Prop firm drawdown calculator: daily and max loss.
Enter your starting balance, yesterday’s close and current equity — the calculator shows both breach lines (daily and max loss) and how much room you have left, in dollars and in pips. Presets for FTMO and FundedNext, verified against their published rules. No signup, nothing leaves your browser.
Daily breach = yesterday’s close × (1 − daily%) · Max loss floor = starting balance × (1 − max%) · The tighter line wins. Verify the exact figures in your firm’s dashboard before trading — rules change and the calculator follows the published numbers above.
How the two limits work (and which one kills your account)
Prop-firm accounts fail on one of two floors: the daily loss limit and the max loss. They are calculated differently, and the one that ends your account first is the one you need to watch.
Daily loss is the trap. On FTMO-style programs it is a percentage of your balance or equity at the end of the previous day, not of your starting balance. Lose $4,000 today and tomorrow’s 5% floor is calculated on a lower base — a losing day quietly tightens the limit you wake up to. On FundedNext Stellar the limit is static on the phase’s initial balance, but the principle is the same: equity, not closed P/L, and open positions count.
Max loss is the harder floor. FTMO 2-Step and FundedNext Stellar keep it static on the initial balance, so profits create a real cushion — your hard floor never moves up to meet you. FTMO 1-Step is different: the 10% floor trails, recalculated at end of day, and resets on withdrawal. Trailing drawdown punishes strategies that give back open profit, which is why the 1-Step needs a different risk plan than the 2-Step.
Reading the readout
On a $100,000 FTMO 2-Step with yesterday’s close at $100,000: the daily breach line sits at $95,000 and the max loss floor at $90,000. The daily line is tighter, so it is the one that ends you — with equity at $96,500 you have $1,500 of room, about 1,500 pips at a $1/pip position. If equity were $94,800, the daily line is already crossed even though the max loss floor is untouched: the account is done for the day.
Automating the guard
A calculator tells you where the line is; it cannot stop a 3 a.m. spread spike from crossing it. Prop Firm Shield enforces both limits automatically on every signal — it runs its daily limit at 80% of the firm’s (4% on FTMO 2-Step, 2.4% on 1-Step) so the buffer stays above zero even under stress. The full rulebook, verified against FTMO’s own pages, is in our FTMO rules guide for EA traders.
FAQ
THE FOUR DRAWDOWN QUESTIONS THAT COME UP ON A FUNDED ACCOUNT.
Is the daily loss based on balance or equity?
Equity. Open floating P/L, swaps and commissions all count, so an open position can breach the daily limit without being closed. FTMO’s day resets at 00:00 CE(S)T; FundedNext resets at 00:00 server time (GMT+2).
Why does yesterday’s close matter?
FTMO-style daily limits are a percentage of the balance or equity at the end of the previous day, not of the initial balance. A losing day lowers tomorrow’s floor — that is why the daily limit ends more challenges than the max loss does.
Does the max loss floor move up with profits?
On FTMO 2-Step and FundedNext Stellar it stays static on the initial balance, so profits are a genuine buffer. On FTMO 1-Step it trails: recalculated at end of day and reset on withdrawal.
How much buffer should I keep?
At minimum, your worst realistic cluster of losing trades plus spread spikes. SignalForge’s Prop Firm Shield enforces the daily limit at 80% of the firm’s (4% on FTMO 2-Step) so the guard never triggers exactly on the firm’s line.
Let the shield watch the line
Prop Firm Shield enforces your daily and max loss limits automatically on every TradingView signal, even while you sleep.
SignalForge AI is an order-execution tool. We do not provide investment advice. Trading involves risk of loss. This calculator is for information only; verify limits in your prop firm’s dashboard, as rules change.