Methodology · version 4 · as of 03 Nov 2026
How we sort
No overall score, no third-party stars, no commission in the sort. This page sets out which figures we sort by, how we calculate them and where every number comes from.
The crab did the maths. Here is how.
The short version
- There is no overall score. We never sum a firm up in one number, star or seal.
- Lists sort by one measurable figure that you choose. The default is the name (A–Z). There is no weighting: every sort uses exactly one figure.
- Commission, partner status and Red/Green Flags never sort. They appear in no sort and no filter. Promo prices sort only on the deals page, and only when you pick "final price per 1,000 of buffer" there.
- Every value has a source and a date. Whatever we could not confirm is shown as "–" with a reason and never counts as 0.
- We list every firm on equal terms , including those without a partner agreement.
Dataset today: 44 firms, 192 programmes, 876 account sizes.
Sort parameters
The firm list can be ordered by these figures. There is no weighting, because two figures are never mixed.
| Figure | How it is calculated | Order |
|---|---|---|
| Name | Firm name, alphabetical. The default when you choose nothing. | A–Z |
| Cost per 1,000 of buffer | (List price + activation fee where the firm states one) ÷ (loss buffer ÷ 1,000). Subscriptions count one month. | ascending |
| Entry cost | List price + activation fee where the firm states one. One month for subscriptions. | ascending |
| Profit target ÷ buffer | All evaluation profit targets added up ÷ loss buffer. | ascending |
| Starting profit split | Share of the simulated profit the firm states from the first payout. | descending |
| Year founded | Only from the firm's own statements. | oldest first |
- Per firm, the matching challenge counts with the lowest value of the chosen figure (for the profit split: the highest). A challenge is one programme in one account size, with the rules for a purchase today.
- A missing value puts the firm last , never at 0. Ties go by name.
- List prices only. Promo prices and discount codes enter no sort. The one exception: on the deals page you can order the promotions yourself by final price per 1,000 of buffer (final price = price after the promotion plus the activation fee, divided by the loss buffer in thousands); the default there is the date last confirmed.
- Different currencies are put in order in the firm list in USD, converted at the ECB euro reference rate of 6 November 2026. The challenge table, deals and finder convert for the order only when you pick EUR or CHF; otherwise the currencies stay apart there. We always display the firm's own currency.
- Closed firms appear neither in the list nor in the comparison.
- Head-to-heads (A vs B) do not sort: pairs are alphabetical, and no comparison crowns a winner.
Terms
- Loss buffer
- Account size × the maximum loss of the first evaluation phase, or the fixed amount the firm states. For instant accounts without an evaluation: the maximum loss of the simulated account. This much simulated loss ends the account.
- Drawdown type
- Static, end-of-day trailing, intraday trailing or trailing on the balance, with a lock where the firm states one. A category with an explanation, not a number; the drawdown calculator shows the difference day by day.
- Consistency rule
- We store the firm's formula, not just a percentage: best day ÷ total profit, ÷ profitable days only, ÷ profit target or ÷ profit since the last payout, plus the consequence (account ends, payout blocked, target extended).
- "Funded" and simulated accounts
- At most firms the account after passing is simulated too. We say so for every programme, put "funded" in quotes and never present simulated profits as income.
Filters
The firm list filters by market, model, account size, drawdown type, platform, payout cadence and residence.
- Unknown is not a match. A firm whose value for a filter is not documented drops out. The list says how many firms are hidden for that reason.
- Only the firm's own statements filter and sort. Values from the press or third parties and open items are shown with a note, but they drive neither filters nor sorting.
- Excluded residences see no link to the firm for the chosen country.
Red Flags and Green Flags
A flag is a documented fact, not a verdict: a yes/no question that a source answers on a date. Without a source and a date we show no flag. If a question is open, it reads "Unclear".
Red Flag
- Named on an official regulator warning list (exact name match). A listing is not proof of wrongdoing.
- Documented payout stop, sales stop or closure (firm or group company) in the last 24 months.
- Documented retroactive rule change for accounts already bought, in the last 24 months.
- Rules not fully visible without logging in or buying.
- No operating company with name and seat named in the terms.
Green Flag
- Rules fully visible without logging in.
- Operating company published with name, seat and registration number.
- Terms carry a date or version.
- Rule changes apply to new purchases only, with a cut-off date; no documented retroactive change in 24 months.
- Country exclusions and KYC timing are visible before buying.
- Payouts possible in other ways than crypto.
- Discloses whether accounts are simulated or live.
- Refund terms are public.
UnclearThe source does not answer the question, or we have not found it yet. No flag either way.
- Flags are never added up, never turned into a grade and never used to sort.
- We write what is documented, not "scam" or "dodgy". A warning-list entry is not proof of wrongdoing; every such flag says so.
- Warning lists and links: while an entry on a regulator warning list is recorded, we show no link to the firm and none of its promotions. The exception are lists that, according to the authority, concern only persons resident in a country PropCrab does not cover, such as the Reserve Bank of India's Alert List for India (operator decision of 3 November 2026). Such an entry stays visible, with a note on whom it concerns, and is not a Red Flag.
- A firm's age is shown as a fact (year founded), not as a flag.
Sources and dates
- Every value carries at least one source (address, kind of page, date read) and the date we confirmed it against that source.
- The firm's sources first. Rules and prices come from the firm's website, help centre, terms or a PDF. Where only an extract of the firm's page was available, it says "Extract from the firm's page". The press and regulators serve for events and warnings, never for rule values.
- What a firm says about itself (such as amounts paid out) is shown only as "according to the firm", with a date.
- A firm's data date is the oldest confirmation date among its values, not the newest.
- Human-verified is set only by a person who has read the record against its sources.
- Open items are listed on every firm profile: what we looked for and could not confirm, with the reason.
As of today none of the 44 records has been fully verified by a human; each is marked unverified.
Rule versions
- Rules are never overwritten, only versioned: with a start date ("applies to purchases from"), an end and a note on what applies to accounts already bought.
- Lists, the comparison and the calculators show the rules for a purchase today. Where older purchases had different rules, that is stated.
- Your purchase is always governed by the firm's terms at the time of purchase.
How changes come in
Hints about changes – from an automatic comparison of our source pages or from readers – are only taken over once we have read them at the firm's own source. Only then is a new rule version or price created and the date set anew. Pages that block automated requests are checked by hand; until then the value is shown as open.
Prices in EUR and CHF
- Converted values come from the ECB euro reference rates of 6 November 2026. We show them only when you pick EUR or CHF; without a choice your residence applies (Switzerland → CHF, Germany and Austria → EUR), otherwise none.
- The firm's price stays the first value. The converted amount is shown smaller below it, with “≈” and the date of the rate. At checkout the firm's price applies; card rates and fees differ.
- The ECB publishes the reference rates for information purposes only and discourages using them for transactions.
- Sorting across currencies converts only with a chosen currency, and the page says so. Without a choice the currencies stay apart.
- The rates are taken from the ECB's daily file; which date applies is shown with every converted value.
What we don't do
- No stars or numbers from Trustpilot, Discord or Reddit. External reputation appears at most as a dated, attributed statement.
- No pass rates per firm and no probabilities of success. The calculators count costs, not chances.
- No income examples and no promises like "trade our capital".
- No paid placements, no "Sponsored" badges, no cashback.
- We analyse published rules and do not test ourselves. If we ever buy a challenge to document it, we will say so explicitly.
- Not investment advice: we compare product rules, not trading strategies.
Regulators and warning lists
You can check yourself whether a firm or a company in its group is on a warning list or holds a licence. A regulated group company does not make the challenge regulated.
Found a mistake?
Send us the place and the source. We check it against the primary source and correct it with a new date.
Report a correctionWhat we corrected is listed with the old and the right value, source and date in the corrections log. To the corrections log
What the data looks like in numbers – distributions, medians and gaps, with CSV – is in the data report. To the data report
Versions of this page
Version 4 ·
Regulator lists with a limited scope: if, according to the authority, a list concerns only persons resident in a country PropCrab does not cover (such as the Reserve Bank of India's Alert List), the firm keeps its link and its promotions, and the entry does not count as a Red Flag. It is shown with this note on the profile, on the warning list and in the open data. Every other entry blocks the link and promotions as before.
Version 3 ·
Deals: the default order is now the date last confirmed; they are sorted by final price per 1,000 of buffer only when you choose it. No link to a firm while an entry on a regulator warning list is recorded.
Version 2 ·
New asset class “stocks” (shares and ETFs themselves, not stock CFDs) as a market in the challenge table, the firm list and the finder; new filter page /filter/stocks; position size calculator with stocks. Prices optionally also in EUR or CHF at the ECB euro reference rate; the challenge table, deals and finder put different currencies in one order only when you pick EUR or CHF.
Version 1 ·
First version for PropCrab's launch: six sort figures, seven filters, five Red and eight Green Flag criteria.