PropScorer / Company / Methodology

How the instrument works

Q: Can firms pay to improve their score?

No. PropScore is calculated from data and structured review inputs. Affiliate relationships fund the platform and have zero impact on scores or ranking positions — a firm with no affiliate program ranks exactly as its data says.

Q: How often do scores update?

The pipeline recalculates every score daily from current firm data — pricing, splits, rules, Health Score and data quality — and every page displays its last-refresh timestamp. When a firm changes its rulebook, the ranking follows the same day.

Q: Why is Editorial & Data Quality the largest component?

Raw plan tables miss the risks that actually hurt traders: vague rules, weak payout proof, poor support, edge-case enforcement. We score that evidence in a consistent, published checklist — 30 points, because that's where firms differ most.

Q: Do trader reviews affect the PropScore?

No. Verified trader reviews are displayed on firm pages but are deliberately kept outside the algorithm — the score stays computable from data alone, and reviews stay honest because they can't be gamed for ranking.

Q: What about crypto prop firms?

The same 7-criteria framework applies, with inputs adapted to the data available for crypto firms. Crypto rankings live on their own section and never mix with futures rankings.

7 criteria100 points recalculated daily

The full specification of the PropScore — every criterion, every weight, every rule. Built to be argued with: if you disagree with a weighting, you can see exactly what to disagree with.

Methodology v2.3 · last amended 2026-05-12 · Affiliate relationships never change the calculation — full disclosure in the footer.

PropScore is an algorithm that rates futures prop firms on a 0–100 scale from public data: pricing, profit split, rules, platforms, trust signals and evidence quality. Every score is computed from the firm database — when pricing, rules, Health Score or data quality changes, the PropScore changes with it, and the ranking follows. The scale reads on four verdicts: ≥80 Prime · 70–79 Solid · 60–69 Caution · <60 Risk.

Four principles

Data firstPlan terms, pricing, platforms, payout evidence and trust signals drive the score — not opinions, not sponsorships.

Trust weighs heavyHealth Score carries 25 points because attractive terms are worthless if payout reliability is weak.

Judgment is structuredEditorial & Data Quality is a scored checklist with published items — not a paid placement, not a vibes override.

No pay-to-playAffiliate partnerships fund the platform and have zero impact on scores or ranking positions. Ever.

The 7 criteria · weights sum to 100

Editorial & Data Quality

Structured checklist: payout proof quality, rule clarity, support quality, platform UX, execution fit, edge-case trader treatment.

Health Score — trust & reliability

Payout reliability, Trustpilot quality weighted by volume and recency, community sentiment, operational stability.

Best price — 50K benchmark

Cheapest relevant plan in the $25K–$75K range, promo included. Entry cost matters — but it's one input, not the verdict.

Profit split

Maximum trader share offered across plans. Higher share, higher score.

Minimum trading days

Fewer required days = faster path to payout, based on the most flexible available plan.

Trading platforms

Supported platforms and data feeds — more choice, more trader styles served.

Max funded accounts

Realistic parallel scaling potential — how many accounts one trader can actually run.

EDITORIAL & DATAHEALTHPRICE + SPLITDAYS + PLATFORMSACC.

Reading a score · worked example

Lucid Trading — current #1

live values on the firm page · this table is illustrative

CriterionWeightComponent scorePoints

Editorial & data quality× 30

30.0

Health Score× 25

17.3

Best price (50K)× 15

13.8

Profit split× 12

8.0

Minimum trading days× 7

6.8

Platforms× 6

6.0

Max accounts× 5

1.3

Excellent terms, young firm — the Health component is exactly what holds a permissive newcomer below the ceiling. The algorithm prices that honestly.= 83 / 100

Inside the Health Score · 25 points of trust

Full Health Score methodology →

Payout reliabilityVerified payout reports from our intelligence feed, cross-checked against firm-reported milestones.

Trustpilot qualityRating weighted by review count and recency — 4.5 on 4,700 reviews outweighs 5.0 on 40.

Community sentimentDiscord, Reddit, X and direct trader feedback, monitored for pattern shifts rather than single complaints.

Operational stabilityRule-change velocity, platform incidents, warning signs — a firm that moves rules against traders pays for it here.

A firm can have the best pricing and split on the market — a weak Health Score still drags the final PropScore down. That asymmetry is deliberate. Lucid's current Health component is 69/100.

What the PropScore is not

Not a payout guarantee. A high score means the data looks strong today — it cannot insure you against a firm's future decisions. That's why every score carries a date.

Not a popularity contest. Review volume, follower counts and sponsorship budgets are not inputs. A loud firm and a good firm are different things.

Not a fit score. The #1 firm may be wrong for your style — a scalper and a swing trader shouldn't buy the same rulebook. Use the firm match and the simulator for fit.

Firm vs firm winner rules

Head-to-head pages mark a metric winner only when the result is calculable from the database. Ties are left unmarked. These rules are mechanical: price lower wins; profit split higher wins; activation fee lower wins; payout speed lower days wins; max accounts higher wins; Health Score higher wins; minimum trading days lower wins.

Drawdown is ranked static/EOD choice above static, static above EOD, and EOD above trailing. Data feeds and platforms are ranked by supported major platform count. Bots and micro-scalping are ranked by explicit permission flags. No affiliate relationship, manual preference or sponsored placement can add a winner marker.

Methodology changelog · weights don't change silently

v2.32026-05-12 — Editorial & Data Quality checklist expanded (payout-proof items weighted up); crypto criteria mapping documented.

v2.22026-02-03 — Health Score recency weighting on Trustpilot reviews; operational-stability signal added.

v2.02025-11-18 — 7-criteria model introduced, weights published. Prior scores recomputed retroactively.

Every amendment is logged here with its date. Scores are versioned against the methodology that produced them.

FAQ

Can firms pay to improve their score?

No. PropScore is calculated from data and structured review inputs. Affiliate relationships fund the platform and have zero impact on scores or ranking positions — a firm with no affiliate program ranks exactly as its data says.

How often do scores update?

The pipeline recalculates every score daily from current firm data — pricing, splits, rules, Health Score and data quality — and every page displays its last-refresh timestamp. When a firm changes its rulebook, the ranking follows the same day.

Why is Editorial & Data Quality the largest component?

Raw plan tables miss the risks that actually hurt traders: vague rules, weak payout proof, poor support, edge-case enforcement. We score that evidence in a consistent, published checklist — 30 points, because that's where firms differ most.

Do trader reviews affect the PropScore?

No. Verified trader reviews are displayed on firm pages but are deliberately kept outside the algorithm — the score stays computable from data alone, and reviews stay honest because they can't be gamed for ranking.

What about crypto prop firms?

The same 7-criteria framework applies, with inputs adapted to the data available for crypto firms. Crypto rankings live on their own section and never mix with futures rankings.

See the instrument in action — all 49 firms, scored with exactly this method, refreshed today.

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