FTMO remains one of the most recognized prop firms in the industry, and its two-step evaluation has specific rules that differ from other firms. It is designed to evaluate a trader’s skills, discipline, and risk management capability within a structured, simulated environment.FTMO’s rule structure at a glance:
When you successfully pass the FTMO challenge, you officially become an FTMO Trader. FTMO challenge is structured into two models. 1-step or 2-step.
FTMO Challenge: 2-Step
The FTMO Challenge: 2-Step consists of standard 2-phases evaluation process which are: Phase 1: FTMO Challenge and Phase 2: Verification. The FTMO Swing account type is a special type of 2 step account which do not have any restrictions on trading during news releases or on holding positions overnight or over the weekend. To learn more about the FTMO rule structure, visit please visit the Trading Objectives page.
2-Step Evaluation Objectives
| Objective | Phase 1 (Evaluation) | Phase 2 (Verification) |
|---|---|---|
| Trading Period | Unlimited | Unlimited |
| Minimum Trading Days | 4 days | 4 days |
| Maximum Daily Loss | 5% | 5% |
| Maximum Total Loss | 10% | 10% |
| Profit Target | 10% | 5% |
| Fee Refund | 100% (with first reward) |
FTMO Challenge: 1-Step
The FTMO Challenge: 1-Step follows a different structure and does not include a second phase. In this product, you trade on a single demo account with fictitious capital and must meet all applicable Trading Objectives.
1-Step Evaluation Objectives
- Profit Target: 10%
- Maximum Daily Loss: 3%
- Maximum Total Loss: 10%
- Trading Period: Unlimited
- Best Day Rule: 50%
- One-time fee: Non-refundable
Forbidden Trading Practices & Critical Restrictions
These are unwanted practices to be careful of when trading in FTMO evaluation program. Violating these terms may result in hard breach and account disqualification. These forbidden trading practices with their associated penalties ranges from: Weekend Holding, News Trading Restrictions, Account Manipulation, Copy trading, Expert Advisors. Visit forbidden trading practices for more information
What a challenge management service does differently
An experienced account manager tracks FTMO’s specific daily-loss calculation method in real time, sizes every trade against both the daily and overall limits simultaneously, and applies a fixed risk framework (typically under 1%) built specifically around FTMO’s parameters — rather than a generic risk approach that might work for a different firm’s rules. Most traders fail challenges not because their strategy lacks predictive power, but because they misuse leverage or fail to control drawdowns. This post is related to: How Much Should You Risk Per Trade in a Prop Firm Challenge?
An FTMO challenge management requires the fund manager to apply the following inorder to have a high chance of becoming successful.
- stringent risk management: risk per trade on phase-1 should be 0.5% and phase-2 should be 0.25% with no more than 3 trading positions opened at the same time. Again, don’t rush, ftmo has an unlimited trading period.
- Implement a 1:2 or 1:3 Risk-to-Reward Ratio (RRR): We recommend using Breakeven and a relaxed trailing stop to protect profit.
- Keep risk consistent across both phases: Always use hard stop-losses and it should be the same on all orders.
We recommend you learn How to Pass a 2-Step Prop Firm Challenge
If you’ve failed an FTMO challenge before, it’s worth reviewing whether the failure came from strategy, or from a rules-based technicality like the daily loss calculation, these require very different fixes.
Are you planning to take a Standard or a Swing challenge account? Contact us for ftmo challenge management service.