Rithmic is not a brokerage. It is a futures market data and order routing technology that sits between your trading platform and the exchange, and many futures prop firms issue Rithmic credentials for their evaluation and funded accounts. The ranking above compares eight futures prop firms that connect traders through Rithmic, not twenty brokerages. Because the data connection is shared, your choice comes down to drawdown type, payout terms and account size. If open profits often retrace before you exit, the end-of-day accounts at Lucid, Tradeify, Take Profit Trader and Bulenox give more room than the intraday trailing accounts at Apex and TradeDay. If you bank outside the US, the payout method narrows the field first.
What a Rithmic connection means at a prop firm
When a prop firm uses Rithmic, it opens an account for you on a Rithmic system and sends a username, password and the system or server name to select. You enter these in a platform that supports Rithmic, such as R | Trader Pro, NinjaTrader, Sierra Chart, ATAS, Quantower, Bookmap or MotiveWave. The firm supplies the account and the rules, Rithmic supplies the feed and routing, and the platform is the screen you trade from.
That split answers several practical questions:
- Which platform can I use? Any platform with a Rithmic connector can log in with prop firm credentials, but each firm decides which platforms it supports. Whether you can trade a firm’s account in ATAS, for example, depends on that firm’s approved list, not on Rithmic. Some third-party platforms also require their own license.
- Is Rithmic the same as Tradovate? No. Tradovate is a separate platform and brokerage with its own connection. A firm that runs accounts on Tradovate is not giving you a Rithmic feed, and Tradovate logins do not work in a Rithmic connector.
- Who handles account problems? The firm that issued the credentials controls activation, resets and breaches. Rithmic’s support covers its own software and connectivity.
How we checked the firms in this list
We checked all 8 brands on this list on 2026-11-13, connecting from Tallinn, Estonia, in the EU. Every official site opened normally. We then recorded which legal entities each site names and whether a register lookup was on record. Only one was. For Tradeify, whose site names Tradeify Holdings Corp., Tradeify Brokerage LLC and Inter Miami Limited, our NFA BASIC (US) search for 0575972 came back confirmed, with the status NFA Member Approved. The other 7 brands have no register lookup on record, so we have no register result to report for them in either direction. The named entities still help you see who you would be dealing with. Apex Trader Funding names SIM Accounts Limited and Apex Trader Funding Inc., Earn2Trade names Bahia Education Services LLC, and Bulenox names Bulenox LLC. Our check recorded no legal entity name for Lucid Trading.
We also followed the main sign-up button on each site. At 7 of the 8 brands it opened a checkout without asking us to create an account first, for example “Start Evaluation” at Tradeify and “Get Funded” at TradeDay. Bulenox was the exception. Its “Join Now” button led to a sign-in or account page before any payment screen. Trustpilot figures are worth reading together with review counts. Apex Trader Funding shows 4.2 from 21,729 reviews, while TradeDay shows 4.6 from 1,453 reviews, so a higher score can rest on far fewer reviews. Archive history varies as well. Funded Futures Family has its first archive capture on 2024-05-09, compared with 2021-09-16 for Apex Trader Funding. Keep in mind that an archive date shows when a domain was first captured, not necessarily when the current firm started.
These checks stop at what any visitor can see. We did not open accounts, buy evaluations, trade or test payouts at any of these firms.
How the order is set
Firms are ranked by the score out of 10 shown next to each name. The user rating and its review count (for example, 4.2 from 21,631 reviews for Apex Trader Funding) are a separate figure. That is why the two do not move together. Take Profit Trader holds a 4.4 user rating across 11,176 reviews yet sits last on score at 6.7. Earn2Trade’s 4.5 user rating is higher than Apex’s 4.2, while the two share the top score of 7.9.
The score gaps are narrow. Two firms tie at 7.9. Lucid Trading follows at 7.8, and Tradeify, TradeDay and Bulenox all sit at 7.7. Six of the eight firms fall within 0.2 points of each other, so a position in the list should not settle the decision. A tie is a signal to compare the specific challenge each firm offers against the way you trade. The two lower scores (Funded Futures Family at 7.3 and Take Profit Trader at 6.7) are the clearest separation in the ranking.
Comparing each firm’s challenge
Each firm is compared on one specific challenge, at one account size, with a promotional price where one applies, so these are not the same product. Apex’s challenge is a $25K Intraday Trail account and Funded Futures Family’s is a $25K instant account. Earn2Trade’s is a $50K Gauntlet Mini. Lucid, Tradeify, TradeDay, Bulenox and Take Profit Trader use $100K accounts. A $17 fee next to a $108 fee says little until the account sizes match.
Among the five $100K challenges, fees run from $108 (TradeDay Quick Pay) to $272 (Lucid PRO EVAL), with Take Profit Trader at $165, Tradeify at $186 and Bulenox at $215.
Several terms need confirming before you commit. Check whether a fee is a one-time charge or a recurring monthly subscription, which can outweigh these gaps if an evaluation runs several months. Check the undiscounted fee, since several prices depend on a discount code. Check whether TradeDay’s higher split tier applies to all profit or only to the amount above $4K. News trading and automation permissions are stated for some firms only, so confirm them in each firm’s full rulebook.
The number of steps also varies. Apex and Bulenox run 3-step programs, Earn2Trade a 2-step program, and Lucid, Tradeify, TradeDay and Take Profit Trader 1-step evaluations. Funded Futures Family’s S2F Payday is instant funding, which skips the evaluation stage.
Drawdown type: the rule that changes how you trade
The max loss figure only means something alongside the method used to measure it, and the firms use two different methods.
Intraday trailing drawdown follows your highest unrealized equity during the session. Apex’s Intraday Trail account ($1,000 max loss on $25K) and TradeDay’s Quick Pay ($1,000 max loss, intraday trailing, on $100K) use this method. If an open trade runs up and then reverses, the loss limit has already moved up with the open profit, even though you never banked it.
End-of-day (EOD) drawdown trails from your balance at the session close. Lucid ($1,000 max loss on $100K), Tradeify ($3,000 on $100K) and Take Profit Trader ($3,000 EOD trailing on $100K) measure drawdown this way. Bulenox uses EOD trailing drawdown with limits that scale by account size, up to $3,000 on $100K.
An example shows the difference. Assume a $100K account with a $1,000 trailing limit, so the liquidation level starts at $99,000. You open a trade that reaches $800 in open profit and then close it flat. Under intraday trailing, the level moved to $99,800 when equity peaked at $100,800, so you now have $800 less room even though your balance is unchanged. Under EOD trailing, the session closed at a $100,000 balance, so the level stays at $99,000.
Daily loss limits add a second layer where they exist. Lucid’s PRO EVAL adds a $600 daily loss limit on top of the $1,000 max loss. Tradeify and Bulenox have no daily loss limit.
Compare profit targets with these limits as well. Tradeify and Take Profit Trader both ask for $6,000 with $3,000 of drawdown on $100K. TradeDay asks for $1,500 against $1,000. Lucid asks for $1,250 against $1,000 plus the $600 daily cap. A smaller target with a smaller drawdown suits shorter sizing. A larger target with wider room suits trades that need more space to work.
Payout terms where the firms differ most
Profit splits and payout schedules vary more than any other terms.
- Apex pays a 100% split with payouts after 5 trading days, by ACH transfer. ACH is a US banking rail, which matters if you bank elsewhere.
- Earn2Trade pays 80%, weekly from $100 after 5 profitable days, via Rise, crypto or bank transfer.
- Lucid Trading pays 90%, with the schedule tied to the daily loss limit setting: every 5 days with it off, on demand with it on. Payouts go through Plaid, WorkMarket by ADP or crypto.
- Tradeify pays 90% after 5 winning days, with a $250 minimum daily profit on the 150K account. Payout is by crypto only.
- TradeDay uses a tiered split: 50/50 below $4K net profit, 80/20 above $4K, and 90/10 in Funded Live, with payouts from day one. TradeDay does not refund fees and has a 5-day minimum.
- Bulenox pays up to 90% with payouts every day.
- Take Profit Trader pays 80%, with withdrawals from day one in its PRO stage, via Plaid, PayPal or Wise.
- Funded Futures Family pays every 7 days through Rise, with no stated split.
If you are outside the US, the payout method narrows the field faster than the split does, because a firm whose only rail your bank cannot receive is ruled out whatever its split.
Scaling, trading rules and track record
Maximum allocation falls into three groups. Tradeify and Take Profit Trader allow up to $750K. Apex and Earn2Trade allow $400K. Lucid, TradeDay, Bulenox and Funded Futures Family cap allocation at $150K. This ceiling matters if you plan to run several accounts or scale up over time, and much less for a first evaluation.
News trading is allowed at Earn2Trade, Bulenox, Funded Futures Family and Take Profit Trader. Automated strategies (EAs) are allowed at Tradeify and Bulenox. These permissions matter if you trade around scheduled releases or run an automated strategy through a Rithmic-connected platform.
Apex and Earn2Trade were founded in 2015, TradeDay in 2020 and Funded Futures Family in 2024. Earn2Trade is based in the United Arab Emirates. Most others are based in the United States.
A practical way to choose
- Decide on drawdown type first. If open profits often run and retrace before you exit, an EOD account will treat you differently from an intraday trailing one.
- Match account sizes before comparing fees.
- Check the payout rail against where you live and bank.
- Confirm your platform is on the firm’s approved list. Then log in with the firm’s credentials on a sim account before funding a larger plan.
- Start with the smallest plan that fits your sizing. The gap between a $25K and a $100K account is often a different drawdown, not just a bigger number.
FAQ
Do I need to pay Rithmic directly for data at a prop firm?
The firm sets this. Data access is arranged through the firm that issues your credentials, so whether exchange data costs extra depends on that firm's terms. Your non-professional or professional declaration at first login affects exchange fees.