Allocation limit — The maximum total capital, or number of funded accounts, a single trader may hold with one firm.
How allocation limit works in prop trading
Firms cap their exposure to any one trader, both by total funded capital — often in the $300,000 to $600,000 range — and by the number of accounts a person may run. The cap usually applies to the funded stage; evaluations are frequently uncapped because they generate revenue rather than risk.
The rule interacts with copy trading. Traders who hold several funded accounts commonly mirror the same strategy across them, and firms that permit this typically impose a total-contract cap across all accounts rather than per account. Exceeding the aggregate cap is a breach even when each individual account is inside its own limit.
Key points
- Applies to total funded capital and to the number of concurrent funded accounts.
- Evaluation accounts are often uncapped while funded accounts are not.
- Firms that allow copy trading across your own accounts usually cap total contracts in aggregate.
- Hitting the allocation limit is the practical ceiling on income at a single firm, which is why active traders spread across several.
Also known as
- max funding
- max accounts
- maximum allocation
- account cap
Frequently asked questions
How many prop firm accounts can I have?
It depends on the firm — typical limits run from three to ten funded accounts, with a separate cap on total funded capital. Evaluations are usually less restricted. Trading the same strategy across multiple accounts requires the firm to permit copy trading.
Can I trade with more than one prop firm?
Generally yes. Allocation limits apply per firm, not across the industry, and most firms do not prohibit accounts elsewhere. The constraint becomes practical rather than contractual — managing correlated risk across firms is harder than it looks.
Put this into practice
Allocation limit is described here as a plain-language educational definition. Firms, platforms, and account programs may apply different conditions or calculations. Verify the current official terms before using this definition to make an account decision.