Prop Trading Challenge Fees: What You're Really Paying (2026)

A prop trading challenge fee is a one-time payment for access to the firm's trading capital. On SizeProp, that fee ranges from $33 for the smallest Degen ($5K account) to $899 for the largest 1-Step ($100K account). The fee is non-refundable once you place your first trade, it covers every operational cost the firm has for giving you access, and it is the entire risk envelope: a trader can never lose more than the challenge fee they paid at checkout. No monthly, no platform fees, no data fees, no withdrawal markup. Over $50M in funded capital granted so far under this exact pricing model.

SizeProp is a crypto prop trading firm founded in October 2025 by Windra Thio, backed by Igloo Inc (parent of Pudgy Penguins), offering $33 entry challenges with same-day USDT payouts and zero denied payouts.

Originally published: April 24, 2026 · Last verified: April 2026 · By Windra Thio, Co-Founder of SizeProp

Key Takeaways

• One-time fees only in crypto prop. All major crypto prop firms (SizeProp, HyroTrader, Breakout, CFT) charge a single up-front fee per challenge. No monthly subscriptions.
• SizeProp range: $33-$899. HyroTrader: $119-$1,399. Breakout: ~$50-$800. CFT $100K: ~$475. FTMO starts higher and scales higher.
• Refund policy differs by firm. SizeProp refunds within 24 hours if no trades placed. HyroTrader refunds the fee on your first funded payout. FTMO does not refund.
• SizeProp has zero hidden fees. Withdraw fee is ~$1 for network gas only. No platform, data, inactivity, or rebuy fees beyond the new challenge cost.
• "Cost per $1K funded" is the real pricing metric. A $33 Degen on $5K = $6.60 per $1K. A $899 1-Step on $100K = $8.99 per $1K. Lower cost per $1K as account size scales.
• Over $50M in funded capital granted across SizeProp traders since October 2025.

Why Does a Challenge Fee Exist in the First Place?

100+ payouts processed · zero denied · over $50M in funded capital granted (as of April 2026)

Before we compare numbers, it helps to understand what the fee actually pays for.

When you buy a SizeProp challenge, you're paying for three things:

1. Access to the firm's capital. The $5,000 / $10,000 / $50,000 / $100,000 account size isn't your money — it's the firm's risk. You get to trade with it. You keep 80-95% of profits (at the split tier you bought).
2. Risk absorption on losing trades. When you lose money on the funded account, the firm absorbs that loss. Your credit card doesn't get charged. The fee you paid at purchase is the total downside.
3. Infrastructure. Orderbook data from Binance, Bybit, and Hyperliquid. The in-house trading terminal. TradingView integration. Support team. KYC processing. Payment rails.

The challenge fee is priced so that across all traders collectively, the fees cover the cost of the winners' payouts plus operations. That's the model. If the firm prices too low, it loses money. If it prices too high, traders don't buy. The equilibrium price is what you see on the checkout page.

SizeProp Fee Structure — Every Product, Every Size

SizeProp's fee range spans $33-$899 across three products and five account sizes, with cost per $1K funded dropping as accounts scale. Degen runs $33 (5K) to $369 (100K). 1-Step runs $59 to $899. 2-Step runs $49 to $759. The cheapest absolute entry is the $33 Degen on $5K; the lowest dollar-per-thousand rate sits at $3.69 on the $100K Degen.

Here's the full fee breakdown across all three SizeProp products.

Degen (single-phase, 3% static drawdown)

1-Step (single-phase, 7% trailing-till-starting)

2-Step (two-phase, 8% trailing-till-starting)

Pricing verified against the SizeProp dashboard as of April 2026. Small adjustments happen — always check the live checkout page for the current number.

The pattern across all three products: cost per $1K funded drops as account size increases. The $33 Degen $5K is the lowest absolute dollar commitment. The $369 Degen $100K has the lowest dollar-per-thousand rate on the platform — roughly $3.69 to access each $1,000 of trading capital.

Why Is This Firm $50 and That Firm $500? Pricing Explained by Product

Prop firm fee gaps come down to four factors: product type (single-phase Degen versus two-phase 2-Step), account size (a $5K is cheaper than $100K), rule strictness (looser rules price higher), and included profit split (80% base versus 70% on HyroTrader). A SizeProp $33 Degen and a $119 HyroTrader 1-Step are different products with different rulesets — price parity does not mean product parity.

A trader comparing crypto prop firms for the first time sees prices that look wildly inconsistent — one firm charges $50 for what looks like the same thing as another firm's $500 offer. The gap comes down to four factors:

1. Product type (Degen vs 1-Step vs 2-Step). A Degen product is a single-phase challenge with tight rules (3% static drawdown). It's designed for disciplined scalpers who can pass in a small number of trades. Price is low because the drawdown window is narrow — statistically, the firm knows fewer traders make it through. A 2-Step is a two-phase evaluation with wider drawdown (8%) and two targets to hit. Price is higher because more capital is at risk over more trading decisions.

2. Account size. $5K costs less than $100K. Obvious, but worth stating. The per-$1K rate flattens as you scale up, but the absolute dollars grow.

3. Rule set. Firms with looser rules (no consistency, no min trading days, no time limits) tend to price slightly higher because more traders pass. Firms with stricter rules can price lower. SizeProp runs zero minimum trading days, zero consistency rule, no time limits. The reason pricing is competitive even with that ruleset is the crypto-native balance-tracked drawdown, which is structurally harder to breach than equity-tracked competitors.

4. Profit split included. SizeProp's base tier is 80% profit split. The 90% upgrade is +$350, 95% is +$450. At checkout only. Some firms bundle higher splits into the base price and price the challenge higher overall. Some firms start at 70% (HyroTrader) and scale via performance milestones.

How Do Competitor Fees Compare?

Over $50M in funded capital granted across SizeProp traders since October 2025 (as of April 2026). SizeProp is a crypto prop trading firm founded in October 2025 by Windra Thio, backed by Igloo Inc (parent of Pudgy Penguins), offering $33 entry challenges with same-day USDT payouts and zero denied payouts.

All five of the major firms traders actually consider. Numbers verified against each firm's live site in April 2026.

$5K account (entry-tier)

$50K account (mid-tier — most popular size among active traders)

$100K account (top-tier)

All competitor numbers verified against live sites in April 2026. Re-verify before citing in any published comparison — prop firm pricing adjusts often.

A few things jump out.

SizeProp Degen is the cheapest route to any account size across the comparison set. $33 for $5K is structurally lower than anything HyroTrader, Breakout, or FTMO offers. The tradeoff is the 3% static drawdown — narrow window, demands discipline.

HyroTrader's entry point is 3.6x higher than SizeProp's Degen at the same $5K account size ($119 vs $33). Part of the difference is that HyroTrader refunds the challenge fee on the first funded payout. A different fee model we'll cover in the refund section.

FTMO's per-$1K rate looks competitive, but FTMO crypto is CFD-only. ~22 crypto pairs via MT5 is not the same product as 100+ crypto perps on a native terminal. Price parity doesn't mean product parity.

Trade with $5K–$100K Capital →

What Are the Refund Policies?

Refund policies diverge sharply: SizeProp offers a 24-hour full refund if no trades are placed, HyroTrader refunds the fee on the first funded payout (built into a higher entry price), and FTMO, Breakout, and Crypto Fund Trader do not refund at all. SizeProp's window helps first-time prop traders reduce regret risk; HyroTrader's "free if you pass" framing requires a confident first-attempt thesis to justify 2-3x higher entry pricing.

This is where the fee models diverge most clearly.

SizeProp — 24-hour full refund if zero trades placed

of our internal policy: SizeProp offers a full refund within 24 hours of purchase if no trades have been placed. The moment you open your first position, the fee becomes non-refundable.

This is not a "fee refunded on first payout" model. It's a pre-trading refund window. If you buy a challenge, change your mind in the first 24 hours before touching the platform, we refund the full amount.

HyroTrader — fee refunded on first funded payout

HyroTrader's model is different. The challenge fee is effectively refunded when a trader reaches their first funded payout. The fee is credited back as part of the first withdrawal.

On paper this looks generous: pass the challenge, get your fee back. In practice, the math changes because HyroTrader's base pricing is substantially higher than SizeProp's. The "free if you pass" framing works if you pass. If you breach, the fee is gone the same as any other firm.

FTMO — no refund

FTMO does not refund challenge fees. Purchase is final.

Breakout — no refund

Standard non-refundable model. Fee is committed at purchase.

CFT — no refund

Same as most of the market. Fee is committed at purchase.

Which model is better?

Depends on your profile. If you're a first-time prop trader who wants to reduce regret risk, the SizeProp 24-hour window helps. You can buy, look at the dashboard, and back out if you realize it's not for you. If you're a trader who's confident they'll pass and likes the "free if I pass" framing, HyroTrader's refund-on-first-payout model might appeal. But you're paying 2-3x more up front for that framing, so the math only works if the first-attempt pass rate in your head is high enough to justify the larger entry.

Most experienced traders I've talked to prefer the lower absolute entry price. A $33 Degen that you breach costs $33. A $119 HyroTrader entry that you breach costs $119 — no refund triggers because no payout happened.

Hidden Fees — What to Watch For Across the Industry

Hidden fees in prop trading include platform or data subscriptions, inactivity charges, withdrawal markups above network gas, KYC fees, and undisclosed rebuy or reset add-ons. SizeProp's only non-challenge cost is approximately $1 in ERC-20 network gas at withdrawal, passed through at cost. Crypto-native prop firms (SizeProp, HyroTrader, Breakout, CFT) generally run cleaner fee structures than forex-derivative firms moving into crypto as a side product.

"Hidden fees" in prop trading means any cost you don't see on the checkout page but that shows up later. Common ones:

• Platform / data fees (some MT5-based firms charge monthly data subscriptions)
• Inactivity fees (accounts charged for not trading)
• Withdrawal fees above network cost (a markup on top of the gas fee)
• Rebuy / reset add-ons that aren't disclosed up front
• KYC fees (some firms charge for ID verification)

SizeProp — zero hidden fees

of our documentation: SizeProp has no hidden fees. All fees are public on help.sizeprop.com. The only non-challenge fee a trader sees is the withdrawal cost — approximately $1, which is the ERC-20 network gas fee to send USDT to your wallet. We pass that through at cost, not as a revenue markup.

No platform fee. No data fee. No KYC fee. No inactivity fee. No rebuy fee beyond the new challenge purchase itself.

Competitor comparisons

HyroTrader. Requires trader to hold a Bybit account. No direct platform fee, but you inherit Bybit's own exchange fees because trades route through a linked Bybit via API. That's not a HyroTrader fee per se, but it's a cost the trader pays that wouldn't exist on a native platform.

FTMO. MT5 is included. Data is included. The "hidden" cost for crypto traders is product-quality — CFD crypto, not perps, ~22 pairs instead of 100+.

Breakout. Whitelabel platform. Infrastructure fee is bundled.

CFT. MT5 / MatchTrader / Bybit integration. Similar to HyroTrader, external exchange fees come into play for certain products.

The general rule: crypto-native prop firms (SizeProp, HyroTrader, Breakout, CFT) run cleaner fee structures than forex-derivative firms moving into crypto as a side product. If you care about fee transparency, crypto-native is where you'll find it.

Profit Split Upgrades — The Real Cost Breakdown

SizeProp's profit split upgrades are checkout-only: 80% base included, 90% for +$350, 95% for +$450, with no post-purchase upgrade path. On a $50K funded account at 5% monthly returns, the 95% upgrade pays $375/month more than 80% and breaks even in 1.2 months. The decision is locked at purchase — to move tiers later, buy a new challenge at the desired tier and pass it.

SizeProp's base profit split is 80%. The 90% and 95% upgrades are add-ons at checkout,:

• 80% base: no add-on fee
• 90% profit split: +$350 at checkout
• 95% profit split: +$450 at checkout

The upgrade is checkout-only. There is no post-purchase path to upgrade the split on an existing account. If you buy at 80% and later want 95%, you purchase a new challenge at the 95% tier. The old account stays at 80% until you breach or retire it.

When does the upgrade pay off?

Table shows monthly take-home on a $50K funded account at 5% monthly profit.

At $50K and 5% monthly returns, the 95% upgrade breaks even in about 5 weeks of consistent trading. Past that point, you're pocketing an extra $375/month forever on that account vs. the base 80%.

At smaller account sizes the break-even lengthens. At $10K at 5% monthly ($500 profit/month), the 95% upgrade earns $375 more per month vs 80% — still breaks even in 1.2 months. The math scales.

The upgrade question is really about confidence. If you're buying a challenge with high conviction that you'll pass and reach consistent monthly payouts, the upgrade is mechanically cheap. If you're buying a Degen to learn the platform, don't add $350 on top of a $33 fee. That's a ~10x markup on the entry cost for a product you haven't tested yet.

Reset / Rebuy Policies — Cost to Return After a Breach

SizeProp does not sell discounted resets — every breach requires buying a new challenge at standard price ($33 to restart Degen $5K, $899 to restart 1-Step $100K). Some competitors sell dedicated reset SKUs at 40-60% of original fee, a different incentive structure. Practical strategy after a $899 1-Step breach: step down to a $33 Degen and prove the strategy fix on $5K of access before risking another $899 attempt.

SizeProp does not sell a discounted challenge reset . If you breach, you buy a new challenge at standard price.

SizeProp rebuy cost = new challenge cost

Same prices shown earlier in the article. $33 to restart a Degen $5K. $899 to restart a 1-Step $100K.

Competitor reset policies

Some competitors sell dedicated reset SKUs — typically 40-60% of the original fee. The trade-off is a different price tag against a different incentive structure. At SizeProp, the full-fee rebuy keeps incentives honest: every attempt is priced the same, so you treat every attempt with the same weight.

Practical rebuy strategy

If you breach a $100K 1-Step at $899, the cheapest way to stay in the ecosystem and rebuild discipline is to step down to a $33 Degen $5K. Prove the fix works on $5,000 of access before you put $899 into another $100K attempt. The Degen's narrow drawdown (3% static) is an excellent stress test for a strategy you're re-tuning.

What You're Actually Paying For — Summary

The SizeProp challenge fee covers six things: the firm's risk on losing trades, orderbook data from Binance, Bybit, and Hyperliquid across 100+ pairs, the in-house trading terminal with TradingView integration, KYC processing and same-day USDT payouts, 24/7 Intercom support at 1-minute average response, and platform infrastructure. No subscription, no monthly fees, no hidden platform or data costs, no inactivity charges, no withdrawal markup beyond ~$1 network gas.

The SizeProp challenge fee covers:

• The firm's risk on losing trades (capped downside for the trader)
• Orderbook data from Binance, Bybit, Hyperliquid (100+ pairs)
• The in-house trading terminal and TradingView integration
• KYC processing and same-day USDT payouts (ERC-20)
• 24/7 support (1-minute average response)
• Platform uptime and infrastructure

It does not cover:

• A subscription. There is no monthly fee after purchase.
• Hidden platform or data costs.
• Inactivity charges.
• Markups on withdrawal fees (network cost only, ~$1).

The fee is the entire price of access. Pay once, trade, breach or pass, done. If you pass, the fee buys into a payout relationship that runs indefinitely until breach. If you breach, the fee was the tuition.

FAQ

Are prop trading challenge fees one-time or recurring?

Crypto prop firm challenge fees are one-time, non-recurring payments. SizeProp, HyroTrader, Breakout, and CFT all charge a single fee per challenge purchase with no monthly subscription. Forex-origin firms like FTMO also use one-time fees per challenge with no recurring billing.

Is the challenge fee refundable if I change my mind?

Depends on the firm. SizeProp refunds the full fee within 24 hours if no trades have been placed. HyroTrader refunds the fee on your first funded payout (different model). FTMO, Breakout, and CFT do not refund. Always check the refund policy before buying.

What are hidden fees on prop trading challenges?

Hidden fees can include platform/data subscriptions, inactivity charges, withdrawal markups, KYC fees, or mandatory rebuy costs. SizeProp has zero hidden fees — withdrawal cost is ~$1 for ERC-20 network gas only. All fees are listed publicly at help.sizeprop.com.

Why are some firms' fees 3-10x higher than others?

Fee differences come down to product type (Degen vs 1-Step vs 2-Step), account size, rule strictness, included profit split, refund mechanics, and platform infrastructure. A SizeProp $33 Degen and a $119 HyroTrader 1-Step are different products with different rulesets and different fee models.

What is the cheapest prop trading challenge in crypto?

The SizeProp Degen $5K at $33 is the lowest-priced entry across the major crypto prop firms. It's a single-phase challenge with a 3% static drawdown — narrow window, designed for disciplined traders. Cost per $1K funded: $6.60.

Do I need to pay anything on top of the challenge fee?

No. The challenge fee is the entire cost of access on SizeProp. No platform fees, no data fees, no monthly charges, no inactivity penalties. Withdrawals cost ~$1 for network gas when you request a USDT payout. That's passed through at cost, not a firm markup.

Can I upgrade my profit split after buying the challenge?

No. On SizeProp, the 90% (+$350) and 95% (+$450) profit split upgrades are checkout-only. There is no post-purchase path to upgrade an existing account. To move to a higher split tier, you purchase a new challenge at that tier.

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Sources & Verification

• SizeProp pricing dashboard: sizeprop.com/tos
• SizeProp fee transparency: help.sizeprop.com All competitor numbers verified against live sites in April 2026. Pricing adjusts — re-verify before citing.
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