Trailing drawdown: static, intraday and EOD

Trailing drawdown raises an account's loss threshold when a specified reference reaches a new high. It does not move the threshold back down after a loss. The reference may be equity during the session or the balance at a daily cutoff. In this teaching model, equity means balance plus open profit or loss; fees and other account adjustments are omitted.

This guide concerns account rules in trading programmes, including evaluations. Exact terms depend on the programme and phase.

All three models start at $50,000 with a fixed $2,000 allowance and an initial $48,000 threshold. They differ in what can raise that threshold. None lowers it after a loss. In these models, equity is checked at every observation, including between daily cutoffs.

For the end-of-day model, the starting balance remains the reference until a higher qualifying close occurs. A lower close cannot erase an earlier high. For the intraday model, an open-profit spike can raise the floor even if that profit is never realised.

We count equity at or below the threshold as a breach and keep that first breach recorded. We do not cap the trailing threshold. These are explicit model assumptions, not universal programme terms: verify equality, caps and the exact reference in the applicable rulebook.

Before the first daily cutoff, balance stays at $50,000. Equity peaks at $53,000, then falls to $50,900.

At that point: $900 above the starting value, $2,100 below the equity peak and $100 below the intraday threshold. Profit, drawdown and remaining room measure different things.

When you first open this guide, the comparison shows $50,900 equity: the intraday rule is breached, while the static and EOD rules are not. Go back to see how the $53,000 peak raised the intraday floor. Then select the higher-close scenario to see when the EOD floor moves.

These are hypothetical observations. Positions are flat at the marked daily closes. The model omits fees, payouts, floor caps, separate daily limits and order execution. Connecting lines do not represent additional observations.

With a $50,000 balance and $3,000 of open profit, equity is $53,000. In this example, closing the position at that value makes the balance $53,000; equity stays at $53,000.

The high-water mark is the highest qualifying reference, including the starting value. Drawdown = peak equity − current equity. Remaining room = current equity − active threshold. Drawdown measures the fall already taken; room measures the distance to the rule’s boundary.

For a real account, check whether the monitored equity includes commissions, swaps or other charges. The model omits these costs.

Two clocks matter: the time when the threshold is recalculated and the times when the account is tested against it. In our EOD model, a $51,500 closing balance sets the next threshold at $49,500. During the next session, that floor remains active even before another close is recorded.

If equity reaches $49,400 during that session, the account breaches the model's rule. Recovering to a $51,000 close cannot repair the breach. Without that earlier breach, a $51,000 close would still leave the threshold at $49,500: the previous $51,500 closing high remains the reference.

Always identify the programme's cutoff, time zone and treatment of positions held across it. A platform's calendar day and a provider's trading day need not use the same boundary. “Balance-based” can describe the input that moves a threshold while equity remains the value used to check compliance.

These two examples were checked against the official rules on 22 October 2026. They illustrate differences between products and phases; they are not a full comparison of programmes.

Topstep's Maximum Loss Limit documentation describes an end-of-day trailing threshold monitored throughout the session, including unrealised results. It also describes a lock at the starting balance for the Trading Combine. Its Express Funded Account uses a different starting-balance presentation, and payout rules can change the applicable floor. Do not copy our uncapped chart into that rulebook.

FTMO's CFD Trading Objectives distinguish the 1-Step programme's end-of-day trailing Maximum Loss from the 2-Step programme's static Maximum Loss. The 1-Step reference uses qualifying balances at 00:00 CE(S)T; equity is the monitored value. These CFD conditions should not be carried over to a different FTMO product or phase without checking its own terms.

Boundary wording also differs: Topstep describes reaching the limit, whereas the cited FTMO rules describe equity falling below it. That is why this guide labels its at-or-below convention instead of presenting it as universal. Recheck current documentation before using any example for a particular account.

In a separate example, equity is $50,600 and the threshold is $49,500, leaving $1,100 of room: $50,600 − $49,500. The advertised $50,000 account size and its buying power do not tell you how much room remains above the active floor.

A hypothetical planned loss of $500 would use about 45.5% of that $1,100 room before costs or execution differences. That ratio is arithmetic, not a suggested allocation. Multiple open positions can use the same remaining room at once, and an additional daily limit may create a tighter boundary.

The position-size calculator can explore a chosen monetary risk amount and stop distance. It does not infer a programme's current threshold for you. The risk/reward calculator compares the planned trade's inputs; a favourable ratio does not establish that an account can absorb the loss.

An account threshold is not a stop-loss order. If a programme automatically closes positions after a breach, execution at the threshold is not guaranteed. The trailing stop-loss vs trailing stop-limit guide explains how those exit orders work.

Record the current answers for the exact programme and phase. A label such as “funded”, “EOD” or “trailing” does not supply the full calculation.

• Reference: does the threshold follow equity, closed balance, a daily closing balance or another defined value?
• Timing: when can the reference change, and what cutoff and time zone apply?
• Monitoring: do open losses, commissions, swaps or other charges count between recalculations?
• Boundary: is touching the floor enough, or does the rule specify falling below it? What happens after a breach?
• Caps: does trailing stop at a particular floor, and is that condition different during evaluation and later phases?
• Account changes: how do a payout, withdrawal, reset or replacement account affect the reference and remaining room?
• Other constraints: are there separate daily loss, position-size or other rules that must be met at the same time?

If the dashboard and your reconstruction disagree, preserve the timestamps, balance, open P/L, costs and rule version. Those details make a support question specific. A final closing balance alone cannot show whether an earlier intraday boundary was crossed.

• Subtracting the allowance from the current balance after every loss. A trailing floor uses the qualifying high, not a reference that falls with the account.
• Treating every open-profit peak as an EOD closing high. In the model, only the specified closing observation can move the EOD floor.
• Reading a later recovery as proof that no breach occurred. The path and the first violation matter, not just its endpoint.
• Treating a locked floor as the disappearance of risk. Equity can still approach a fixed floor, and other constraints can remain in force.

To verify a calculation, record the reference and time, calculate the threshold, compare the monitored equity and retain the first breach. Check additional daily limits separately.

How is trailing drawdown calculated?

In a fixed-amount model, subtract the allowed drawdown from the highest qualifying reference value. The key is defining that reference: it may be intraday equity or a balance recorded at a daily cutoff. Caps, withdrawals and other programme rules can change the calculation.

Does a trailing drawdown threshold move back down after a loss?

Not in the models used here. A loss reduces equity and remaining room while the last threshold stays in place. A reset or a new account is a separate event governed by the applicable programme terms.

Is end-of-day drawdown better than intraday drawdown?

With otherwise identical assumptions in this guide, an open-profit peak can raise the intraday floor without raising the EOD floor. That makes the EOD rule less restrictive on that path, not universally better. Different allowances, caps, costs and additional rules prevent a comparison based on the label alone.

Can an account breach while it is still in profit?

Yes. In our uncapped intraday example, a $53,000 equity peak and a $2,000 allowance create a $51,000 floor. Falling to $50,900 breaches it even though the account began at $50,000. Profit since inception and distance from the active floor are different measures.

Is trailing drawdown the same as a daily loss limit?

No. A trailing threshold follows a qualifying high across the history defined by the rule. A daily limit uses a separately defined daily reference and allowance. Both can apply at once; complying with one does not prove compliance with the other.

Does the calculator reproduce Topstep or FTMO rules?

No. It compares three uncapped teaching models with a fixed allowance and an at-or-below breach convention. It omits product-specific caps, resets, payouts, daily constraints and execution. Use the named sources and your exact account terms for a programme-specific calculation.