Head-to-head
FTMO vs SMB Capital
A direct, side-by-side comparison of FTMO and SMB Capital — profit splits, evaluation fees, payout cadence, supported assets, and trading rules. Data pulled live from our firm directory.
Quick verdict
FTMO is best for
traders prioritizing profit share (90% vs 70%); copy-trading setups.
Full FTMO profile →Cost to first payout
Cost to first payout
What it actually costs to reach payout — a normalized estimate built from each firm's lowest published evaluation cost, monthly fees, and first-payout window. Estimates, not guarantees. Each card shows the assumptions used.
FTMO
estimateApprox. total
—
to reach first payout eligibility
Approx. time
17days
from sign-up to first eligible request
- Start cost
- —
- Monthly fee
- None
How we estimated this
- Adds ~10 calendar days for evaluation completion (most firms require ≥5 minimum trading days).
- Source — eval fee: €89–€1,080 one-time (refundable on pass); monthly: No monthly fee — one-time challenge cost; first payout: First payout possible after 14 days; reduce to weekly on request.
SMB Capital
Not enough structured fee data published to estimate a cost-to-first-payout figure for this firm.
Trade-offs
Where each firm is weaker
No firm wins on every axis. These are the most meaningful drawbacks of each option — derived from the same structured fields shown in the table, never invented.
FTMO trade-offs
No structural disadvantages versus the other firm based on the fields we track.
SMB Capital trade-offs
Lower profit split
Pays 70% versus 90% — 20 points less of every funded dollar.
Slower payouts
Payout cadence is Monthly versus On-demand (default 14 days, weekly available) at FTMO.
No copy trading
Forbids copy / algo bridges. FTMO permits them.
Decision guide
Best for your trader type
- Highest profit share
90% vs 70%
- Fastest to funded
No mandatory evaluation.
- Biggest scaling ceiling
Up to $200,000.
- Copy & algo traders
Copy trading is permitted.
- Fastest payouts
On-demand (default 14 days, weekly available) payouts.
| Attribute | FTMO Evaluation Based · est. 2015 | SMB Capital Leveraged Trader Capital · est. 2005 |
|---|---|---|
| Cost | ||
| Evaluation fee | €89–€1,080 one-time (refundable on pass) | — |
| Monthly fee | No monthly fee — one-time challenge cost | — |
| Evaluation required | Yes | No |
| Instant funding | No | No |
| Capital | ||
| Profit split | 90% | 70% |
| Max allocation | $200,000 | Firm capital (no trader contribution for proprietary track) |
| Account sizes | $10K, $25K, $50K, $100K, $200K (USD/EUR/GBP/CZK) | Firm capital (no trader contribution for proprietary track) |
| Scaling | Scaling Plan: +25% balance every 4 months at 10%+ profit over 2 of 4 months. | — |
| Payouts | ||
| Frequency | On-demand (default 14 days, weekly available) | Monthly |
| First payout | First payout possible after 14 days; reduce to weekly on request | — |
| Assets | ||
| Futures | Yes | No |
| Stocks | Yes | Yes |
| Options | No | Yes |
| Forex | Yes | No |
| Crypto | Yes | No |
| Trading rules | ||
| News trading | Yes | Yes |
| Overnight holding | Yes | Yes |
| Weekend holding | Yes | Yes |
| Copy trading | Yes | No |
| Technology | ||
| Platforms | MetaTrader 4, MetaTrader 5, cTrader, DXtrade | Sterling, Thinkorswim, Internal |
| Data feed | Purple Trading / Spotware | — |
| Company | ||
| Headquarters | Prague, Czech Republic | New York, USA |
About SMB Capital
Proprietary trading firm and training desk in Midtown Manhattan founded by Mike Bellafiore and Steve Spencer. Known for its trader development program and SMB Training education brand.
Full SMB Capital profile →Trust & stability
Reputation and rule-change activity
Two added decision signals: a weighted reputation score from independent review sources, and a 90-day view of structural rule-change activity where monitored sources are available.
Reputation
canonical- Sources used
- 1
- Confidence
- medium
Weighted blend of independent trader-review sources. See methodology.
Rule Stability
last 90d- Last change
- —
- Type
- —
- Sources monitored
- —
- Status
- No changes detected in monitored sources
Weekly diff of the firm's published rule pages (terms, rules, FAQ, legal). "No changes detected" only means none of the monitored monitored sources changed — other surfaces (Discord, email, dashboards) are not covered. "Limited" or "unavailable" means our monitor cannot reach enough sources to make an honest call.
Reputation
canonical- Sources used
- 1
- Confidence
- low
Weighted blend of independent trader-review sources. See methodology.
Rule Stability
last 90dWe do not currently have enough monitored public rule sources for this firm to report rule-change activity honestly.
Frequently asked
Common questions
- Which has a higher profit split — FTMO or SMB Capital?
- FTMO pays 90%; SMB Capital pays 70% of trader profits once funded. FTMO pays a higher share to the trader.
- Is FTMO cheaper to start than SMB Capital?
- FTMO: evaluation from €89–€1,080 one-time (refundable on pass). SMB Capital: evaluation pricing varies.
- Which pays out faster — FTMO or SMB Capital?
- FTMO payouts: On-demand (default 14 days, weekly available). SMB Capital payouts: Monthly. First-payout eligibility: FTMO — First payout possible after 14 days; reduce to weekly on request; SMB Capital — n/a.
- What's the maximum allocation at FTMO vs SMB Capital?
- FTMO scales up to $200,000. SMB Capital scales up to Firm capital (no trader contribution for proprietary track).
- Can I trade news at FTMO or SMB Capital?
- FTMO: permits news trading. SMB Capital: permits news trading.
- Can I hold positions overnight at FTMO or SMB Capital?
- FTMO: allows overnight holds. SMB Capital: allows overnight holds.
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