The Topstep Trading Combine asks you to reach a profit target without touching a trailing Maximum Loss Limit, and without one day making up 55% or more of your target. On a $50K account that means $3,000 profit with a $2,000 Maximum Loss Limit.
Topstep is a futures firm, so you trade CME products such as ES, NQ and CL rather than forex. The numbers below come from Topstep's own pages and were last checked on 6 November 2026.
Topstep Trading Combine rules by account size
| Account | Profit target | Maximum Loss Limit | Best day must stay below | Optional daily loss limit | Max position |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| $50K | $3,000 | $2,000 | $1,650 | $1,000 | 5 minis / 50 micros |
| $100K | $6,000 | $3,000 | $3,300 | $2,000 | 10 minis / 100 micros |
| $150K | $9,000 | $4,500 | $4,950 | $3,000 | 15 minis / 150 micros |
Sources: Topstep account options, Maximum Loss Limit,Daily Loss Limit and Trading Combine Parameters. The "best day" column is 55% of the profit target, calculated from Topstep's consistency rule.
How does the trailing Maximum Loss Limit work?
The Maximum Loss Limit starts a fixed amount below your starting balance and rises with your end-of-day balance. It never moves down. A $500 winning day lifts the floor by $500; a $500 losing day the next day leaves it where it was. Topstep updates it at the end of each day but monitors it in real time, so you can breach it during the session.
That creates the classic trailing-floor trap: after a strong run, a normal pullback can end the account even though you are still up overall. In the Express Funded Account the limit stops trailing once it reaches the starting balance. The mechanics, with worked examples, are in static vs trailing drawdown explained.
Is there a daily loss limit?
Only if you add one. In the Trading Combine the daily loss limit is optional and set at purchase: $1,000, $2,000 or $3,000 depending on account size. When your net P&L for the day reaches it, open positions are closed, pending orders are cancelled and you cannot trade until the next session at 5 PM CT. Topstep is explicit that triggering it is not a rule violation.
That makes it one of the few built-in circuit breakers in the industry, and it is worth switching on. Without it, the only hard stop between a bad afternoon and a failed Combine is the Maximum Loss Limit itself.
What is the 55% consistency target?
Your best single day must be less than 55% of the profit target. On a $50K account that caps any one day at $1,649. Topstep says you can pass in as few as two days if the rule is met. The point is the one behind every consistency rule: the firm wants traders who can repeat results, not one lucky day.
Where evaluations actually end
The targets are reachable with steady trading. What ends most Combines is the trailing Maximum Loss Limit hit in a tilted session, the second and third trade after a loss, when the urge to recover takes over. Both protections against that work the same way: decide your stop before the session and make it impossible to override. Topstep's optional daily loss limit does this on the platform. EmotionLock does it on your phone for MT5 accounts, but Topstep is futures-only, so for a Topstep Combine the platform's own daily loss limit is the tool to use.
Sources
- Topstep. Prop firm account options: profit target, Maximum Loss Limit and position size.
- Topstep Help Center. What is the Maximum Loss Limit?
- Topstep Help Center. Daily Loss Limit in the Trading Combine and Express Funded Account.
- Topstep Help Center. Trading Combine Parameters.
Frequently asked questions
What are the Topstep Trading Combine rules?
The Combine has one profit target, one trailing Maximum Loss Limit and a consistency target. On a $50K account you need $3,000 profit with a $2,000 Maximum Loss Limit, on $100K it is $6,000 with $3,000, and on $150K it is $9,000 with $4,500. Your best day must stay below 55% of the profit target. Figures checked against Topstep's site in November 2026.
How does the Topstep Maximum Loss Limit work?
The Maximum Loss Limit starts below your starting balance ($2,000 below on a $50K account) and moves up with your end-of-day balance. It never moves down, and Topstep monitors it in real time, so a pullback after a strong run can breach it even while you are still in profit overall.
Does Topstep have a daily loss limit?
Only if you choose one. The daily loss limit is optional in the Trading Combine: $1,000 on $50K, $2,000 on $100K and $3,000 on $150K. If you hit it, open positions are closed and you cannot trade until the next session, but it is not a rule violation and the account stays in play.
What is the Topstep consistency target?
Your best single day must be less than 55% of the profit target. On a $50K account with a $3,000 target, that means no single day may contribute $1,650 or more. Topstep says you can pass in as few as two days if the rule is met.
Why do traders fail the Topstep Combine?
Most failures come from the trailing Maximum Loss Limit, hit during a tilted session after a loss when the urge to win it back drives oversized or repeated trades. It is a behavioural failure in the post-loss window, not usually a strategy problem.
The summary
Topstep is a profit target, a trailing Maximum Loss Limit and a 55% consistency target: $3,000, $2,000 and $1,650 on a $50K account. The optional daily loss limit is the best protection the platform offers, and the trailing floor is what ends most evaluations. Figures checked against Topstep in November 2026; confirm them again before you buy, since terms change.