A futures funded account is what you earn after passing a prop firm evaluation. It's where the marketing promises get tested against reality: the drawdown still runs, the consistency rule still applies, and payouts happen only if you follow every rule on the firm's terms page.
The four stages of a funded run
- Buy the evaluation, usually $49–$200 after the PIP discount. Pick the account size that matches your contract plan, not the biggest one you can afford.
- Pass the evaluation, hit the profit target on an end-of-day close without breaking the drawdown or any rule.
- Activate the funded account, pay a one-time activation fee (or monthly data fee) and sign the firm's funded agreement.
- Trade and withdraw, trade inside the same rule set, hit the minimum trading days and payout minimum, and request your first payout.
What changes between evaluation and funded
Most firms keep the same drawdown rule between evaluation and funded, but several change the payout-relevant rules once you're live. A firm might let you trade news during the evaluation and restrict it on funded, or waive the consistency rule during evaluation and enforce it at the first payout request. Always read the funded agreement, not just the evaluation rules.
Activation fees vs. evaluation fees
An evaluation fee is the price to enter the challenge. An activation fee is what you pay once to move from a passed evaluation to a live funded account (or what some firms charge monthly while you're funded, for data and platform access). Both are real costs, and PIP only discounts the evaluation.
Activation is the sneaky line item
A $99 evaluation at Apex sounds like a deal until you add the $130 activation fee and the first month of data. True cost to funded is what you want to minimize, not sticker price.
Payout timing and the first withdrawal
The common pattern is: 5–10 minimum trading days, a 30% consistency rule at payout time, and a minimum payout of $250–$1,000. If you hit a $3,000 day and you've only traded three small days before, the consistency rule will block that $3,000 from being withdrawn in the same request. The usual workaround is to trade a few more balanced days before requesting.