E8 Markets vs TradeDay: which prop firm is better in 2026?
Across pricing, rules and payout terms, E8 Markets takes the lead (7 against 3). TradeDay stays relevant for traders whose priorities differ from the average.
E8 Markets
Forex / CFD · Crypto · Futures
Every E8 Markets product is now single-phase: a 6% target, withdrawals available from day three, and a split running from 80% to 100%. The trade-offs are a 35-40% consistency rule, no scaling plan, and a Trustpilot rating suspended in August 2026 for a breach of the platform's guidelines.
Criteria won : 7 / 33
TradeDay
Futures · Trustpilot 4.6/5
TradeDay was founded in Chicago in 2020 by two former institutional market professionals, and that background shows in the rulebook: no daily loss limit, news trading and scalping allowed, and withdrawals available from day one. The May 2026 rework dropped static drawdown accounts in favour of two paths, Quick Pay and Fast Pass.
Criteria won : 3 / 33
Pricing at equal account size
Cheapest evaluation for a 100 K account.
E8 Markets
$260
TradeDay
$240
Full comparison
| Criterion | E8 Markets | TradeDay |
|---|---|---|
| Trust | ||
| Score | 76/100 | 80/100 ✓ |
| Trustpilot | — | 4.6/5 |
| Founded | 2021 | 2020 ✓ |
| Headquarters | US | US |
| Pricing | ||
| Entry price | $110 ✓ | $131 |
| Price for a 100 K account | $260 | $240 ✓ |
| Refundable fee | No | No |
| Reset price | — | — |
| Account sizes | 500 K ✓ | 150 K |
| Rules | ||
| Steps | 1 | 1 |
| Profit target | 6 % | 6 % |
| Max daily loss | — | — |
| Max total drawdown | — | — |
| Drawdown type | — | Trailing intraday |
| Time limit | Unlimited | Unlimited |
| Consistency rule | 35 ✓ | 30 |
| Min trading days | — | 5 |
| Payouts | ||
| Profit split | 80 % | 80 % |
| Max profit split | 100 % ✓ | 90 % |
| First payout | — | 0 days |
| Payout frequency | A la demande (quotidien sur E8 Pro ; minimum 100 $) | a la demande des le premier jour, minimum 250 $ par retrait |
| Payout methods | rise | — |
| Scaling plan | No | No |
| Max allocation | 500 K ✓ | 150 K |
| Trading | ||
| Platforms and instruments | mt5, ctrader, tradelocker, match-trader | tradovate, rithmic, ninjatrader, tradingview |
| Instruments | fx, indices, metals, energy, crypto, futures ✓ | futures |
| Leverage | Forex 1:30, indices 1:15, metaux 1:15, crypto 1:1 | — |
| News trading | Yes | Yes |
| Weekend holding | Yes ✓ | No |
| Expert Advisors | — | — |
| Copy trading | Restricted | — |
| Scalping | — | Yes |
| Hedging | — | — |
Choose E8 Markets if…
- You are aiming for size: allocation scales up to 500 K.
- Your budget is the binding constraint: the entry ticket starts at $110, below TradeDay.
- You expect to stay funded long enough for the split to matter: 100 % against 90 % at TradeDay.
- You need a platform TradeDay does not offer: mt5, ctrader, tradelocker, match-trader.
Choose TradeDay if…
- You need a platform E8 Markets does not offer: tradovate, rithmic, ninjatrader, tradingview.
Our analysis
What you pay to start
E8 Markets opens at $110 against $131 for TradeDay, a moderate gap on the smallest account. At the reference size of 100 K the comparison is $260 for E8 Markets against $240 for TradeDay. 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.
Drawdown: the rule that decides
E8 Markets does not publish a clear drawdown model. TradeDay applies a trailing intraday drawdown. 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.
What reaches your account
E8 Markets keeps 100 % of profits, then pays A la demande (quotidien sur E8 Pro ; minimum 100 $). TradeDay keeps 90 % of profits, allows a first withdrawal after 0 days, then pays a la demande des le premier jour, minimum 250 $ par retrait. 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.
Where you actually trade
E8 Markets is the only one of the two to offer mt5, ctrader, tradelocker, match-trader. TradeDay covers tradovate, rithmic, ninjatrader, tradingview, 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.
Track record
TradeDay has been running since 2020, 1 years longer than E8 Markets. Our trust pillar scores them 74/100 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.