Spread is the least-examined number in prop firm comparison and, for high-frequency strategies, one of the most consequential.
The arithmetic
Every round trip costs you the spread plus commission before your idea is judged. Multiply by trade count and compare it to the growth target you are trying to produce.
| Trades during evaluation | At 0.8 pip | At 1.5 pip | At 2.5 pip |
|---|---|---|---|
| 50 | 40 pips | 75 pips | 125 pips |
| 200 | 160 pips | 300 pips | 500 pips |
| 500 | 400 pips | 750 pips | 1,250 pips |
What to ask a firm
- Typical spread on your instruments during your session — not the advertised minimum, which is a best case at peak liquidity.
- Commission per lot per side, if any.
- Whether spreads are raw plus commission, or marked up with no commission.
- How spreads behave around news and rollover.
Who this matters to
- Scalpers: decisive. At 30 trades a day, spread is the largest single cost in the strategy.
- Day traders: significant. A few hundred pips of drag against a 6% target is real.
- Swing traders: minor on spread, but swap becomes the equivalent cost on multi-day holds.
The only reliable way to judge execution is to trade it. On a pay-after-pass entry that assessment costs $9.99.
Test the conditions yourself
Platform 5, no restricted hours, news trading allowed.
Frequently asked questions
How much do spreads cost during a prop firm challenge?
More than most traders account for. Two hundred round trips at 1.5 pips is 300 pips of drag — roughly $1,500 at 0.5 lots, or a quarter of a 6% target on a $100,000 account.
Is raw spread plus commission better than a marked-up spread?
Compare the all-in cost per round trip rather than the headline. A 0.2 pip raw spread with $7 per lot commission works out around 0.9 pips all-in on a standard lot.
FundedAxe evaluations and funded accounts are simulated. Traders do not trade real client capital; rewards are paid on simulated performance under the terms of the FundedAxe trader agreement.