E8 Markets vs Alpha Futures: prop firm rules compared

On E8 Markets and Alpha Futures the drawdown trails at end of day: the floor is recalculated once, from the closing balance, so open profit given back during the session does not raise it — but equity touching the floor during the session still counts. For example, at E8 Markets and Alpha Futures a $50,000 account starts with its floor at $48,000, $2,000 under the start.

On E8 Markets' E8 Signature plan and Alpha Futures the trailing floor stops rising once it reaches breakeven and stays there. On E8 Markets' E8 Zero Starter and E8 Zero Max plans it keeps trailing for the whole evaluation.

A soft daily loss limit pauses the day instead of failing the account: reach it and open positions are flattened, trading stops until the next session, and the account stays open. Alpha Futures' Zero plan sets it at $1,000 on $50,000. E8 Markets and Alpha Futures' Standard and Advanced plans have no daily loss limit, so a losing day is bounded only by the max drawdown.

Alpha Futures starts the trading day at 6:00 PM ET (5:00 PM CT); a daily loss limit counts from that reset, not from midnight.

A consistency rule caps how much of the total profit one day may carry. E8 Markets' E8 Zero Starter and E8 Zero Max plans and Alpha Futures' Advanced plan cap any single day at 40% of total profit, so it takes at least 3 profitable days to finish inside the rule. One day may then carry at most $1,200 of a $3,000 target and $1,600 of a $4,000 target. Alpha Futures' Standard plan caps any single day at 50% of total profit, so it takes at least 2 profitable days to finish inside the rule. One day may then carry at most $1,500 of a $3,000 target. E8 Markets' E8 Signature plan and Alpha Futures' Zero plan apply no consistency rule in the evaluation, so one large day can count in full.

Alpha Futures requires at least 1 trading day on Zero, 2 on Standard and 3 on Advanced before a pass; E8 Markets sets no minimum number of days.

E8 Markets and Alpha Futures differ on 4 of the evaluation rules compared here: trailing floor, daily loss limit, consistency rule and minimum trading days. If one or two large days make up most of your profit, the consistency rule sets how fast you can finish: E8 Markets caps one day at 40% of total profit on some plans and has no cap on others; Alpha Futures caps one day at 40–50% of total profit on some plans and has no cap on others. If you keep trading after a losing morning, look at what the daily loss limit does: E8 Markets has no daily loss limit; Alpha Futures pauses the day at its daily loss limit on some plans and has no limit on others. To finish in as few sessions as possible, compare the minimum days: E8 Markets sets no minimum, Alpha Futures needs 1 to 3 trading days, depending on the plan.

Once funded, the profit split is 80/20 at E8 Markets and 90/10 at Alpha Futures. Payout terms — E8 Markets: On demand (5 profitable days between payouts; max 4 per Signature account); Alpha Futures: Up to 4 requests/month after 5 winning days of $200+. E8 Markets sells 3 plans: E8 Signature, E8 Zero Starter and E8 Zero Max; Alpha Futures sells 3 plans: Zero, Standard and Advanced. Each plan carries its own version of the rules above, which is why they are listed plan by plan.

Read both rule sets against your own average day, then confirm the current terms on E8 Markets' site and Alpha Futures' site. PassTraq tracks challenges at both firms using the same rule presets shown here.