1-Step vs 2-Step Prop Firm Challenge: Which Should You Choose?

A 1-step evaluation has a single profit target to hit, and once it is reached without breaching the drawdown rules the account moves straight to funded status. On MixFunded's 1-Step evaluation, that target is 10% of the starting balance, against the same 5% daily and 10% maximum drawdown limits used across the standard programs.

The appeal of a 1-step format is straightforward: there is only one number to reach, and once reached the process is over. This suits a trader who wants to get to a funded account as quickly as their strategy allows, without a second qualifying stage after the first target is already met.

A 2-step evaluation splits the requirement across two phases. On MixFunded, phase one requires an 8% profit target and phase two requires a further 5%, with the same 5% daily and 10% maximum drawdown limits applying throughout both phases and into the funded stage.

The split into two smaller targets rather than one larger one exists because it lets a firm observe a trader's process twice under live conditions before allocating real payouts, rather than relying on a single result that could be influenced by a lucky run. From the trader's side, phase two's smaller 5% target is often easier to reach precisely because it is smaller, which can offset the extra time cost of a second phase.

A trader with a strategy that produces fairly consistent, moderate returns tends to do well on either format, since the total combined target across a 2-step (8% then 5%, effectively similar in overall scope to a 1-step's 10%) is not dramatically different in aggregate. The practical difference is more about pacing and confirmation than about total difficulty.

A trader who trades in bursts — for example, someone whose edge shows up clearly around specific volatile sessions rather than every day — may prefer a 1-step format because there is no need to repeat the qualifying process after already proving it once. A trader who values a second, independent checkpoint before capital is allocated, or who wants the psychological benefit of a smaller second target after clearing the first, may prefer the 2-step.

Evaluation pricing reflects account size rather than format on MixFunded, with the same $45, $95, $175 and $299 pricing tiers for the $10,000, $25,000, $50,000 and $100,000 account sizes applying to both the 1-Step and 2-Step programs. This means the format decision does not need to be driven by cost — it should be driven purely by which structure fits how your strategy performs over time.

Whichever format is chosen, the profit split once funded is the same 80/20 in the trader's favour, and the minimum of three trading days before a payout can be requested applies equally to both. The structural choice at entry does not change the economics of trading once an account is funded.