Strategy styles · Trend following
Can a trend-following strategy pass The Trading Pit? Caution
Sometimes. On The Trading Pit Futures Prime 50K, our sample trend follower passed 37% of attempts and went on to a first payout in 28%. That ranks The Trading Pit 46th of 46 firms with a challenge for this style; the middle challenge across all firms is 67%. The sample has a real edge built in, so read this as how The Trading Pit's rules treat the style, not as your own odds.
Proceed with caution at The Trading Pit. The figures below are about its rules only. See why.
The Trading Pit accounts with a trend-following strategy
| Account | Type | Pass chance | Pass and get paid | Best risk a trade | Days | Most common way it failed | Target | Daily loss | Max loss |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Futures Prime 50K | 1-step | 37% | 28% | 1% | 15 | Hit the maximum loss | 6% | None | 4% trailing, locks at start |
"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 13 Nov 2026; full rules on the The Trading Pit page.
The Trading Pit's rules are harder on this style than most. When the sample failed on The Trading Pit Futures Prime 50K, it was most often because it hit the maximum loss.
The sample trend follower
Our sample wins 34.3% of its trades, each winner is 2.5 times the risk, each loser is the full risk, and it takes about one trade every two days: an average of 0.2R profit per trade, where R is the amount risked. The lowest win rate here and the biggest winners. Long flat or losing spells are part of the method. More on the sample and how it does across all firms.
The Trading Pit rules to watch with a trend-following strategy
We have not recorded The Trading Pit's rules on holding over the weekend yet, and they are not in the pass figures above. Check The Trading Pit's own rules before you buy.
- Weekend and overnight rules
- Trades held for days run into rules against holding over the weekend, and into swap charges on accounts that have them.
- Time limits
- With one trade every two days, a 30-day limit leaves room for about 15 trades. That is too few for a low win rate to even out.
- Consistency rules
- One long runner can be most of the profit, which is what a best-day rule is written to stop.
Other styles at The Trading Pit
| Style | Best account | Pass chance | Pass and get paid |
|---|---|---|---|
| Breakout | Futures Prime 50K | 37% | 22% |
| Trend following (this one) | Futures Prime 50K | 37% | 28% |
| Mean reversion | Futures Prime 50K | 37% | 24% |
| Scalping | Futures Prime 50K | 27% | 14% |
| Swing trading | Futures Prime 50K | 33% | 28% |
| Opening range breakout | Futures Prime 50K | 39% | 28% |
| Day trading | Futures Prime 50K | 27% | 16% |
| High win rate | Futures Prime 50K | 36% | 29% |
| Low win rate | Futures Prime 50K | 21% | 16% |
| Position trading | Futures Prime 50K | 16% | 12% |
| Grid and martingale | Futures Prime 50K | 30% | 19% |
Firms whose rules suit this style better
- FTUK Flex Challenge: 85% passed
- Bullwaves Prime 1-Step 100K: 81% passed Caution
- FundingPips 2 Step Standard: 80% 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 trend-following strategy pass The Trading Pit?
Sometimes. On The Trading Pit Futures Prime 50K, our sample trend follower passed 37% of attempts and went on to a first payout in 28%. That ranks The Trading Pit 46th of 46 firms with a challenge for this style; the middle challenge across all firms is 67%. The sample has a real edge built in; a strategy without one fails at any firm.
Which The Trading Pit account is best for a trend-following strategy?
PropPassCheck tracks one The Trading Pit account, The Trading Pit Futures Prime 50K.
How much should I risk per trade at The Trading Pit with a trend-following strategy?
For our sample the best size on The Trading Pit Futures Prime 50K was 1% of the account per trade, and a typical pass took 15 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 The Trading Pit 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.