Apex trailing drawdown at a glance
The drawdown amount is the same on EOD and Intraday accounts, evaluations and Performance Accounts (PAs). What changes is where the threshold stops.
| Account | Max drawdown | Threshold at the start | PA: stops at | once the high reaches | Rithmic or Wealthcharts evaluation: stops at | once the high reaches |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| $25,000 | $1,000 | $24,000 | $25,100 | $26,100 | $26,500 | $27,500 |
| $50,000 | $2,000 | $48,000 | $50,100 | $52,100 | $53,000 | $55,000 |
| $100,000 | $3,000 | $97,000 | $100,100 | $103,100 | $106,000 | $109,000 |
| $150,000 | $4,000 | $146,000 | $150,100 | $154,100 | $159,000 | $163,000 |
On a Tradovate evaluation the drawdown "trails indefinitely" and has no stop level. Apex works only the 50K rows through; the others apply its rule as its main text states it (the target balance plus the drawdown). Each evaluation's target is in our Apex evaluation rules.
Sources, checked 2026-10-22: EOD Drawdown Explained, Intraday Trailing Drawdown Explained, EOD Evaluations, Intraday Trailing Drawdown Evaluations.
EOD or Intraday: what moves the threshold?
On an EOD account, only the close. Apex's threshold is "recalculated once per trading day at 4:59:59 PM ET, based on the account's closing balance," and "It always trails the highest achieved EOD balance and never moves downward." It then holds still for the next session.
On an Intraday account, any new high, open or closed. The threshold "follows the account's highest intraday balance (Peak Balance)," and that peak "includes both realized and unrealized gains." In Apex's words: "The threshold adjusts immediately. No closing trade is required."
Neither one waits for the close to enforce. The EOD page says it plainly: "Even though the threshold is calculated at end-of-day, it is enforced in real time." The Intraday page: "The threshold is enforced in real time, including unrealized PnL." A balance that touches the line mid-trade is a breach, even if the fill comes back above it.
Apex's own Intraday example, read both ways. On a 50K account an open trade lifts the balance to $50,900, then the trade closes at $50,300. On an Intraday account the threshold moves to $50,900 − $2,000 = $48,900 and stays there. On an EOD account only the $50,300 close counts: $48,300. Same trade, same close, $600 less room on the Intraday account.
One invented week on a 50K Performance Account
Five made-up days, each with the highest balance the account touched during the session and the close. The EOD columns trail the closes; the Intraday columns trail the highs. Both stop at $50,100 once their high reaches $52,100.
| Day | High during the day | Close | EOD threshold after the close | Intraday threshold after the day | Room at the close, EOD | Room at the close, Intraday |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $50,900 | $50,300 | $48,300 | $48,900 | $2,000 | $1,400 |
| 2 | $51,400 | $51,200 | $49,200 | $49,400 | $2,000 | $1,800 |
| 3 | $51,300 | $50,600 | $49,200 | $49,400 | $1,400 | $1,200 |
| 4 | $52,300 | $51,900 | $49,900 | $50,100 (stopped) | $2,000 | $1,800 |
| 5 | $52,400 | $52,200 | $50,100 (stopped) | $50,100 (stopped) | $2,100 | $2,100 |
On days 1 to 4, each day the Intraday account gave back some of its high, it closed with less room than the EOD account. Day 4's $52,300 high stopped its threshold a day before the EOD account's, whose $51,900 close didn't reach $52,100. By day 5 the two are the same line.
The worst case is a single trade. On a fresh 50K Intraday account, an open trade that runs to $51,900 lifts the threshold to $49,900. If the same trade then falls back to $49,900, the account is breached while it's down only $100 on the day. On an EOD account that trade is a $100 loss and the threshold is still $48,000.
On an Intraday account, a trade that runs $1,900 up and comes back to −$100 ends a fresh 50K account.Our free EOD vs Intraday drawdown simulator runs both thresholds over your own days: enter $50,000, a $2,000 drawdown and the $100 lock, then each day's open run-up, its worst dip and its closed P&L, in dollars from the day's start. Topstep's Maximum Loss Limit, by comparison, follows closes only and locks at the starting balance, not $100 above it (Topstep trailing drawdown).
Where does Apex's trailing drawdown stop?
It depends on the stage and the platform, not on EOD or Intraday.
- Performance Account: "Once the EOD Threshold reaches Starting Balance + $100, it stops increasing." The Intraday page says the same. On a 50K that's $50,100, reached when the high hits $52,100, and Apex's payout safety net is the same $52,100. The PA's payout rules are in Apex payout rules, and its daily limits next to the threshold in Apex PA account rules.
- Rithmic and Wealthcharts evaluations: the threshold stops at the profit-target balance, $53,000 on a 50K, once the high reaches $55,000. That's $2,000 past the point where the evaluation is already passed, so in practice you plan as if it keeps trailing.
- Tradovate evaluations: "Intraday Drawdown trails indefinitely with the peak account balance," and the EOD page says the same of the EOD drawdown.
- Live accounts: Apex's Live program starts at $0 with a $3,000 end-of-day drawdown. "Once the live account profit balance reaches +$3,100, the end-of-day drawdown locks at +$100."
Sources, checked 2026-10-22: EOD Drawdown Explained, Intraday Trailing Drawdown Explained, EOD Payouts, Apex Live Prop Trading Program FAQ.
What is the drawdown on a 50K Apex account?
$2,000 on every current 50K account, EOD or Intraday, evaluation or PA. The threshold starts at $48,000.
The other number you'll see is $2,500. That's the Legacy 50K Full account, from before Apex's March 2026 products. Apex's Legacy Evaluation Rules page, edited 2026-10-15, still lists it, and the home page says "Legacy Accounts Are Back" for a limited time. Legacy accounts trail the live balance: the threshold "is based on the highest live value during trades, not on closed trade values."
| Legacy plan | Max contracts | Trailing threshold |
|---|---|---|
| 25K Full | 4 minis | $1,500 |
| 50K Full | 10 minis | $2,500 |
| 100K Full | 14 minis | $3,000 |
| 150K Full | 17 minis | $5,000 |
| 100K Static | 2 minis | $625, static |
The Legacy page also lists 75K, 250K and 300K plans. On a Legacy funded account the threshold stops at the initial balance plus $100, as on today's PAs.
Sources, checked 2026-10-22: Legacy Evaluation Rules, Apex's home page.
Is there an Apex 30% drawdown rule?
No. The 30% is a consistency rule, not a drawdown. Apex's Legacy PA Payout Parameters call it the "30% Consistency Rule – Windfall": no single day may be more than 30% of your profit when you request a payout. Current PAs use a 50% rule instead, and evaluations have none. Both rules are in Apex's consistency rule.
Source, checked 2026-10-22: Legacy PA Payout Parameters.
The threshold next to the daily loss limit
A daily loss limit (DLL) is a different line. It sits a fixed amount under the session's start, pauses you for the day, and "Your account remains active." The threshold closes the account. EOD evaluations have a $500 to $2,000 DLL by size; Intraday evaluations have none; PAs have one that grows with profit tiers.
The two only cross when you're close to the threshold. On a 50K EOD evaluation whose highest close is $51,000, the threshold is $49,000. A morning at $50,000 has a DLL at $49,000 too: the same price, so a $1,000 loss touches the threshold and ends the evaluation instead of pausing it. Our Apex PA account rules has a check that tells you which line comes first on your own balance.
Sources, checked 2026-10-22: Daily Loss Limit Explained, EOD Evaluations.
What counts as a breach
Touching it. "If the account balance touches or falls below the Trailing Threshold at any time, all open positions are automatically liquidated." A fill a little under or over the line doesn't matter: "Once the threshold is touched, the account is considered breached."
- No dip and recover. Apex's EOD FAQ: the account "may never touch or cross the EOD Threshold level at any time."
- Not a stop loss. Apex prohibits "using the account's full threshold as a stop-loss mechanism to absorb large losses."
- Flat by the close. All trades must be closed before 4:59 PM ET, and Apex "will not take responsibility for trades that are left open throughout market close."
Sources, checked 2026-10-22: Intraday Trailing Drawdown Explained, EOD Drawdown Explained, Prohibited Activities, Futures Trading Times.
Where Apex's pages disagree
- Where an Intraday evaluation stops. The Intraday explainer's main text: the high that stops it is the "Profit Target Balance + Max Drawdown." Its FAQ: "Profit Target Balance + $2,000." On a 50K both give $55,000. On a 25K they give $27,500 or $28,500, on a 100K $109,000 or $108,000, on a 150K $163,000 or $161,000. Our table follows the main text. It's also what the EOD explainer's rule works out to: the threshold stops "when it reaches an amount equal to the Target Profit balance."
- Where an Intraday PA stops. The Intraday PA page: "Trailing stops once Max Trailing Drawdown Amount + $100 is reached." The Intraday explainer: "Starting Balance + $100," worked to $50,100 on a 50K. We use the explainer.
Not published
- Whether the balance a current EOD or Intraday threshold trails is counted after commissions. The Legacy evaluation page says its profit goal is.
- Whether an evaluation whose balance passes the target during a session, then closes under it, has passed. Apex reviews the target at the close; its pages don't say which balance counts.
- How much of the Legacy rulebook applies to the Legacy accounts sold since the home page's "back for a limited time" promotion.
Where we sit
We don't run a prop firm, we're not affiliated with Apex, and we earn nothing if you buy an Apex account. We sell the Prop Firm Challenge Toolkit, a TradingView indicator that turns rule numbers you enter into dollar buffers on your chart. It has no Apex preset, so use its Custom rules. For a 50K PA:
| Toolkit setting (Custom) | 50K Apex PA | From |
|---|---|---|
| Max loss % | 4 | $2,000 of $50,000 |
| Drawdown mode | Trailing EOD, or Trailing Intraday | your account type |
| Trailing DD locks AT initial balance | On | the stop, $100 lower than Apex's |
| Daily loss % | 2 | Level 1's $1,000 of $50,000 |
| Daily limit is soft | On | paused for the session, not failed |
| Reset timezone, hour | America/New_York, 18 | the 6:00 PM ET reset |
Where it differs from Apex, plainly. It locks its trailing floor at your starting balance; Apex stops at the start plus $100, so once stopped the Toolkit shows $100 more room than you have. It can't stop at an evaluation's target balance, and it stops trailing at $50,000, where a Tradovate evaluation keeps going, so in an evaluation it shows too much room once your high passes $52,000. It doesn't read Apex's dashboard: you type the balance in, and the high it trails is the balance you type. After a pullback from a higher close its floor sits under Apex's, showing more room than you have; type a mid-session high on an EOD account and it sits above. Read Apex's threshold off your dashboard and check the gap. It takes the daily limit as a percentage of the balance you type, which it treats as the day's start, so it can't see losses you've already closed today: keep Current balance at the session's starting balance and put the day's running P&L, closed and open, in Open floating P/L. A PA's limit changes with its tier, so re-enter it when your level changes.
Sources and their last edits
Each page was read on 2026-10-22. Dates are the pages' own last-modified stamps (UTC).
- EOD Drawdown Explained, 2026-04-28; Intraday Trailing Drawdown Explained, 2026-10-12.
- EOD Evaluations, 2026-06-05; Intraday Trailing Drawdown Evaluations, 2026-04-28.
- Intraday Trailing Drawdown Performance Accounts (PA), 2026-05-21; EOD Payouts, 2026-04-28; Daily Loss Limit Explained, 2026-04-15.
- Prohibited Activities, 2026-07-31; Futures Trading Times, 2026-04-20.
- Legacy Evaluation Rules, 2026-10-15; Legacy PA Payout Parameters, 2026-07-22.
- Apex Live Prop Trading Program FAQ, 2026-10-14; Apex's home page, 2026-10-15.
Disclosure
The week and the single trade above use invented balances and Apex's published rules. Neither is a forecast, and neither says whether an Apex account is worth buying. Apex's dashboard decides where your threshold is, not this page. If a number here no longer matches Apex's pages, email support@pulltrade.app and we'll correct it in public.
Frequently asked questions
What is the Apex trailing drawdown?
A threshold a fixed amount under your highest balance: $1,000, $2,000, $3,000 or $4,000 on a 25K, 50K, 100K or 150K account. On an EOD account the highest balance is the highest close, recalculated at 4:59:59 PM ET. On an Intraday account it's the highest balance at any moment, open profit included. It never moves down, and touching it liquidates your positions and fails an evaluation or closes a Performance Account.
What is the difference between Apex EOD and intraday drawdown?
What moves the threshold. EOD trails your highest closing balance and holds still during the session; Intraday trails your highest balance in real time, unrealized gains included, so an open trade that makes a new high lifts the line at once. Both are enforced in real time: an EOD account that touches its threshold mid-session fails as well.
Does unrealized profit move the Apex trailing drawdown?
On an Intraday account, yes: Apex says the peak balance includes realized and unrealized gains, and the threshold adjusts with no closing trade required. On an EOD account, no: only the closing balance counts. A 50K trade that runs to $50,900 and closes at $50,300 leaves an Intraday threshold at $48,900 and an EOD threshold at $48,300.
When does the Apex trailing drawdown stop trailing?
On a Performance Account, at the starting balance plus $100 ($50,100 on 50K), once your highest balance reaches the start plus the drawdown plus $100 ($52,100). On a Rithmic or Wealthcharts evaluation it stops at the profit-target balance ($53,000 on 50K), once the high reaches $55,000. On a Tradovate evaluation it never stops.
What is the drawdown on a 50K Apex account?
$2,000 on a current 50K EOD or Intraday evaluation and Performance Account, so the threshold starts at $48,000. The $2,500 figure some guides give is the Legacy 50K Full account's, which Apex's Legacy evaluation page still lists. Apex's home page says Legacy evaluations are back for a limited time.
Is there an Apex 30% drawdown rule?
No. The 30% figure is the Legacy Performance Account's consistency rule, which caps your largest day at 30% of profit for a payout. It isn't a drawdown. Current Performance Accounts use a 50% consistency rule, and evaluations have none.
Does the Apex trailing drawdown reset each day?
No. Apex's Intraday page says the threshold follows the highest balance achieved and does not reset daily, and the EOD page says it never moves downward. The daily loss limit, a separate rule, is the one that resets at 6:00 PM ET.
