Elite Trader Funding vs Topstep
Elite Trader Funding
Computed verdict
Topstep costs less per unit of risk: $47.5 vs $98.5 per $1,000 of drawdown. On the overall score, Topstep comes out ahead (87 vs 52).
The verdict is computed from verified data and recomputes when the data changes. It is not an opinion and no commercial arrangement alters it. Methodology
Rule by rule
Multiple drawdown engines by plan: 1-Step uses live intraday trailing where unrealized peaks raise the floor (the firm does not publish a lock level for it); EOD plans move the floor only at close and lock at starting balance + $100; static plans never move.
The Maximum Loss Limit trails end-of-day ($2,000–$4,500 by size), is monitored in real time including unrealized P&L, and locks once it reaches your starting balance; in the XFA every payout re-arms the floor at $0.
Only the EOD plans ($1,100–$2,200) and Diamond Hands ($1,500) carry a daily limit, and it is hard: touching it, open losses included, fails the account unless you buy the TradeShield add-on.
Soft daily limit of $1,000–$3,000 by size, optional in the Combine and XFA (automatic only in the Live account), which pauses the session without disqualifying the account.
Instead of classic consistency, funded payouts use the ATD system: you need 8–10 active days each earning at least MAX($200, 23% of your best day); the 1-Step keeps a classic rule whose percentage the firm doesn't publish.
In the Combine your best day can't exceed 55% of the profit target (exceeding it raises the target); on the XFA Consistency path no day may exceed 40% of total profit to be payout-eligible.
50K: $3,000 target, $2,000 drawdown, 5-day minimum. On Diamond Hands, ETF's own pages disagree on the minimum: the plan page says 5 trading days, the homepage comparison strip says 10 — plan on 10 until ETF settles it.
50K: $3,000 profit target, no minimum days (can pass in 2), with a consistency rule (best day < 50% of target). Single phase.
On Elite sim accounts you keep 100% of only the first $12,500 then 90%, with payouts processed every Wednesday and requiring 15 Active Trading Days for the first two cycles then 10 thereafter. LIVE ELITE (uncapped 80/20, $250 min) triggers at whichever comes first: 5 payouts, 50 Active Trading Days, or the $25,000 sim cap.
Payouts from $125 after 5 winning days of $150+ Net P&L (or 3 days on the 40% Consistency path). The split is a dated cutoff, not a conflict: accounts opened before Jan 12, 2026 keep 100% of the first $10,000 in lifetime profits then 90/10; accounts opened on or after that date are a flat 90/10.
50K: we publish no verified price. ETF's own April-2026 blog says 1-Step "starting at $197" and End of Day "starting at $347"; a third-party guide puts the 1-Step 50K at $165, and the live plan pages contradict both. Resets and funded-stage fees are recorded as open disagreements, so we settle neither.
50K Combine: $49/month (Standard, plus a one-time $149 activation when funded) or $95/month (No Activation). Reset costs the same as the monthly sub. Frequent first-month promos.