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Master Phase 1 & 2 with proven strategies, risk management rules, and learn from traders who passed in 10-30 days
Only 23% of traders pass the FTMO Challenge on their first attempt. The remaining 77% fail due to rule violations, poor risk management, or psychological pressure. This guide reveals exactly what the successful 23% do differently.
| Rule | Requirement | Critical Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Profit Target | 10% | $10,000 on $100K account |
| Max Daily Loss | 5% | $5,000 limit (including open trades) |
| Max Total Drawdown | 10% | $10,000 from initial balance |
| Minimum Trading Days | 4 days | At least 1 position opened per day |
| Trading Period | 30 days | Unlimited calendar days, 30 trading days |
| Overnight Holds | Allowed | Weekend holds allowed |
| News Trading | Allowed | No restrictions during high-impact news |
| Rule | Requirement | Critical Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Profit Target | 5% | $5,000 on $100K account (easier) |
| Max Daily Loss | 5% | Same as Phase 1 |
| Max Total Drawdown | 10% | Same as Phase 1 |
| Minimum Trading Days | 4 days | At least 1 position opened per day |
| Trading Period | 60 days | Unlimited calendar days |
Complete course with Phase 1 & 2 strategies, risk management systems, and proven trading psychology
✓ FTMO Phase 1 & 2 blueprints ✓ Risk calculators ✓ Daily routines
Risking only 1% of your account per trade means you can withstand 10 consecutive losses and still only be down 10% (near your max drawdown limit). This creates a massive safety buffer.
Position Size = (Account × 1%) ÷ (Entry - Stop Loss)Start Phase 1 with 0.5% risk per trade for the first week. Once you're up 3-4%, increase to 1% risk. If you hit 7-8% profit, reduce back to 0.5% to safely coast to the 10% target. This prevents last-minute rule violations.
Review overnight developments, key economic data releases, and identify support/resistance levels.
Highest volatility and liquidity period. Take your primary setups here.
Lunch period - typically lower volume and choppier price action.
Secondary trading window - only trade if you have clear edge.
Critical review period for continuous improvement.
$100K Challenge | ES Futures | Scalping Strategy
"I traded only 2 hours per day. By limiting myself to the highest-probability time window, I avoided 90% of stupid mistakes. Quality over quantity always wins in evaluations."
$100K Challenge | NQ Futures | Multi-Day Holds
"I took only 11 trades in 22 days - about 1 trade every 2 days. My strategy required patience to wait for perfect setups. Lower win rate doesn't matter when your average winner is 3x your average loser."
$100K Challenge | CL (Crude Oil) | Event Trading
"News trading is about capitalizing on volatility spikes. I traded only 1-2 times per week, but each trade had massive profit potential. The key was position sizing for the wider stops that oil requires during news events."
Learn the exact strategies, routines, and psychology used by the 23% who pass first time
✓ Phase 1 & 2 strategies ✓ Trading psychology modules ✓ Risk calculators
| Mistake | Why It Happens | How to Avoid It |
|---|---|---|
| Violating Daily Loss Limit | Holding trades into 5pm EST cutoff without calculating marked-to-market P&L | Close all positions by 4:45 PM EST or maintain 2% buffer from daily limit |
| Overtrading in Week 1 | Excitement and anxiety lead to taking too many low-quality setups | Limit to 2-3 trades per day in first week. Focus on adaptation, not profit |
| Revenge Trading After Loss | Emotional response to losing trade causes trader to "get money back" | Implement rule: After 2 consecutive losses, stop for the day regardless of time |
| Increasing Risk Near Target | At 8-9% profit, traders increase position size to "finish quickly" | REDUCE risk to 0.5% per trade once above 7% profit. Take smaller, safer trades |
| Abandoning Proven Strategy | Pressure of evaluation causes trader to try new, unproven strategies | Trade ONLY the strategy you've proven profitable over 100+ trades on demo |
| Not Journaling Trades | In the rush of trading, documentation gets skipped | Use Edgewonk or TraderSync with automated imports. Review journal weekly |
| Weekend Gap Risk | Holding positions over weekend without considering Monday gap potential | Close all positions Friday if within 3% of daily loss limit for Monday |
Most successful traders pass Phase 1 in 15-25 trading days. With 30 days maximum, you have buffer for mistakes. Phase 2 typically takes 10-15 days since the profit target is only 5%. Combined, expect 25-40 total trading days from start to funded account.
Yes, FTMO allows news trading with no restrictions. However, use extreme caution around high-impact events (FOMC, NFP, CPI) as volatility can cause slippage that violates your daily loss rule. Many successful traders avoid news entirely and focus on clean technical setups.
You can retake the Challenge immediately by paying the evaluation fee again ($500-$600 for $100K account). FTMO offers a 40% discount on retakes if you reached at least 2% profit. Many funded traders failed 2-3 times before passing - it's part of the learning process.
Focus on ONE instrument during evaluations. Master traders recommend trading only ES or NQ to reduce decision fatigue and complexity. Once funded, you can diversify, but during challenges, specialization increases your edge significantly.
Don't set daily profit targets - this creates unhealthy pressure. Instead, focus on taking 1-3 high-quality setups per day. If you average just 0.5% profit per trading day, you'll hit 10% in 20 days with buffer for losing days. Quality over quantity always wins.
Only if you have a proven profitable strategy already. Coaches can help with psychology and rule management, but they cannot give you edge if you don't have one. Better investment: 100+ hours on demo perfecting your strategy before paying for any evaluation or coaching.
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