Topstep's contract limits at a glance
Each stage has its own limit. Only the Express Funded Account scales with its balance.
| Account size | Trading Combine | Express Funded Account (Scaling Plan) | Live Funded Account, to start |
|---|---|---|---|
| 50K | 5 minis or 50 micros | 2, 3 or 5 lots by balance | 5 lots |
| 100K | 10 minis or 100 micros | 3, 4, 5 or 10 lots by balance | 10 lots (5 at $10,000 tradable or less) |
| 150K | 15 minis or 150 micros | 3, 4, 5, 10 or 15 lots by balance | 15 lots (5 at $10,000 tradable or less) |
Every limit counts contracts held open at one time, not contracts traded in a day; Topstep publishes no limit per day. Live limits move with Live profit and with a small tradable balance, as the Live section below sets out.
Sources, checked 2026-10-22: Trading Combine® Parameters, What is the Scaling Plan?, Live Funded Account Parameters, Dynamic Live Risk Expansion.
What is the Topstep Scaling Plan?
It's how an XFA sizes up. The Scaling Plan sets your Maximum Position Size, "the max contracts you can hold at one time," and it does so "based on your current account balance." Topstep lists "Follow the Scaling Plan" as an objective on both XFA paths, Standard and Consistency, beside the one rule: don't hit the Maximum Loss Limit.
An XFA starts at $0: "Your Express Funded Account starts with a $0 balance." So every XFA starts in its bottom row, 2 lots on a 50K and 3 on a 100K or 150K. Topstep adds that "You're never required to trade your maximum contracts".
The plan covers two other simulated accounts. "Pro Accounts are subject to the contract size Scaling Plan," and a Shoulder Tap XFA, the account Topstep moves a Live trader to on a call-down, "Follows standard XFA parameters and Payout Policy". It doesn't cover the Trading Combine, which has a flat maximum, or Live: the plan "does not apply to the Live Funded Account," where Dynamic Live Risk Expansion replaces it.
Sources, checked 2026-10-22: What is the Scaling Plan?, Express Funded Account™ Parameters, Express Funded Account™ Activation, Topstep Program Overview, What is a Pro Account?, Live Funded Account Call Up and Call Down Process.
Topstep Scaling Plan for 50K, 100K and 150K accounts
Topstep publishes the tiers as an image in its Scaling Plan article. Read on 2026-10-22, with the balances as the chart labels them:
| XFA | Balance | Lots | Or micros |
|---|---|---|---|
| 50K | Below $1,500 | 2 | 20 |
| 50K | $1,500 - $2,000 | 3 | 30 |
| 50K | Above $2,000 | 5 | 50 |
| 100K | Below $1,500 | 3 | 30 |
| 100K | $1,500 - $2,000 | 4 | 40 |
| 100K | $2,000 - $3,000 | 5 | 50 |
| 100K | Above $3,000 | 10 | 100 |
| 150K | Below $1,500 | 3 | 30 |
| 150K | $1,500 - $2,000 | 4 | 40 |
| 150K | $2,000 - $3,000 | 5 | 50 |
| 150K | $3,000 - $4,500 | 10 | 100 |
| 150K | Above $4,500 | 15 | 150 |
Each size reaches its top row just above the balance that locks its Maximum Loss Limit at $0: $2,000, $3,000 or $4,500. On a 50K XFA the limit "starts at -$2,000 and trails upward," and "Once your balance reaches $2,000, the MLL locks at $0 permanently." Until then the account trades smaller and its limit still trails below zero; Topstep trailing drawdown works through the trailing.
Topstep's Risk Adjustments page states the same plan as margin: "Express Funded Accounts (XFAs) have margin that scales with balance." Its table gives a 50K XFA $20,000, $30,000 and $50,000 of margin in its three rows. That's $10,000 for every lot in the chart, in every row of every size.
Sources, checked 2026-10-22: What is the Scaling Plan?, What is the Maximum Loss Limit?, Risk Adjustments: High Risk/High Volatility.
When does a new Scaling Plan limit start?
At the next session. "Your max contracts do not increase mid-session." Topstep's trading day runs from 5:00 PM CT to 3:10 PM CT the next day, so a 50K XFA that closes above $2,000 gets its 5 lots from 5 PM CT. TopstepX's Risk Settings page "shows the contracts available for your next session."
The limit comes down the same way it goes up, from the balance. A session that closes in a lower row starts the next one there. A payout does it too: "If a Payout reduces your balance to a lower tier, your maximum contract size decreases accordingly." Topstep doesn't say whether a loss or a payout lowers the limit during a session or only from the next one.
Trade several XFAs on TopstepX's trade copier and the rows matter twice. "The Lead account must have the lowest Maximum Position Size (MPS) of all accounts in the group," and when the Lead and a Follower sit in different Scaling Plan rows, "the Trade Copier may disconnect automatically at the start of a new trading day." Check the copier at the start of each session.
Sources, checked 2026-10-22: What is the Scaling Plan?, Trading Combine® Parameters, Topstep Payout Policy, TopstepX™.
How do micros count in the Topstep Scaling Plan?
Ten to one. "1 Mini = 10 Micro contracts," and "Limits are based on mini-contract equivalents." Topstep's own example is a 50K XFA in its 2-lot row: 2 minis, 20 micros, or any mix equal to 2 minis. In a 3-lot row, an invented 1 ES and 20 MNQ is the full 3 lots, and so is 30 MES.
Three products count differently:
| Product | How it counts |
|---|---|
| Micro Silver (SIL) | "5:1 ratio vs. Silver (SI); counts as 2 of any other micro" |
| Micro Bitcoin (MBT) | "Capped at mini-equivalent lot sizes, not standard micro scaling" |
| Micro Ether (MET) | capped the same way as MBT |
The ratio works in the Trading Combine and the XFA. For Live, Topstep says: "It is not currently available for the Live Funded Account." It doesn't say how micros count there instead.
Sources, checked 2026-10-22: What is the Scaling Plan?, Trading Combine® Parameters.
What happens if you go over the Topstep Scaling Plan?
A quick fix is forgiven: "Errors corrected in under 10 seconds are ignored." A slow one isn't: "Leave too many contracts on for 10+ seconds and your account may be reviewed." Topstep doesn't publish what a review can lead to.
Its advice for staying under: show open positions and orders in your workspace, turn on Order Confirmation, and set per-product Contract Limits in TopstepX Risk Settings. Those Contract Limits are ones you set, and "Orders exceeding the limit are automatically rejected." They're enforced separately for long and short, they don't close open positions, and Follower accounts on the trade copier can't use them.
Size into the news has its own rule. "Purposefully trading your full Maximum Position Size directly into a scheduled major news event" is a prohibited strategy. Separately, for 5 minutes either side of CPI, NFP, PPI and the FOMC decision and press conference, an XFA can open no equity-index or metals minis and only 1 to 9 micros, by size and balance; the windows and a check are on Topstep news trading.
Sources, checked 2026-10-22: What is the Scaling Plan?, TopstepX™, Prohibited Trading Strategies at Topstep, Risk Adjustments: High Risk/High Volatility.
Does the Topstep Trading Combine have a scaling plan?
No. The Combine has a flat Maximum Position Size, "The maximum number of contracts you can hold open at one time, per account": 5, 10 or 15 contracts, or 50, 100 or 150 micros, on a 50K, 100K or 150K. It's the same from the first trade to the last, and the micro ratio is the same 10 to 1.
So passing changes your size. The XFA you activate starts at $0, and "Profits don't transfer" from the Combine.
Pass a 50K Combine trading 5 contracts and your XFA opens at 2. It gets all 5 back only after a close above $2,000, a close that also locks its loss limit at $0.Sources, checked 2026-10-22: Trading Combine® Parameters, What is the Scaling Plan?, What is the Maximum Loss Limit?.
Worked example: an invented 50K XFA, session by session
Six made-up sessions on a 50K XFA, Standard path, no Daily Loss Limit, from its $0 start. Each close sets the next session's lots from Topstep's chart, and the Maximum Loss Limit trails $2,000 under the highest close until it locks at $0.
| Session | Lots allowed | P&L | Close | Maximum Loss Limit after the close | Room to the limit | Lots next session |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | +$600 | $600 | −$1,400 | $2,000 | 2 |
| 2 | 2 | +$1,100 | $1,700 | −$300 | $2,000 | 3 |
| 3 | 3 | −$400 | $1,300 | −$300 | $1,600 | 2 |
| 4 | 2 | +$900 | $2,200 | $0, locked | $2,200 | 5 |
| 5 | 5 | +$500 | $2,700 | $0 | $2,700 | 5 |
| 6 | 5 | +$300 | $3,000 | $0 | $3,000 | 5 |
| $1,500 payout | $1,500 | $0 | $1,500 | 3 |
Session 2 closes at $1,700, in the $1,500 - $2,000 row. Its 3 lots start in session 3, not during session 2. Session 3 loses $400 and closes at $1,300, back under $1,500, so session 4 is back to 2 lots, while the limit stays at −$300: it never moves down.
Session 4's $2,200 close does two things. It's above $2,000, so session 5 gets 5 lots, and it's past $2,000, so the limit locks at $0.
After session 6 the account has $3,000 and five days with $150 or more of profit (sessions 1, 2, 4, 5 and 6), which the Standard path needs for a payout. It can request 50% of the balance, up to $2,000 on a 50K: $1,500. That leaves $1,500, the bottom of the 3-lot row, and with the limit at $0 after any payout, the room is the $1,500 balance.
On this invented 50K XFA, taking the full $1,500 payout costs two lots: the next session starts at $1,500, in the 3-lot row. A request under $1,000 would have left more than $2,000 and kept all 5.A request of exactly $1,000 leaves $2,000, which the chart puts in the 3-lot row, not the row above $2,000.
An XFA starts at $0; a minus sign for a balance below it.
Next session: 2 lots (20 micros)
The limit sits at −$250, $1,450 under your balance. 3 lots from a session that starts at $1,500, $300 away.
- 2 lots next session. 2 minis, 20 micros or any mix: the "Below $1,500" row on Topstep's 50K chart.
- Maximum Loss Limit −$250. Your highest close, $1,750, minus $2,000. It rises with closes, never falls, and stops at $0.
- $1,450 of room. Open and closed losses together; touching the limit intraday liquidates the account.
- No Daily Loss Limit. It's optional in the XFA; without one, only the Maximum Loss Limit stops a bad day.
- Locks at $0 at a $2,000 close. $800 above this balance.
Starts on our invented 50K XFA, Standard or Consistency path alike: a highest close of $1,750 and a last close of $1,200, before any payout. The rules are Topstep's, read on 2026-10-18. Lots are mini equivalents; Topstep weights Micro Silver, Micro Bitcoin and Micro Ether differently and caps some products lower in volatile markets. The check sees closes only, not intraday dips. Your TopstepX Risk Settings page is the source of truth.
The check opens on the invented XFA from our Topstep XFA rules post. Enter session 3's $1,300 close and $1,700 high and it reads 2 lots and a −$300 limit; enter $1,500 and tick a payout taken, and it reads 3 lots and a $0 limit.
Run it on your own numbers: Topstep payout calculator, 50K Standard XFA. With these six sessions it gives the same $1,500 and the $1,500 balance it leaves; by ACH, $1,320 reaches you after Topstep's 10% and its $30 fee. Every other payout rule is in Topstep payout rules, and the Consistency path's 40% line in Topstep's consistency rule. How many of those 3 lots a given stop allows inside $1,500 of room is what the futures position size calculator works out.
Sources, checked 2026-10-22: What is the Scaling Plan?, What is the Maximum Loss Limit?, Topstep Payout Policy, Express Funded Account™ Parameters.
Which products have lower caps than the Scaling Plan?
Energies and metals, for now. "During extreme volatility, we may temporarily tighten position limits on affected products." The restrictions "remain in place only while volatility levels are elevated," and Topstep announces changes by email, dashboard banner and on X. On 2026-10-22, for 50K / 100K / 150K:
| Product | Combine, XFA and Pro Account | Live Funded Account |
|---|---|---|
| CL, QM, RB, HO (minis) | 3 / 6 / 9 | 3 / 6 / 9 |
| GC (minis) | 3 / 6 / 9 | 3 / 6 / 9 |
| MCL (micros) | 30 / 60 / 90 | 3 / 6 / 9 |
| MGC (micros) | 30 / 60 / 90 | 5 / 10 / 15 |
| SI, HG, PL | 0 | 0 |
| SIL, MHG (micros) | 2 / 5 / 7 | 2 / 4 / 6 |
On an XFA those are ceilings, and the Scaling Plan still applies: "a trader's actual limit may be lower depending on their current account balance, as the Scaling Plan applies independently." Topstep gives these products their own ladder. A 50K XFA can hold 1 mini or 12 micros of crude, heating oil, RBOB or gold below $1,500, 1 mini or 18 micros at $1,500, and 3 minis or 31 micros at $2,000; for SIL and MHG it's 1, 1 and 2 micros.
Sources, checked 2026-10-22: Risk Adjustments: High Risk/High Volatility, What is the Scaling Plan?.
How many contracts can you trade in a Topstep Live account?
5, 10 or 15 lots to start, by Live account size, under Dynamic Live Risk Expansion. Your Live net profit sets your tier: "Spend 10 Active Trading Days at each Tier to unlock the next level," and "You must move one Tier at a time. No skipping." An active trading day is any day with at least 1 trade.
| Live net profit | Maximum Position Size | Daily Loss Limit, 50K / 100K / 150K |
|---|---|---|
| Start | 5 / 10 / 15 lots | $2,000 / $3,000 / $4,500 |
| $15,000 | unchanged | $2,500 / $3,500 / $5,000 |
| $20,000 | unchanged | $3,000 / $4,000 / $5,500 |
| $50,000 | unchanged | $3,500 / $4,500 / $6,000 |
| $100,000 | up to 30 lots | up to $10,000 |
| $200,000 | up to 50 lots | up to $20,000 |
| $550,000 | up to 70 lots | up to $50,000 |
| $1,000,000 | up to 100 lots | up to $100,000 |
The first three tiers raise only the Daily Loss Limit, which Topstep daily loss limit covers. "Position Limits remain at the max for each account size" until $100,000 of profit; from there the limits are the same whatever the size. "Only profits made in the Live Funded Account count": your XFA "transfer balance and Payouts don't affect your Tier."
Small balances hold Live down. Whatever the size, the tradable balance can lower the limit:
| Tradable balance | Maximum Position Size | Daily Loss Limit |
|---|---|---|
| $10,000 or below | 5 | $2,000 |
| $5,000 or below | 3 | $1,000 |
A Live account starts with 20% of what transfers from your XFAs, at least $10,000. One that starts at that $10,000 holds 5 lots, even on a 100K or 150K.
Outside the tiers. Topstep's Risk Team may adjust the Daily Loss Limit and Maximum Position Size once a 50K, 100K or 150K Live account reaches $10,000, $15,000 or $20,000 of net equity, at its discretion. From Tier 4 with a $100,000 balance you can request Expanded Contract Sizing: "This is not automatic." And during Tier 1 news, "Live traders with a balance below $3,000 will be limited to 1 contract".
Sources, checked 2026-10-22: Dynamic Live Risk Expansion, Live Funded Account Parameters, Risk Adjustments: High Risk/High Volatility.
Topstep Labs accounts have their own limits
Topstep's Labs accounts list their own maximums. The $25K Static Drawdown XFA allows "2 mini / 20 micro (no scaling)". The $50K Static Drawdown XFA allows 4 minis or 40 micros, under a Scaling Plan Topstep gives only as "2/3/4", with no balances.
The $250K Freedom XFA has the longest ladder: the standard 150K rows up to 10 lots at $3,000 to $4,500, then 15 lots to $6,000, 20 to $8,000 and 25 above $8,000. Called up to Live, it will "be treated as a $150K," with 15 minis. The $1.5K, $3K and $6K Challenges have no Scaling Plan.
Source, checked 2026-10-22: Topstep Labs.
Where Topstep's pages disagree
- A balance on a row's edge. The Scaling Plan chart lists $2,000 in two rows on the 100K and 150K XFAs, and $3,000 in two on the 150K. The Risk Adjustments page's ladders start each step at the round number ("$2,000 balance = 3 minis / 31 micros"), while its news table splits a 50K at "$1500-$2000" and "Above $2000". The check above takes the smaller row on an edge.
- Micros on Live. The Scaling Plan and Trading Combine® Parameters pages say the 10-to-1 ratio "is not currently available for the Live Funded Account." The Topstep Labs page lists one Labs Live account at "2 mini / 2 micro" and another at "5 mini / 50 micros and reduces down to a minimum of 3 mini / 30 micros if tradable balance declines".
- Micro crude and gold on an XFA. The Risk Adjustments page caps MCL and MGC at 30, 60 and 90 micros and calls those caps a ceiling for an XFA, while its own ladder for the same products reaches 31, 62 and 93 micros.
- When Live's 5-lot and 3-lot limits apply. Both Live Funded Account Parameters and Dynamic Live Risk Expansion say "These limits update on Fridays and return to standard levels once your balance rises back above the thresholds." Dynamic Live Risk Expansion's own example, for the Daily Loss Limit the same safeguard lowers, changes it "before the start of the next trading session" and restores it after Friday's close.
- The copier and the Scaling Plan. The TopstepX™ page says a Follower in a different row "may disconnect automatically at the start of a new trading day," and further down that the "follower account will be automatically removed at the start of the trading day".
Not published
- Whether a losing session or a payout lowers the limit during the session, or only from the next one. Topstep only says limits don't increase mid-session.
- What a review for holding too many contracts for 10 seconds or more can lead to.
- How micros count on a Live account, given that the 10-to-1 ratio isn't available there.
- Whether Live contract limits fall the same day net profit drops below a tier. Topstep says that of the Daily Loss Limit only.
- How many contracts Expanded Contract Sizing allows, and the balances behind the $50K Static Drawdown XFA's "2/3/4".
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 contract limits, so it doesn't model the Scaling Plan, Dynamic Live Risk Expansion or Topstep's product caps, and its position-size row, sized from your risk % and stop, isn't capped at your Scaling Plan row; your TopstepX Risk Settings page shows the real limit.
Sources and their last edits
Each page was read on 2026-10-22. Dates are the help center's own last-edit stamps (UTC).
- What is the Scaling Plan?: last edited 2026-07-16.
- Express Funded Account™ Parameters: last edited 2026-08-05.
- Express Funded Account™ Activation: last edited 2026-09-24.
- Trading Combine® Parameters: last edited 2026-09-24.
- Topstep Program Overview: last edited 2026-09-10.
- What is the Maximum Loss Limit?: last edited 2026-09-18.
- Topstep Payout Policy: last edited 2026-10-13.
- TopstepX™: last edited 2026-10-22.
- Risk Adjustments: High Risk/High Volatility: last edited 2026-10-21.
- Prohibited Trading Strategies at Topstep: last edited 2026-06-10.
- Live Funded Account Parameters: last edited 2026-10-20.
- Dynamic Live Risk Expansion: last edited 2026-09-24.
- Live Funded Account Call Up and Call Down Process: last edited 2026-09-29.
- What is a Pro Account?: last edited 2026-09-11.
- Topstep Labs: last edited 2026-10-20.
Disclosure
The 50K XFA above is invented and uses Topstep's published rules. It isn't advice or a forecast, and it doesn't say whether a Topstep account is worth buying. Your TopstepX Risk Settings page shows the contracts you can trade, not this page. If a rule here no longer matches Topstep's pages, email support@pulltrade.app and we'll correct it in public.
Frequently asked questions
What is the Topstep scaling plan?
It's the Express Funded Account objective that sets how many contracts you can hold at one time from your balance. A 50K XFA holds 2 lots below $1,500, 3 from $1,500 to $2,000 and 5 above $2,000; 100K and 150K XFAs climb from 3 lots to 10 and 15. A higher limit starts at the next session, never mid-session.
What are Topstep's max contracts?
In the Trading Combine, 5, 10 or 15 contracts (50, 100 or 150 micros) on a 50K, 100K or 150K, with no scaling. In the Express Funded Account the Scaling Plan sets them by balance, from 2 or 3 lots up to the same 5, 10 or 15. A Live Funded Account starts at 5, 10 or 15 lots (5 while its tradable balance is $10,000 or less) and can reach 30 to 100 lots from $100,000 of Live profit.
What is the Topstep scaling plan for a 50K account?
On a 50K Express Funded Account: 2 lots (20 micros) below a $1,500 balance, 3 lots from $1,500 to $2,000, and 5 lots above $2,000. The XFA starts at $0, so it starts at 2 lots even if you passed the 50K Combine trading 5. The 5-lot row begins just above $2,000, the balance that locks the Maximum Loss Limit at $0.
What is the Topstep scaling plan for 100K and 150K accounts?
A 100K XFA holds 3 lots below $1,500, 4 from $1,500 to $2,000, 5 from $2,000 to $3,000 and 10 above $3,000. A 150K XFA has the same first three rows, then 10 lots from $3,000 to $4,500 and 15 above $4,500. In its Scaling Plan article Topstep publishes these rows only as an image.
Do micros count toward the Topstep scaling plan?
Yes, at 10 micros to 1 mini in the Trading Combine and the Express Funded Account, so a 2-lot limit is 2 minis, 20 micros or any mix of the two. Micro Silver counts as 2 micros, and Micro Bitcoin and Micro Ether are capped at mini-equivalent sizes. Topstep says the 10-to-1 ratio isn't available in the Live Funded Account.
What happens if you exceed the Topstep scaling plan?
Topstep ignores errors corrected in under 10 seconds; leave too many contracts on for 10 seconds or more and your account may be reviewed. Topstep doesn't publish what a review can lead to. You can set your own per-product Contract Limits in TopstepX Risk Settings, which reject orders over them.
Does the Topstep scaling plan apply to the Live Funded Account?
No. Live uses Dynamic Live Risk Expansion: 5, 10 or 15 lots to start by account size, unchanged until $100,000 of Live profit, then up to 30, 50, 70 and 100 lots at $100,000, $200,000, $550,000 and $1 million, with 10 active trading days in each tier. A tradable balance of $10,000 or less holds any Live account to 5 lots, and $5,000 or less to 3.
