Side-by-side: drawdown, payouts, pricing, platforms. Alpha Futures uses EOD-trailing + lock, Topstep uses Intraday trailing — these are different beasts.
| Dimension | Alpha Futures | Topstep |
|---|---|---|
| Drawdown mechanic | EOD-trailing + lock | Intraday trailing |
| Cheapest eval | $63.2 | $49 |
| Profit split | 90% | 90% |
| Payout frequency | Weekly | Next Trading Day |
| Max funding | $450,000 | $150,000 |
| Max payout | — | $150,000 |
| Assets | Futures | Futures |
| Platforms | Tradovate, NinjaTrader, Quantower, TradingView | TopstepX, NinjaTrader, Tradovate |
| Payout methods | ACH, Wire Transfer, SWIFT, Wise, Rise | Wise, Wire / SWIFT, ACH, Aeropay |
| Promo code | ALPHA20 (20% off) | — |
| Paul-tested | Yes | Research-based |
Alpha Futures uses EOD-trailing + lock while Topstep uses Intraday trailing. Your risk approach needs to adjust when switching.
MLL trails up at end-of-day until it reaches starting balance, then locks permanently. Intraday drops don't reset. Most-protective futures mechanic.
MLL tracks intraday equity-high tick by tick. Most aggressive mechanic.
Alpha Futures offers 4 plans. Topstep offers 4 plans.
Alpha Futures's cheapest evaluation is $63.2. Topstep's cheapest is $49. Topstep wins on entry price marginally.
Alpha Futures uses EOD-trailing + lock. Topstep uses Intraday trailing. These are fundamentally different — your risk model needs to change when switching between them.
Alpha Futures: 90%. Topstep: 90%.
Yes for Alpha Futures — documented payouts on the main review page. Topstep is research-based — see the main review for the data sourcing methodology.
Yes. Different prop firms have no shared compliance — running them in parallel is the standard playbook for funded traders looking to diversify firm-risk. Track each firm's rule changes independently.
Alpha Futures payout cadence: Weekly. Topstep: Next Trading Day. Method matters too — Wise and Plaid typically beat ACH and wire by 1-2 days.
No cross-firm compliance overlap. Each firm 1099s independently for US residents. Cross-firm copy-trading rules only matter inside a single firm's account family.
Drawdown mechanic comes first. Alpha Futures offers lock-protection on first profits — favors traders who scale slow. After mechanic, evaluate payout speed and your strategy's drawdown profile.
