Futures vs forex prop firms: how the rules differ

What changes between a futures prop firm and a forex or CFD prop firm: market, limits, hours and platforms.

Futures limits: In dollars
FTMO CFD limits: In percent
Both: Simulated accounts

Sources checked on October 10, 2026 · By helloweekends Editors

Futures vs forex prop firms differ in what you trade and how the rules are written. A futures prop firm simulates exchange-listed CME Group contracts, sets loss limits in dollars and usually wants you flat before the afternoon close. A forex or CFD challenge, such as FTMO's, simulates prices on the firm's own platform and writes its limits as a percentage of the account. Both sell evaluations on simulated accounts.

The same business model

Both kinds of firm sell a paid evaluation. You trade a simulated balance under rules, reach a profit target and, if you pass, may receive payouts under the firm's agreement. FTMO states that all accounts it provides are demo accounts with fictitious funds, and most futures firms we track also run their funded accounts in simulation (see simulated vs live funded accounts). The difference is the market the simulation copies.

What you trade

Futures are standardized contracts listed on an exchange. The firms we track simulate contracts from CME Group's four exchanges, CME, CBOT, NYMEX and COMEX, which trade on CME Globex. Each contract has a fixed dollar multiplier: CME's Micro E-mini S&P 500 (MES) is $5 per index point and the E-mini (ES) $50, so position size is counted in contracts. More in micro vs mini futures.

Spot forex and CFDs trade off-exchange. In live markets the CFTC's required risk disclosure for retail forex says that trading is not conducted on a regulated exchange and that the dealer is your trading partner; in the US, a dealer offering retail forex must be registered with the CFTC as a futures commission merchant or retail foreign exchange dealer, unless it is an otherwise regulated firm such as a bank. A prop challenge simulates this market, so its prices come from the firm's platform rather than an exchange.

One firm, two rulebooks

FTMO sells both products, which makes it a clean side-by-side. Its futures rules are written in dollars and on the CME trading day; its CFD rules are written in percent and recalculated at midnight Central European time.

One firm, two products: FTMO's own rules pages, checked October 10, 2026. Futures figures for the 50K Growth account.
Rule	FTMO Futures	FTMO CFD challenge
What you trade	CME Group futures contracts (micro and mini). FTMO says no leverage is applied to the account.	CFD instruments on FTMO's platforms
How the maximum loss is written	In dollars: an end-of-day trailing $2,000 on the 50K Growth account, locking at the starting balance	As a percentage: 10% of the starting capital, static on the 2-Step challenge and end-of-day trailing on the 1-Step
Daily loss limit	None on the Growth evaluation; a hard daily loss limit on Pro	5% of starting capital (2-Step) or 3% (1-Step)
When the day resets	The trading day runs from 6:00 p.m. ET to 4:10 p.m. ET	Limits are recalculated at 00:00 CE(S)T
What counts toward the limits	Equity: balance plus open P&L, minus commissions	Equity: balance plus open P/L, plus or minus swaps, minus commissions
Account type	Simulated	Demo accounts with fictitious funds

The futures pattern is typical of the firms we track: 10 of the 12 set a $2,000 maximum loss on a 50K account, and most use an end-of-day trailing drawdown that stops at or near the starting balance. The mechanics are in trailing drawdown and EOD vs intraday drawdown.

Hours and holding

CME Globex runs equity index, interest rate, FX, energy and metals futures from Sunday 6:00 p.m. to Friday 5:00 p.m. ET, with a daily break from 5:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. ET. Exchange hours are not prop firm hours: ten of the 12 futures firms we track require you to be flat every day on every account they sell. Topstep's Express Funded Account, for example, requires positions to be closed by 3:10 p.m. CT. Bulenox requires it by 3:59 p.m. CT.

Weekends are closed for most futures, so the question of holding into Monday is a firm rule; see weekend holding and the full futures market hours.

Platforms

Futures firms connect to futures platforms and data feeds such as Rithmic, Tradovate, NinjaTrader and TopstepX; the list per firm is on futures prop firms by platform. There are exceptions: The5ers runs its futures program on MetaTrader 5, according to its futures rules.

Questions to settle before you choose

Which market do you actually trade, and is it listed on the firm's instrument list?
Can you trade inside the firm's day, including its close-out time?
Are the limits in dollars or percent, static or trailing, and on balance or equity?
Does the firm accept clients from your country? Every firm publishes its own list.

To compare futures firms on these points, use the futures prop firm comparison or the list of futures prop firms.

Know the riskA prop firm evaluation is a paid service with simulated trading. Most people who buy one do not pass it, and firms change their rules, pause payouts and close. Futures, forex and CFDs are leveraged products in live markets. Not investment advice.

Questions

Is a futures prop firm better than a forex prop firm?

Neither is better in general. They simulate different markets and write their rules differently: futures firms in dollars on the CME trading day, CFD challenges such as FTMO's in percent of the account.

Are funded accounts only for futures?

No. Prop firms sell evaluations for futures, forex and CFDs. FTMO, for example, sells both a CFD challenge and a futures evaluation.

Why do futures prop firms make you close before the market closes?

It is a firm rule, not an exchange rule. CME Globex trades most futures until 5:00 p.m. ET, but firms set earlier cut-offs, such as 3:10 p.m. CT at Topstep and 3:59 p.m. CT at Bulenox.

Are forex trades on an exchange?

Not retail spot forex. The CFTC's required disclosure says retail off-exchange forex is not conducted on a regulated exchange and that the dealer is your trading partner.

Sources

All checked on October 10, 2026.