1. Program Variety and Evaluation Structures
The approach to trader evaluation differs significantly between these two firms, affecting how quickly a trader can access capital.
- FTMO focus on Stability: They strictly offer a two-step evaluation process. There are no instant funding or one-step options, reflecting a conservative approach that prioritizes long-term consistency over speed.
- QT Funded flexibility: They provide a broader range of paths, including 2-step, 3-step, and Instant Funding models. This allows traders to bypass the evaluation phase entirely if they are willing to pay a higher entry price for immediate capital access.
- Step difficulty: QT Funded’s 3-step program offers lower profit targets (6% per phase) compared to FTMO’s standard 10% (Phase 1) and 5% (Phase 2), making the initial hurdle technically lower, albeit longer.
2. Trading Restrictions and Risk Management
Risk management is where the most critical differences lie, especially regarding "hidden" or specific operational rules.
- Stop Loss (SL) Requirement: QT Funded mandates a Stop Loss within 60 seconds of opening a trade on funded accounts. Failure to do so is a breach. FTMO has no SL requirement, providing more freedom for manual traders who manage risk through mental stops or hedging.
- Position Stacking: QT Funded prohibits stacking (no more than two open positions on the same asset simultaneously). This is a major constraint for traders who use "layering" or "scaling into" positions. FTMO allows stacking without specific limits.
- News Trading and Weekends:
- FTMO: Restrictions depend on account type. "Standard" accounts have a 4-minute window of restriction around high-impact news and must close for weekends. "Swing" accounts remove these restrictions but reduce leverage.
- QT Funded: General restriction of 5 minutes before/after news. However, the "QT Prime On Demand" account removes news restrictions, offering a similar trade-off to FTMO's Swing model.
- Maximum Risk Per Trade: QT Funded enforces a maximum risk limit (2% to 2.5% of balance per trade/exposure). FTMO does not enforce a per-trade risk limit, only the overall daily and total drawdown.
3. Drawdown and Consistency Logic
How the firm calculates loss limits determines the "true" breathing room of an account.
- Daily Drawdown Calculation: FTMO uses Equity-based daily drawdown, meaning open floating losses count against your daily limit. QT Funded uses Balance-based drawdown, which is generally considered more trader-friendly as it ignores floating profits/losses from the previous day's close.
- Max Drawdown Type: Both firms offer Static drawdown for their primary evaluations, which is superior to "trailing" drawdown because the floor does not move up as you make profits. However, QT Funded's Instant accounts use Trailing drawdown, significantly increasing the risk of breach during winning streaks.
- Consistency Rules: FTMO has no consistency rule, allowing for "one-shot" payouts if a trader has a single massive day. QT Funded enforces a 35% (or 25%) consistency rule, meaning no single trading day can account for more than a specific percentage of the total profit for a payout.
4. Profit Sharing and Payout Dynamics
The potential earnings and the speed of withdrawal vary based on the selected tiers.
- Profit Split: FTMO starts at 80%, scalable to 90%. QT Funded offers up to 100% profit split on their "Prime On Demand" accounts, which is one of the highest in the industry.
- Payout Frequency: FTMO offers a standard 14-day cycle. QT Funded provides more variety, including On Demand payouts for specific account types, allowing for faster capital rotation.
- Refund Policy: FTMO provides a full refund after the first payout. QT Funded only offers a refund if the trader purchases a specific "Add-on" during checkout, representing an extra upfront cost.
5. Technical Infrastructure and Platforms
- Brokerage: FTMO operates with its own Liquidity Provider (direct market simulation), which usually results in highly competitive spreads. QT Funded uses Quant Tekel as their broker.
- Platforms: FTMO offers MT4, MT5, cTrader, and DXTrade. QT Funded provides MT5, cTrader, and TradeLocker. The inclusion of DXTrade (FTMO) and TradeLocker (QT) shows both are adapting to the current industry shift away from MetaQuotes dominance.
- Leverage: FTMO offers 100:1 (Standard) or 30:1 (Swing). QT Funded is generally more restrictive with 50:1 on Forex and significantly lower on other assets (1:1 on Crypto).
6. Career Path vs. High-Frequency Payouts
- FTMO Premium Programme: FTMO offers a unique path to a professional trading job via "Quantlane" (a traditional prop firm in Prague) for their "Supreme" status traders. This includes a fixed salary and institutional conditions.
- QT Funded Add-ons: QT Funded focuses on "customization" via add-ons (90% split, Phase 2 resets, etc.), allowing traders to "buy" better conditions rather than earning them through a multi-year career path.
7. Summary: Which Firm to Choose?
Choose FTMO if:
- You are looking for the most reputable and established firm in the industry (active since 2015).
- You want to pursue a professional career in trading (Quantlane path).
- You need unrestricted stacking and don't want to be forced to use a Stop Loss.
- You prefer Equity-based drawdown and no consistency rules.
Choose QT Funded if:
- You want Instant Funding or 3-step programs with lower profit targets.
- You want to keep 100% of your profits (via Prime On Demand).
- You prefer Balance-based daily drawdown to allow for more flexibility with open positions.
- You are comfortable with strict rules (Mandatory SL, Stacking prohibited) in exchange for higher payout potential and frequency.
