on Standard and $95 on No Activation Fee
• Activation fee: $149 per pass on Standard, $0 on No Activation Fee
• Reset: same price as the monthly fee, and your next billing date moves back 30 days
• All prices are before tax. Local VAT or similar taxes may be added at purchase

The plan cannot be changed after purchase. The figures in this article were checked in the official help center on 2026-11-04. If you pay with a card in another currency, the amount charged depends on your card issuer's conversion rate.

Topstep price list: 3 Trading Combine sizes and 2 plans

The Topstep Trading Combine comes in 3 sizes: 50K, 100K and 150K. Larger sizes cost more per month and have a larger profit target and Maximum Loss Limit (MLL). The table below shows the monthly price and the activation fee charged when you pass.

help.topstep.com/en/articles/14289835-topstep-pricing-and-payment-questions

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Payment methods

Topstep accepts Visa, Mastercard, American Express, Discover, Google Wallet and Apple Pay. PayPal is not accepted. Prepaid and gift cards may be declined, and the card must be in your own name.

See the Topstep sign-up steps and identity verification

Which Topstep plan is cheaper: Standard or No Activation Fee?

The 2 Topstep plans differ in whether you pay more each month or pay a lump sum when you pass. Which is cheaper depends on how many payments you make before passing. Here, payments means monthly fees every 30 days and resets combined.

The math is simple. Standard is monthly fee x payments + $149, and No Activation Fee is monthly fee x payments. The table shows the total cost by size through passing once and activating the XFA.

On 50K, No Activation Fee is cheaper within 3 payments, and Standard becomes cheaper from the 4th. On 100K, No Activation Fee is cheaper within 2 payments; at 3 the gap is $1 and Standard is slightly cheaper. On 150K, No Activation Fee is cheaper within 4 payments, and at 5 they are nearly equal.

3 points to factor in

• The Standard $149 is charged every time you pass. If you lose the XFA and restart from the Combine, you pay it again on the next pass
• You cannot know in advance how many payments it will take to pass. The table is a reference; which plan suits you depends on how often you trade and how many resets you expect
• No Activation Fee gets a monthly discount if you add a DLL at purchase (next section). After the discount, the break-even point moves later

See Topstep profit targets and Maximum Loss Limits by size

How does the Topstep subscription work: renewals, auto-cancel on passing and cancellation

The Topstep Trading Combine is a subscription that renews automatically every 30 days from the purchase date. Billing continues unless you stop it.

• Renews automatically every 30 days. It continues until you pass or cancel, with no deadline to pass
• It cannot be paused. Billing does not stop for months you want off
• When you pass, the subscription for that Combine is canceled automatically
• The payment for the month you pass is neither refunded nor prorated
• Cancellation cannot be undone, and the same Combine cannot be restarted

The Topstep terms of use state that you can cancel at any time through support. Fees already paid are not refunded. The location of a cancel button in the dashboard and the screen steps are not in the official information we checked, so they are Under review.

Even if you hit the MLL and lose funding eligibility, the subscription does not stop. You can keep trading for practice, and you get 1 Reset Credit at the next renewal. If you do not plan to continue, cancel before the renewal date.

How much is a Topstep reset, and what is Back2Funded?

At Topstep, restarting a Combine account from scratch is called a reset. A reset costs the same as the monthly fee: $49 on 50K Standard or $95 on No Activation Fee.

Reset rules

• A reset moves your next billing date back 30 days, so the reset effectively replaces the monthly payment
• Up to 2 resets per account per calendar day
• An account that hits the MLL gets 1 Reset Credit at renewal
• Reset Credits issued on or after 2025-12-11 expire 1 year after issue
• Resets are not refundable

The official list of prohibited conduct also includes buying excessive Combines or resets. No specific threshold is given.

Back2Funded (reactivating an XFA)

Back2Funded is a paid option that restores an XFA lost to a rule violation before your first payout, with the same size and payout conditions. It saves you from retaking the Combine, but it costs much more than a monthly fee: $599 on 50K.

• Available within 30 calendar days of the XFA closure (extended from 7 days to 30 days on 2026-05-29)
• Up to 2 times per XFA
• You can trade from the session after reactivation (sessions start at 5 PM CT)
• Not available during the Focused Trader Plan. The fee is non-refundable

On 50K, the price of 1 Back2Funded would pay for 12 Standard monthly fees or resets. Compare it with retaking the Combine based on how many attempts you expect to need to pass.

See the conditions for payouts from the Topstep XFA

Does Topstep offer a discount? The Responsible Trading Discount for adding a DLL

Responsible Trading Discount (discount for adding a DLL)

If you add a Daily Loss Limit (DLL) when buying a No Activation Fee Combine, the monthly price is discounted. The discount applies every month.

• 50K: $10 off, for $85
• 100K: $20 off, for $129
• 150K: $30 off, for $199
• Back2Funded reactivation: $50 off

Recalculating the break-even with the discounted No Activation Fee, it is cheaper than Standard within 4 payments on 50K and within 4 on 100K. On 150K the monthly price matches Standard at $199, so No Activation Fee is cheaper by the activation fee. Whether the discount also applies to resets is not stated officially and is Under review.

A DLL added at purchase cannot be changed later and carries over to the XFA. Hitting the DLL stops trading for the day (it is not a rule violation). Do not decide on price alone: first check whether a daily loss cap fits your trading.

See the Topstep Daily Loss Limit rules

What other Topstep costs are there? Commissions and data fees

Topstep charges per-trade commissions on top of the monthly fee. On TopstepX, the round-turn commission is $1.00 for minis and $0.50 for micros, plus the NFA fee of $0.02 and exchange fees.

Commissions scale with how often you trade. For example, 10 round turns of ES a day cost $37.80 on their own. For active traders, total commissions can exceed the monthly fee.

Data fees, API and payout fees

• Level 1 market data (4 exchanges): free. Requires a CME non-professional declaration
• Level 2 (order book): $38 per month. Billed on the 28th of each month, not prorated, non-refundable
• TopstepX API: $29 per month. For the Sim environment; not usable in Live
• Wire/SWIFT payout fee: $30 per payout. The method used for international payouts

Costs in the Live Funded Account

If the risk team invites you to the Live Funded Account, costs that did not exist at the simulated stage are added.

• CME professional data: $133 per exchange per month. Topstep covers 1 exchange; for all 4 exchanges, you pay $399 per month
• Round-turn commissions: broker commission $0.72 to $2.04 + exchange fees $2.46 to $4.30. Examples: ES $3.80, NQ $3.80, CL $1.54, GC $4.24
• Platform license fees: at your own cost (amount not stated officially)

See how TopstepX works and the API conditions

How much do Topstep Labs products cost?

Topstep Labs offers limited-time, experimental products separate from the regular Trading Combine. Many are one-time payments, and each product is described as limited in quantity. Check the price and availability on the official page before buying.

Challenge products pay a set amount once when you pass and then close the account; there is no profit split. As of 2026-11-04, the official article lists the $25K and $50K Static, the $250K Freedom and the $1.5K Challenge Powered Up as always available, with up to 5 accounts per month each.

Source: Official help: Topstep Labs

Does Topstep give refunds? The 3 exceptions and how to cancel

Topstep generally does not give refunds. The official help center lists the following 3 exceptions. Each has conditions, and no refund is given if they are not met.

1. 14-day satisfaction guarantee: within 14 calendar days of your first Combine purchase, and if you have not passed yet, up to 1 monthly fee is refunded. First purchase only
2. Forgotten-cancellation renewal: if you have not traded since the renewal, it is within 28 days of the charge, and you have not used the Reset Credit from that renewal
3. Wrong size purchased: reviewed if within 28 days of purchase and you have not traded

Approved refunds go back to the original payment method in 7 to 10 business days. Not refundable: resets, activation fees, Back2Funded, Level 2 data fees and missed promotions.

help.topstep.com/en/articles/8284117-topstep-refund-policies

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What is known about cancelling

Under the Topstep terms of use, you can cancel at any time through support. Support is available by email (help@topstep.com) and chat, and the AI assistant replies in the language you type in. Phone support is English only. Cancelling does not refund fees already paid, and the same Combine cannot be restarted.

The forgotten-cancellation refund requires that you have not traded. If you notice a renewal, contact support before trading in that account so you stay within the condition.

Recent pricing-related changes

Topstep FAQ