The EA was fine, the lot wasn't: 4 settings to change for prop firm rules
You run an EA from the Market on your own account and it behaves. You pay for a prop firm evaluation, attach the same EA with the same settings and, one afternoon, the email arrives: account failed.
The EA did not break any rule of its own. It broke a rule of the firm that it did not know about, because it was set up for an ordinary account.
The fix starts with one sentence: at a prop firm, the goal is not to win the most. It is to reach the target without touching the limit. That changes four settings, and none of them touches the strategy.
First, the three limits your settings must respect
- Daily loss. A limit per day, for example 5% of the account. At many firms it also counts floating profit and loss: an open position in the red already weighs on the limit. And the "day" is the firm's server day, not yours.
- Total loss. A limit for the whole account, for example 10%. Static is measured from the starting balance and stays there. Trailing rises behind your best balance, so every new peak tightens the margin.
- Target and deadline. The profit target of each phase and, in some evaluations, the deadline to reach it.
What fails EA users most is a lot that is too big for the total limit. The EA does what it always did. It is the lot that does not fit the rule.
The 4 settings: your own account vs a prop firm
| Setting | On your own account | At a prop firm |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Lot | Grows with the balance: compounding is what moves the account | Fixed, sized to the firm's account, small enough that the EA's worst streak fits inside the total limit with room to spare |
| 2. Loss stop | Set to your own tolerance | Close everything and stop before the firm's limit: at 4.5% if the firm cuts you off at 5%, leaving room for spread and slippage |
| 3. News filter | Your choice | On. If the firm restricts news trading, check that the filter's window covers the rule's window |
| 4. Where it runs | Your computer, while it is on | A VPS, on 24 hours, closing the day on the firm's server time |
The news filter matters even when the firm allows news: the minutes around a Fed rate decision or NFP, the US jobs report, bring wide spreads and slippage, the gap between the price you asked for and the one you got.
The VPS matters because the daily loss keeps running with your computer off. The EA has to be on to follow every trade to the end, and one that detects the broker's time zone on its own closes the day at the right hour.
The rehearsal: 4 steps in the Strategy Tester before you pay
- Download the EA's free demo from its Market page.
- Open the Strategy Tester (Ctrl+R). Set the deposit to the firm's account size and the modelling to "Every tick based on real ticks".
- Enter the fixed lot you plan to use.
- Find the worst day on the equity chart and compare it with the firm's daily limit. If it stays far away, the lot fits. If it doesn't, lower the lot and run again.
Two questions only the firm can answer
Search the rulebook with Ctrl+F for "Expert Advisor", "automated trading" and "third-party". Then ask support two things, and keep the answer in writing, with the date:
- Can I use an EA I bought and did not program? Some firms allow any EA, others ask to be notified first, others do not accept third-party robots.
- Is the same EA on several accounts a problem? A bought EA is used by other traders, sometimes at the same firm, and they get similar trades. Ask whether that matters, and whether you can run it on more than one account of yours. On our side, each EA's license gives 5 activations.
Our three EAs, set up for a prop firm
All three trade gold on MetaTrader 5 and already come with the 4.5% stop that closes everything and stops. The lots below are each one's official examples.
| EA | Style | Example fixed lot | At the firm |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pitbull Gold | One entry, target and stop on the server | 0.02 on 5,000 USD; 0.57 on 100,000 USD | Daily limit at 4.5%: closes and pauses until the next day. Turn on the news filter; check that the firm allows EAs and hedging |
| Beagle Gold | One entry with a stop, at most two trades | 0.01 on 10,000 USD; 0.15 on 100,000 USD | "Close and stop" at 4.5%. From 6,000 USD, the minimum lot already fits the firm's margin |
| Collie Gold | Fast baskets, grid without martingale | 0.02 on 5,000 USD; 0.40 on 100,000 USD | "Close and stop" at 4.5%. Check that the firm allows grid and hedging |
If your firm punishes the daily loss and scrutinizes grids, the most direct fit is Pitbull Gold on the Market: one entry per trade, target and stop on the server from the first second, and a news filter. On your own account, with the lot growing along with the balance, it made +478% in 2025 on the Balanced profile, in the test with real ticks.
If you want to fix the risk of each trade, look at Beagle Gold on the Market. It enters with the stop on the server and never goes past two open trades at the same time.
If the rulebook allows grid and hedging, Collie Gold on the Market trades short baskets, with no martingale and a stop on every basket. The typical basket stays open for 8 minutes.
The full guide is on our site: the five rulebook rules with the exact words to search for, a support message you can copy and fill in, a chart of static vs trailing limits and an FAQ. Read it here: which prop firms allow EAs, and the 5 rules to check before you pay.
The firm does not ask whether your EA is good. It asks whether it fits the rule. Run the free demo with your firm's account size and the example lot, and see, trade by trade, whether the worst day stays far from the limit.
Lucky Dogs Trading Systems
