Guides / City Traders Imperium vs FTMO

City Traders Imperium vs FTMO: rules compared

City Traders Imperium and FTMO side by side: prices, drawdown, news, weekend and EA rules, and the hidden rules in their terms. Every figure comes from each firm's own site.

Quick take

FTMO has the higher fine-print score (26 vs 23), meaning fewer or milder hidden rules by our method.
City Traders Imperium: 4 of 4 plans clearly allow news trading; FTMO: 0 of 3.
City Traders Imperium: 4 of 4 plans clearly allow weekend holding; FTMO: 0 of 3.
City Traders Imperium: 1 of 4 plans clearly allow EAs; FTMO: 0 of 3.

Which is better depends on how you trade. “Not found in the pages we read” means we didn't find it in the firm's pages we read. Checked 23 Oct 2026. Not financial advice.

	City Traders Imperium	FTMO
Challenge types	1-Step; 2-Step; Instant; Direct Funding	Instant; 1-Step; 2-Step
Plans tracked	4	3
Cheapest listed price	$29 ($2.5K 1-Step Challenge)	€79 ($10,000 1-Step)
Daily loss limit	2-Step Challenge: 5% of initial balance (from each day's starting balance) 1-Step Challenge: None Instant Funding: None Direct Funding: None	2-Step (Standard/Swing): 5% (Max Daily Loss) 1-Step: 3% Instant: 3%
Max loss	2-Step Challenge: 10%, static, balance-based 1-Step Challenge: 5%, trailing, balance-based Instant Funding: 6% static from initial balance Direct Funding: 6% static from initial balance	2-Step (Standard/Swing): 10%, static 1-Step: 10%, trailing on balance (end of day) Instant: 10%, trailing on balance (intraday)
Profit split	2-Step Challenge: 80% to 100% (VIP ladder: 90% Bronze, 100% Silver) 1-Step Challenge: 80% to 100% Instant Funding: 50% start, 70% Level 2, 80% Level 3+, up to 100% via VIP Direct Funding: 70% from first trade, 80% L3+, up to 100% via VIP	2-Step (Standard/Swing): 2-Step: 80% default, 90% with Scaling Plan/Premium Programme; 1-Step and Instant: 90% 1-Step: 90% Instant: 90%
News trading (plans)	Allowed: 4/4	Allowed with conditions: 3/3
Weekend holding (plans)	Allowed: 4/4	Allowed with conditions: 3/3
EAs (plans)	Allowed: 1/4 Allowed with conditions: 3/4	Allowed with conditions: 3/3
Consistency rule (plans)	No consistency rule: 1/4 Not found in the pages we read: 3/4	Has a consistency rule: 2/3 Not found in the pages we read: 1/3
Hidden rules found	20 (11 can breach the account)	23 (10 can breach the account)
Fine-print score	23/100	26/100
Rule changes logged	0	1
Platforms	MT5; Match-Trader	MT4; MT5; cTrader; TradingView

All City Traders Imperium rules All FTMO rules