How we vet and rank prop firms
Every firm here earns its place on verified numbers — scored by math, not by marketing budget. This page is the full record of how that works: who gets listed, how they're ranked, and why a commission never moves a ranking.
The vetting bar — who gets listed
Before a firm can appear in the quiz, the vetted list, or any “best” ranking, it has to clear vetting: documented payout proof, a verifiable funding history, and zero exit-scam fingerprints. Firms that fail aren't hidden — they're documented on the firms-to-avoid list with the reason. A firm whose specs we could only source publicly, without independent confirmation, is labelled “verify before trusting” and kept out of the headline rankings until it's confirmed.
How firms are scored
Two stages: hard filters, then soft scoring.
- Hard filters — a firm either clears all three or it never appears: the market you trade, your account size, and whether it accepts US clients. No “works if you use a VPN” entries.
- Soft scoring — the cheapest real entry cost at your account size (evaluation plus activation, because activation fees are where the surprises hide), the drawdown mechanics, time to first payout, and maximum profit split — weighted by your answers in the quiz.
For the “best for” lists, the blend is fixed and transparent:
Affiliate status is never one of those inputs.
How we handle pricing
Prices move constantly, so the list uses cost tiers — Budget, Mid and Premium — based on the standardized 50K evaluation plus activation, rather than a single dollar figure that's stale by next week. The line-by-line cost math lives in the True Cost research at TrailingStopLoss.com.
Monetization — the honest-broker rule
Some links are affiliate links, always labelled Partner. They earn the site a commission at no extra cost to you, and they never affect how firms are scored, ranked or flagged. Partner firms run the exact same algorithm as everyone else, and a flagged firm stays flagged whether or not a partner link exists. “Featured” placement is paid promotion and has zero effect on scoring or list order.
Data, sourcing and freshness
Pricing, drawdown rules, payout terms and US availability are verified against each firm's official site and the True Cost research database at TrailingStopLoss.com. Every firm card shows its own verification date. We work from primary sources — we don't rank firms on aggregator blurbs or affiliate-site claims.
Questions
Do partner firms rank higher?
No. Partner firms run through exactly the same scoring as everyone else — entry cost, drawdown mechanics, payout speed and profit split. The Partner label only tells you which links earn the site a commission; the ranking math never looks at it.
How often is the data updated?
Pricing, rules and payout terms are re-verified against each firm's official site and the True Cost research at TrailingStopLoss.com on a rolling basis, and every firm card shows its own verification date. Terms change constantly, so always confirm on the firm's site before paying.
Why is a firm I like not listed?
Either it hasn't cleared vetting yet, or it failed — in which case it's documented on the firms-to-avoid list with the reason. Firms whose specs we could only source publicly, without independent confirmation, are labelled “verify before trusting” and kept out of the headline rankings.
What gets a firm flagged?
Payout denials or disputes, impersonation or clone-site behaviour, a collapse or exit-scam, ceasing operations, or specs we simply couldn't verify. Flagged firms stay flagged whether or not an affiliate link exists.
Is this financial advice?
No. Everything here compares publicly available pricing, rules and payout terms for educational purposes only. Funded trading carries substantial risk, and an evaluation fee is money spent whether or not you pass.
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