Complete Apex Trader Funding Prop Firm Guide

Apex Trader Funding is a futures prop firm founded in 2021 offering funded accounts up to $300K with 100% profit on your first $25,000 in payouts, then 90/10 split. This review covers evaluation rules, pricing, platforms, and trading rules.

Apex Trader Funding is one of the largest proprietary trading firms in the futures space, founded in 2021 by Darrell Martin and headquartered in Austin, Texas¹. The firm has distributed over $660 million in payouts¹⁰ and holds a Trustpilot rating of 4.4 from over 17,000 reviews⁹.

Apex offers evaluation accounts ranging from $25,000 to $300,000². Traders can hold up to 20 accounts simultaneously². The firm supports platforms including Tradovate, Rithmic, NinjaTrader, TradingView, Sierra Chart, and WealthCharts².

Company Overview

Apex Trader Funding operates as one of the most recognized names in futures prop trading¹. Since launching in 2021, the firm has grown through promotional pricing and a straightforward one-step evaluation process¹. The company focuses exclusively on CME futures markets, covering indices, commodities, currencies, interest rates, and crypto futures².

The firm differentiates itself through scale. Traders can manage up to 20 funded accounts at once, and account sizes go up to $300,000².

Evaluation Program

Apex uses a single-step evaluation called the Trading Test². Traders must hit a profit target while staying within drawdown limits over a minimum of 7 trading days².

The evaluation uses an End-of-Day (EOD) trailing drawdown². The maximum loss limit is recalculated based on end-of-day equity rather than intraday peaks, which is more forgiving than intraday trailing drawdowns.

Account sizes and their corresponding requirements²:

$25,000 Account: $1,500 profit target, $1,500 trailing threshold, up to 4 contracts²
$50,000 Account: $3,000 profit target, $2,500 trailing threshold, up to 10 contracts²
$75,000 Account: $4,000 profit target, $2,750 trailing threshold, up to 12 contracts²
$100,000 Account: $6,000 profit target, $3,000 trailing threshold, up to 14 contracts²
$150,000 Account: $8,000 profit target, $3,000 trailing threshold, up to 17 contracts²
$250,000 Account: $12,500 profit target, $3,500 trailing threshold, up to 25 contracts²
$300,000 Account: $15,000 profit target, $4,500 trailing threshold, up to 35 contracts²

Once the trailing threshold reaches the initial account balance, it locks in place and becomes a static maximum loss level².

Profit Split and Payouts

Apex Trader Funding offers a competitive profit split structure⁴:

First $25,000 in payouts: 100% to the trader⁴
Beyond $25,000: 90% to the trader, 10% to Apex⁴

Payout Requirements

Traders can request payouts after meeting the following conditions⁴ ³:

Minimum 8 trading days between payout requests⁴
At least 5 profitable days with $50 or more in profit each³
Minimum withdrawal of $500⁴
First 5 payouts are capped per account size⁴
After the 5th payout, no maximum — traders can withdraw full available profit⁴

Payout processing takes 3-7 business days⁸.

Trading Rules

Apex maintains the following trading rules for Performance Accounts³ ⁵:

All positions must be closed by 4:59 PM ET daily²
No overnight positions allowed²
30% consistency rule: no single trading day can account for more than 30% of total profits at payout request³
30% negative P&L rule: open unrealized losses cannot exceed 30% of start-of-day profit balance⁶
Hedging prohibited — no simultaneous long and short positions on the same or correlated instruments⁵
Copy trading and mirror trading between accounts prohibited⁵
Fully automated trading systems (EAs, bots, AI, HFT) prohibited on funded accounts⁵

The 30% negative P&L limit increases to 50% after your profits exceed double the safety net amount⁶.

Contract limits start at half the maximum allocation on funded accounts⁷. Full contract access is permanently unlocked once end-of-day balance exceeds the trailing threshold⁷.

Supported Platforms

Apex Trader Funding supports the following trading platforms²:

Tradovate: Browser-based and desktop trading
Rithmic: Low-latency execution and data feed
NinjaTrader: Advanced charting and strategy execution
TradingView: Web-based charting with alert capabilities
Sierra Chart: Professional-grade charting and analysis
WealthCharts: Multi-asset charting platform

Automation with TradersPost

Apex Trader Funding accounts can be connected to TradersPost through Tradovate. Traders can send alerts from TradingView or TrendSpider directly to their Apex accounts through TradersPost for automated order execution.

Apex prohibits fully automated trading systems (EAs, bots, AI, algorithms, HFT) on funded accounts⁵. Limited automation tools such as ATM strategies and webhook-based alerts are permitted when the trader maintains active oversight¹¹. Copy trading between accounts is also prohibited⁵.

Traders should verify the current automation policy directly with Apex before using any automated tools on funded accounts.

Comparison to Other Prop Firms

Profit Split: Apex offers 100% on the first $25,000, then 90/10⁴. Topstep offers 90/10 with a $149 activation fee¹².

Activation Fees: Apex charges a one-time activation fee after passing³. Topstep charges a $149 activation fee on the Standard path¹².

Evaluation Structure: Both Apex and Topstep use single-step evaluations. Apex requires 7 minimum trading days².

Account Scale: Apex allows up to 20 accounts², which is more than most competitors.

Pros and Cons

Advantages

100% profit on first $25,000 in payouts per account⁴
Up to 20 funded accounts simultaneously²
Account sizes up to $300,000²
EOD trailing drawdown in evaluation²
Multiple platform options including Tradovate and Rithmic²
Frequent promotional discounts on evaluations

Disadvantages

Activation fee required after passing evaluation³
30% consistency rule applies until payout eligibility³
Contract limits start at half allocation until threshold met⁷
Must close all positions by 4:59 PM ET²
Fully automated bots and copy trading prohibited on funded accounts⁵
First 5 payouts are capped by account size⁴

Conclusion

Apex Trader Funding has established itself as one of the dominant futures prop firms through competitive pricing, generous profit splits, and the ability to scale across 20 accounts². The $25,000 full-profit retention threshold is among the highest in the industry⁴, and the EOD trailing drawdown provides a more forgiving evaluation environment².

Traders should be aware that fully automated systems and copy trading between accounts are prohibited on funded accounts⁵. Verify current rules and pricing directly on the Apex Trader Funding website before purchasing an evaluation.

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