How hard is it to pass TopStep?

Last verified: 2026-03-21 | Official rules

Difficulty rating: Hard

What makes it hard:

  • -EOD trailing drawdown raises the floor daily, reducing your margin for error as you profit
  • -The 2% daily loss limit is tight -- two bad trades can end your day
  • -Consistency rule (No single day > 50% of total profit) prevents passing on one lucky day
  • -No overnight holding forces you to day-trade only

The numbers on a $50,000 account:

  • -You need to make: $3,000
  • -You can lose at most: $1,500 total
  • -Daily loss limit: $1,000
  • -That means your risk-to-reward ratio for the challenge is 1:2.0

Tips to pass:

  • -Risk no more than 1-2% per trade to stay within daily limits
  • -Understand that trailing drawdown erodes your cushion as you profit -- trade smaller after winning streaks
  • -Spread your profits across multiple days to satisfy the consistency rule
  • -Use Vigil to audit each trade against TopStep's rules in real-time
Try a Free Audit

Check a trade against TopStep's rules. No sign-up required.

TopStep