TopStep Trading Combine: Step-by-Step Guide (2026)

PropTally4 min read
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TopStep is one of the oldest and most recognizable futures prop firms, and the TopStep Trading Combine is the industry's benchmark evaluation. This guide walks through the entire process from sign-up to first payout, with the current 2026 rule set.

Step 1: Pick the Right Account Size

TopStep offers Combine accounts in three sizes: $50K, $100K, and $150K. Each has its own rule set:

  • $50K: Profit target $3,000, max loss limit $2,000, daily loss $1,000
  • $100K: Profit target $6,000, max loss limit $3,000, daily loss $2,000
  • $150K: Profit target $9,000, max loss limit $4,500, daily loss $3,000

The $50K is the most popular because it has the best fee-to-profit-target ratio and lets you trade full size once you pass. Do not pick a bigger account just because you "want the size" — the math favors starting small.

Step 2: Understand the Trailing Max Loss Limit

TopStep uses a trailing max loss (not EOD) on the Combine. The loss limit trails your highest account equity until you hit the profit target. Once you pass and enter the Express Funded Account, the trailing stops at the starting balance.

Example: $50K account with $2,000 max loss. Start at $48,000 floor. You reach $51,000 equity. New floor: $49,000. You give back $1,500. New equity: $49,500. You are now only $500 from breach.

This is the single biggest reason Combines fail. Plan for the trailing. Do not let unrealized profits expand your floor and then bleed back.

Step 3: Respect the Daily Loss Limit

The daily loss limit resets every day at the futures session close (5pm CT for most products). If your account draws down more than the daily loss limit during a single trading day, your account is disabled.

Key point: The daily loss limit is calculated from the day's starting balance, not from the trailing floor. These are two separate rules and you can breach either one independently.

Step 4: Minimum Days and Scaling

TopStep requires at least 2 active trading days in the Combine. A trading day means at least one trade opened and closed.

There is no hard maximum number of days. You can take as long as you need to hit the profit target, as long as you do not breach either loss rule.

Scaling plan (important!): During the Combine, you are limited in the number of contracts you can trade based on account progress. Typically you cannot use full size (5 contracts for micros on a $50K) until you are a certain distance into profit. Exceeding the scaling plan is an automatic fail.

Step 5: Trading Days Count and Session Times

TopStep counts a trading day based on Chicago time. Overnight trades that span the close are handled by the close side. Overnight trading is allowed during news-free periods but discouraged during the Combine phase because of slippage and weekend gap risk.

Step 6: Passing the Combine

Once you hit the profit target and have completed at least 2 trading days without breaching any rules, TopStep will promote you to the Express Funded Account (XFA).

Key: on the day you hit the profit target, you are strongly advised to stop trading immediately. Many traders hit target and then keep going, blow back below target, and have to earn it again.

Step 7: Express Funded Account Rules

The XFA works slightly differently from the Combine:

  • No consistency rule to start (Combine has scaling)
  • You earn your first "profit split days" by trading consistently
  • Drawdown no longer trails once you pass the Combine (it stays at starting balance)
  • Daily loss limit still applies

Step 8: Earning Your First Payout

To withdraw from TopStep:

  • Minimum 5 winning days (each with at least $200 profit) in the XFA
  • 30% consistency rule: Your largest winning day cannot exceed 30% of total profits
  • Minimum withdrawal: $250 first payout, with increasing limits after
  • Request via dashboard: Payouts process via ACH or wire

The consistency rule catches new funded traders constantly. If you make $5,000 in one day and $300 across other days, you cannot withdraw that $5,000 until you balance it out with more small winning days.

Common Combine Mistakes

  1. Going for the target too fast — Overleveraging to "get it done" blows accounts
  2. Ignoring the trailing floor — Not calculating real buffer after drawdowns
  3. Revenge trading after a daily loss stop-out — Doubling down when you should walk away
  4. Missing the scaling rules — Trading full size too early is instant disqualification
  5. Not banking profits — Leaving big winners open past target and giving them back

How PropTally Helps You Pass

PropTally's TopStep integration tracks your trailing max loss, daily loss, scaling plan progress, and consistency rule in real time. You get alerts before you approach breach, not after. Plus our risk calculator sizes your trades correctly based on your exact remaining buffer.

The Combine is absolutely passable with discipline. Take your time, respect the trailing, and don't over-trade. Thousands pass every month — you can be one of them.

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