Consistency rule: definition and what it changes
A consistency rule caps the share that a single day, or a single trade, may represent in total profit: it prevents an evaluation from being passed on one lucky shot.
Updated 15 September 2026Of the 62 evaluation programs we track, 43 are concerned: they apply a numeric consistency rule. Recomputed from the records on 20 September 2026.
How it is computed
The usual formula compares the best day to cumulative profit. With a 30% cap and a $3,000 target, no single day may contribute more than $900; if the best one is worth $1,500, the trader has to keep earning until the total reaches $5,000 for that day to fall back under 30%. The rule therefore almost never fails anyone, it delays them.
The variants concern the base. Some firms measure the best day, others the best trade, others impose a minimum number of winning days. A few apply the rule only at payout time, not during the evaluation.
Why firms impose it
A prop firm's model rests on regularity: a trader who passes thanks to one oversized position on a macro release has shown luck, not method, and will be expensive once funded. The rule filters that profile out. It mechanically pushes towards smaller position sizes and a larger number of sessions.
What to check before buying
The percentage, the exact base, and above all when the rule is applied. Consistency checked at the first payout is a very different constraint from consistency checked at the end of the evaluation: in the first case a passed account can find itself blocked at withdrawal time, which is the most frequently reported unpleasant surprise with this kind of rule.
Where Consistency rule shows up on real firms
Of the 13 prop firms we track, 7 meet the “no daily loss limit” criterion. The ranking sorts them on verified fields, and every row leads to the record where the rule is detailed program by program.
Related terms
- Maximum daily loss
- A maximum daily loss is a loss cap measured over a single session: hitting it closes the day, sometimes the account, regardless of how much overall drawdown is still available.
- Payout
- A payout is the payment to the trader of their share of the simulated profits made on a funded account, on a schedule and under conditions set by the prop firm.
- Evaluation
- An evaluation, or challenge, is the paid test on a simulated account that a trader must pass to obtain a funded account: reaching a profit target without crossing the loss thresholds.