Lucid Trading Rules Explained: Every Plan, Rule, and Limit
13 min read
Lucid trading rules are some of the simplest in the futures prop firm space, but "simple" doesn't mean there's nothing to learn. Each plan has its own drawdown limits, consistency percentages, and payout requirements. Miss one detail and you could blow an account you didn't need to lose.
This guide covers every rule across LucidPro, LucidFlex, and LucidDirect so you know exactly what you're working with before you place a trade.
How Lucid Trading Works: Three Plans, Two Paths
Lucid Trading is a futures prop firm that funds traders through simulated accounts. You trade CME futures products (ES, NQ, YM, CL, GC, and others) in a sim environment, and as you prove consistency, you earn payouts and eventually transition to a live account with real capital.
There are two paths in:
Evaluation (LucidPro and LucidFlex): Pay a one-time fee, hit a profit target in a simulated account, then upgrade to a funded account where you trade for payouts.
Direct-to-Funded (LucidDirect): Skip the evaluation. Pay a higher upfront fee and start trading for payouts immediately.
All accounts are a one-time purchase. No monthly subscriptions, no recurring fees. If you fail an evaluation, you can purchase a reset from the dashboard. Lucid supports both CQG and Rithmic data feeds, with platform options including NinjaTrader, Tradovate, TradingView, Tradesea, MotiveWave, and Quantower.
Lucid Evaluation Rules: LucidPro vs. LucidFlex
Both LucidPro and LucidFlex are single-phase evaluations. Hit the profit target, respect the drawdown, and you upgrade to a funded account. But the rules differ in a few important ways.
LucidPro Evaluation
Account Size | Profit Target | Max Loss Limit | Daily Loss Limit | Max Size |
|---|---|---|---|---|
$25,000 | $1,250 | $1,000 | None | 2 Mini / 20 Micro |
$50,000 | $3,000 | $2,000 | $1,200 | 4 Mini / 40 Micro |
$100,000 | $6,000 | $3,000 | $1,800 | 6 Mini / 60 Micro |
$150,000 | $9,000 | $4,500 | $2,700 | 10 Mini / 100 Micro |
LucidPro evaluations have no consistency rule. You can pass in as little as one trading day, and there's no time limit. The 25K account has no daily loss limit (DLL), while the 50K, 100K, and 150K accounts each have a fixed DLL.
Once you hit the profit target, there's no activation fee to upgrade to a funded account.
LucidFlex Evaluation
Account Size | Profit Target | Max Loss Limit | Consistency | Max Size |
|---|---|---|---|---|
$25,000 | $1,250 | $1,000 | 50% | 2 Mini / 20 Micro |
$50,000 | $3,000 | $2,000 | 50% | 4 Mini / 40 Micro |
$100,000 | $6,000 | $3,000 | 50% | 6 Mini / 60 Micro |
$150,000 | $9,000 | $4,500 | 50% | 10 Mini / 100 Micro |
LucidFlex is Lucid's scaling program. LucidFlex evaluations share the same profit targets and max loss limits as LucidPro, but there are a few key differences: no daily loss limit, a 50% consistency rule in the eval, and a scaling plan that adjusts your contract size up and down with your account profit once you're funded.
The Max Size column above is what you can trade during the eval. The scaling plan only applies once you're funded, so eval traders get full size from day one.
The consistency formula: Largest Single Day Profit / Total Account Profit = Consistency %. To pass, your biggest single day must be 50% or less of your total profit. If your largest day is too high relative to your total, you just keep trading until the ratio comes down.
There's a built-in cushion on the 50% consistency, so it's still possible to pass in two days. But spreading your profits across more sessions is the safer approach.
The payoff for meeting eval consistency? Once you're funded on LucidFlex, there's no consistency rule.
Which Evaluation to Choose
LucidPro is the more structured path. No consistency rule in eval, but you'll face a 40% consistency rule, a daily loss limit, and the LucidScale DLL once funded. The upside: your full max contract size carries from eval into funded with no scaling restrictions.
LucidFlex flips that. Stricter eval consistency at 50%, but once funded there's no daily loss limit and no consistency rule. The tradeoff is a scaling plan that gates your contract size by simulated profit, so you start smaller on a funded account and earn your way back up to full size.
How Lucid Drawdown and Loss Limits Work
Understanding Lucid's drawdown system is where most traders either stay safe or get caught off guard. Here's how it works across all accounts.
End-of-Day (EOD) Trailing Drawdown
All Lucid evaluation and Direct accounts use end-of-day drawdown. Your Max Loss Limit (MLL) only updates at market close, not during the trading session. If your account peaks at $53,000 intraday but closes at $51,500, the MLL is calculated from $51,500.
This is a major difference from prop firms that use intraday trailing drawdown. With EOD drawdown, your MLL is only recalculated based on your closing balance, not intraday highs or lows.
The MLL trails upward as your balance grows, but once your account exceeds the Initial Trail Balance, the MLL locks and stops moving.
Daily Loss Limit (DLL): Soft Breach
The Daily Loss Limit is the maximum you can lose in a single day. All DLLs at Lucid Trading are soft breaches. That means hitting your DLL restricts you from trading until the next session, but you don't lose your account as long as the Max Loss Limit has not been reached.
On LucidPro and LucidDirect funded accounts, once your balance rises above the Initial Trail Balance, the fixed DLL is replaced by the LucidScale DLL, which equals 60% of your Peak EOD Balance. This gives you more room as your account grows.
LucidDirect Rules for Instant Funding
LucidDirect skips the evaluation entirely. You pay more upfront and start trading for payouts from day one. The trade-off is stricter rules. Instant funding with no evaluation is rare among futures prop firms. Only a handful offer it. Our futures prop firm comparison covers how LucidDirect stacks up against other firms' evaluation and funded account structures.
Account Size | Max Loss Limit | DLL (Below Initial Trail) | LucidScale DLL (Above Initial Trail) | Consistency | Max Size | Min Days to Payout |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
$25,000 | $1,000 | None | None | 20% | 2 Mini / 20 Micro | 5 |
$50,000 | $2,000 | $1,200 | 60% of Peak EOD Balance | 20% | 4 Mini / 40 Micro | 5 |
$100,000 | $3,500 | $2,100 | 60% of Peak EOD Balance | 20% | 6 Mini / 60 Micro | 5 |
$150,000 | $5,000 | $3,000 | 60% of Peak EOD Balance | 20% | 10 Mini / 100 Micro | 5 |
The 20% consistency rule is tighter than LucidPro's 40%. Your largest single day can't exceed 20% of your total profit in a payout cycle. For a trader who tends to have one or two big days per week, this requires more patience and discipline to manage.
You need at least 5 trading days before requesting a payout.
Lucid Payout Rules and Profit Split
Payouts work differently depending on which plan you're on. All funded account payouts are split 90% to the trader and 10% to Lucid Trading.
LucidPro Funded Payout Rules
Account Size | Payout Profit Target | Days to Payout | Consistency | Buffer |
|---|---|---|---|---|
$25,000 | $250 | 3 | 40% | MLL + $100 |
$50,000 | $500 | 3 | 40% | MLL + $100 |
$100,000 | $750 | 3 | 40% | MLL + $100 |
$150,000 | $1,000 | 3 | 40% | MLL + $100 |
To request a payout, you must meet all of these conditions each cycle:
Earn at least the minimum payout profit target
Meet the 3-day Days to Payout requirement
Keep your largest single-day profit at or below 40% of total cycle profit
Maintain a balance above the buffer (your Max Loss Limit + $100)
You cannot withdraw from the buffer. It's a safety net to keep you from immediately breaching MLL after a payout. If you take a trade before your payout is processed that drops your balance into the buffer, your request may be denied. Every condition resets after each approved payout.
The minimum payout request is $500. Maximum payout amounts depend on account size and payout cycle:
Account Size | Payout 1 | Payouts 2+ |
|---|---|---|
$25,000 | $1,000 | $1,500 |
$50,000 | $2,000 | $2,500 |
$100,000 | $2,500 | $3,000 |
$150,000 | $3,000 | $3,500 |
After 5 payouts, you enter the live review pool for potential transition to a live account funded with real capital.
LucidFlex Funded Payout Rules
LucidFlex funded accounts have no consistency rule and no payout buffer. The profit split is the same 90/10 as other plans.
There are two requirements to qualify for a payout. First, you must earn at least the minimum required daily profit on 5 separate days during the payout cycle. Second, you must have positive net profit (even just $1) during each cycle. Both reset after every approved payout.
Account Size | Min Daily Profit | Payout Max |
|---|---|---|
$25,000 | $100 | 50% of profit, up to $1,000 |
$50,000 | $150 | 50% of profit, up to $2,000 |
$100,000 | $200 | 50% of profit, up to $2,500 |
$150,000 | $250 | 50% of profit, up to $3,000 |
The minimum payout request is $500. Unlike LucidPro, these maximums do not scale up with more payouts. After 5 payouts, you enter the live review pool for potential transition to a live account funded with real capital.
LucidFlex Funded Scaling Plan
LucidFlex funded accounts use a scaling plan that ties your tradable contract size to simulated profit in the account. As profit grows, your max size increases. As profit draws down, your max size decreases. Limits update at the end of each session based on your closing balance, not in real time.
Simulated Profit | $25K | $50K | $100K | $150K |
|---|---|---|---|---|
$0 - $999 | 1 Mini / 10 Micro | 2 Mini / 20 Micro | 3 Mini / 30 Micro | 4 Mini / 40 Micro |
$1,000 - $1,999 | 2 Mini / 20 Micro | 3 Mini / 30 Micro | 4 Mini / 40 Micro | 5 Mini / 50 Micro |
$2,000 - $2,999 | — | 4 Mini / 40 Micro | 5 Mini / 50 Micro | 6 Mini / 60 Micro |
$3,000 - $4,499 | — | — | 6 Mini / 60 Micro | 8 Mini / 80 Micro |
$4,500+ | — | — | — | 10 Mini / 100 Micro |
Lucid's systems track and adjust balances to prevent traders from circumventing the scaling plan. Repeated attempts to bypass the limits can trigger a manual account review.
LucidDirect Payout Rules
LucidDirect uses a 20% consistency rule and the same 90/10 profit split. To request a payout, you must meet the consistency requirement and reach the minimum profit goal for that cycle. The profit goal resets to $0 after each approved payout.
Account Size | Profit Goal 1 | Profit Goal 2+ |
|---|---|---|
$25,000 | $1,500 | $1,250 |
$50,000 | $3,000 | $2,500 |
$100,000 | $6,000 | $3,500 |
$150,000 | $9,000 | $4,500 |
The minimum payout request is $500. Maximum payout amounts depend on account size and payout cycle:
Account Size | Payouts 1-3 | Payouts 4-5 |
|---|---|---|
$25,000 | $1,000 | $1,000 |
$50,000 | $2,000 | $2,500 |
$100,000 | $2,500 | $3,000 |
$150,000 | $3,000 | $3,500 |
Each payout cycle resets these thresholds. All payout conditions reset after each approved payout. After 5 payouts, you enter the live review pool for potential transition to a live account funded with real capital.
Tools like Tanto auto-sync your trades from your broker and track metrics like daily PnL and biggest trade, giving you the data you need to stay on top of your consistency rule.
Lucid Live Account Rules
Lucid's risk team continuously monitors trader performance to determine when a trader is ready to transition to live. The most common path is reaching your fifth payout on LucidPro, LucidFlex, or LucidDirect, but a trader can also enter the live review pool after significant lifetime payouts, exceptional performance on a sim funded account, or after previously being moved live.
Payout 5 is the maximum number of payouts per plan, not a guaranteed minimum for live eligibility. All transitions are at the discretion of Lucid's risk team.
How the Transition Works
When you're moved live, every funded account that has received at least one payout transitions with you. You get one live account per eligible funded account. Any funded account with zero payouts doesn't transition, and Lucid refunds the evaluation cost for those.
Any remaining simulated accounts (evaluations or unpaid funded accounts) are closed at the same time, so don't keep extra evaluations in reserve if you're close to going live.
Each live account starts with:
$0 starting balance
End-of-day drawdown
No daily loss limit
Daily payouts
Starting Live Drawdown and Contract Limits
Funded Account Size | Starting Live Drawdown | Max Live Contract Limit* |
|---|---|---|
$25,000 | $1,000 | 2 Mini / 20 Micro |
$50,000 | $2,000 | 4 Mini / 40 Micro |
$100,000 | $3,000 | 6 Mini / 60 Micro |
$150,000 | $4,500 | 10 Mini / 100 Micro |
*Certain extremely volatile contracts have reduced position limits so traders don't exceed the live drawdown.
The $100 MLL Lock Rule
If you request a live payout before earning profits equal to your starting live drawdown, your Max Loss Limit locks at $100 after the payout, leaving almost no room for error on what's left in the account.
Live Bonus
The first time you're moved live, you may qualify for a one-time Live Bonus equal to your starting live drawdown. To earn it, you need to generate live profits equal to that same amount.
Funded Account Size | Live Profit Target | Live Bonus |
|---|---|---|
$25,000 | $1,100 | $1,000 |
$50,000 | $2,100 | $2,000 |
$100,000 | $3,100 | $3,000 |
$150,000 | $4,600 | $4,500 |
The bonus stacks across every account you transition with. A trader moved live with five $50,000 accounts who hits $2,100 in each gets a $10,000 total bonus.
The bonus is one-time. Traders who've been moved live before (under any version of Lucid's live program) and traders with LucidMaxx status aren't eligible.
Cooldown After Blowing a Live Account
If you blow a live account, the standard cooldown before purchasing a new evaluation is 2 weeks. Traders who repeatedly blow live accounts due to reckless trading may face longer cooldowns at the risk team's discretion.
Household and Hedging Rules
If you're trading live, no one else in your household can trade simulated Lucid accounts at the same time. Hedging across live accounts is strictly prohibited by both Lucid and CME, and violations result in a permanent ban.
LucidMaxx: Invite-Only Daily Payouts
LucidMaxx is Lucid's exclusive eval-to-live daily payout plan, reserved for traders who have demonstrated exceptional consistency and profitability. The status can't be requested. Lucid's risk team identifies qualifying traders based on performance benchmarks.
LucidMaxx traders go through an evaluation with EOD drawdown and no DLL, then transition directly to a live account.
Account Size | Profit Target | Max Loss Limit | Consistency | Trading Days |
|---|---|---|---|---|
$25,000 | $1,250 | $1,000 | 40% | 5 |
$50,000 | $3,000 | $2,000 | 40% | 5 |
$100,000 | $6,000 | $3,000 | 40% | 5 |
$150,000 | $9,000 | $4,500 | 40% | 5 |
To pass the evaluation, you need to reach the profit target, maintain the 40% consistency rule, and satisfy the 5-day minimum.
Once live, the account offers daily payout requests with no caps, no payout windows, and no profit minimums.
If a LucidMaxx trader blows a live account but earned profits above the live drawdown, they get a reduced 2-week cooldown before re-entering the evaluation. Traders who repeatedly blow live accounts may face longer cooldowns at the risk team's discretion.
Trading Rules That Apply to All Lucid Accounts
Regardless of which plan you're on, these rules apply across the board.
Trading hours: All positions must be closed by 4:45 PM EST, Monday through Friday. Open positions are automatically flattened at that time. Trading resumes at 6:00 PM EST (Sunday through Thursday).
News trading: Allowed on all accounts. You assume full responsibility for trades placed during high-volatility events.
Scalping: Permitted as long as trades are taken in good faith and don't attempt to manipulate fill logic.
Automated trading: Trading bots and trade copiers are allowed. All automated activity must comply with Lucid's rules, and you're responsible for any software errors.
Microscalping (prohibited): Trades held for less than 5 seconds that generate more than 50% of your profits will trigger a flag. Lucid uses automated detection and will initiate a manual review. This isn't the same as regular scalping. It targets strategies that exploit simulated fill mechanics rather than real market behavior.
Account limits: Maximum of 5 active funded accounts per household. This limit is shared across all account types. If you have 3 LucidDirect accounts, you can only maintain 2 additional funded accounts of any type.
Activity requirement: Accounts that are not traded in 30 calendar days may be considered abandoned and permanently deleted.
Prohibited conduct: Exploiting system errors, update delays, or platform mechanics is strictly prohibited. Lucid reserves the right to delete trading days, remove profits, or close accounts for bad faith activity.
For the most current rules, check Lucid Trading's help center. Rules are subject to change, and traders are responsible for staying up to date.
Bottom Line
Lucid trading rules are straightforward once you understand the structure. LucidPro gives you a flexible eval with no consistency rule and full contract size from day one. LucidFlex flips that with a stricter eval consistency, no daily loss limit once funded, and a scaling plan that adjusts your contract size with profit. LucidDirect costs more but gets you trading for payouts immediately. Know your plan's consistency percentage, respect the EOD drawdown, and keep your DLL breaches soft, not fatal. That's the formula for staying funded at Lucid.
By Team Tanto · Last updated: May 2, 2026