Strategy styles · Position trading
Can a position trading strategy pass FTMO?
Yes, on most rule sets. On FTMO 1-Step Challenge, our sample position trader passed 87% of attempts and went on to a first payout in 67%. That ranks FTMO 2nd of 46 firms with a challenge for this style; the middle challenge across all firms is 80%. The sample has a real edge built in, so read this as how FTMO's rules treat the style, not as your own odds.
FTMO accounts with a position trading strategy
| Account | Type | Pass chance | Pass and get paid | Best risk a trade | Days | Most common way it failed | Target | Daily loss | Max loss |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2-Step Challenge | 2-step | 84% | 80% | 1% | 125 | Hit the maximum loss | 10% / 5% | 5% | 10% static |
| 1-Step Challenge | 1-step | 87% | 67% | 1% | 71 | Hit the maximum loss | 10% | 3% | 10% trailing |
| Instant Account | Instant funding | No challenge | 51% | 1% | 71 | No payout within 120 days | None | 3% | 10% trailing |
"Pass and get paid" is the share of attempts that passed every phase and then reached a first payout without breaking a rule. Days are trading days. Rules checked 8 Nov 2026; full rules on the FTMO page.
FTMO's rules suit this style better than most. When the sample failed on FTMO 1-Step Challenge, it was most often because it hit the maximum loss.
The sample position trader
Our sample wins 33.3% of its trades, each winner is 4 times the risk, each loser is the full risk, and it takes about three trades a month: an average of 0.66R profit per trade, where R is the amount risked. About three trades a month, a third of them winners at four times the risk. Each trade carries a large edge, and there are very few of them. More on the sample and how it does across all firms.
FTMO rules to watch with a position trading strategy
We have not recorded FTMO's rules on holding over the weekend yet, and they are not in the pass figures above. Check FTMO's own rules before you buy.
- Weekend and overnight rules
- Trades held for weeks sit through every weekend. A firm that bans weekend holding rules this style out, and swap charges add up on accounts that have them.
- Time and inactivity rules
- Three trades a month is too few for a 30-day limit. Some firms also close accounts that go weeks without a trade.
- It takes months
- A typical pass in our runs took months. Futures accounts with a monthly fee charge for every one of them.
Other styles at FTMO
| Style | Best account | Pass chance | Pass and get paid |
|---|---|---|---|
| Breakout | 1-Step Challenge | 66% | 56% |
| Trend following | 1-Step Challenge | 76% | 65% |
| Mean reversion | 2-Step Challenge | 69% | 65% |
| Scalping | 1-Step Challenge | 57% | 44% |
| Swing trading | 2-Step Challenge | 88% | 85% |
| Opening range breakout | 1-Step Challenge | 80% | 75% |
| Day trading | 1-Step Challenge | 54% | 39% |
| High win rate | 2-Step Challenge | 86% | 83% |
| Low win rate | 1-Step Challenge | 62% | 44% |
| Position trading (this one) | 1-Step Challenge | 87% | 67% |
| Grid and martingale | 2-Step Challenge | 33% | 29% |
Other firms near the top
- FTUK Flex Challenge: 92% passed
- FundedNext Stellar 2-Step: 87% passed
- FundingPips 2 Step Standard: 87% passed
Ranked on the rules alone. It says nothing about how reliably a firm pays: see payout reports and each firm's page.
How this was worked out
Each style is a made-up sample trader, not a real track record. We set the figures so that every sample makes the same average profit: 0.1 times its risk per trading day, about 2R a month. They differ only in shape: how often they win, how big the winners are and how many trades they take. That way a difference between two styles comes from how the rules treat the shape, not from one sample simply being better. The exception is the grid and martingale sample, which has no edge at all: adding to losing trades changes the shape of the results but cannot create an edge.
Each sample was run 1,000 times against each account's published rules, at nine trade sizes from 0.13% to 1% of the account, and we show the size that did best. It is the same engine as the test centre. How the simulation works.
What this leaves out. Every sample but that one has a real edge and never breaks its own rules, which is why these figures are far higher than the share of real traders who pass. There are no spreads, commissions, swaps or slippage. Every winner and loser is the same size. And it only tests the rules in the table: profit targets, loss limits, trading days, time limits, consistency and payout terms, not rules on news, weekends or hold times. A strategy with no edge fails everywhere, whatever its style.
Questions
Can a position trading strategy pass FTMO?
Yes, on most rule sets. On FTMO 1-Step Challenge, our sample position trader passed 87% of attempts and went on to a first payout in 67%. That ranks FTMO 2nd of 46 firms with a challenge for this style; the middle challenge across all firms is 80%. The sample has a real edge built in; a strategy without one fails at any firm.
Which FTMO account is best for a position trading strategy?
FTMO 1-Step Challenge did best in our runs (87% passed). FTMO 2-Step Challenge: 84% passed. FTMO Instant Account: 51% reached a first payout.
How much should I risk per trade at FTMO with a position trading strategy?
For our sample the best size on FTMO 1-Step Challenge was 1% of the account per trade, and a typical pass took 71 trading days. Your own best size depends on your win rate and losing runs, so test your own trades.
Test your own trades
These are samples. Your strategy has its own win rate, its own losing runs and its own costs. Upload a backtest or trade history and PropPassCheck replays it 2,000 times against each FTMO account and every other firm, and shows your own chance of passing and of a first payout. It runs in your browser; nothing is uploaded.