How does the FTMO scaling plan work?

FTMO's scaling plan adds 25% of the original account balance every 4 months if three conditions are met: at least 10% cumulative profit over the cycle, at least 2 processed payouts during the cycle, and a positive account balance at the scale-up event. The increase is linear (not compounding) — a $100,000 account becomes $125,000, then $150,000, then $175,000 on successive scale-ups. The profit split also rises from 80% to 90% at the first scale-up. The maximum initial balance is $2,000,000.

How does The5ers Hyper Growth scaling compare to FTMO?

The5ers Hyper Growth doubles the account balance at every 10% profit milestone, with no cycle time requirement. A $10,000 account becomes $20,000, then $40,000, then $80,000 on successive milestones — geometric growth up to a $4,000,000 cap. The profit split also steps up through tiers, eventually reaching 100%. This is significantly more aggressive than FTMO's linear 25% every 4 months, but comes with a trailing drawdown that follows the new balance.

What replaced Topstep's original scaling plan?

Starting July 22, 2025, Topstep replaced the Scaling Plan in the Live Funded Account with Dynamic Live Risk Expansion. Under this tier-based system, traders don't get a bigger account — instead, their Daily Loss Limit and Max Position Limit expand as net profit grows. Each tier requires 10 Active Trading Days before the next unlock, and the DLL drops back immediately if profit falls below the current tier threshold. The original Scaling Plan still applies to Express Funded Accounts only.

Why does the Apex multi-account model matter for scaling?

Apex allows up to 20 Performance Accounts simultaneously, meaning traders scale horizontally rather than growing a single balance. Each account carries its own monthly subscription fee (~$147), so running 10 accounts costs around $1,470/month in fixed costs before any trading profit is made. The break-even threshold compounds with account count. This is a fundamentally different scaling mechanic than balance-growth models like FTMO or The5ers — it rewards consistency replicated at scale, not compounding within a single account.

What does P10 / P50 / P90 mean on the scaling chart?

The Monte Carlo simulation runs 300 random variations of your monthly profit pattern with the volatility you set. P50 (median) is the middle outcome — half the simulated paths end above, half end below. P90 is the optimistic scenario (only 10% of paths do better). P10 is the pessimistic scenario (only 10% of paths do worse). The wider the band between P10 and P90, the more variable your projected outcomes — a function of how much volatility you entered and how many months you're projecting forward.

Is the scaling plan guaranteed if I hit the profit target?

No. Every scaling plan has conditional requirements beyond profit. FTMO requires 2 processed payouts in the cycle and a positive balance at scale-up time. Topstep's tier progression requires 10 active trading days at each tier, and drops immediately if profit falls back. The5ers requires no daily drawdown breaches and valid stop-losses on every trade. These conditions are the common reason traders 'pass' profitability but don't actually scale. The projector shows the ideal path — actual results depend on meeting every condition.

Scaling Plan Projector

Model funded account growth over 6–36 months under real firm scaling rules. See when scale-ups trigger, when they don't, and the spread of realistic outcomes.

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Starting Account Size

Linear Cycle⊤ Cap $2M

Linear top-ups of 25% of the original balance. Needs ≥10% cumulative profit over the 4-month cycle, at least 2 processed payouts, and a positive balance at scale-up. Split jumps from 80% to 90% at the first scale-up.

Monthly Profit %

Volatility (±%)

Months

300 simulations with Gaussian noise on monthly return