FTMO's two limits — on the 2-Step Challenge, a 5% maximum daily loss and a 10% maximum loss, both sized as a share of your initial balance — are the whole reason position sizing matters on an FTMO Challenge. The profit target is reachable by most competent traders; the loss limits are what end the majority of evaluations. This calculator is preloaded with FTMO defaults: set your Challenge size, your risk per trade and your stop, and it gives you the lot size that keeps a single loss where you want it.
How this calculator is set up for FTMO
The defaults reflect a $100,000 Challenge risking 1% per trade with a 20-pip stop at $10 per pip per lot — correct for EUR/USD, GBP/USD and other USD-quoted majors. Change the balance to $10K, $25K, $50K or $200K to match your account. For gold, indices, oil or JPY pairs use the symbol-specific calculators linked at the bottom, which carry the right pip or point value.
FTMO rules that decide your lot size
FTMO 2-Step Challenge parameters (Standard account). FTMO has removed the time limit from the Challenge, but the loss limits are unchanged. FTMO also sells a 1-Step Challenge with a 10% target, a 3% maximum daily loss, a 10% maximum loss that trails on an end-of-day basis and a 50% Best Day Rule; size a 1-Step account from the 3% daily limit, not from the table below. Confirm on FTMO's Trading Objectives page before you start.
Rules verified against FTMO's official rules pages on 26 Sept 2026 — check the firm's site before buying. Sources: Trading Objectives, Comparison table.
| Objective | FTMO Challenge (Phase 1) | Verification (Phase 2) | Funded account |
|---|---|---|---|
| Profit target | 10% | 5% | none |
| Maximum daily loss | 5% | 5% | 5% |
| Maximum loss | 10% | 10% | 10% |
| Minimum trading days | 4 | 4 | none |
The 10% maximum loss is a fixed floor at 90% of the initial balance. The 5% daily limit is also 5% of the initial balance, but it is measured from the balance recorded at midnight CE(S)T each day: a $100K account that closed the previous day at $102,000 has a daily floor of $97,000, not $95,000. Both limits are checked against equity, so open floating losses count. Because the reset uses the midnight balance, a position that is 3% underwater at the reset starts the new day already 3% into the 5% limit. The Swing account variant (2-Step only) has no news, overnight or weekend restrictions and keeps the same 5% / 10% limits.
The lot size formula with FTMO numbers
Lot size = (Account balance × Risk %) ÷ (Stop loss in pips × Pip value per lot)Example 1 — the default: $100,000 Challenge, 1% risk, 20-pip stop on EUR/USD.
- Risk amount: $100,000 × 0.01 = $1,000
- Loss per lot at 20 pips: 20 × $10 = $200
- Lot size: $1,000 ÷ $200 = 5.00 lots
Example 2 — $10K Challenge, wider stop: 1% risk, 35-pip stop on GBP/USD.
- Risk amount: $100
- Loss per lot: 35 × $10 = $350
- Lot size: $100 ÷ $350 = 0.28 lots
Example 3 — $200K Challenge, conservative: 0.5% risk, 25-pip stop.
- Risk amount: $1,000
- Loss per lot: 25 × $10 = $250
- Lot size: 4.00 lots
Sizing to the 5% daily loss limit
The number that matters is how many full stop-outs you can absorb in a day before the 5% limit ends it:
| Risk per trade | Losses before a 5% daily breach | Losses before a 10% max breach |
|---|---|---|
| 2.0% | 2 | 5 |
| 1.0% | 5 | 10 |
| 0.5% | 10 | 20 |
At 2% per trade, two losers end the day and five end the Challenge. That is why 2% — a common textbook figure — is too aggressive for FTMO. At 1% you get five losses in a day, which covers normal variance for most strategies; many traders cut to 0.5% after two losses in a session so that a bad morning cannot become a failed evaluation. On the 1-Step Challenge the daily limit is 3%, so 1% risk leaves three losses in a day, not five.
Common sizing mistakes on FTMO Challenges
- Chasing the 10% target with oversized positions. The target has no deadline anymore. A 1% risk model that averages 1.5R per winner reaches 10% comfortably; a 3% risk model reaches the 10% loss limit first.
- Same lot size on gold as on EUR/USD. XAU/USD moves far more in dollars per pip and per day. Use the gold calculator.
- Sizing on the chart stop, not the executed stop. Add spread and slippage — on news-hour GBP/USD a 20-pip chart stop is a 23-pip real stop.
- Ignoring open positions at the daily reset. Floating losses carry into the new day's limit.
- Adding to a losing trade. Averaging down on a 5% daily limit is how one bad idea becomes a breach.
- Scaling up after a good week. The 10% floor stays fixed at 90% of the initial balance, so profit does widen your dollar buffer — but the daily limit stays at 5% of the initial balance, and one oversized losing day can still end the Challenge.
Track your FTMO Challenge in Fips
Fips's free trading journal logs each trade with its R-multiple and running daily P&L, so you can see how close the day is to the 5% line before you open the next position. Connect an MT4 or MT5 account and trades import automatically. Before buying a Challenge, backtest the strategy in Fips and read its worst losing streak on historical data — if it has ever produced six straight losses, a 1% risk model cannot survive the 5% daily limit on a bad day, and it is cheaper to learn that from a backtest than from an evaluation fee.
Frequently asked questions
What lot size should I use on a $100K FTMO Challenge?
At 1% risk and a 20-pip stop on a USD-quoted major, 5 lots. At a 40-pip stop, 2.5 lots. At 0.5% risk, half of each. The stop sets the lot size; the risk percentage sets the dollar loss.
Is 1% risk per trade safe for FTMO?
It gives you five full losses before the 5% daily limit and ten before the 10% maximum. For most strategies that is enough room. Traders who want a wider margin run 0.5%. These figures are for the 2-Step Challenge; the 1-Step's 3% daily limit allows three.
Does FTMO's daily loss include open trades?
Yes. Both the daily and the maximum loss are measured on equity, so floating losses count in real time.
Do I need to change my lot size on the Verification phase?
The loss limits are identical, so the sizing model can stay the same. The target drops to 5%, which means there is even less reason to increase risk in Phase 2.
Fips is not affiliated with, endorsed by or sponsored by FTMO. The rule figures on this page were checked against the firm's official sources on 26 September 2026 and can change without notice; verify them on the firm's own website before trading.