Bulenox vs City Traders Imperium: which prop firm is better in 2026?
On the 33 criteria we compare, the two firms end up level. The decision comes down to which constraint matters most to you: entry cost, drawdown model, or payout terms.
Bulenox
Futures · Trustpilot 4.7/5
Bulenox is a futures-only firm run from Delaware since 2022. Accounts are sold as renewable monthly subscriptions, $145 to $325 for $25,000 to $150,000, payouts clear every Wednesday, and the first $10,000 goes entirely to the trader. It holds 4.7/5 across 1,761 Trustpilot reviews, but a 40% consistency rule gates withdrawals and drives recurring complaints.
Criteria won : 8 / 33
City Traders Imperium
Forex / CFD · Trustpilot 4.2/5
City Traders Imperium has funded forex traders since 2018 through four routes — 1-Step, 2-Step, Instant Funding and Direct Funding — with no time limit and entry from $29. The profit split starts at 80% and can reach 100%, but the 1-Step allows only 5% trailing drawdown and every trade must carry a stop loss.
Criteria won : 8 / 33
Pricing at equal account size
Cheapest evaluation for a 100 K account.
Bulenox
$215
City Traders Imperium
$449
Full comparison
| Criterion | Bulenox | City Traders Imperium |
|---|---|---|
| Trust | ||
| Score | 81/100 | 83/100 ✓ |
| Trustpilot | 4.7/5 ✓ | 4.2/5 |
| Founded | 2022 | 2018 ✓ |
| Headquarters | US | GB |
| Pricing | ||
| Entry price | $145 | $29 ✓ |
| Price for a 100 K account | $215 ✓ | $449 |
| Refundable fee | — | — |
| Reset price | $78 | — |
| Account sizes | 150 K ✓ | 100 K |
| Rules | ||
| Steps | 1 | Instant funding ✓ |
| Profit target | 6 % | — |
| Max daily loss | — | — |
| Max total drawdown | — | 6 % |
| Drawdown type | Hybrid ✓ | Trailing intraday |
| Time limit | Unlimited | Unlimited |
| Consistency rule | — | No |
| Min trading days | 0 ✓ | 5 |
| Payouts | ||
| Profit split | 90 % ✓ | 80 % |
| Max profit split | 100 % | 100 % |
| First payout | 10 days | 7 days ✓ |
| Payout frequency | hebdomadaire (traitement le mercredi) | Mensuel au niveau 1, bi-mensuel au niveau 2, hebdomadaire au niveau 3 ; premier retrait possible apres 7 jours |
| Payout methods | bank, wire, paypal, and wise | — |
| Scaling plan | — | Yes |
| Max allocation | 150 K | 2 M ✓ |
| Trading | ||
| Platforms and instruments | ninjatrader, rithmic, quantower ✓ | mt5, match-trader |
| Instruments | futures | fx, indices, metals, energy, stocks ✓ |
| Leverage | — | 1:30 forex et indices sur le 2-Step, 1:20 sur l'Instant Funding, 1:10 indices et matieres premieres, 1:2 crypto |
| News trading | Yes | Yes |
| Weekend holding | No | Yes ✓ |
| Expert Advisors | Yes | Yes |
| Copy trading | Yes ✓ | Restricted |
| Scalping | Yes | Yes |
| Hedging | — | — |
Choose Bulenox if…
- You need a platform City Traders Imperium does not offer: ninjatrader, rithmic, quantower.
Choose City Traders Imperium if…
- Your budget is the binding constraint: the entry ticket starts at $29, below Bulenox.
- Cash flow matters to you: the first withdrawal comes after 7 days rather than 10.
- You would rather skip the evaluation entirely and start on a funded account.
- You need a platform Bulenox does not offer: mt5, match-trader.
Our analysis
Tooling differences
Bulenox is the only one of the two to offer ninjatrader, rithmic, quantower. City Traders Imperium covers mt5, match-trader, which its rival does not. Platform choice is not cosmetic: order execution, available order types and the reliability of your automation all depend on it, and switching mid-evaluation is rarely possible.
How much history each firm has
City Traders Imperium has been running since 2018, 4 years longer than Bulenox. On Trustpilot they sit at 4.7/5 and 4.2/5 respectively. Our trust pillar scores them 77/100 and 85/100, which weighs age, corporate transparency and public payout evidence. In an industry with no financial regulator overseeing these evaluations, longevity and a verifiable payout history are the closest thing to a guarantee.
The price question
City Traders Imperium opens at $29 against $145 for Bulenox, a substantial gap on the smallest account. At the reference size of 100 K the comparison is $215 for Bulenox against $449 for City Traders Imperium. The headline fee is rarely the real cost, though: what matters is the price of a reset after a failed attempt, whether the fee comes back on the first payout, and whether an activation fee appears when you move to a funded account. Compare those three lines in the table above before deciding on price alone.
How the loss limit behaves
Bulenox applies a hybrid drawdown. City Traders Imperium applies a trailing intraday drawdown capped at 6 %. This is the single most consequential difference between the two. A static drawdown is measured once, from the starting balance, and never moves; a trailing drawdown follows your equity upward, so a winning streak raises the floor you can no longer fall below. Intraday trailing is stricter still, because it tracks unrealised peaks reached inside the session — profit you never actually banked can permanently raise your loss threshold.
Getting paid
Bulenox keeps 100 % of profits, allows a first withdrawal after 10 days, then pays hebdomadaire (traitement le mercredi). City Traders Imperium keeps 100 % of profits, allows a first withdrawal after 7 days, then pays Mensuel au niveau 1, bi-mensuel au niveau 2, hebdomadaire au niveau 3 ; premier retrait possible apres 7 jours. Payout frequency deserves as much attention as the split itself: a slightly lower share paid every two weeks compounds faster than a headline percentage locked behind a monthly cycle and a long first-withdrawal delay.