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Next: see the loss limits that sit beside it
The consistency rule is one test. The loss limits are the others that end an attempt, and they work very differently.
What is included
- What it is, in plain words
- The formula or mechanism, with exact arithmetic
- How it hits grid, martingale and DCA bots
- A check you can run before you switch a bot on
Who it is for
- People who run or plan to run a trading bot
- Anyone reading a backtest or a bot sales page
- Readers who want the numbers, not the pitch
- Not advice, and not a signal service
Key facts
- A consistency rule limits how much of the total profit one day, or one trade, may make. The share it allows varies by firm.
- It is a second test on top of the profit target. An account can reach the target and still fail the rule.
- In the made-up table below, Profile A earns $1,550 against a $1,000 target, but 58.1 percent of it came on one day, over a made-up 30 percent limit (calculated by us on 30 Oct 2026, exact).
- The rule looks at the shape of profit, not its size. Many similar small results fit it, and one big result does not.
- Firms differ in the share, whether it uses days or trades, and when it applies. Rules change, so read your own firm's current terms.
What the consistency rule is
The profit target answers "how much?". A consistency rule answers "how was it made?". It sets a maximum share of the total profit that any one day, or in some rules any one trade, may account for. The rule exists because a single large result can come from luck or from taking one very large position, and a firm may prefer profit that is spread out. Whether you agree with that is a separate question. The rule is a condition you accept when you start.
Rule met if best-day share is at or below the allowed share
Total needed = best day / allowed share
Three details change the answer and vary by firm: the allowed share itself, whether the unit is a day or a single trade, and whether the rule applies to the challenge, to the funded account when you ask for a payout, or to both. This page uses a made-up share of 30 percent and a made-up unit of one day.
A worked example: pass by target, fail by the rule
Two made-up accounts each trade for eight days. The profit target is $1,000. Profile A has small days and one large one. Profile B has eight similar days. The table lists the profit each made, and the share of the total each day contributes.
| Day | Profile A profit | Share of A total | Profile B profit | Share of B total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $120 | 7.7% | $180 | 11.3% |
| 2 | $90 | 5.8% | $220 | 13.8% |
| 3 | $150 | 9.7% | $150 | 9.4% |
| 4 | $60 | 3.9% | $260 | 16.3% |
| 5 | $900 | 58.1% | $200 | 12.5% |
| 6 | $80 | 5.2% | $170 | 10.6% |
| 7 | $110 | 7.1% | $190 | 11.9% |
| 8 | $40 | 2.6% | $230 | 14.4% |
| Total | $1,550 | 100% | $1,600 | 100% |
| Check (made-up 30 percent rule, 1,000 target) | Profile A | Profile B |
|---|---|---|
| Total profit | $1,550 | $1,600 |
| Reaches the 1,000 target? | Yes | Yes |
| Best day | $900 | $260 |
| Best day share of total | 58.1% | 16.3% |
| Within the 30 percent share? | No | Yes |
Profile A reaches the target with $1,550, more than the $1,000 required. But its best day, $900, is 58.1 percent of the total, above the 30 percent limit. Profile B reaches $1,600 and its best day is $260, or 16.3 percent, inside the limit. Both passed the target. Only one passes the rule.
For Profile A to be within the rule with the same best day, its total would need to be at least $900 / 0.30 = $3,000. That is $1,450 more than it made. In practice a rule like this can force an account to keep trading after the target is hit, to dilute a big day, and each extra day brings more risk of a loss that eats it back. All the numbers here are invented to show the arithmetic.
How different bots meet the rule
The rule rewards a smooth profit pattern. Some bot types produce one and some do not, because of how they make money.
- Fixed-risk single trade bots make many similar results, which is the pattern the rule favours, provided no one trade is far larger than the rest.
- Martingale ladders bank small wins and then a large one that recovers a long losing run. That large win is a big single result and can dominate the total.
- Grid bots collect profit as cycles close. Several closing on the same day, such as after a sharp reversal, make one large day among quiet ones.
- DCA bots realise profit when a position is sold, which can put most of the gain into one day.
- News traders earn on event days, so a single release can make up most of the month.
- Scalpers make many small results, but costs can leave a few larger days that stand out.
Why a bot cannot simply "fix" it
The obvious reply is to cap the profit on any one day. That means stopping early, or closing winners sooner than the strategy's plan. Either changes the odds that a backtest measured, so the test no longer describes the bot. Raising the number of trades has the same cost: the extra trades carry costs and losses of their own. Treat the rule as a constraint to design around and test, such as by simulating the new behaviour, and not as something to be solved with a last-minute adjustment. See the backtesting guide for why changes need a fresh test.
How to check a profit record against the rule
List profit by day (or by trade, if that is the unit). Find the largest, divide by the total and compare it with the share in the terms. Do it on closed results, then again with the figures your firm uses. Run it on the worst, middle and best of your tests and not only on the best one, since a bot that passes the check only in its most flattering run has not shown much. A period with few trades can fail the rule even when nothing is wrong with the strategy, because the share of one trade is high when there are only a few trades.
What this does not tell you
It does not say that meeting the rule makes a bot pass, or that failing it makes a bot bad. It is one rule among several, including the profit target, the daily and total loss limits and, in some terms, limits on automation. Read your own firm's current terms in full.
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FAQ
Frequently Asked Questions
What is a consistency rule?
A rule that caps the share of total profit that any single day, or trade, may account for. If one result is too large a part of the total, the account fails the rule even if it reached the profit target.
What share does the rule allow?
It varies by firm, and rules change. This page uses a made-up 30 percent to show the arithmetic. Check the share, and the unit, in your own firm's terms.
Can I pass the target and fail the rule?
Yes. In the example above, Profile A made more than the target but earned about 58 percent of its profit on one day, over the made-up limit.
Which bots does it hit hardest?
Those that make profit in lumps: martingale ladders that recover on one large win, grids that close several cycles at once, and news traders who earn on event days.
How do I check a record against it?
Divide the largest day (or trade) by the total profit and compare the result with the allowed share. Use the same unit and the same timing as your firm's rule.
Are the numbers on this page real?
Example numbers are made up to show how the maths works, and the page says so. A figure only counts as exact when the page says it was calculated on a stated date. Nothing you enter in a calculator leaves your browser.
Can I use this to decide whether to run a bot?
It can show whether a bot's numbers hold together and how much an account can lose. It cannot say what the market will do, and it is not advice. Use it to ask better questions, then read the terms of your own broker or exchange.
Is this financial advice?
No. It is general education about how a rule works. The numbers are made up, and it does not consider your situation.
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