Topstep trailing drawdown: how the Maximum Loss Limit moves

Topstep calls its drawdown the Maximum Loss Limit (MLL). On the 50K Trading Combine it is $2,000. It is a trailing limit that moves once a day, at the end of the trading day, but Topstep watches it all day. If the account balance touches it, including through an open trade, the account is out. This page sets out what Topstep’s own pages say. Read on 2026-10-21; check Topstep’s page before relying on it.

How the limit moves

• It trails the end-of-day balance. “The MLL is a trailing limit. It rises as your end-of-day balance grows, but never moves down.”^S1
• It updates once a day. “The MLL updates at the end of each trading day but is monitored in real time.”^S1
• The formula. Topstep’s product page gives it as “Account balance high - maximum drawdown = Maximum Loss Limit (which is set at the end of each day)”^S3.
• Size. $2,000 on the 50K account. Topstep’s example runs from a $50,000 balance to a $48,000 limit^S1. The other sizes are in the next section.

How big is the limit?

Topstep’s page lists the limit by account size^S1:

Account size	Maximum Loss Limit
50K	$2,000
100K	$3,000
150K	$4,500

In the Trading Combine, “your account starts at the full account size (e.g., $50,000 for a 50K Trading Combine), and your Maximum Loss Limit starts $2,000 below that”^S1.

What counts against it

“Both realized and unrealized P&L count toward it.”^S1 Topstep’s own example: an unrealized dip to $47,750 breaches the limit even if the trade later closes at $48,050^S1. Its parameters page puts the rule as: “Do not let your account balance hit or go below the Maximum Loss Limit (MLL)”^S2.

Where it stops trailing

“Once it reaches your starting balance, it locks permanently.”^S1 On a 50K account the limit stops at $50,000. That happens once an end-of-day balance of $52,000 has been recorded; the $52,000 is our arithmetic ($50,000 plus the $2,000 limit), not a number the page quotes.

In the Express Funded Account

The same page treats the funded account differently. “Your Express Funded Account (XFA) balance starts at $0. The 50K, 100K, or 150K label refers to your buying power, not your starting balance.” For a 50K XFA, “your MLL starts at -$2,000 and trails upward. Once your balance reaches $2,000, the MLL locks at $0 permanently.”^S1

After a payout the limit changes again: “After your first Payout: Your MLL is set to $0 regardless of where it was before. The remaining balance becomes your effective loss floor.”^S1 Topstep’s example: a $10,000 balance, a $5,000 payout, then a balance of $5,000 and an MLL of $0; “if your balance ever hits $0, the account closes.” The page puts this under the Express Funded Account only. It does not say the same applies to the Trading Combine.

What happens on a breach

“Your account is liquidated for the rest of the trading day and becomes ineligible for funding until you Reset.”^S1

Do not mix it up with the daily loss limit

The Daily Loss Limit (DLL) is a separate, optional rule in the Trading Combine: “$1,000” on the 50K account, described as optional, and “Triggering it is not a rule violation”^S4. Topstep’s payout policy says something different: “Hitting the Daily Loss Limit puts your account in a Temporary Violation.”^S5 The first page is dated 2026-06-30; the second is newer by its label, but does not say which account type it covers. We do not resolve this. Ask Topstep which applies to your account.

A static version

Topstep Labs lists a $50K Static challenge with the limit at “$2,000 (static, non-trailing)”^S6: a fixed floor that does not move with your balance. It is a different product from the Trading Combine.

If you test a strategy against this rule

The MLL’s level moves on the end-of-day balance, but a breach is tested on equity including open trades. A test needs both: each day’s closing balance, and the account’s equity through the day. A test on daily closes alone can miss a breach that the firm would have called.