- Topstep is a futures-only prop firm, founded in 2012 (14 years operating)
- Monthly subscription Trading Combine ($49–$149/mo)
- Funded accounts created after January 12, 2026 are on a 90/10 split; older accounts keep 100% of the first $10,000, then 90/10
- Trades CME futures (ES, NQ, CL, GC, MES, MNQ)
Topstep is the oldest pure-futures prop firm and the one US traders typically join first. The Chicago-based operator has been running since 2012 and uses a monthly subscription Combine instead of a one-time evaluation fee. In practice, the subscription model rewards traders who can pass within a single billing cycle and punishes the ones who keep paying month after month without progress.
Account Sizes
| Size | Monthly | Target | Max Loss |
|---|---|---|---|
| $50K | $49 | $3,000 | $2,000 |
| $100K | $99 | $6,000 | $3,000 |
| $150K | $149 | $9,000 | $4,500 |
The $50K plan is the standard starting point. Going larger before you have proven a strategy mostly just inflates the monthly fee.
Step-by-step
- Sign up at topstep.com with your legal name
- Choose an account size — start with $50K unless you have a reason to go bigger
- Trade on NinjaTrader, Tradovate, or TradingView
- Pass the Trading Combine: hit the profit target plus minimum days and no drawdown breach
- Receive your Funded Account (Express simulated account first, then a Live Funded path)
Why Topstep
- Fourteen years of operating history
- The industry standard for US futures
- Live Funded Account option gives real market exposure once you have shown sustained performance
Comparing against Topstep
If Topstep is on your shortlist, you are presumably trading CME futures — so the fair comparison set is other futures firms, not FX/CFD shops. Our side-by-side of seven futures firms is in best futures prop firms.
In our verification data, the strongest-verified futures firm is TradeDay: trader payouts of $13,394,795 across 11,681 settlements, independently verified on-chain by Payout Junction (checked 2026-08-05). That is a checkable figure, not a marketing claim. How it lines up against Topstep is in the comparison data and the payout verification tracker.
Know the payout conditions before you subscribe — see the Topstep payout guide.
If you would also consider FX/CFD
On the FX/CFD side, the largest firm is FTMO (operating 11 years, trust rating “high” on this site).
Disclosure: this site earns affiliate commission from FTMO and has no partnership with TradeDay. Compensation does not affect ratings — see About.