The5ers Review 2026: Real Trader Feedback, Challenge Rules & Payout Reality

TTP Score: 9.2 / 10 | Rating: 4.9 / 5 (211 verified reviews) | Trustpilot: 4.7 / 5 (27,000+ reviews)

The5ers has been around since 2016. That's a long time in prop firm years, where firms come and go faster than most traders can pass a challenge. It started as FIVE PERCENT ONLINE LTD, registered in both the UK (12553363) and Israel (515864007), and it's run by CEO Saul Lokier out of Ra'anana .

The pitch is straightforward: trade real capital, not demo money, get up to 100% profit splits, scale to $4 million, and hold positions overnight and over weekends. It sounds good on paper. The real question is whether it delivers.

We went through the firm's full data211 verified reviews on The Trusted Prop, 27,000 Trustpilot reviews, payout records going back years, every challenge rule, trader complaints, the whole thing. If you're reading this before buying a challenge, stop here for a second. You need to know what you're walking into.

What Makes The5ers Different?

Most prop firms give you simulated accounts and a profit target. The5ers puts you on real capital accounts from the funded stage. That's a meaningful difference. If you blow through risk limits on a demo account with another firm, it costs them nothing. With The5ers, it's actual money on the line, which is partly why their risk rules are what they are.

They've paid out over $80 million to traders since launch, spread across more than 37,000 payouts. The largest single payout hit $91,935. The average payout sits around $2,169 . Those numbers don't come from a firm that's playing games.

But the recent picture is more complicated. More on that later.

The5ers Challenge Options: Which One Fits You?

The5ers runs three main challenge models, plus a newer one-step option. Each has different risk parameters, profit targets, and account sizes. Picking the right one matters more than most traders think.

1. Bootcamp Program (3-Step Challenge)

This is their entry-level model. Starts at 20K for $22. The full structure goes 20K → 100K → 250K → Funded. Each evaluation step has a 6% profit target and 5% maximum loss. No time limits. Leverage is capped at 1:10.

Pricing breakdown:

• 20K account: $22

• 100K account: $95

• 250K account: $225 

Who it's for: Traders who want a structured path with lower upfront cost. The profit targets are modest and the risk limits are strict enough to teach discipline. The downside is leverage. 1:10 is low. If you're used to 1:100 elsewhere, this will feel restrictive.

Bootcamp was designed for developing traders. The three-step process forces you to prove consistency across multiple account sizes before you get real capital. Some experienced traders find it tedious. Beginners tend to appreciate the training wheels.

2. High Stakes Classic (2-Step Challenge)

This is The5ers' most popular offering. Two evaluation phases, then a funded account. Here's the structure:

Step 1: 8% profit target, 5% daily loss limit, 10% maximum loss, 3 minimum profitable days. Step 2: 5% profit target, same risk limits, 3 minimum profitable days. Funded Stage: 80-100% profit split, bi-weekly payouts, scaling opportunities.

Pricing:

• 5K: $39

• 10K: $78

• 25K: $195

• 50K: $309

• 100K: $545 

Who it's for: Experienced traders. The 1:100 leverage in evaluations gives room for most strategies. The 10% max drawdown is generous compared to competitors who cap at 6-8%. The three profitable day rule prevents one-luck-trade passes, which is fair if you're serious about trading.

What traders notice here is the static drawdown, not trailing. That means your max loss doesn't move up as your account grows in profit. Some see this as a limitation. Others prefer the clarity of a fixed number.

3. Hyper Growth (1-Step Challenge)

Single evaluation phase. Hit 10% profit, get funded. No minimum trading days. No time limit.

Pricing:

• 5K: $260

• 10K: $450

• 20K: $850 

Risk rules: 6% stop out level, 3% daily pause (not termination, just a pause for the day).

Who it's for: Traders who want a faster path to funding. The fee structure is higher than the other models, reflecting the lower barrier to pass. Scaling on Hyper Growth is aggressive: your account doubles every time you hit a 10% profit target, up to $4 million.

The daily pause function is worth understanding. If you hit 3% down in a day, your account locks until midnight MT5 server time. You don't lose the accountyou just can't trade for the rest of that day. This is more forgiving than a hard stop-out and prevents overtrading after a loss.

4. Pro Growth (1-Step Challenge)

Newer option that's basically Hyper Growth with a lower price point and slightly different rules.

Pricing:

• 5K: $74

• 10K: $140

• 20K: $270 

Same 10% profit target, 3% daily drawdown, no maximum loss figure listed in the data. Requires 3 minimum profitable days unlike standard Hyper Growth.

Fees, Spreads & Trading Costs

The5ers doesn't charge commission on crypto trades. Everything else has transparent pricing:

• Forex and Metals: $4 per standard lot round turn

• Indices: $2 per standard lot round turn

Spreads vary by market conditions but The5ers claims variable spreads on major forex pairs around 0.2 to 0.9 pips in normal conditions. This is competitive with other top-tier prop firms.

Leverage differs by challenge:

• Bootcamp: 1:10 on forex, lower on metals and indices

• High Stakes: 1:100 during evaluation

• Hyper Growth: 1:30

Traders should note that Bootcamp leverage is significantly lower than High Stakes. This matters if you're running a scalping or day trading strategy that depends on position size.

Drawdown Rules Explained

The5ers uses two types of drawdown calculations depending on the challenge:

Daily Drawdown (High Stakes): Calculated based on the higher of balance or equity at the day's start. If your balance is $10,000 at midnight and your equity is $10,500, the 5% daily loss limit applies to $10,500. This prevents the common trick of depositing extra funds to move the limit.

Daily Pause (Hyper Growth, Bootcamp funded): 3% loss in a day pauses your account. Not a termination. You resume next trading day. This is more lenient than a hard stop-out but still limits damage.

Maximum Drawdown:

• High Stakes: 10% of initial balance

• Hyper Growth: 6% stop out

• Bootcamp: 5% in evaluation, 4% in funded stage

All drawdowns are static (fixed to initial or daily start values). No trailing drawdown here. That's a key difference from firms like FTMO or FundedNext.

Trading Strategies: What's Allowed, What's Not

The5ers publishes a clear list of prohibited practices. If you're running anything borderline, read this carefully.

Prohibited:

• Third-party Expert Advisors where you don't own the source code

• Copy trading from other traders or signal services

• Arbitrage of any kind (price, hedge, reverse)

• Bracketing strategies around high-impact news

• High-frequency trading

• Tick scalping

• Bulk trading with multi-order automation

• One-sided betting (always long, always short without analysis)

• Account sharing or letting others trade for you

• Challenge management services (paying someone to pass)

Allowed:

• Discretionary manual trading

• Manual scalping (reasonable frequency)

• Swing and position trading

• Your own custom EAs (if you coded them)

• Copying trades across your own accounts

• News trading with restrictions on High Stakes (no orders 2 minutes before/after high-impact news)

The5ers' enforcement is active. Multiple trader reports describe accounts being flagged for "coordinated trading" when trades matched other accounts too closely. Some of these were legitimate traders using similar strategies, and they still got terminated. This is something to be aware of if you're using a widely-followed public strategy.

Payout Reality: The Good and the Recent Friction

Here's where the picture gets more interesting.

The5ers has a strong payout history. Over $80 million paid to traders. Payouts are bi-weekly, first payout eligible 14 days after funding. Methods include crypto (USDT/USDC), bank wire, and Rise. The minimum withdrawal is $150 after profit split.

But if you look at Trustpilot reviews from the past 60 days, a pattern emerges.

Trustpilot score dropped from 4.8 to 4.7 between April and May 2026. The number of 1-star reviews climbed from 642 to 736 in that window. Many of those complaints share the same theme: extended payout delays .

"I requested my payout on April 27th, approved same day, still haven't received funds after 17 days," says one verified trader. Another writes, "Payouts take forever. More than 12+ business days." A third: "2 weeks waiting for a payout that used to come in 4 days" .

The5ers' official response to these complaints typically cites "increased volume" and "additional anti-fraud checks" . Some traders report eventually receiving their payouts after 12-15 business days, but the waiting period has clearly stretched from the advertised 2-4 business days.

Is this a liquidity issue? The5ers says no. They claim it's operational growing pains. The payout proof data shows they're still processing payments: $3.8 million in the last 30 days, $1.18 million in the last 7 days, $26,340 in the last 24 hours . The money is moving, just slower than before.

For traders planning on relying on regular withdrawals, this is the single biggest risk right now. If you need fast payouts to fund your lifestyle or reinvest in challenges, the delay could affect your cash flow.

Support Quality

The5ers' support team gets mixed marks depending on what you need.

For standard issues (KYC, account setup, rule questions): Generally fast and helpful. Live chat response times are good, and the team handles most issues within hours.

For payout disputes and risk reviews: This is where complaints cluster. Traders report long email response times, sometimes 48-72 hours between replies. The "risk management interview" process that some profitable traders face has become a common pain point.

Multiple Trustpilot reviews describe being asked to attend interviews before receiving payouts, with the firm then taking up to a week to schedule and another week to process the result. Some traders passed interviews but still waited weeks for funds .

If you're running a consistent profitable strategy, expect additional scrutiny. The5ers apparently flags accounts that show patterns they consider potentially abusive, even when those patterns come from legitimate trading decisions.

Banned Countries

The5ers cannot accept traders from:

US, Afghanistan, Burundi, Central African Republic, Cuba, Congo (both Republic and Democratic Republic), Eritrea, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Iraq, Iran, Israel, Laos, Liberia, Libya, Myanmar, North Korea, Palestinian Territory, Papua New Guinea, South Sudan, Sudan, Somalia, Syria, Vanuatu, Venezuela, Yemen, and Crimea region .

Notable: The US is banned, which is unusual for a prop firm. This limits one of the largest trader markets. Traders from banned countries using VPNs face immediate and permanent disqualification.

The5ers Pros & Cons

Pulled from 211 verified reviews, months of payout data, and direct trader reports.

What works:

• Real capital accounts from the funded stage, not demo simulations

• Up to 100% profit split for consistent performers

• No time limits on any challenge, trade at your pace

• Weekend and overnight holding allowed on forex and metals

• Static drawdown is easier to manage than trailing for most traders

• Bi-weekly payouts (when they're on schedule)

• Copying trades across your own accounts is permitted

• Strong educational resources including live trading rooms and Discord community

• Long track record since 2016, one of the older firms still active

• Multiple challenge models cover different trading styles and budgets

What to watch out for:

• Recent payout delays stretching to 2-3 weeks instead of the advertised 2-4 days

• Lower leverage on Bootcamp (1:10) limits position sizing for aggressive strategies

• Risk management interviews can delay payouts for profitable traders

• Not suitable for HFT, tick scalping, or arbitrage strategies

• Bootcamp's stop-loss rule (must set within 3 minutes, max 2% risk) is restrictive

• Scaling plans require patience, no instant account doubling

• Customer support for payout issues can be slow via email

• Trustpilot score dropping in mid-2026 signals growing trader frustration

The Verdict: Who Should Trade with The5ers?

The5ers remains a legitimate prop firm with a good track record. They've paid millions, their rules are transparent, and their challenge models offer genuine flexibility. For swing traders, position traders, and anyone who values time freedom over speed, the unlimited trading period alone is worth considering.

But the recent payout friction is real. Not every trader is affected, but enough are that it's no longer an edge case. If you're planning on regular withdrawals as part of your trading plan, you need to account for potential 2-3 week delays.

The5ers works best for:

• Traders who want real capital, not demo money

• Those who trade longer timeframes and need overnight/weekend holding

• Traders who prefer clear, static drawdown rules over trailing calculations

• People who want to scale slowly and sustainably

It works less well for:

• Scalpers and HFT traders

• Anyone needing fast, predictable payouts

• Traders who want high leverage (1:100 is only during evaluations on High Stakes)

• US-based traders who are entirely banned

The5ers has been on a downward trend in trader sentiment since early 2026. But they're still processing millions in payouts every week. The question is whether they can resolve the payout bottleneck before more traders walk.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is The5ers' discount code? Use code "TRUSTED" for 10% off all challenges plus up to 1200 Trust Points on your purchase.

Do The5ers refund challenge fees? The5ers does not offer standard refunds on challenge fees once trading has started. The High Stakes program refunds the fee upon passing the evaluation, but this is a pass-based refund, not a purchase refund.

How long do The5ers payouts take? Officially 2-4 business days. Currently, many traders report 10-15 business days from request to receipt.

Can US traders join The5ers? No. The United States is on the banned countries list.

Does The5ers allow news trading? Yes, with restrictions. High Stakes prohibits orders 2 minutes before and after high-impact news. Other programs allow news trading but bracketing strategies are prohibited across all programs.

What platform does The5ers use? MetaTrader 5 (MT5) and cTrader are both supported.

What instruments can I trade? Forex, metals (gold, silver), indices, commodities (oil), and cryptocurrencies.

**Trading challenges involve risk. Most traders do not pass evaluations. Always read the firm's latest rules before buying.