Topstep Combine rules in cash

The floor trails, then stops

The maximum loss follows your peak upward but locks once it reaches the starting balance. That single clause makes the structure substantially more forgiving than a pure trailing floor: after the account has banked the threshold amount, the failure level stops moving and the rest of the target can be traded without the ground rising underneath you.

Before the lock, the same arithmetic applies as on any trailing account — profit reduces room. On a $100,000 Combine with a $3,000 threshold, a $2,000 gain leaves $1,000 of the original allowance, so a single full-size losing session can end the attempt even though the account is up. The lock is what eventually stops that effect, which is why the first part of the Combine carries the structural risk and the later part does not.

The daily limit is optional, and that matters

Topstep offers a daily loss limit at checkout rather than as a fixed rule. Buying without it means the Combine is governed only by the trailing maximum loss, so a bad session can consume the entire remaining threshold in one go. Buying with it caps the session at $2,000 on a $100,000 account and does not itself constitute a breach if it fires.

The distinction is worth understanding before purchase rather than after: two traders on the same account size can be running materially different risk rules depending on a checkbox. If the plan is sized around a daily budget, the optional limit is what enforces it.

Consistency caps your best day

During the Combine, the best day must stay at or below 55% of the profit target — $3,300 on a $6,000 target. That prevents a pass built on one outsized session, and it means the target must be spread across at least two meaningful days. A 40% figure applies only on the optional consistency payout path, so read which path your account is on before assuming either number.

What to confirm before you pay

• Whether the daily limit is included. It changes the risk rules on the same account size, and it is chosen at checkout.
• The lock level. Confirm that the trailing threshold locks at the starting balance and at what point, rather than assuming it from a comparison table.
• Which payout path you are on. The 40% consistency figure belongs to the optional path; the 55% Combine rule is separate.
• The third-party trading clause. These rules score an account; they do not authorise anyone else to trade it. Confirm separately — see the risk disclosure.

Planning against these numbers

On a $100,000 Combine the target is $6,000 against a $3,000 maximum loss — a target worth two thresholds. The early plan should therefore risk well under $1,000 a trade, because a $1,000 loss consumes a third of the threshold before any progress exists. Once the floor has locked, the remaining room is fixed and size can be held steady rather than cut.

The maximum loss calculator shows the floor under a fixed-dollar trail, and the target planner shows the daily pace the $6,000 requires. For the funded side, the Topstep challenge guide covers payouts and the transition to an Express Funded Account.

Frequently asked

Does the Topstep maximum loss trail the whole time?

It trails end-of-day until it reaches the starting balance, then it locks. That lock is the difference between this and a permanent trailing threshold, and it is the clause worth confirming on your plan page.

Is the daily loss limit mandatory?

No — it is optional at checkout. Without it the account is governed only by the trailing maximum loss, so a single session can consume the remaining threshold. With it, the day is capped and a breach of the daily figure is not itself a failure.

What does the 55% consistency rule mean?

Your best day's profit must not exceed 55% of the profit target during the Combine. On a $6,000 target that is $3,300, so a pass needs at least two substantial days rather than one dominant session.

How does the target compare with the loss limit?

On a $100,000 Combine the target is $6,000 and the maximum loss is $3,000, so the target is twice the threshold. That ratio, not the target alone, is what determines how demanding the evaluation is.