SurgeTrader Review

In this article, you’ll find a comprehensive prop firm review with details on how to get funded by SurgeTrader.

By Alexander Voigt | Updated October 23, 2023

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SurgeTrader is a US-based prop trading firm that provides a broad range of funded trading accounts ranging from $200 to $6,500 one-time participation fees.

SurgeTrader
📆 Founded	2021
🏢 HQ	United States
📊 Asset Classes	Forex, Commodities, Indices, Crypto
💻 Broker and Platforms	ThinkMarkets broker with MetaTrader 4 and MetaTrader 5 Platform
⭐ Funding Types	One-Phase Evaluation, Two-Phase Evaluation (no instant funding)
📈 Maximum Leverage	50:1 (Trade $50 in value per $1 in the account)
💰 Costs	From $200
👛 Discount Codes	Yes

Pros	Cons
✅ Over 1,400 tradeable instruments across multiple asset classes	❌ Futures trading is not available
✅ Excellent review ratings	❌ Standard profit share only 75%
✅ Wide range of funded accounts	❌ Better profit share costs extra
✅ Competitive pricing structure
✅ Real funded accounts for funded traders

Table of Contents

What Is SurgeTrader?

SurgeTrader is a proprietary trading firm with offices located in the United States (Naples, Florida). The company was founded in 2021.

Is SurgeTrader Legit?

SurgeTrader officially discloses their company details on their website:

SurgeTrader, 4851 Tamiami Trail N, Suite 200, Naples, Florida 34103
Email: info@surgetrader.com
Phone: +1 866-998-7652 or +1 239-944-5317

On Trustpilot, SurgeTrader has an excellent reputation, with an average rating of 4.7/5 based on 980 reviews (as of October 2023).

What Assets Can You Trade with SurgeTrader?

SurgeTrader specializes in CFD trading, which includes a broad list of over 1,400 available instruments in multiple asset classes to trade:

Forex: 46 forex pairs (EURUSD, GBPUSD, AUDUSD, etc.)
Indices: 16 indices (SPX500, US30, GER30, UK100, VIX, NAS100, etc.)
Commodities: 11 commodities and metals (Gold, Silver, Platinum, Spot Brent Crude Oil, Spot WTI Crude Oil, etc.)
Cryptocurrencies: 27 popular coins (BTCUSD, ETHUSD, LTCUSD, DOGEUSD, etc.)
Equities: 1,300+ equities (Australia, USA, South Africa, and Hong Kong exchange)

Futures trading is not available with SurgeTrader. Please note that if you use the legacy MT4 platform, only 200+ assets are available to trade (the limitation is mainly in the equities sector).

Does SurgeTrader Offer Instant Funding – No Evaluation Accounts?

No, SurgeTrader does not offer any no-evaluation or instant funding accounts.

Does SurgeTrader Offer One-Phase Evaluations?

Yes, SurgeTrader offers one-phase evaluations. Here, you can choose between the following account sizes:

$25,000 account for $250
$50,000 account for $400
$100,000 account for $700
$250,000 account for $1,800
$500,000 account for $3,500
$1,000,000 account for $6,500

A one-phase evaluation means that you go through one evaluation phase until you get rewarded with a funded account, where you can earn profits ready for withdrawal to your bank account.

The rules across all one-phase funding account sizes are similar. You have no time limits. The standard profit share is 75%, the daily loss limit is 5%, the standard leverage is 10:1 (trade $10 with every $1 you have in the account), a max trailing drawdown of 8%, and you can hold and trade through the weekend.

Yet, you need to place at least one trade every 30 days to keep your account active and avoid suspension due to inactivity. This rule is kind of hidden in the FAQ trading rules section, but it’s documented.

In addition, with SurgeTrader, you can increase the profit split from 75/25 to 90/10 by buying an add-on, and you can increase the leverage from 10:1 to 20:1 (for forex and metals) by buying an add-on.

You can even enable a no stop loss commitment with an add-on. However, all three add-ons cost 40% of your audition fee extra, or 10% for the no-stop loss, 20% for the 90% profit share, and 25% for the double leverage.

In phase one, you have to reach a 10% profit target during evaluation to get access to your funded account. That means that profits made in phase one of the evaluation can’t be withdrawn. But once you make profits with the funded account, you can withdraw profits.

SurgeTrader emphasizes that upon successful completion of the audition (which is in a simulated environment), you’ll receive login credentials for a trading account with real funds. This is a big difference compared to many other forex prop firms in the industry.

The initial maximum trailing drawdown starts at 8%, and it gets trailed with your increasing account size until you reach a profit of 8%. Once you reach the 8% profit level, the drawdown level remains on your initial account balance and does not trail further, which is positive. Yet, there is still a daily loss limit of 5%, and you should never exceed 5% of loss on a daily basis.

Does SurgeTrader Offer Two-Phase Evaluations?

Yes, SurgeTrader introduced the two-phase audition as part of the 2nd anniversary celebration in October 2023. The benefits of the two-phase auditions include a lower price, leverage of up to 50:1 for FX and metals, and a higher base profit share. Also, the maximum drawdown is fixed and not trailing.

The disadvantage is that you have to go through one more paper trading step without a profit share before getting funded.

You can choose between the following account sizes in the two-phase evaluation:

$25,000 account for $200
$50,000 account for $300
$100,000 account for $500
$250,000 account for $1,200
$500,000 account for $2,300

A two-phase evaluation means that you go through a qualification phase in the first step and a validation phase in the second step before you get rewarded with a funded account, where you can earn profits ready for withdrawal to your bank account.

The rules across all two-phase funding account sizes are similar.

In the first phase of the two-phase program, you have no time limits, the standard profit share is 80%, the daily loss limit is 5%, a max fixed drawdown of 8%, and you can hold and trade through the weekend.

A big difference between the two-phase model and the one-phase model is that the leverage for FX and metals is set to 50:1, for oil and indices 10:1, stocks to 5:1 and crypto 2:1. This leverage cannot be increased with an add-on purchase as it is with the phase 1 program.

The profit target in the first phase of the two-phase program is set to 8%.

In the second phase of the two-phase program, you have to reach another 5% profit target with the same rules as in phase one of the two-phase program.

Once you pass the second phase, you get funded. Once you make profits with the funded account, you can withdraw profits.

Keep in mind, as with the one-phase program, you need to place at least one trade every 30 days to keep your account active and avoid suspension due to inactivity. This rule is kind of hidden in the FAQ trading rules section, but it’s documented.

In addition, with SurgeTrader, you can increase the profit split from 80/20 to 90/10 by buying an add-on (20% higher fees). You can also enable a no stop loss commitment with an add-on for 10% extra.

The fixed drawdown stays on the level where you get started at 8%. So, if you start with a $100,000 account, your max drawdown level always remains at $92,000. Yet, there is still a daily loss limit of 5%, and you should never exceed 5% of loss on a daily basis.

Additional Rules You Should Know About

You are not allowed to hold equities positions during earnings announcements. If you do, you get disqualified. However, you can currently trade other news based on the SurgeTrader knowledgebase documentation.

You have to place stop-loss orders for every trade at the time the trade is executed. If you don’t have a stop-loss order in place, you get disqualified. Alternatively, you can buy the no-stop loss add-on for a 10% extra fee.

High-frequency trading is now allowed, but you can use an Expert Advisor bot, which must place a stop loss at the exact same time as the order entry (unless you bought the no-stop-loss add-on) when using SurgeTrader.

My Opinion

SurgeTrader greatly positioned itself in the forex prop firm segment. Their great mix of funding options, reasonable pricing, solid payout options and rules makes them a great choice for beginners.

Rules like the don’t hold stocks during earnings could be mentioned more prominently so that everyone notices it, instead of having it only in the FAQs.

Also, the rule about forced stops should be visualized more prominently since it is a bit tricky because a trader always has to set a stop loss when placing a trade. Otherwise, he gets disqualified. The best workaround for this is buying the No Stop Loss add-on, but it costs 10% extra.

Payout Options

As of October 2023, SurgeTrader mentions in their how traders withdraw their profits section that wire transfers, ACH payments and PayPal are available for payouts of profits.

Does SurgeTrader offer Evaluation Fee Refunds?

No, there are absolutely no refunds on any SurgeTrader services available.

What is SurgeTrader’s Partner Broker?

SurgeTrader’s partner Broker is ThinkMarkets, an award-winning CFD broker funded in 2010. ThinkMarkets hosts over 450k client accounts and has received various awards (from Techradar, Global Forex Awards, Business Outlook and Finance Feeds).

What Trading Platforms Does SurgeTrader Offer?

SurgeTrader lets you choose between the preferred MetaTrader 5 platform, where you have full access to all markets and where you can trade over the weekend if allowed. Alternatively, you decide on the legacy MetaTrader 4 platform, where access to equities is limited but where full access to all other markets is possible.

Do I Trade with Simulated Funds or Real Money at SurgeTrader?

With SurgeTrader, you trade under simulated live conditions during the audition. Once you become a funded trader, you manage live accounts with real money (as emphasized by SurgeTrader on their website).

When Can I Start Withdrawing Money from SurgeTrader?

Upon passing the SurgeTrader evaluation stages, you receive access to the funded SurgeTrader account, where you can withdraw real funds based on the profit split conditions to your bank account. You can withdraw every 30 days.

What Payment Methods Does SurgeTrader offer?

SurgeTrader offers payments via credit card and PayPal. Crypto payments are not possible.

In What Currency Will My Account Balance Be?

All SurgeTrader accounts are held in USD as the base currency.

Am I allowed to use Expert Advisors (EA), Bots and Algos with SurgeTrader?

Yes, using Expert Advisors, Bots and Algos is allowed. However, be mindful when using your EA strategies since extensive use, cheating and high-frequency trading in general is prohibited.

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