Tradeday Review

TradeDay Review

TradeDay is a futures prop firm built around a single evaluation model with a relatively trader-friendly funded stage. Its main appeal is that it offers day-one payouts, up to 95% profit split over time, multiple drawdown styles, and a clear route from evaluation to funded accounts. The evaluation itself is done in a simulated environment, and after passing, traders are generally moved into a Funded Sim account, with a possible path to Funded Live later.

What makes TradeDay stand out is that it does not use the typical “wait 14 days for payout” structure many futures firms use. Instead, it allows payout requests from day one after settlement, subject to its buffer requirement. It also gives traders a choice between Intraday trailing drawdown, End-of-Day trailing drawdown, and Static drawdown, which is a major plus because traders can choose the model that fits their style.

How the evaluation works

TradeDay says the evaluation has three main objectives: trade for at least 5 trading days, hit the profit target, and stay within the consistency rule, while also not breaching the maximum drawdown. The evaluation takes place in a simulated trading environment.

The minimum trading-day rule is important. TradeDay currently requires at least 5 trading days to pass for newer sign-ups, and those days do not need to be consecutive. If a trader reaches the target early, TradeDay expects them to keep trading normally rather than barely trading just to wait out the remaining days.

The consistency rule is also a notable part of the evaluation. No single day’s profit should exceed 30% of the profit target. If it does, the trader does not automatically fail, but the effective profit target rises until that big day becomes 30% or less of total profits. TradeDay says this rule does not apply to funded traders.

Pricing and account options

TradeDay currently lists accounts starting from $87/month after discount, with the undiscounted entry shown as $125/month for the $50k Intraday Evaluation. The main account families currently shown are:

Intraday evaluations
$50k: $87/month, $3,000 target, $2,000 trailing drawdown, 5 contracts
$100k: $140/month, $6,000 target, $3,000 trailing drawdown, 10 contracts
$150k: $210/month, $9,000 target, $4,000 trailing drawdown, 15 contracts
End-of-Day evaluations
$50k: $122/month, $3,000 target, $2,000 trailing drawdown, 5 contracts
$100k: $192/month, $6,000 target, $3,000 trailing drawdown, 10 contracts
$150k: $262/month, $9,000 target, $4,000 trailing drawdown, 15 contracts
Static evaluations
$50k: $115/month, $1,500 target, $500 static drawdown, 1 contract
$100k: $175/month, $2,500 target, $750 static drawdown, 2 contracts
$150k: $245/month, $3,750 target, $1,000 static drawdown, 3 contracts

This means TradeDay is not the cheapest firm in every category, but it gives more structure options than many competitors. For traders who care a lot about EOD drawdown or static drawdown, that flexibility is one of TradeDay’s strongest selling points.

Funded stage: sim or live?

TradeDay’s evaluation is simulated. After passing, traders are generally placed into a Funded Sim account, and later may be reviewed for movement into a Funded Live account. TradeDay’s own materials also say there is a clear path to live funding, and in some official wording they state traders may be given a choice between Funded Sim and Funded Live, while the newer FAQ more specifically says passing traders are placed into Funded Sim first and then reviewed for Live later. That suggests the practical path today is usually evaluation → Funded Sim → possible Funded Live.

The funded sim account comes with milestone reviews. TradeDay says traders can earn up to $5,000 in profits on the first milestone before the account is paused for review, after which the trader may either be extended in Funded Sim or moved to Funded Live.

Payouts and profit split

This is one of TradeDay’s biggest strengths. TradeDay says payouts can be requested from day one, after end-of-day settlement, once the trader has cleared the required buffer zone. The minimum payout request is $250. Requests submitted before 5:30 pm CT are processed within 24 hours on business days.

The payout split is based on lifetime withdrawals:

80% on the first $50k withdrawn
90% on the next $50k
95% on lifetime withdrawals above $100k

TradeDay also says profits in the buffer zone can be withdrawn, but those are subject to a 50/50 split.

For many traders, that makes TradeDay attractive because it combines fast payout access with a payout structure that improves over time.

Fees and activation cost

TradeDay currently advertises promotional periods with no activation fee, but its funded FAQ states there is normally a one-off $139 Funded Sim setup fee payable before access is given to the funded account. That means the answer depends on whether a promotion is active at the moment of purchase.

TradeDay also says monthly subscription payments stop once you are funded. For Funded Sim, there is no market data fee. For Funded Live, traders are responsible for CME professional market data fees and their trading commissions. The FAQ cites $156 per month per exchange for the professional market data fee.

News trading, overnight holding, and restrictions

TradeDay does allow traders to participate around news in a limited sense, but it has a specific restriction on tier 1 economic releases. The firm says it will auto-liquidate open positions 2 minutes before its listed tier 1 data releases and reopen trading 2 minutes after. It also says traders are not failed for accidental breaches, though repeated abuse can lead to losing the account.

Overnight trading is allowed, but positions generally must be closed before the next market close, and funded traders are required to be flat 10 minutes before the close of the product they are trading.

TradeDay also bans certain practices, including hedging across accounts, some forms of ultra-high-frequency scalping, strategies producing more than 200 trades in a day, and trading too close to price limits on funded accounts.

Best things about TradeDay

TradeDay’s strongest features are its day-one payouts, the ability to choose between three drawdown models, the fact that funded traders have no consistency rule, and the firm’s relatively detailed public documentation. It also has a more realistic progression system than many firms because it openly distinguishes between Funded Sim and Funded Live rather than pretending all funded accounts are identical.