Perps Prop Firm FAQ and Help: Challenges, Rules and Payouts

A perps prop firm sells evaluation challenges where you trade crypto perpetual futures on a simulated account and, if you meet its rules, the firm can pay you a share of your simulated profit. The firms we cover use simulated or demo capital. The challenge fee is not an investment and can be lost. Source: our methodology (checked 2026-11-03).

You pay a challenge fee, then trade a simulated account within set limits: a profit target, a daily loss limit and a maximum drawdown. If you pass, you move to a funded simulated account and the firm pays a profit split under its terms. Many traders don't pass, and the fee can be lost. Source: Breakout / Kraken Prop review (checked 2026-11-03).

Not for your trading. Breakout says funded accounts trade on simulated capital, not real capital, and HyroTrader connects to exchange demo accounts, not live ones. The firms we cover use simulated or demo capital. Your challenge fee is real money, is not an investment, and can be lost. Source: Breakout / Kraken Prop review and HyroTrader review (checked 2026-11-03).

Some firms accept US traders, but check each one. Breakout's ineligible-country list doesn't include the US (checked 2026-11-04), and HyroTrader says US residents can join, although its Tealstreet and Tiger terminals aren't available in the US (checked 2026-11-03). Propr doesn't state US eligibility (checked 2026-11-04). Confirm on the firm's own site before paying. Source: HyroTrader review.

It depends on the firm and plan. HyroTrader's One-Step and Two-Step fees are a deposit returned with your first payout, but its Zero-Step fee isn't (checked 2026-11-04). Propr's fees are non-refundable once the account is activated (checked 2026-11-04). A fee is not an investment, and if you fail, it is lost. Source: HyroTrader review.

We can't certify any firm, but you can check the basics: a named legal entity, published terms, public reviews, regulator warning lists, and whether the firm says plainly that accounts are simulated. Many traders don't pass, and the fee can be lost. Each of our reviews lists the entity, what we found and the date we checked. Source: our methodology.

A perpetual future is a crypto derivative contract that tracks an asset's price like a futures contract but has no expiry date, so a position can stay open as long as margin requirements are met. A funding rate keeps its price close to the spot price. Leverage magnifies both gains and losses. On the firms we cover, your account is simulated.

A funding rate is a periodic payment between traders holding long and short perpetual positions, set by the exchange to keep the contract price near the spot price. Depending on the rate and your side, you pay or receive it. Breakout / Kraken Prop counts simulated funding fees toward its loss limits. Source: Breakout / Kraken Prop review (checked 2026-11-03).

With simulated capital, your orders don't use real money on a live exchange order book, and any payout comes from the firm under its terms. Real capital would mean live orders. The firms we cover are simulated: HyroTrader uses exchange demo accounts, and Breakout fills against third-party liquidity data. Source: Breakout vs HyroTrader (checked 2026-11-03).

A 1-step challenge has a single profit target before funded status. A 2-step challenge has two phases with separate targets. At HyroTrader, One-Step has a 10% target and Two-Step has 10% then 5% (checked 2026-11-03). Breakout / Kraken Prop sells 1-step plans only. Many traders don't pass either type. Source: HyroTrader review.

You trade a simulated account until you reach the profit target without breaching the daily loss or maximum drawdown limits. Breakout's Classic plan has a 10% target, a 3% daily loss limit, a 6% static drawdown and no time limit (checked 2026-11-03). Many traders don't pass, and the fee can be lost. Source: Breakout / Kraken Prop review.

An instant-funded account skips the evaluation and starts you on a funded simulated account right after you pay. HyroTrader's Zero-Step works this way: a fixed 80% split, a 3% daily and 5% maximum loss limit, a non-refundable fee, and a rule that no single trade may count for more than 50% of the target (checked 2026-11-03). Source: HyroTrader review.

Fees vary by account size and plan. Breakout / Kraken Prop lists fees from $20 to $1,090 across the sizes and plans we checked (2026-11-04), and HyroTrader lists $59 to $1,299 (2026-11-03). Compare the cost per $1,000 of simulated balance, refund terms and rules. The fee is not an investment and can be lost. Source: Breakout vs HyroTrader.

A daily loss limit caps how much an account can lose in one trading day. A maximum drawdown caps total loss from a reference level. Breaching either usually closes the account. Breakout's Classic plan has a 3% daily limit and a 6% maximum; HyroTrader's One-Step has 4% and 6% (checked 2026-11-03). Source: Breakout / Kraken Prop review.

A static drawdown limit stays fixed relative to your starting balance. A trailing drawdown rises as your equity or balance reaches new highs, so your allowed loss shrinks relative to your peak. Also check whether a firm measures equity or balance. Breakout and HyroTrader say their maximum drawdowns are static (checked 2026-11-03). Source: HyroTrader review.

A consistency rule limits how much of your profit or target can come from one trade or day. Kraken Prop says it has no consistency rules. HyroTrader has none generally, but its Zero-Step caps any single trade at 50% of the target (checked 2026-11-03). Propr publishes no consistency rule but reserves discretionary measures (checked 2026-11-04). Source: HyroTrader review.

Rules differ by firm and plan. Breakout allows weekend holding on funded accounts (checked 2026-11-03), and Propr's published rules allow it (checked 2026-11-04). Read the plan's rules before you pay. Source: Breakout / Kraken Prop review.

Rules differ. Kraken Prop's FAQ permits news trading with no restricted windows, and Propr's published rules allow it (checked 2026-11-03 and 2026-11-04). Always read the plan's current rules first. Source: Breakout / Kraken Prop review and Propr review.

It varies by firm and asset. Breakout lists BTC at 10x, ETH and SOL at 5x and small caps at 2x, while Kraken Prop advertises up to 5x. HyroTrader lists up to 150x on BTC and ETH on exchange demos (checked 2026-11-03). Higher leverage magnifies losses on a simulated account, and loss limits still apply. Source: Breakout vs HyroTrader.

A profit split is the share of your simulated profit the firm pays you. Breakout / Kraken Prop and HyroTrader start at 80%. Breakout offers 90% for a 20% fee add-on, and HyroTrader can raise One-Step and Two-Step to 90% at its discretion (checked 2026-11-03). Propr pays 80% (checked 2026-11-04). A split isn't guaranteed income. Source: HyroTrader review.

Both are on demand. Breakout lets you request a payout any time with no open positions, with a $50 minimum after the split. HyroTrader needs at least $100 net profit after the split and caps each request at 5% of the starting balance (checked 2026-11-03). Firms' speed claims are their own and we haven't verified them. Source: Breakout vs HyroTrader.

Some do. Breakout pays only in USDC (ERC-20), HyroTrader pays in USDT or USDC, and Propr pays USDC on-chain only (checked 2026-11-03 and 2026-11-04). Kraken Prop pays USD or USDG to a Kraken Pro wallet. USDC is a dollar-pegged stablecoin, so you will need a compatible wallet. Source: Breakout / Kraken Prop review.

Often, yes. Propr requires KYC before the first payout (checked 2026-11-04). Other firms may ask for identity checks too, so read the payout terms before you buy a challenge. We haven't confirmed the trader-side KYC rules for every firm we cover, and a payout is never guaranteed. Source: Propr review.

Breakout / Kraken Prop, Propr, E8 Perpetuals and Vest Markets are other perps firms we cover. All use simulated accounts. They differ on rules, fees, refunds and US access, so compare them side by side before you pay. Source: Breakout vs HyroTrader (checked 2026-11-03).

Firms price trades from different sources. HyroTrader connects by API to Bybit and BloFin demo accounts (checked 2026-11-03). Propr prices simulated fills on Hyperliquid data and may copy some trades to Hyperliquid at its discretion (checked 2026-11-04). Breakout fills against third-party liquidity data. None of this is live trading for you. Source: HyroTrader review.

Watch for no named legal entity, missing terms pages, marketing that contradicts the terms (such as "real capital" claims), unclear payout rules, and pressure to buy fast. If marketing and terms conflict, the terms govern. Our reviews note conflicts like these, with dates. Many traders don't pass, so only pay what you can afford to lose. Source: our methodology.

They are different risks. With a prop firm you pay a fee and trade a simulated account under the firm's rules, and many traders don't pass. With your own capital, real money is at risk and no firm sets your limits. We can't tell you which suits you, and this isn't financial advice. Source: our methodology.

We score each firm from 0 to 10 on five weighted pillars: Cost 20%, Rules 25%, Payouts 25%, Platform 15% and Trust 15%. Scores use published rules, terms and public evidence, and commission never changes them. Source: our methodology (checked 2026-11-03).

Our scores don't depend on commissions: firms can't buy scores, placement or reviews, and our formula sets each score. We do earn commissions from some firms we review. We haven't opened or traded accounts at any firm, so our reviews rest on published rules, terms and public evidence, each with a check date. Our commercial links are kept separate from our ratings. This isn't financial advice. Source: our methodology.

We may earn a commission if you buy through links or codes on this page. It doesn't change your price or our score. Firms can't pay for scores or placement, and we also review firms we have no affiliate relationship with, such as Propr. Source: Propr review (checked 2026-11-04).

Send a correction via our contact form (/contact). Each review shows the date we checked its sources, and we update pages when firms change rules or prices. Check the firm's own current terms before you pay, because rules and prices change often. Source: our methodology.