Topstep Activation Fee: $149 per XFA, or $0 on the No Activation Fee Path

Topstep's activation fee is $149, charged once for each Express Funded Account (XFA) you activate after passing a Trading Combine bought on the Standard path, and it's the same at 50K, 100K and 150K. On the No Activation Fee path the XFA activates for $0, and you pay more each month instead: $95, $149 or $229 rather than $49, $99 or $199, or $85, $129 or $199 with a Daily Loss Limit added at checkout. The fee isn't refundable, and reactivating a lost XFA through Back2Funded costs $599 to $829.

Topstep's activation fee at a glance

Whether you pay it depends on the Trading Combine path you buy, and you choose the path at purchase: "Paths cannot be changed after purchase."

The Combine rules are the same on both paths. A Daily Loss Limit added at checkout lowers only the No Activation Fee path's monthly price; on the Standard path, Topstep's pricing cards keep $49, $99 and $199 with the limit on, and the activation fee stays $149.

Sources, checked 2026-10-22: Topstep Pricing and Payment Questions, No Activation Fee. Trade Your Way, Express Funded Account™ Activation.

When do you pay the activation fee, and how long does activation take?

After you pass, at the moment you activate. The pricing page: "$149 Activation Fee charged once per Express Funded Account (XFA) earned." It's per XFA, and you can hold up to 5 active XFAs, so five Standard-path passes activated cost $745 in activation fees.

Passing closes the Combine and cancels its subscription. From the passed Combine's Trade Report you click to activate, pick the Standard or Consistency payout path, sign the XFA agreement, and then pay: on the Standard path you tick three fee boxes and pay by card; on the No Activation Fee path you click Continue.

• How long. "Minutes after paying the Activation Fee", in the XFA page's words. Before that, "It may take up to 30 minutes for your Trading Combine status to reflect as passed in your dashboard."
• Passed on a Friday. "You can pay the Activation Fee immediately, but your XFA won't be available to trade until markets reopen at 5 PM CT Sunday."
• No published deadline. The passed Combine stays in Passed status until you activate, "ensuring you won't lose the account while waiting to activate."
• When you can't activate. The button is greyed out while you hold 5 active XFAs or a Live Funded Account: "a passed Trading Combine cannot be activated into an Express Funded Account while your Live Funded Account is active."
• The last month stays paid. "Payments already processed for the current billing cycle are not refunded or prorated." Any other Combines you hold keep rebilling.

Sources, checked 2026-10-22: Topstep Pricing and Payment Questions, Express Funded Account™ Activation, Express Funded Account™ Parameters, Trading Combine® Parameters, Trading Combine Subscriptions, Live Funded Account Parameters.

How do you avoid the Topstep activation fee?

Topstep sells two ways around it.

The No Activation Fee path. You pick it when you buy the Combine, and Topstep's own summary is "Pay $149 (Standard) or $0 (No Activation Fee) when you pass." The price moves into the subscription instead: $46, $50 or $30 a month more on 50K, 100K or 150K. Topstep says that for a trader who expects to pass in one or two attempts, "the No Activation Fee path gives you the lowest all-in cost to getting funded." The next section checks how far that holds.

Add a Daily Loss Limit at checkout and that path costs $10, $20 or $30 less; the pricing page says the "Discount recurs monthly."

A Topstep Labs Combine. Labs sells one-time Combines with no subscription and a free activation:

On the $50K one, you move to an XFA "with a free activation fee." Their rules differ from the standard Combine: static or larger loss limits, a mandatory Daily Loss Limit and no Resets. On the $50K and $250K ones, "The Responsible Trading Discount does not apply." Labs says all three are "now available for purchase any time." Its Challenges, which pay one fixed amount and close, list activation as free too.

Sources, checked 2026-10-22: No Activation Fee. Trade Your Way, Topstep Pricing and Payment Questions, Topstep Labs.

Standard or No Activation Fee: which costs less?

It depends on how many Combine payments you make before you pass. Count the first month, each Rebill and each Reset you buy: a Reset costs the same as a month on both paths and pushes the Rebill date out 30 days. The No Activation Fee path costs less while its extra monthly price adds up to less than $149.

Total paid on a 50K Combine by the time you activate:

On a 50K Combine the No Activation Fee path is cheaper only if you pass within 3 Combine payments, or 4 with a Daily Loss Limit. From the next payment on, $49 a month plus the $149 fee costs less.

The other sizes, from the same prices:

• 100K ($99 against $149, or $129 with the limit): the No Activation Fee path is cheaper within 2 payments, or 4 with the limit. At 3 payments the Standard path is $1 cheaper ($446 against $447).
• 150K ($199 against $229): cheaper within 4 payments. With the limit, the No Activation Fee path costs $199 a month, the Standard path's price, so it's $149 cheaper however long you take.

Topstep's pricing cards say you "Lock in your price until you earn funding or for the life of your Combine." The Daily Loss Limit column counts a Reset at $85, the price those cards show with the limit on; the help center's Reset table lists only $95.

Sources, checked 2026-10-22: Topstep Pricing and Payment Questions, What is a Reset?, Trading Combine Subscriptions, No Activation Fee. Trade Your Way.

One invented 50K trader, from Combine to first payout

An invented trader passes a 50K Combine on its 3rd payment: the purchase and two Rebills, no Resets bought. They activate an XFA on the Standard payout path, and after 5 days of $150 or more the XFA balance is $5,000. No day loses $1,000, so a Daily Loss Limit never triggers. A first request can be 50% of the balance, up to the cap.

Figures are before sales tax and before any payout-method fee: Aeropay (US banks) and Wise (China, Canada, UK) carry no Topstep fee, while ACH and wire cost $30.

The activation fee takes $149 of the first $1,800 kept, 8.3%. The Daily Loss Limit moves more money than the fee does: added at Combine checkout, it doubles the cap to $4,000 for now, so half the $5,000 balance can go. The trade-off is room. The first payout sets the XFA's Maximum Loss Limit to $0, so a $2,500 request leaves $2,500 between the balance and the limit instead of $3,000. On the Consistency payout path the cap is $3,000, or $6,000 with the limit, and half of $5,000 fits under both.

In this invented example the No Activation Fee path with a Daily Loss Limit was the cheapest route to the largest first payout: $255 paid, $2,250 kept. The Standard path without the limit paid $296 to keep $1,800.

How much of your own first payout the fee takes depends on your balance and days. Run it on your own numbers: Topstep payout calculator, 50K Standard XFA. Enter a $5,000 account balance and 5 days of $150 or more, then tick "DLL added at Combine checkout" to see the doubled cap. It covers the payout side; the fees above are added by hand. Every other payout rule is in Topstep payout rules.

Sources, checked 2026-10-22: Topstep Payout Policy, Topstep Pricing and Payment Questions, What is the Maximum Loss Limit?, Express Funded Account™ Parameters.

Is the Topstep activation fee refundable?

No. The refund policies: "No refunds on Activation Fee purchases, including accidental activations." The activation page adds: "Topstep does not provide refunds or make exceptions for activating the wrong XFA."

Refunds go back to the original payment method in 7–10 business days. Topstep asks you to contact Trader Support before disputing a charge with your bank: "Most fees at Topstep are non-refundable," and a chargeback "triggers an account review."

Sources, checked 2026-10-22: Topstep® Refund Policies, Express Funded Account™ Activation, Trading Combine® Parameters, Topstep Pricing and Payment Questions.

The Daily Loss Limit discounts and the doubled payout caps

Topstep rewards a Daily Loss Limit added at purchase: $1,000, $2,000 or $3,000 on 50K, 100K or 150K, fixed from then on. "The DLL stays with the account for its full lifetime," from the Combine to the XFA to a reactivation. It changes three prices or caps:

• No Activation Fee Combine: $10, $20 or $30 off every month.
• Back2Funded: $50 off a reactivation.
• XFA payout caps, doubled for a limited time: since June 2, on new Combine purchases with the limit added at checkout, on either Combine path. A 50K Standard XFA's cap goes from $2,000 to $4,000. "Adding it at the XFA stage doesn't unlock the higher cap."

It doesn't change the $149: Topstep's pricing cards show the same activation fee with the limit on. What hitting the limit does to your trading day is in Topstep daily loss limit.

Sources, checked 2026-10-22: Daily Loss Limit in the Trading Combine and Express Funded Account, Topstep Payout Policy, Topstep Pricing and Payment Questions, Back2Funded, Responsible trading, No Activation Fee. Trade Your Way.

Do promo codes or discounts cut the activation fee?

Topstep's pages don't say they do, and we don't list codes. Its pricing page sets the rules for the codes it does offer:

• Promo codes: "Codes apply to a new Trading Combine® or a Reset," and "First month only billed at promo price (unless stated otherwise)."
• Referral codes: 15% off a new trader's first account purchase.
• Affiliate codes: 20% off a first purchase of a Combine, a Labs account or an Evaluation Challenge. "Affiliate codes do not apply to Resets, Back2Funded, market data add-ons, or anything you buy after that first purchase."
• Stacking: one discount per purchase, with one exception: an affiliate code on a first-purchase No Activation Fee Combine with a Daily Loss Limit keeps both discounts.

None of these mentions the $149. And "Topstep does not refund purchases where a code wasn't applied." The Reset page adds that "Topstep sometimes offers free Resets on TopstepTV and through the newsletter."

Sources, checked 2026-10-22: Topstep Pricing and Payment Questions, What is a Reset?.

What does Back2Funded cost?

Back2Funded reactivates an XFA you lost before its first payout, so you don't go back to the Combine. You "Keep the same account size and Payout rules."

• Final. "Prices exclude sales tax. Each purchase is separate, final, and non-refundable."
• How often. Up to 2 reactivations per XFA, each bought separately, within 30 calendar days of the closure. The window was 7 days until May 29, 2026.
• What you get. Balance, P&L, trade history and qualifying days all reset to zero, and the account is ready at the start of the next trading session.
• Who can't. Once an XFA has paid out it's no longer eligible. Traders on the Focused Trader Plan can't use Back2Funded, and it doesn't cover XFAs tied to a Live Funded Account or Pro Account. Shoulder Tap XFAs are eligible.

Topstep lists one fee per size, with no separate price for an XFA from the No Activation Fee path. For scale: a new 50K Combine on the Standard path, passed on its first payment and activated, costs $198. The $599 buys skipping the Combine. More on losing an XFA is in Topstep XFA rules.

Sources, checked 2026-10-22: Back2Funded, Topstep Pricing and Payment Questions, Topstep® Refund Policies.

Is there a fee to go Live?

Topstep's Live costs page lists three costs, and an activation fee isn't one of them: in the Live Funded Account "you're responsible for 3 costs," which are professional market data, round-turn commissions and your own platform license.

• Data: $133 per exchange per month. Topstep covers one exchange, CME by default; all four would be $399 a month out of pocket.
• Commissions: deducted from the balance per round turn; Topstep's ES example is $3.80.
• Platform: the Combine covers many platforms' fees, Live doesn't.

You can't buy Live: Topstep's Risk Team calls traders up, as Topstep XFA rules explains.

Sources, checked 2026-10-22: What are the costs in the Live Funded Account?, Live Funded Account Parameters.

Where Topstep's pages disagree

1. Is there a discount on the activation fee? The pricing page lists "Express Funded Account Activations" among the purchases a Daily Loss Limit discounts, but its table prices only the Combine and Back2Funded. The Daily Loss Limit page names only "No Activation Fee Trading Combines and Back2Funded Reactivations." The pricing cards show $149 with the limit on.
2. The Back2Funded window. The Back2Funded page: "On May 29th, 2026, the Reactivation window increased from 7 days to 30 days!" The formal Express Funded Account rules, last updated June 26, 2025 and saying they take precedence over the XFA agreement, still read: "You have seven calendar days from the time your XFA is closed to decide if you want to go Back2Funded."
3. Who gets the doubled caps. The payout policy says "the increased cap is only available on new Trading Combine purchases," not a limit added at XFA activation. The Double Payout Caps terms cover "every account size in which a DLL is active," and open the offer to account holders "including existing traders and new signups."
4. A Reset with the Daily Loss Limit discount. The pricing cards show a Reset at $85, $129 or $199 on a No Activation Fee Combine with the limit. The help center's Reset prices list only $95, $149 and $229 for that path.

Not published

• An amount for the Daily Loss Limit discount on an XFA activation, if the pricing page's mention means one exists.
• Whether any code can be used on the activation fee.
• When the doubled payout caps end. The terms say "No end date has been established at this time."
• What the fee was before. The No Activation Fee page says "We’ve lowered the XFA activation fee and added a new option to trade without one," without the old amount.

Where we sit

We don't run a prop firm, we're not affiliated with Topstep, and we earn nothing if you buy from Topstep. We sell the Prop Firm Challenge Toolkit, a TradingView indicator that turns rule numbers you type into dollar buffers on your chart. It knows no fees, so it doesn't model the activation fee, the monthly prices or Back2Funded.

Sources and their last edits

Each page was read on 2026-10-22. Dates are the pages' own last-edit stamps (UTC).

• Topstep Pricing and Payment Questions: last edited 2026-10-15.
• Express Funded Account™ Activation: last edited 2026-09-24.
• Express Funded Account™ Parameters: last edited 2026-08-05.
• Trading Combine® Parameters: last edited 2026-09-24.
• Trading Combine Subscriptions: last edited 2026-10-12.
• What is a Reset?: last edited 2026-09-25.
• Topstep® Refund Policies: last edited 2026-10-01.
• Daily Loss Limit in the Trading Combine and Express Funded Account: last edited 2026-06-30.
• Topstep Payout Policy: last edited 2026-10-13.
• What is the Maximum Loss Limit?: last edited 2026-09-18.
• Back2Funded: last edited 2026-09-29.
• What are the costs in the Live Funded Account?: last edited 2026-10-19.
• Live Funded Account Parameters: last edited 2026-10-20.
• Topstep Labs: last edited 2026-10-20.
• No Activation Fee. Trade Your Way: no edit date published.
• Responsible trading: no edit date published.
• Double Payout Caps Terms & Conditions: no edit date published.
• Express Funded Account rules: last edited 2025-06-26.

Disclosure

The 50K trader above is invented: the 3 payments, the $5,000 balance and the days are made up, and every price comes from Topstep's pages. It isn't a forecast, nothing here is advice, and it doesn't say whether a Topstep account is worth buying. If a rule here no longer matches Topstep's pages, email support@pulltrade.app and we'll correct it in public.

Frequently asked questions

How much is the Topstep activation fee?

$149, charged once for each Express Funded Account you activate from a Trading Combine bought on the Standard path, and the same at 50K, 100K and 150K. On the No Activation Fee path it's $0, and you pay a higher monthly Combine price instead: $95, $149 or $229 rather than $49, $99 or $199. Sales tax may be added at checkout.

How do you avoid the Topstep activation fee?

Buy the Trading Combine on the No Activation Fee path, which you pick at purchase and can't change later; your XFA then activates for $0. Adding a Daily Loss Limit at checkout cuts that path to $85, $129 or $199 a month. Topstep Labs' one-time Combines, such as the $50K Static Drawdown Combine at $149 once, also come with a free activation.

Is Topstep's No Activation Fee path cheaper than the Standard path?

Only if you pass fast. On a 50K Combine it costs $46 more a month, so it's cheaper if you pass within 3 Combine payments, or 4 with the Daily Loss Limit discount; after that $49 a month plus $149 costs less. Count each Reset you buy as a payment, since a Reset costs the same as a month.

Is the Topstep activation fee refundable?

No. Topstep's refund policies give no refunds on activation fee purchases, accidental activations included, and its activation page says it makes no exceptions for activating the wrong XFA. Once you earn funding, Topstep treats the Combine subscription and all fees as used in full.

How long does Topstep XFA activation take?

Minutes after you pay, Topstep says: you activate from the passed Combine's Trade Report, and on the Standard path pay the fee by card. A pass can take up to 30 minutes to show in your dashboard, and if you pass on a Friday the XFA can't be traded until 5 PM CT Sunday. Topstep publishes no deadline; the passed Combine stays in Passed status until you activate.

Can you use a Topstep promo code or discount on the activation fee?

Topstep's pages don't say you can. Its code rules say codes apply to a new Trading Combine or a Reset, and affiliate and referral codes to a first purchase; none mentions the activation fee. Its pricing page lists XFA activations among the Daily Loss Limit discounts but prints no amount, and its pricing cards show $149 with the limit on.

How much does Topstep Back2Funded cost?

$599, $699 or $829 to reactivate a 50K, 100K or 150K Express Funded Account lost before its first payout, or $50 less with a Daily Loss Limit, plus sales tax and with no refund. You get up to 2 reactivations per XFA, each bought within 30 calendar days of the closure, back at a $0 balance with the same size and payout path.