Head-to-head
Hudson River Trading vs Topstep
Hudson River Trading vs Topstep covers the two firms side by side on the facts recorded in their profiles, profiled by proprietarytrading.com.
Profit splits, evaluation fees, payout cadence, supported assets, and trading rules for Hudson River Trading and Topstep. Data pulled live from our firm listings.
Quick verdict
Hudson River Trading is best for
traders avoiding evaluation hurdles; swing traders holding overnight.
Full Hudson River Trading profile →Quick verdict
Topstep is best for
traders prioritizing profit share (90% vs 50%).
Full Topstep profile →Watch flags · risk only
Public risk notes we've recorded on the firm record. Not a judgement of fit — just things to verify before committing capital.
- Topstep
recent trader complaints regarding platform stability, lack of phone support
Cost & compensation
Cost and compensation path
Published fees and payout timing apply to trader-paid funding programs. Firm-capital and institutional paths are shown separately because their economics usually depend on hiring, allocation, salary, bonus, or profit-sharing terms.
Topstep
estimateApprox. total
$98
to reach first payout eligibility
Approx. time
15days
from sign-up to first eligible request
- Start cost
- $49
- Monthly fee
- $49/mo
How we estimated this
- Evaluation path: lowest published one-time evaluation fee.
- Adds ~10 calendar days for evaluation completion (most firms require ≥5 minimum trading days).
- Monthly fee ($49) × 1 month added to startup cost.
- Source — eval fee: $49–$149/month (Trading Combine); monthly: Combine $49–$149; Funded $135/mo flat after first payout; first payout: 5 winning days, $0 trailing drawdown breach.
Hudson River Trading
Firm CapitalNot applicable for this model
This is a firm-capital or hiring-based trading path, not a trader-paid funding program. Compensation is typically handled through salary, bonus, draw, allocation, or profit-sharing arrangements rather than a published evaluation fee and payout schedule.
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.
Hudson River Trading trade-offs
Lower profit split
Pays 50% versus 90% — 40 points less of every funded dollar.
Topstep trade-offs
No overnight holds
Closes positions intraday. Hudson River Trading allows overnight holds.
Open risk note
Watch flag on file: recent trader complaints regarding platform stability, lack of phone support
Decision guide
Best for your trader type
- Highest profit share
90% vs 50%
- Fastest to funded
No mandatory evaluation.
- Biggest scaling ceiling
Up to $150,000.
- Swing & overnight
Permits holding positions overnight.
- Fastest payouts
Weekly (after 5 profitable days) payouts.
| Attribute | Hudson River Trading Firm Capital · est. 2002 | Topstep Evaluation · est. 2012 |
|---|---|---|
| Cost | ||
| Evaluation fee | — | $49–$149/month (Trading Combine) |
| Monthly fee | — | Combine $49–$149; Funded $135/mo flat after first payout |
| Evaluation required | No | Yes |
| Instant funding | No | No |
| Capital | ||
| Profit split | 50% | 90% |
| Max allocation | Institutional only | $150,000 |
| Account sizes | Institutional only | $50K, $100K, $150K |
| Scaling | — | Scale via larger Combine accounts; no automatic in-account scaling. Up to 5 funded accounts. |
| Payouts | ||
| Frequency | Annual bonus | Weekly (after 5 profitable days) |
| First payout | — | 5 winning days, $0 trailing drawdown breach |
| Assets | ||
| Futures | Yes | Yes |
| Stocks | Yes | No |
| Options | Yes | No |
| Forex | Yes | No |
| Crypto | Yes | No |
| Trading rules | ||
| News trading | Yes | Yes |
| Overnight holding | Yes | No |
| Weekend holding | Yes | No |
| Copy trading | No | No |
| Technology | ||
| Platforms | Proprietary | NinjaTrader, Quantower, Sterling, TradeStation, TradingView, Tradovate, TSTrader |
| Data feed | — | CME Group (real-time included) |
| Company | ||
| Headquarters | New York, USA | Chicago, USA |
About Hudson River Trading
Quantitative trading firm responsible for roughly 5% of US equity volume. Builds mathematical models that trade across hundreds of venues worldwide using its own capital.
Full Hudson River Trading 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
Not enough independent rating sources to compute a canonical score yet.
Rule Stability
last 90dWe do not currently have enough monitored public rule sources for this firm to report rule-change activity honestly.
Reputation
Not enough independent rating sources to compute a canonical score yet.
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.
Frequently asked
Common questions
- Which has a higher profit split — Hudson River Trading or Topstep?
- Hudson River Trading pays 50%; Topstep pays 90% of trader profits once funded. Topstep pays a higher share to the trader.
- Is Hudson River Trading cheaper to start than Topstep?
- Hudson River Trading: evaluation pricing varies. Topstep: evaluation from $49–$149/month (Trading Combine).
- Which pays out faster — Hudson River Trading or Topstep?
- Hudson River Trading payouts: Annual bonus. Topstep payouts: Weekly (after 5 profitable days). First-payout eligibility: Hudson River Trading — n/a; Topstep — 5 winning days, $0 trailing drawdown breach.
- What's the maximum allocation at Hudson River Trading vs Topstep?
- Hudson River Trading scales up to Institutional only. Topstep scales up to $150,000.
- Can I trade news at Hudson River Trading or Topstep?
- Hudson River Trading: permits news trading. Topstep: permits news trading.
- Can I hold positions overnight at Hudson River Trading or Topstep?
- Hudson River Trading: allows overnight holds. Topstep: does not allow overnight holds.
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