> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://www.flltlt.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # What Is a Funded Trading Account? - URL: https://www.flltlt.com/blog/what-is-a-funded-account/ - Published: 2026-10-27T13:43:21.000Z - Updated: 2026-10-27T13:43:21.000Z - Description: What a funded account is, how you get one, whether it’s real money, the rules that apply and how payouts work. - Author: Fulltilt - Tags: Trading Glossary, Prop Firm Trading **The short answer:** A funded account is a trading account a prop firm gives you after you pass its evaluation. You trade it under the firm's rules, like a drawdown limit and sometimes a daily loss limit, and the firm pays you a share of the profits. At most evaluation firms, funded accounts are simulated at first, and your payouts come from the firm. Break a rule and the account can be closed. ## Key takeaways - You earn a funded account by passing an evaluation. - You keep a share of profits, called the profit split, paid on the firm's schedule. - Many funded accounts are simulated. Some firms move consistent traders to live accounts later. - The rules don't go away when you're funded, and sometimes they change. - Losing the account usually costs you only the fees you paid, not the account size. ## How do you get a funded account? **Pass an evaluation.** You pay a fee, trade a test account and hit a profit target without breaking any rules. Some firms then charge an activation fee before the funded account starts. Read [how to pass a prop firm evaluation](https://www.flltlt.com/blog/how-to-pass-a-prop-firm-evaluation/) for the full process. ![From evaluation to funded in four steps: evaluation, funded account, payouts, and keeping the account by following the rules.](https://storage.ghost.io/c/a0/84/a0847890-aa24-4d5e-b6dd-8a7b42022bb3/content/images/2026/10/funded-path.png) ## Is a funded account real money? **Often not, at least at first.** Most evaluation-style firms say clearly in their terms that funded accounts may be simulated. Your trades are tracked, and the firm pays your profit split from its own business. Some firms move traders with a long record onto live accounts with real capital. The details vary, so read your firm's terms. More background in [are prop firms legit?](https://www.flltlt.com/blog/are-prop-firms-legit/) ## What rules apply to a funded account? **Usually the same kinds as the evaluation, sometimes stricter.** - **Maximum drawdown**, often trailing. See [trailing drawdown, explained](https://www.flltlt.com/blog/trailing-drawdown-explained/). - **Daily loss limit** at some firms. See [daily loss limits](https://www.flltlt.com/blog/daily-loss-limit-prop-firm/). - **Contract limits**, sometimes through a [scaling plan](https://www.flltlt.com/blog/scaling-plan-prop-firm/). - **Payout rules**: minimum trading days, minimum amounts, sometimes a [consistency rule](https://www.flltlt.com/blog/prop-firm-consistency-rule/). - **Conduct rules**: no account sharing, no copying other traders' accounts where banned, no trading restricted news if the firm forbids it. ## How do funded account payouts work? **You request a withdrawal of your share of profits, and the firm pays it if you meet its conditions.** The split, the schedule and the minimums all depend on the firm. In the U.S., payouts are commonly reported as contractor income. See [prop firm vs your own account](https://www.flltlt.com/blog/prop-firm-vs-own-account/) for the tax basics. ## How do traders lose funded accounts? - Sizing up right after getting funded. - Hitting the trailing drawdown before building a cushion. - Breaking a funded-only rule they didn't read. - One [revenge trading](https://www.flltlt.com/blog/revenge-trading/) session. The fix for most of these is in [your first week as a funded trader](https://www.flltlt.com/blog/first-week-funded-trader/). > **From the desk** Indy trades futures in prop firm accounts and publishes a rules-based record in points on [Day Trader Income](https://www.daytraderincome.com/). Getting funded is a milestone, not a finish line. The account rewards the exact habits that passed the evaluation. ## The bottom line A funded account lets you trade a firm's buying power and keep a share of the profit, as long as you follow its rules. It's often simulated, it can be closed for one rule break and the payout terms matter as much as the account size. Read everything before you trade it, then trade it the same way you passed. ## FAQ ### What is a funded trading account? A funded account is an account a prop firm provides after you pass its evaluation. You trade it under the firm’s rules and receive a share of the profits. ### Is a funded account real money? Often not at first. Many evaluation-style prop firms use simulated funded accounts and pay profit splits from their own business. Some move consistent traders to live accounts later. ### How do you get a funded account? By passing a prop firm evaluation: paying a fee and hitting a profit target without breaking the drawdown or other rules. Some firms also charge an activation fee. ### Can you lose a funded account? Yes. Breaking a rule such as the maximum drawdown or daily loss limit can close the account. Usually you lose only the fees you paid, not the account size. ### How do funded account payouts work? You request your share of profits, and the firm pays it if you meet its conditions, such as minimum trading days and minimum amounts.