Entry price
The cost of admission shows a massive gap between the two firms, especially for those testing the waters with small balances.
- $5,000 account: forTraders Perps costs $46, while Upcomers Perpetuals ranges from $139 (Thunderbolt) to $269 (Horizon).
- $10,000 account: forTraders Perps costs $93, compared to Upcomers Perpetuals at $209 to $539.
- $50,000 account: forTraders Perps costs $493, while Upcomers Perpetuals costs between $490 and $1,290.
Upcomers Perpetuals also offers instant funding accounts (Vanguard and Oracle) starting at $209, a direct cost for skipping the evaluation phase that forTraders Perps does not offer.
What you pay while trading
Trading is not free at either firm, but they charge you in fundamentally different ways.
Upcomers Perpetuals uses a commission-based model. For crypto, you pay 0.015% as a maker or 0.045% as a taker. For other assets, it is even lower (0.003% / 0.009%). This is a transparent transaction cost; if you don't trade, you don't pay.
forTraders Perps charges a fixed daily fee on the value of your open positions, which is billed hourly. For crypto, this is 0.03% per day. This acts as a "holding tax." If you hold a large crypto position for a week, this fee will eat into your equity much faster than the one-time commission at Upcomers Perpetuals.
What mistakes cost you
In prop trading, the cost of a mistake is often the total loss of the initial fee.
At forTraders Perps, the risk of ruin is higher due to a tighter 5% static maximum drawdown and a mandatory inactivity rule: failing to close a trade for 7 days results in a hard breach (account loss).
Upcomers Perpetuals allows for a slightly wider 6% or 8% drawdown depending on the plan. However, they impose a "maximum risk per trade" rule (between 1.5% and 3%). Violating this risk limit is a hard breach, meaning a single trade with a missing or poorly placed stop-loss costs you the entire account.
What it costs to get paid
This is where the economic impact is most visible.
forTraders Perps has a very competitive payout structure. They charge $25 for crypto withdrawals or $50 via Rise. If they fail to pay within 48 hours, they reward you with a 100% profit split, effectively removing their own cut as a penalty.
Upcomers Perpetuals has a much higher cost for success. If you withdraw via cryptocurrency, you pay $19.90 plus a staggering 30% fee. This means that if you earn $1,000, you only keep $700 minus the flat fee. To avoid this, you must use bank transfers, which still cost $19.90 plus 2.49%. Additionally, their 20% Best Day Rule can delay your payout if one trade was too successful, forcing you to trade more days to "balance" the account.
Where each one hides its cost
Upcomers Perpetuals hides its cost in the payout phase. The high crypto withdrawal fees and the consistency rules are designed to keep capital within the firm for longer. However, they offset this with a 200% refund on challenge fees after the third payout, which is a significant cash injection for the trader.
forTraders Perps hides its cost in the "Perpetual" nature of the platform. The hourly fees for holding positions and the $10,000 cap per reward are designed to limit the firm's exposure. While the entry is cheap, the cost of maintaining a long-term swing position is much higher than in traditional CFD-based prop firms.
Cheapest for whom
- Traders on a tight budget: forTraders Perps is the clear winner for those who have less than $100 and want to manage a $10,000 account.
- High-volume scalpers: Upcomers Perpetuals is cheaper because the one-time commission is more economical than the recurring hourly fees of forTraders Perps.
- Long-term swing traders: Upcomers Perpetuals is better as it lacks the hourly position fees that drain accounts over several days.
- Confident, consistent traders: Upcomers Perpetuals offers a better deal via the 200% refund bonus, provided they can navigate the high withdrawal fees.
Frequently asked questions
Which firm is cheaper to start with, Upcomers Perpetuals or forTraders Perps?
forTraders Perps is significantly cheaper for starting an evaluation. A $10,000 account costs only $93 at forTraders Perps, whereas the same size at Upcomers Perpetuals starts at $209 for their most basic challenge and goes up to $539 for instant funding.
Which firm has lower withdrawal fees, Upcomers Perpetuals or forTraders Perps?
forTraders Perps is much cheaper for receiving your profits. They charge a flat fee of $25 for crypto or $50 via Rise. In contrast, Upcomers Perpetuals charges a very high 30% fee for crypto payouts plus $19.90, making it one of the most expensive firms for withdrawing profits via digital assets.
Is it cheaper to hold trades overnight in Upcomers Perpetuals or forTraders Perps?
Upcomers Perpetuals is generally cheaper for holding trades because it does not charge recurring fees based on time. forTraders Perps charges an hourly fee (equivalent to 0.03% daily for crypto), which means that the longer you keep a trade open, the more it costs you in realized fees.
Which firm offers more value for passing the evaluation, Upcomers Perpetuals or forTraders Perps?
Upcomers Perpetuals offers more value upon success because it provides a 200% refund of the entry fee after the third payout. forTraders Perps does not mention a refund in its structured data, meaning the initial cost is a sunk expense, whereas at Upcomers Perpetuals, the entry fee eventually turns into a significant profit bonus.
