How you lose the account
At The5ers, the primary ways to lose an account are breaching the daily or maximum drawdown limits, exceeding the 30-day inactivity period, or violating specific program rules. For instance, in the High Stakes program, opening or closing trades within 2 minutes of high-impact news leads to profit deduction, but repeated violations can jeopardize the account. In the Bootcamp program, failing to set a stop loss within three minutes or risking more than 2% of the balance on a single trade results in a hard breach.
At The Trading Pit, account termination occurs when drawdown limits are hit, if the account remains inactive for 21 consecutive days, or if the mandatory stop loss rule is ignored. They also strictly prohibit high-risk strategies like grid or martingale. For their larger $100K and $200K accounts, trading during news (2 minutes before/after) is a violation.
Maximum drawdown
The5ers utilizes a balance-based drawdown for most programs, which is generally more trader-friendly as it does not penalize unrealized profits (equity) during the day.
- Numerical Example: If you have a $100,000 High Stakes Classic account with an 8% maximum drawdown ($8,000), your account is terminated if your balance drops below $92,000. If your equity grows to $110,000 and you have open trades, your floor remains at $92,000.
The Trading Pit uses a static drawdown for many accounts, but has introduced a trailing drawdown for specific new phases and the Instant Earning account.
- Numerical Example: In a $100,000 1-Phase account with a 6% static drawdown ($6,000), your loss limit is $94,000. However, in an Instant Earning account, the drawdown trails the highest balance reached until it hits the starting balance. If you reach $102,000, your new floor moves up from $94,000 to $96,000.
Daily drawdown
The5ers calculates daily drawdown based on the "End of Day" (EOD) high-watermark, using the higher of balance or equity recorded at the close of the day. This creates a fixed floor for the following day.
- Numerical Example: If a $100,000 account has a 4% daily limit ($4,000) and ends the day at $101,000 balance (with no floating equity), the next day's limit is $97,000.
The Trading Pit calculates the daily limit from the previous day's closing balance, updated daily at 16:15 CT.
- Numerical Example: If your $50,000 account (3% daily limit = $1,500) closes at $50,500, your limit for the next day is $49,000. Note that TTP does not explicitly detail the equity-to-balance relationship in the daily calculation as granularly as The5ers, which is a risk factor regarding intraday volatility.
Rules beyond drawdown
- The5ers:
- Stop Loss: Only mandatory in Bootcamp (within 3 minutes, max 2% risk).
- Consistency: A 50% consistency rule applies to Summer 1-Step and funded Summer 2-Step accounts.
- Minimum Days: 3 profitable days (0.5% each) are required for High Stakes and ProGrowth.
- The Trading Pit:
- Stop Loss: Mandatory across all programs.
- Risk per Trade: Capped at 1.5% of initial balance on larger 1-Phase accounts.
- Consistency: For specific 1-Phase accounts, the best day cannot exceed 50% of total profit. For Instant Earning, the cap is 30%.
- Minimum Days: 3 profitable days (0.5% each) for Challenges; 5 trading days for Instant Earning.
Risk that comes from the setup
The5ers offers MetaTrader 5, cTrader, and TradingView. The inclusion of TradingView is a significant risk-reduction factor for many traders due to its superior charting and execution interface. They act as their own liquidity provider, which can mean more controlled spreads but also places the execution risk entirely on their internal infrastructure.
The Trading Pit provides MetaTrader 4, MetaTrader 5, and cTrader, using external brokers like Orbex and Tickmill. This setup introduces third-party broker risk, where slippage or server lag is outside the prop firm's direct control. While they allow news trading on smaller accounts, the prohibition of grid and martingale strategies means traders cannot use "recovery" techniques that some rely on to manage losing positions.
What is at stake and what you recover
The price of the challenge is the immediate risk. The5ers offers an extremely low entry point via the $20K Bootcamp ($22), but it requires passing three steps. Their $100K High Stakes costs between $405 and $455. They charge a 3.5% fee on most withdrawals (except Hub Credits).
The Trading Pit is generally more expensive for comparable sizes; a $100K 1-Phase costs $569. However, their payout fee is significantly lower at 1%. Both firms offer a refund of the initial fee, but TTP requires either the first or third reward depending on the purchase date, while The5ers ties it to passing the evaluation or specific payout milestones.
Frequently asked questions
Which firm offers a cheaper entry for beginners, The5ers or The Trading Pit?
The5ers is significantly cheaper for beginners. You can start a $20,000 Bootcamp account for just $22, whereas the cheapest entry at The Trading Pit is the $2,500 account for $29. This means The5ers allows you to trade a much larger balance for a lower initial out-of-pocket risk.
Is the stop loss rule stricter in The Trading Pit or The5ers?
The Trading Pit is much stricter regarding stop losses, as they are mandatory for all trading programs. In contrast, The5ers only requires a mandatory stop loss for the Bootcamp program; for High Stakes, Hyper-Growth, and ProGrowth, traders are not forced to use one, offering more flexibility for various trading styles.
Which firm has a more lenient inactivity rule, The5ers or The Trading Pit?
The5ers is more lenient, allowing for 30 days of inactivity before an account is breached. The Trading Pit is stricter, requiring at least one trade every 21 consecutive days. If you plan to take breaks or trade infrequently, The5ers provides a larger safety margin.
Who charges more for withdrawing profits, The5ers or The Trading Pit?
The Trading Pit is much more cost-effective for withdrawals, charging only a 1% payout fee. The5ers charges a 3.5% fee for withdrawals via Rise, Crypto, or Bank Transfer. Over time, the higher commission at The5ers represents a significant reduction in the net profit a trader actually receives.
