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Max Drawdown Calculator — Know Your Breach Levels in Dollars
Every funded account fails one of two ways: a single day that exceeds the daily loss limit, or an equity slide past the max drawdown. Enter your balance and both percentages, and this calculator shows the exact dollar buffers — for static and trailing structures — before you risk a single trade.
What is my max drawdown in dollars?
On a $100,000 account, a 10% max drawdown breaches at $90,000 and a 5% daily loss limit allows $5,000 per day. A static limit is measured from the starting balance; a trailing limit from your highest equity peak, so profits raise the floor. Enter both percentages above to see your exact breach levels.
Your account
Drawdown type
Most prop firms apply the max drawdown either on the starting balance (static) or on the highest balance reached (trailing).
Your prop firm loss limits in dollars
- Daily loss limit (5%)
- $5,000
- You must close the day above 95,000 (95.0% of balance)
- Max drawdown (10%)
- $10,000
- Trailing: you must stay above 90,000 (90.0% of balance) — recomputed from every new equity high
- Remaining before breach
- $5,000
- A single loss larger than this fails the daily rule, not the drawdown — keep your per-trade risk well below it.
Why the daily limit is the number that actually matters
The max drawdown is the account killer over weeks, but the daily loss limit is what ends most funded accounts: one oversized trade breaches it before the drawdown even gets close. Rule of thumb for a 5% daily / 10% max structure — size every trade so its stop-loss costs no more than 0.5–1% of the account, roughly 5×–10× below the daily cap. That way a normal losing day still leaves you inside the buffer.
When a prop firm says “trailing”, the reference point moves up with every equity high and never comes back down. A static 10% drawdown on a $100k account breaches at $90,000. A trailing 10% breaches at $90,000 too, but only if your equity never reached a new high — a $110,000 high resets the floor to $99,000.
The two rules every prop firm actually enforces
The daily loss limit resets every day and catches reckless single trades; the max drawdown compounds and catches slow leaks. Together they define how large a position you can open — so the lot size calculator works hand in hand with these numbers: size each stop so it stays far inside the daily buffer. Our drawdown guide goes deeper into how firms define and reset these limits.
Typical prop firm drawdown structures
Most evaluation and funded programs sit inside a familiar band. The numbers below are typical ranges — always read your firm's exact rules before sizing.
| Rule | Typical range | On a $100k account |
|---|---|---|
| Daily loss limit | 4–5% of balance or end-of-day equity | $4,000–$5,000 |
| Max drawdown | 8–10% static or trailing | $8,000–$10,000 |
| Suggested risk / trade | 0.5–1% of account | $500–$1,000 |
A 1% risk per trade is 4–5× below a 5% daily limit and ~10× below a 10% max drawdown — the margin of error most funded traders need to survive a normal losing week.
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Max drawdown FAQ
How is max drawdown calculated in a prop firm?
Max drawdown is the total equity loss allowed before the account is failed. For a static structure it is measured from the starting balance (a 10% max drawdown on $100,000 breaches at $90,000). For a trailing structure it is measured from the highest balance reached (an equity high of $110,000 resets the floor to $99,000). The calculator above computes both in dollars.
What is the difference between daily loss limit and max drawdown?
The daily loss limit caps losses within a single trading day (typically 4–5% of the starting or previous end-of-day balance) and resets every day. The max drawdown caps the overall equity decline from the starting or highest balance and accumulates until the account is closed. The daily limit is the one most funded accounts actually hit first.
How do I avoid breaching the daily loss limit?
Size every trade so its stop-loss costs no more than 0.5–1% of the account. If the daily limit is 5%, a 1% risk per trade leaves room for four full losing trades in a day. Never scale in or move stops further out, because both silently increase the cash risk against the daily cap.
What does a trailing max drawdown mean in practice?
A trailing drawdown locks in your best equity. Once your balance reaches a new high, the loss limit recalculates from that higher level and never moves back down. A trailing 10% after reaching $110,000 means failure at $99,000, even though that is still above your original $100,000 deposit.
Is max drawdown calculated from balance or equity?
Almost always from equity, and for the daily limit from the previous day's end-of-day balance. Real-time floating equity (open positions) counts against both limits as it moves, which is why most firms warn you to never hold large floating losses overnight.