Profit Target

Profit target is the gain the trader must reach during an evaluation phase to advance. Phase 1 of a two-step evaluation typically targets 8–10% of starting balance; phase 2 typically targets 4–5%. One-step evaluations usually target a single 8–10% threshold.

The headline percentage is less useful than the combination of profit target, drawdown limit, and time window. A 10% target with a 10% drawdown allows looser risk-per-trade than a 10% target with a 5% drawdown. Most firms have removed explicit time limits, but a handful still cap evaluation duration at 30–60 days.

Profit-target calculation usually includes unrealized PnL, meaning a position currently +1.5% counts toward the target whether or not the trader closes it. Some firms require the target to be hit on closed equity only — confirm before assuming.

The profit-target requirement also interacts with the consistency rule. A trader who hits the target via a single oversize day may technically pass the profit-target gate but fail the consistency gate, requiring more trading days to rebalance the P&L distribution. This is a common source of evaluations that "should have passed" but did not.