Do open trades count towards the daily loss limit?

The limits are equity-based, and equity includes the floating result of open trades. So plan as if unrealised losses count.

What are the limits on each plan?

Two-Step: 5% max daily loss and 10% max loss. One-Step: 3% max daily loss and 6% max loss. All four are equity-based.

What happens if I break a loss limit?

In the funded stage, participation ends automatically if a mandatory risk limit is breached. Treat the limits as hard lines in the challenge too, and read the rules for the details.

Daily Loss vs Max Loss: Equity-Based Limits Explained

The max daily loss limits how far your equity can fall within a single day, and the max loss limits how far it can fall overall. On the Two-Step plan they are 5% and 10%, and on the One-Step plan they are 3% and 6%. Both are equity-based, so open trades count, not only closed ones, and all Sterling Pips accounts are simulated (demo) accounts.

The limits on each plan

Plan	Max daily loss	Max loss	On a 100K account (daily / max)
Two-Step	5%	10%	5,000 / 10,000
One-Step	3%	6%	3,000 / 6,000

The amounts in the last column are in the account's currency. Smaller or larger accounts scale in the same way: the percentage stays, the amount changes.

The limits by account size

The percentages stay the same on every size. Here are the amounts, in the account's currency, as a daily limit followed by a max loss.

Two-Step: 10K is 500 and 1,000. 25K is 1,250 and 2,500. 50K is 2,500 and 5,000. 100K is 5,000 and 10,000.
One-Step: 10K is 300 and 600. 25K is 750 and 1,500. 50K is 1,500 and 3,000. 100K is 3,000 and 6,000.

On a small account the amounts are small too, so the same percentage of risk per trade means a smaller trade, not a different rule.

What "equity-based" means

Your balance is the result of closed trades. Your equity is your balance plus or minus the floating result of your open positions.

Here is a simple case. Your balance is 100,000. You have open trades that are showing a floating loss of 2,000. Your equity is 98,000. A limit that is measured on equity looks at the 98,000, not at the 100,000.

This has a practical meaning. A trade you plan to "wait out" still uses your cushion while it is open. If it dips deep enough before it recovers, the dip can matter even if you would have closed it at breakeven.

Daily loss: the cushion for one day

The daily limit works day by day. Suppose a day starts with your equity at 100,000.

On the Two-Step, 5% is 5,000. Equity cannot fall more than 5,000 below the day's starting level, so the floor for that day is 95,000.
On the One-Step, 3% is 3,000, so the floor for that day is 97,000.

Before you plan around these floors, check the exact daily reset time, the time zone and the way the day's starting level is set. Those details belong to the program rules, and it is safest to read them in the rules and to keep a margin rather than trade right up to the line.

A worked day on a 100K account

Take a day that starts with equity at 100,000. These numbers are illustrative.

Your first trade closes with a loss of 1,000. Equity is now 99,000.
You open a second trade, and it floats at a loss of 2,500. Equity is now 96,500, which is 3,500 below the day's start.
On the Two-Step that is inside the 5,000 limit, with 1,500 of cushion left.
On the One-Step the same sequence would already be past the 3,000 limit.

Notice that the second trade was never closed. The floating loss was enough.

Max loss: the cushion for the whole attempt

The max loss is the wider fence. On a 100K account it is 10,000 on the Two-Step (10%) and 6,000 on the One-Step (6%).

The two limits run at the same time, and whichever you reach first is the one that counts. The daily limit is the tighter fence from one day to the next. The max loss is what stays in force no matter how many days pass.

How they interact

Say you are on the Two-Step and you lose 3% on each of three days. Every one of those days stays inside the 5% daily limit. But together they add up to roughly 9%, which leaves only about 1% before the 10% max loss.

The same idea on the One-Step: three days of 2% losses each stay inside the 3% daily limit, yet together they come close to the 6% max loss. A new day gives you a fresh daily cushion. It does not give back what the max loss has already used.

Where traders get caught

Some patterns are easy to fall into.

Forgetting floating losses. The balance looks fine while the equity is already near the floor.
Adding to a losing position to "get back to even" on a day that started badly.
Treating a new day as a clean slate while the max loss keeps counting.
Sizing too large. One oversized trade can use most of a daily cushion on its own. The guide to position sizing for prop challenges shows how to size against the limits.

Build your own buffer

You do not have to trade up to a limit. A personal buffer makes a breach much less likely.

Set a personal daily stop at about half of the limit. That is 2.5% on the Two-Step and 1.5% on the One-Step. When you reach it, you stop for the day.
Watch equity, not only balance. Keep the equity figure visible on your platform.
Count total open risk. Several open trades share the same daily cushion.
Know the consequence. In the funded stage, participation ends automatically if a mandatory risk limit is breached. Handle the challenge limits as hard lines too.

For more habits that help, see how to pass a prop challenge.

Key points

Max daily loss: 5% on the Two-Step, 3% on the One-Step. Max loss: 10% and 6%.
Both limits are equity-based, so open trades count.
On a 100K account the daily limits are 5,000 and 3,000, and the max loss limits are 10,000 and 6,000.
A day inside the daily limit can still use a lot of the max loss.
Check the daily reset time and the starting level in the rules, and keep your own margin.
Accounts are simulated (demo) accounts, and the limits apply to them in full.

General information only, not investment advice. All Sterling Pips accounts are simulated (demo) accounts.