The short answer
A challenge funds you after you hit a profit target across one or two phases. Instant funding skips that gate entirely and starts you trading for rewards from day one. The trade-off is risk room: instant accounts carry tighter drawdowns, while challenges give you more space to prove yourself before there is anything to keep.
Both routes keep the same 90% trader split, the same evaluation-fee refund on your first reward payout, and the same rule that KYC only happens after you qualify to get paid.
Route 1: pass a challenge first
A challenge is an evaluation. You buy it at a smaller fee, hit a profit target inside the rules, and only then move to a funded stage where your rewards are real. There is no time limit on either of our challenge products, so you trade at your own pace.
One Step is a single phase with a 6% profit target and a minimum of two trading days. It starts from $5K (from $39).
Two Step runs two phases, 3% then 5%, for an 8% target in total. It holds a 12% static maximum drawdown, has no minimum trading days, and starts from $10K (from $52). A static drawdown means the line that fails you sits at a fixed level and does not move as your balance grows.
Daily drawdown figures for the challenge products are shown on your dashboard for the exact account you choose. The point of a challenge is simple: more room to operate, in exchange for clearing a target before the rewards turn real.
Route 2: instant funding from day one
Instant funding removes the target gate. There is no phase to clear and, on the standard instant products, no profit target at all. You trade for real rewards immediately. The discipline lives in tighter drawdowns instead of a target you must reach.
Instant and Instant Pro scale up to $1M, carry a 4% daily drawdown and a 7% trailing maximum drawdown, and allow weekend trading with no time limit. Both have a single-trade loss cap; Instant Pro tightens that cap further and is our lowest-cost instant entry and bestseller.
Instant 24h is the one exception to the no-target rule. It asks for a 3% gain inside a 24-hour window, and runs tighter still: 2% daily drawdown, 3% trailing maximum drawdown, and a 1% single-trade loss cap.
Trailing vs static drawdown
A trailing maximum drawdown follows your equity upward as you profit, then locks at your starting balance once you cross the profit threshold. A static drawdown stays at one fixed level. Instant products use trailing; Two Step uses static. Knowing which one applies tells you exactly how much room you have at any moment.
Side by side
Factor | Challenge (One / Two Step) | Instant funding |
Profit target to start earning | Yes: 6% (One Step) or 8% total (Two Step) | None, except Instant 24h (3% in 24h) |
Phases | One or two | None |
Maximum drawdown | Two Step: 12% static. One Step shown on dashboard | 7% trailing (Instant / Pro), 3% trailing (24h) |
Daily drawdown | Shown on your dashboard | 4% (Instant / Pro), 2% (24h) |
Time limit | None | None, except Instant 24h (24-hour sprint) |
Account size | From $5K (One Step), from $10K (Two Step) | Up to $1M |
Starting cost | From $39 (One Step), from $52 (Two Step) | See live pricing; Instant Pro is the lowest instant entry |
Pricing beyond the starting figures depends on the size you choose, so check live pricing on the product page for the exact number. Daily drawdown resets at 00:00 UTC on every route.
Who each route suits
Pick a challenge if you want more room to trade, are comfortable proving a target first, and prefer a lower entry fee. The wider drawdown space suits strategies that need time to develop, and there is no clock pushing you.
Pick instant funding if you would rather skip the evaluation and start trading for rewards now, and you are confident managing tighter daily and trailing limits. Choose Instant Pro for the lowest instant entry cost, or Instant 24h if you want a fast, defined 24-hour sprint with the tightest risk rules.
Be honest with yourself about discipline. Most evaluations do not pass, and tight instant drawdowns are unforgiving. Neither route rewards reckless trading; both reward consistency under live prices.
What both routes share
The same 90% trader / 10% firm split, fixed at every account size
1:100 leverage and the same instrument set on real third-party price feeds
The same allowed and banned practices (EAs, copy trading and news trading allowed; latency and tick-exploit arbitrage banned)
No consistency rule on either route
KYC via Veriff only after you qualify for a payout, never to start
Payouts approved in under an hour and cleared within 12 hours, by bank or crypto
Your evaluation fee refunded on your first reward payout
The money line
Whichever route you take, you keep 90% of your simulated profit and get your evaluation fee back on your first reward payout.
Related
Challenge or Instant: which should I pick?
What is the difference between a challenge and instant funding?
The trailing maximum drawdown on instant accounts explained
Two Step