Apex Trader Funding Refund & Reset Policy Explained (2026)

Apex Trader Funding has one of the strictest refund and reset policies in the futures prop firm space: no resets, no extensions, no refunds post-purchase. Your evaluation has a 30-day clock from the moment you buy it. If you fail or it expires, the account closes and you start fresh with a new purchase. There are no second chances baked into the product.

That sounds punishing until you check the price. On Apex's public 90% off promo cycles, a $50K evaluation runs about $20. The harsh policy and the low entry cost are two sides of the same product design.

For the full accounts overview, see Apex account types.

The policy in plain terms

Three rules, no exceptions:

This applies to both EOD and Intraday evaluations. Post-4.0 (launched March 1, 2026), Apex simplified many of its rules — but the no-reset, no-refund stance predates 4.0 and was not changed.

How the 30-day expiration works

Every evaluation account starts a 30-calendar-day countdown from the date of purchase. The clock runs continuously, including weekends and market holidays. If the 30 days pass before you hit your profit target, the account closes automatically — regardless of how many trading days you completed or how close to the profit target you were.

There is no grace period. There is no warning at day 25 with an option to extend. The only way to continue is to buy a new evaluation.

Practical implications:

• If you buy an eval and don't start trading for a week, you've burned 25% of your time window before placing a trade.
• If markets are closed for several days in your month (holiday clusters, platform downtime), those days count against your 30-day window regardless.
• The clock does not pause for weekends, though Apex closes positions at 4:59 PM ET daily and does not permit overnight holds.

The evaluation account rules article covers the full mechanics of the eval phase, including profit targets, drawdown limits, and qualifying day requirements.

What "no resets" means in practice

A reset (offered by some competitors) would allow you to reset your account balance and drawdown floor back to starting values without buying a new evaluation — essentially a do-over within the same account. Apex does not offer this.

If you breach your drawdown limit during the evaluation, the account is immediately flagged and closed. You cannot add funds, take a break, or restart within the same account. Each evaluation is a one-shot opportunity.

This is a genuine friction point compared to firms like Tradeify (which offers resets) and Topstep (which offers free retakes on certain plans). For traders who run hot and sometimes over-leverage, the no-reset policy has real cost implications.

Comparing the reset models

How you weight these depends on your pass rate. A trader who passes evals at a 70% rate may prefer Apex's model: cheap entry, accept the occasional new-purchase cost, no admin complexity from managing resets. A trader who fails frequently and needs multiple attempts may find Topstep's free retake or Tradeify's reset option cheaper over time.

I've traded Apex for 2-3 years across multiple $50K accounts. At 90% promo pricing, buying a new eval after a loss has never been the pain point — the account loss itself is the pain point, and that's the same regardless of which firm you're at.

The "what if I had a glitch?" question

Community forums and Reddit threads regularly surface this: trader experiences a platform freeze, Rithmic data error, or abnormal execution, loses an account, and wants a refund or reset.

Apex's support team does review technical incidents. The April 17, 2026 Rithmic PnL/DLL display issue is a documented example, it was resolved the same day and Apex issued an official status update. However, no account extensions or resets were offered as a result.

The pattern is consistent across Apex's history: support investigates, resolves active platform issues quickly, but does not extend accounts or refund eval fees as a remedy for technical incidents. The reasoning from Apex's side is that the platform issues are transient and that the 30-day window is long enough to absorb a day or two of downtime.

Whether that reasoning holds depends on how much downtime hit your specific account. If you lost a day to a Rithmic issue in a 30-day window, Apex won't compensate you. Plan accordingly.

The contract halt problem

The metals suspension on March 14, 2026 is the clearest example of a firm-side decision affecting eval traders with no refund or reset recourse.

On March 14, Apex suspended ALL metals: GC (Gold), SI (Silver), QI (E-mini Gold), QO (E-mini Silver), MGC (Micro Gold), HG (Copper), PL (Platinum), PA (Palladium). No return date has been given as of April 2026.

Traders mid-eval whose strategy depended on metals had their available instruments cut overnight. Apex's position: the change applies to all accounts, traders should adapt strategy. No resets or refunds were issued.

This is a structural risk with any prop firm, rule and instrument changes mid-eval are possible and may not trigger compensation. For the full instrument picture, see Apex contract limits.

Support response times and realistic expectations

Apex's support channel operates through their help center at apextraderfunding.com/help-center/. Average response times from community reports: 24-48 hours for email/ticket submissions.

For urgent eval issues (account locked in error, billing discrepancy, platform access problem), 24-48 hours is a long wait when your 30-day clock is running. A weekend submission won't be seen until Monday.

Realistic expectations for the most common support requests:

This is not unique to Apex, most prop firms have similar policies. The distinction is that some competitors soften the blow with resets or retakes. Apex does not.

The economics argument: why cheap entry changes everything

The no-refund, no-reset model reads as harsh in isolation. In the context of 80-90% promo pricing, it reads differently.

Reference costs (retail, pre-promo):

The full cost of passing also includes the PA activation fee: $99 for EOD, $79 for Intraday. That fee is not discounted by promo codes. See the PA activation fee guide for why this catches traders off guard.

But even with the activation fee, total cost to get funded on a $100K EOD account at 90% promo is roughly $129. Compare that to Topstep's monthly subscription model or Tradeify's reset fees, and the economics at Apex are genuinely competitive.

The "scratch and start over" model works best when:

• You have a consistent edge and reasonable pass rates
• You can manage the 30-day time window without letting accounts expire
• You're buying evals on promo cycles rather than at retail

It works worst when:

• You're in a losing streak and churning evals at high frequency
• You're buying at retail pricing
• You have a strategy highly dependent on specific instruments that could be halted

How this compares across the cluster

The refund/reset policy connects to several other friction points in the Apex model. For traders evaluating the full picture:

• Apex pricing breakdown, full cost matrix including retail and promo
• Apex PA activation fee, the hidden $99/$79 cost that catches traders post-pass
• Apex evaluation account rules, what the 30-day clock needs you to accomplish
• Apex vs Topstep, side-by-side including free retake comparison
• Apex vs Tradeify, side-by-side including reset comparison
• Apex account types, full accounts cluster pillar
• Why traders leave Apex, honest analysis of churn reasons, including this policy

For the full rules context, Apex rules overview is the place to start.

The bottom line

Apex Trader Funding's no-refund, no-reset, no-extension policy is the harshest in its peer set. If you blow an eval or let it expire, you buy another one, full stop. Glitches, contract halts, and support complaints rarely change outcomes.

What makes this livable is the pricing. At 90% off promo cycles, a new $50K eval is about $20. Apex effectively runs a "scratch and start over" model, and the math works if your pass rate is reasonable and you're buying on promo. If you're paying retail or failing frequently, the no-reset policy compounds the cost pain.

Competitors like Topstep and Tradeify soften this with retakes and resets. If those matter to your trading workflow, weigh the cost difference carefully before committing to Apex. If your edge is consistent and you're disciplined on the 30-day window, Apex's model is the cheapest funded futures path available.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does Apex Trader Funding offer resets?

No. Apex does not offer evaluation resets under any plan post-4.0. If you breach your drawdown or fail to pass within 30 days, the account is closed and you need to purchase a new evaluation. Some competitors like Tradeify and Topstep (on certain plans) offer resets. Apex does not.

Can I get a refund from Apex Trader Funding?

No. Apex Trader Funding's policy does not allow refunds once an evaluation is purchased. This applies regardless of whether you traded, experienced technical issues, or encountered a contract trading halt. The eval fee is non-refundable at point of purchase.

What happens when my Apex eval expires?

After 30 calendar days from purchase, your evaluation account expires automatically. Any progress, including days traded, profit built, is lost. You'd need to purchase a new evaluation to continue. There are no grace periods, extensions, or partial credit for time or progress banked.

Does Apex offer extensions if I had technical issues?

No extensions are offered. If a platform outage, Rithmic connectivity issue, or data discrepancy affected your trading, Apex's policy is to review specific cases through support, but extensions are not a standard remedy. The April 17, 2026 Rithmic PnL/DLL incident was resolved the same day; no account extensions were issued. Refunds for platform incidents are assessed case-by-case but are rarely approved.

What if a contract trading halt prevented me from passing?

The metals suspension on March 14, 2026 (GC, SI, QI, QO, MGC, HG, PL, PA all halted with no return date) is an example of a firm-side decision that can strand strategies. Apex's official position is that such changes apply across all accounts and that traders should adapt. No refunds or resets have been issued as a direct result of the metals halt, based on community reporting.

How do Apex's promo codes affect the reset model?

Apex regularly runs public promo codes (SAVENOW and others) that cut eval fees by 80-90%. On a 90% off promo, a $50K EOD evaluation drops from $197 to roughly $20. This dramatically changes the economics of the no-reset model: each "scratch and start over" costs about the same as a fast-food meal, not a significant financial hit.

Does the PA activation fee get refunded if I fail right after passing?

No. The PA activation fee ($99 for EOD, $79 for Intraday) is non-refundable. It's due within 7 calendar days of passing the evaluation. If you pay it and then breach your Performance Account rules early, the activation fee is not returned. This is separate from the eval fee and is also not discounted by promo codes.

How does Apex's policy compare to Topstep?

Topstep offers free retakes on some plan tiers, giving traders a second attempt without paying again after a failure. Apex has no equivalent. On the other hand, Apex's eval fees on promo pricing are substantially cheaper than Topstep's flat rates, so the economics can balance out. It depends on your pass rate and preferred cost model.

How does Apex's policy compare to Tradeify?

Tradeify offers account resets, which allow traders to reset their account balance and drawdown floor to starting values without purchasing a new evaluation. Apex has no reset option. Again, Apex's promo pricing compensates significantly, a fresh $50K Apex eval at 90% off costs less than most reset fees.

What does Apex support say when you request a reset or refund?

Support typically responds within 24-48 hours. For reset or refund requests, the standard response is a denial citing the non-refundable purchase policy outlined at sign-up. Exceptional cases (billing errors, duplicate charges) are handled separately, but these are administrative corrections rather than policy exceptions.

Is the 30-day expiration per account or total?

Per account. Each evaluation account has its own independent 30-day clock starting from the date of purchase. If you buy multiple accounts on different days, they each expire on their own schedule. You can manage up to 20 funded accounts in parallel; on the evaluation side, multiple concurrent accounts with staggered expiry dates are a common strategy.

What is the cheapest way to restart at Apex after a failure?

Buy a new eval with a current 90% promo code. SAVENOW is frequently active and gives the deepest available discount. On a $50K EOD account, that's roughly $20 for a new evaluation. For the full cost picture including the PA activation fee, see the Apex PA activation fee guide and the Apex pricing breakdown.