Compare 6 current products across 5 first-party source pages — funded cost, split, drawdown and payout rules without flattening one product into a firm-wide answer.
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Available product sources · earliest check Oct 6, 2026
We track 4 City Traders Imperium products and 2 from Topstep that pass the 30-day source-freshness gate; source checks range from 2026-10-06 to 2026-10-14. These firms sell different instruments — City Traders Imperium runs CFD products and Topstep runs futures — so treat the tables below as a fit comparison, not a like-for-like price race. City Traders Imperium offers USD one-time; Topstep offers USD monthly at this tier. No currency-and-billing class appears on both sides, so we neither convert currencies nor rank a recurring floor against a fixed total.
Compare the 6 source-checked products available here, each with its own fees, split, drawdown and date.
We track 4 City Traders Imperium products and 2 from Topstep that pass the 30-day source-freshness gate; source checks range from 2026-10-06 to 2026-10-14. These firms sell different instruments — City Traders Imperium runs CFD products and Topstep runs futures — so treat the tables below as a fit comparison, not a like-for-like price race.
City Traders Imperium offers USD one-time; Topstep offers USD monthly at this tier. No currency-and-billing class appears on both sides, so we neither convert currencies nor rank a recurring floor against a fixed total.
City Traders Imperium's own products disagree on 10 terms. On evaluation steps it is instant funding on Instant Funding and Direct Funding, versus 1-step on 1-Step Challenge, versus 2-step on 2-Step Challenge. Which product you buy decides that rule, not which firm you sign with — a firm-level table cannot show this.
City Traders Imperium offers USD one-time; Topstep offers USD monthly at this tier. No currency-and-billing class appears on both sides, so we neither convert currencies nor rank a recurring floor against a fixed total.
| Product | Cost to funded | Break-even profit | R-multiple | Days @ 1%/day |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Trading Combine - No Activation Fee PathTopstep · Monthly · 90% split | $951 month, no activation fee | $106at 90% split | 0.05vs $2,000 tier max loss | — |
| Trading Combine - Standard PathTopstep · Monthly · 90% split | $1981 month + $149 activation | $220at 90% split | 0.11vs $2,000 tier max loss | — |
| 1-Step ChallengeCity Traders Imperium · One-time · 80% split | $299One-time fee | $374at 80% split | 0.15vs 5% trailing max DD | — |
| 2-Step ChallengeCity Traders Imperium · One-time · 80% split | $329One-time fee | $411at 80% split | 0.08vs 10% max DD | 1 |
R-multiple is break-even profit divided by that product's own maximum permitted loss — under 1.00 means you can lose more than you need to make to win the fee back. Day count assumes 1% account growth per day, capped by the product's own daily loss limit. Blank cells are figures the firm does not publish.
City Traders Imperium offers USD one-time; Topstep offers USD monthly at this tier. No currency-and-billing class appears on both sides, so we neither convert currencies nor rank a recurring floor against a fixed total.
| Product | Cost to funded | Break-even profit | R-multiple | Days @ 1%/day |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Trading Combine - No Activation Fee PathTopstep · Monthly · 90% split | $1491 month, no activation fee | $166at 90% split | 0.06vs $3,000 tier max loss | — |
| Trading Combine - Standard PathTopstep · Monthly · 90% split | $2481 month + $149 activation | $276at 90% split | 0.09vs $3,000 tier max loss | — |
| 1-Step ChallengeCity Traders Imperium · One-time · 80% split | $449One-time fee | $561at 80% split | 0.11vs 5% trailing max DD | — |
| 2-Step ChallengeCity Traders Imperium · One-time · 80% split | $549One-time fee | $686at 80% split | 0.07vs 10% max DD | 1 |
R-multiple is break-even profit divided by that product's own maximum permitted loss — under 1.00 means you can lose more than you need to make to win the fee back. Day count assumes 1% account growth per day, capped by the product's own daily loss limit. Blank cells are figures the firm does not publish.
Each cell shows every value that firm's current products hold. Where a firm disagrees with itself the products are named — those are the rows a firm-level table has to flatten, and the ones that decide whether your strategy is allowed. 10 of 16 rows split this way in this matchup.
| Term | City Traders Imperium | Topstep |
|---|---|---|
| Evaluation steps | Instant fundingInstant Funding, Direct Funding 1-step1-Step Challenge 2-step2-Step Challenge | 1-step |
| Profit split | 80%1-Step Challenge, 2-Step Challenge 50%Instant Funding 70%Direct Funding | 90% |
| Drawdown method | Static2-Step Challenge, Instant Funding, Direct Funding Trailing1-Step Challenge | EOD trailing |
| Daily loss cap | Not published1-Step Challenge, Instant Funding, Direct Funding 5%2-Step Challenge | Not published |
| Max loss cap | 6%Instant Funding, Direct Funding 10%2-Step Challenge 5%1-Step Challenge | Fixed $ per tier |
| Funded drawdown | Static2-Step Challenge, Instant Funding, Direct Funding Trailing1-Step Challenge | EOD trailing |
| Min trading days | 31-Step Challenge, 2-Step Challenge UnverifiedInstant Funding, Direct Funding | Unverified |
| Max trading dayssame | Unverified | Unverified |
| Consistency rule | Unverified | 55% |
| First payout after | 5 daysInstant Funding, Direct Funding 7 days1-Step Challenge, 2-Step Challenge | Not published |
| Payout frequency | Weekly1-Step Challenge, 2-Step Challenge MonthlyDirect Funding Not publishedInstant Funding | On demand |
| News trading | Allowed | Conditional |
| Weekend holding | Allowed | Not allowed |
| Overnight holding | Allowed | Not allowed |
| EAs / algos | Conditional2-Step Challenge, Instant Funding, Direct Funding Allowed1-Step Challenge | Conditional |
| Copy trading | Not published | Conditional |
Topstep now publishes a 55% Combine consistency target
Use 55% for the Combine objective. The separate XFA Consistency payout route remains 40% with three trading days. October 6 is our observation date, not an established effective date; minimum-day descriptions still conflict.
Correction: Topstep payout eligibility is not a three-calendar-day transfer
TFH removed the single calendar-day payout figure, corrected the No Activation Fee path's blanket automation permissions and added the published dollar loss limits per tier. Fee-recovery tables now use those tier limits. These are corrections to our representation, not a proven September change to all Topstep terms. Eligibility still depends on personal circumstances.
Topstep still gives different minimum-day descriptions
Check the applicable Combine consistency requirement and obtain clarification before planning a one-day pass. The six monthly prices were separately verified; this unresolved rule does not establish a price change or a new account restriction.
Every figure above is read from these pages. Products older than 30 days are removed from the comparison until they are recaptured, so a missing product means stale data, not a discontinued plan.
These directory fields describe the firms, not a universal product rule. The sourced product tables above decide the exact fee, split, drawdown and trading conditions. Directory context is not independently refreshed by this comparison; verify platform and payment availability for the exact programme and country.
Scored out of 5 by Trustpilot users, not by us. Where Trustpilot has pulled a firm's aggregate rating we say so rather than leaving a blank.
These links are selected by asset and platform overlap, then limited to matchups where both sides have current first-party product evidence.
14 current products · 10 first-party source pages · checked Oct 14, 2026
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Open comparisonBrowse pairs with current product sources, or open the full firm directory. Missing comparison evidence does not mean a firm has closed.
