Top Prop Firms for Beginners

To meet this need, prop simulated trading firms have popped up in recent years. These firms provide access to startup capital, along with the tools to get new traders trading. Traders in turn get a portion of any profits that arise from trading with the prop platform.

It all sounds like a fast gateway to fortune, if not fame too, and it very well might be.

Yet hacking one's way through this jungle of prop firms is not so easy. There are many of them out there, and each one has its pros and cons. In this article, we have chosen to discuss prop firms that have marketed themselves as being for beginners who are starting to trade. Picking the right prop trading company is the first and maybe most important step in anyone's journey. There is also a bevy of information available on these firms out there, and one can understandably feel unsure of which one to trust.

So trust is certainly a factor in choosing a prop firm, but so is the range of tradeable assets, and the kinds of platforms and tools the prop firm makes available to its traders. Traders also should pay attention to execution and trading costs, customer support quality, and the kinds of educational resources provided to improve their performance.

Below we highlight five prop trading firms that have positioned themselves for beginner traders. Ultimately, it's up to you, the trader, to decide which best serves your needs.

• FTMO

As far as prop trading firms go, FTMO is an old(er) hand, an entrenched player, the one you have probably heard about. The Czech company was founded in Prague in 2014 and quickly scaled up, reaching traders across the globe. But becoming an FTMO trader is not as simple as paying a fee and getting access to capital. New traders have to pass a two-step Challenge and Verification Process. If done successfully, they get the ability to improve their skills in a demo environment with $200,000 in fictitious cash to trade. If they trade well, they can earn up to 90 percent of the simulated profits generated. Over time, successful FTMO traders can advance into the firm's premium programme. Once enrolled, they will be employed as professional traders, with a salary.

FTMO helps its traders climb the ropes, of course. It offers them educational tools and services plus access to a community of fellow FTMO traders to swap strategies with. If there's a downside, it's those entry requirements, which are no joke. So FTMO might be a better bet for someone with experience, or who can learn on the fly the ins and outs of a simulated trading platform. It's worth keeping in mind that FTMO allows the trade of forex, commodities, indices and cryptocurrencies, but not stocks and derivatives.

• The5ers

The 5ers, sometimes stylized as The5%ers, is an Israeli private equity fund. Set up by professional traders in 2016, The5ers caters to worldwide foreign exchange traders to help them hone their talents and make money. The benefits? Daily live trading room sessions, real-time trading notifications, and risk management education to boot. There are four funding programs: Bootcamp, Hyper Growth, High Stakes, and Stock Trading. The prop firm relies on the MetaTrader 5 (MT5) is a platform, which allows users to trade forex, indices, and metals, with funding ranging from $6,000 to $4 million. It also offers  courses and education programs. Be sure to check out its informative blog.

The 5ers has a global footprint, with an office in the UK notably, and users worldwide. The 5ers does keep half of all profits generated on its platform, a unique set up in the market, which may be less than some traders have hoped for. Also the limitation to forex, indices and metals might also not be exactly what entry-level traders really want. It really depends on the trader and what they want to do.

• WeMasterTrade of WeCopyTrade

WeCopyTrade is something like the new kid on the block and WeMasterTrade is the even newer kid. Based in Vancouver, Canada, WeCopyTrade was set up in 2021 to provide a social trading platform between so-called Master and Copier traders, that allows the latter to copy the trades of professionals while minimizing their risk exposure.

In 2022, WeCopyTrade launched WeMasterTrade, its own prop firm, via which it gives traders the capital to get started. WeMasterTrade is not just a platform for supporting prop trading, but also an educational hub too. For both of these roles it has already garnered plenty of attention, snatching up awards for Best Online Forex Education Provider and Best Funded Trader Copy Trading Platform both this year and both from the forex resource ForexDailyInfo. Its educational platform also holds ISO certification.

With WeMasterTrade, traders can get trading virtually, but earn real profits. Users can trade everything, for forex to crypto and metals and indices to stocks too. And there is no test or vetting portion to getting access to WeMaster Trade, which describes itself as an angel-venture model. Users can start out after paying a small entry fee -- just $50 for a standard account that gives them access to $10,000. WeMasterTrade has also been expanding its global presence, entering the Australian market in 2023, for example,

According to its founders, WeMasterTrade sees itself as a kind of educational environment, where new traders can get started and learn as they go, putting their new lessons to work. It also sees itself as a starting point for traders, giving them quick access to the funds they need to get trading, rather than taking months to save them up.

• E8markets

Of course there's a high stakes Texan player on the prop firm market and that player is E8. This Dallas-based outfit claims that trading is in its DNA. Getting started seems simple. New traders just need to register and pick a trading program, demonstrate their abilities, and get trading. The company pledges that it can make its first payouts in eight days. Using its E8X dashboard, traders can choose their level -- Beginner, Advanced, Professional -- as well as select their balance and balance drawdowns, and payout shares, ranging from 40 percent to 100 percent. Traders get to partake in simulated trading in forex, cryptocurrencies, commodity indices, and equity. Traders who can demonstrate their abilities can manage a $1 million account. There are no minimum stimulated trading days, and the accounting system is fast, transparent, and very easy. On the downside, the fees might be offputting for some traders. It will cost you $706 to get an advanced account on E8, and professional traders are expected to pay $1,474.

• FundedNext

If you have been looking into prop simulated trading firms, then you have probably heard of Funded Next. This four-year-old Canadian company has been growing quickly, with thousands of traders active in more than 150 countries.

In terms of its funding model, it offers three programs: Stellar, Evaluation, and Express. These are meant to fit different trading profiles, offering options for those who are just getting started, more semi-pro traders, and then those who do trade for a living. Stellar is a sort of demo account for risk-free trading. Evaluation has a two stage evaluation process, and Express offers live simulated trading with live-funded accounts and has no evaluation or challenge process.

With FundedNext, the virtual profit split can rise to 85 percent if the trader brings in consistent revenue, and users can withdraw their virtual profits whenever they want. FundedNext also offers a VIP account with a 90 percent split that comes with a slough of benefits. Traders have access to up to $4 million in capital, starting with amounts up to $200,00 and scaling upon meeting targets. Additionally, FundedNext also has a strong trader community on Discord, and provides traders with news, podcasts and more. Some potential caveats might be around its customer service, which is available only online via email and chat, and that the company really is brand new.

 Conclusions

As you can see the prop trading market is inarguably exciting these days. Troves of companies have popped up to take advantage of the pent-up market need amongst new traders to start trading and to build their wealth without the traditional pitfalls that have barred them access to these markets in the past. FTMO, The 5ers, WeMasterTrade of WeCopyTrade, E8markets, and FundedNext all have something unique to offer the market, and differ in terms of their funding models, the way they split their profits, their entry-level fees, the type of customer service they offer, and so on. Traders need to take their time, poke around and decided on what works best for them.