Prop Firm Drawdown Calculator
See your daily and maximum loss floors — static or trailing — and exactly how much room you have before a challenge rule fails you.
Where you stand
Static drawdown is fixed off your starting balance and doesn't move as you profit.
Free, no sign-up, nothing leaves your browser — all math runs locally.
Prop firm drawdown, in plain numbers
Most prop firm challenges aren't failed by bad trading — they're failed by accidentally tripping a drawdown rule the trader didn't have in front of them. There are two limits to respect at all times, and the tighter one is your real constraint:
- Daily loss limit — the most you can lose in a single day, measured from the day's starting balance. Breach it and the account is gone regardless of overall profit.
- Maximum (total) drawdown — an absolute floor on equity. It's either static (fixed off your starting balance) or trailing (it follows your highest equity, so profits raise the floor — and on many firms it locks once you pass the initial balance).
On a $100,000.00 account with a 5% daily and 10% max limit, your daily floor today sits at $93,500.00 and your static max floor at $90,000.00. Your binding limit is whichever is closer — right now that leaves $5,000.00 before the account fails.
Static vs. trailing matters more than the percentage
A trailing drawdown is far less forgiving mid-trade: a position that goes well then gives back its gains can breach the floor even though you're still up on the day, because the floor rose with your unrealized peak. Knowing exactly which model your firm uses — and where the floor is at this moment — is the difference between trading freely and blowing the account on a rule you forgot about.
This calculator is a snapshot. TradeInsights tracks these limits live: connect your challenge account and it polls your equity every few minutes, applies the pre-loaded rules for FTMO, Apex, TopStep, and other firms, and alerts you at 80% of a limit — before the breach, not after.
Frequently asked questions
What's the difference between static and trailing drawdown?
A static (or 'end-of-day') max drawdown is a fixed floor based on your starting balance — it never moves. A trailing drawdown follows your highest equity high-water mark, so as you profit the floor rises beneath you. Trailing is stricter because giving back unrealized gains can breach it even while you're up on the day. Many firms lock the trailing floor once you exceed your initial balance.
Is the daily loss limit calculated from balance or equity?
Most firms measure it from your balance (or equity) at the day's start, and crucially many count open-trade floating losses against it intraday — not just closed P&L. This tool uses your current equity as the day-start reference; in a live account, TradeInsights tracks the true intraday figure for you.
Does this work for FTMO, Apex, and TopStep?
Yes — enter each firm's published daily and max drawdown percentages and drawdown type. FTMO uses static-style limits; many futures firms (Apex, TopStep) use trailing thresholds. TradeInsights ships pre-loaded rule sets for these firms so you don't have to look them up.
Why do most traders fail prop challenges?
Rarely from a lack of edge — usually from a single oversized day or an open position that drifts into the trailing floor. Knowing exactly where your floors sit, and getting warned before you reach them, removes the most common failure mode.
Can I get live alerts instead of a snapshot?
Yes. This calculator is a manual snapshot. Connecting your MT4/MT5 challenge account to TradeInsights gives live equity polling and an alert at 80% of any limit — the difference between catching a breach beforehand and discovering it after.
More free tools & resources
Don't fail a challenge on a rule you forgot
Connect your challenge account and TradeInsights tracks daily and trailing drawdown live, with alerts at 80% of every limit — pre-loaded for FTMO, Apex, TopStep, and more.
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