Under the FTMO consistency rule, your best trading day may not be more than 50 percent of your total profit on the 1-Step Challenge and the FTMO Account that follows it, and not more than 30 percent on the Instant Account. Total profit means every closed profit and loss across all your trading days, so losing days count against you.
It replaced the Best Day Rule for accounts from orders created on or after 12 October 2026. Breaking it is not a breach. It just means you cannot pass or take a Reward until the share comes back under the cap.
What changed on 12 October 2026
The old Best Day Rule and the new consistency rule both ask the same question: how much of your result came from one day? The difference is what they divide by.
| Best Day Rule (legacy) | Consistency rule (new) | |
|---|---|---|
| Applies to | Accounts from orders before 12 Oct 2026 | Accounts from orders on or after 12 Oct 2026, and merged accounts |
| Best day compared with | Sum of profitable days only | Total net profit, losing days included |
| Cap on 1-Step and FTMO Account (1-Step) | 50% | 50% |
| Cap on Instant Account | n/a | 30% |
| Is it a breach? | No, keep trading until compliant | No, keep trading until compliant |
The best day itself is measured the same way in both: the single day with the highest closed profit, counted at the end of the trading day at 00:00 CE(S)T. Always check the current wording on FTMO's trading objectives page, because prop firms change rules several times a year.
The math, with one example
Take the same four days under both rules:
- Day 1: +$3,000
- Day 2: -$1,000
- Day 3: +$1,000
- Day 4: +$1,000
Legacy Best Day Rule. Profitable days add up to $5,000. The best day is $3,000, which is 60 percent. Not compliant yet.
New consistency rule. Total net profit is $4,000, because the losing day counts. The best day is now 75 percent of the total. Further from compliance, on exactly the same trades.
To get Day 1 down to 50 percent you need total net profit of at least $6,000, so another $2,000 of net profit without a new best day. Under the 30 percent cap you would need $10,000.
Why losing days hurt twice now
Under the old rule a red day cost you money and nothing else. Under the new rule it also moves your consistency target further away. That turns one specific behaviour into the most expensive mistake on the account: the cascade where one loss turns into ten trades. A planned 0.5 percent loss becomes a 2 percent day, and now you need extra profit just to get back to where the rule lets you pass.
The second trap comes after a big green day. You are suddenly far over 50 percent, the only way out is more trading days, and the pressure to make them count is how overtrading after a win starts. Neither is a strategy problem. Both are a stopping problem.
How to trade inside the consistency rule
- Size so no single day can dominate. If one day can make 5 percent, it will make your best day impossible to dilute. Steady risk per trade keeps the spread even.
- Cap the red days harder than the green ones. Every dollar you lose on a bad day is a dollar of profit you have to make again before you can pass.
- Decide your daily stop before the session. Write it as a number, not a feeling, and keep it well inside FTMO's own Maximum Daily Loss (3 percent on 1-Step, 5 percent on 2-Step).
- Expect to trade longer. There is no time limit, so there is no reason to force days. Boredom trades are what break the rule from the other side.
The rule you set before the session only works if something holds it when the session goes wrong. On MT5 you can do that with an EA or an app. EmotionLock is the app version: it reads your MT5 account with the read-only investor password and, when your own daily trade limit or daily loss limit is hit, blocks your trading apps on iPhone until midnight. It does not trade, it does not pass the challenge for you, and it counts closed trades only, so leave a buffer below FTMO's equity-based limits. What it does is keep a red day small, which under the new rule is worth more than it used to be.
Sources
- FTMO. Trading Objectives.
- MetaQuotes. MetaTrader 5 Help: Connect to an Account (master and investor passwords).
Frequently asked questions
What is the FTMO consistency rule?
On the FTMO 1-Step Challenge and the FTMO Account that follows it, your best trading day may not represent more than 50 percent of your total profit. Total profit is the sum of all closed profits and losses across every trading day, so losing days count against you. On the FTMO Instant Account the cap is 30 percent. The 2-Step Challenge has no consistency rule on FTMO’s trading objectives page at the time of writing.
When did the FTMO consistency rule replace the Best Day Rule?
It applies to accounts created from orders placed on or after 12 October 2026, and to accounts merged on or after that date. Accounts from orders created before 12 October 2026 stay on the legacy Best Day Rule.
What is the difference between the consistency rule and the Best Day Rule?
The Best Day Rule compared your best day with the sum of your profitable days only. The consistency rule compares it with your total net profit, losing days included. That makes the new rule stricter: every red day shrinks the denominator and pushes your best day further over 50 percent.
Do I fail the challenge if I break the FTMO consistency rule?
No. FTMO does not treat it as a rule breach. You simply cannot pass, or withdraw a Reward, until your best day is back at or under the cap. In practice that means trading more days to build total profit, which is exactly when traders who are tired of waiting start forcing trades.
How much profit do I need to satisfy the 50 percent rule?
At least twice your best day. If your best day is $4,000, you need $8,000 of total net profit for that day to sit at 50 percent. Under the 30 percent cap on the Instant Account you would need about $13,334.
How do losing days affect the FTMO consistency rule?
Directly. A $1,500 losing day removes $1,500 from total profit, so your best day becomes a bigger share of a smaller number. Revenge trading after a loss is therefore doubly expensive under the new rule: it costs the money and it moves the consistency target further away.
The summary
Since 12 October 2026 FTMO measures your best day against total net profit, losing days included: 50 percent on the 1-Step Challenge and FTMO Account, 30 percent on the Instant Account. It is not a breach, but it delays your pass or payout, and every revenge-trading day makes it worse. Keep the red days small, size so no day dominates, and let something other than your post-loss self enforce the daily stop.