Quick Answer — Brightfunded Evaluation Process
- • Brightfunded's evaluation is a 2-step challenge: Phase 1 requires an 8% profit target, Phase 2 requires 5%, both with 5% daily and 10% total static drawdown.
- • As of April 2026, both phases require a minimum of 5 trading days but have no maximum time limit and no consistency rule.
- • Brightfunded issues Phase 2 credentials immediately after Phase 1 completion, with no waiting period between phases.
- • After passing Phase 2, Brightfunded requires KYC via SumSub and a Risk Team security check before funded account activation, typically taking 1-2 business days.
- • Trades under 60 seconds don't count toward Brightfunded's minimum trading day requirement, which catches scalpers off guard.
Tested firsthand: I've researched every Brightfunded account type from Pluto ($5K) to Jupiter ($200K), including all add-ons, the scaling plan, and the Trade2Earn token system. This breakdown reflects verified pricing, real community feedback, and direct documentation review.
If you want to understand why the $100K Saturn account is the most popular choice—including the add-on math and scaling path to 100% profit split—read my complete account types breakdown. For the full picture, read my complete Brightfunded review. For the absolute latest, check Brightfunded's website or their help center.
Brightfunded's evaluation is a 2-step challenge where you hit an 8% profit target in Phase 1 and a 5% profit target in Phase 2 to earn a funded account. As of April 2026, both phases use static drawdown (5% daily, 10% total), require a minimum of 5 trading days, and have no time limit.
I've spent a lot of time mapping out exactly how this process works, from clicking "Start Challenge" to logging into your funded account. The timeline, the gotchas, the KYC process, the free account reward after you pass. All of it.
This guide walks through each phase in detail, what happens between them, how long the funded activation actually takes, and the mistakes that cost traders their progress.
How Does Phase 1 (BrightFunded Challenge) Work?
Phase 1 is called the BrightFunded Challenge. The goal is straightforward: hit an 8% profit target on your starting balance without violating drawdown limits.
As of April 2026, the Phase 1 rules are:
- Profit target: 8% of starting balance (e.g., $8,000 on a $100K account)
- Daily drawdown: 5% static (calculated from your balance at the start of each day)
- Total drawdown: 10% static (calculated from your initial starting balance, never trails upward)
- Minimum trading days: 5
- Maximum time limit: None
- Consistency rule: None
The static drawdown is the detail that matters most. Your 10% total drawdown is always measured from your starting balance. If you start a $100K account, your hard floor is $90,000, period. It doesn't trail up when you make money, which gives you breathing room that trailing drawdown firms don't.
No time limit means you can take a week off mid-challenge, come back, and keep going. Your account stays active.
What Counts as a Trading Day?
A trading day at Brightfunded requires at least one trade held for 60 seconds or longer. This trips up scalpers regularly. If all your trades on a given day close within 59 seconds, that day doesn't count toward your minimum 5.
So if you're a rapid-fire scalper, make sure at least one position per day stays open past the 60-second mark. Otherwise you'll think you've met the minimum when you haven't.
How Does Phase 2 (Verification) Work?
Phase 2 is called Verification. Same rules as Phase 1 with one difference: the profit target drops to 5%.
As of April 2026, Phase 2 rules are:
- Profit target: 5% of starting balance (e.g., $5,000 on a $100K account)
- Daily drawdown: 5% static
- Total drawdown: 10% static
- Minimum trading days: 5
- Maximum time limit: None
- Consistency rule: None
The lower target makes Phase 2 psychologically easier for most traders. You already proved you can hit 8%. Now you just need to stay disciplined at 5%.
One thing to note: your Phase 2 account starts fresh. Any profits from Phase 1 don't carry over. You begin at the original account balance with clean drawdown limits.
What Happens Between Phase 1 and Phase 2?
The transition is instant. As soon as you hit the 8% profit target in Phase 1 and meet the 5 minimum trading days, Brightfunded issues your Phase 2 credentials. No waiting period, no manual review between phases.
You'll get new login credentials for a fresh account. Same platform, same account size, same rules. Just a lower profit target.
This is a genuine advantage over firms that make you wait 24-48 hours between phases. At Brightfunded, you can finish Phase 1 on a Friday afternoon and start Phase 2 that same evening.
Your Phase 1 account gets locked once you pass. You can't go back and trade on it. The system auto-detects target completion and triggers the transition.
How Does KYC and Funded Account Activation Work?
After passing Phase 2, the path to your funded account involves three steps: identity verification, risk review, and contract signing.
Step 1: KYC via SumSub
Brightfunded uses SumSub for identity verification. You'll need a government-issued ID (passport, national ID card, or driver's license) and a selfie for liveness detection. The SumSub process itself takes about 5-10 minutes to complete.
Most verifications clear within a few hours. Occasionally SumSub flags submissions for manual review, which can add a day.
Step 2: Risk Team Security Check
After KYC clears, Brightfunded's Risk Team reviews your trading data from both evaluation phases. They're checking for prohibited strategies, copy trading from external signals, and rule violations that might not have triggered an automatic breach.
This isn't a formality. Traders who used borderline strategies during evaluation sometimes get flagged here. If your trading looks clean, it passes quickly.
Step 3: Contract and Activation
Once the risk check clears, you'll receive a contract to sign digitally. After signing, your funded account credentials are issued.
The entire post-Phase 2 process typically takes 1-2 business days. During peak periods (major promotions, end-of-month rushes), it can stretch to 3-4 business days. If you're past day 4 with no update, contact support.
How Long Does the Full Evaluation Take?
The minimum timeline depends on whether you purchased the No Min Days add-on.
Without add-ons (standard):
- Phase 1: minimum 5 trading days
- Phase 2: minimum 5 trading days
- Funded activation: 1-2 business days
- Fastest total: roughly 12 days (5 + 5 + 2)
With No Min Days add-on:
- Phase 1: can complete in 1 trading day
- Phase 2: can complete in 1 trading day
- Funded activation: 1-2 business days
- Fastest total: roughly 4 days (1 + 1 + 2)
Realistically, most traders don't pass in the minimum number of days. The no-time-limit feature means there's no rush, and the smarter approach is to take your time rather than force trades to hit the target fast.
| Scenario | Phase 1 | Phase 2 | Activation | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Standard (fastest) | 5 days | 5 days | 1-2 days | ~12 days |
| No Min Days add-on | 1 day | 1 day | 1-2 days | ~4 days |
| Typical trader | 2-4 weeks | 1-3 weeks | 1-2 days | 3-7 weeks |
What Free Rewards Do You Get After Passing?
Brightfunded offers a free account reward after you pass the evaluation and demonstrate funded performance. Once you grow your funded account by 10%, Brightfunded gives you 15% of the evaluation profits as a bonus reward.
You also get a free evaluation account after completing Phase 2. This is automatic. No coupon code, no support ticket. The free account shows up in your dashboard.
This stacks with the Trade2Earn token system, where you earn BFT tokens on every trade regardless of whether you win or lose. Those tokens can be redeemed for additional free evaluations, discount vouchers, or account upgrades.
The free account after passing is a genuine perk. Most prop firms make you buy a new evaluation at full price if you want to run a second account. Brightfunded giving you one for free lowers the barrier to building multiple funded accounts.
What Tips Help You Pass Each Phase?
Phase 1 Tips
Start conservative. You have no time limit, so there's zero reason to swing for the fences on day one. An 8% target on a $100K account is $8,000. At 1% risk per trade, that's 8 winning trades with a 1:1 reward ratio. Obviously you'll have losers too, but the math shows this doesn't require aggressive trading.
Keep your daily risk under 2% of the account. The 5% daily drawdown is static from your day-open balance, which means a bad day can cost you $5,000 on a $100K account. If you're risking 2% per trade and take two consecutive losers, you're at $4,000 in losses. One more bad trade and you're breached.
Focus on your best setups. Don't trade every session. Trade the sessions where your edge is strongest.
Phase 2 Tips
Phase 2 is where most traders get overconfident. You passed Phase 1, so you feel validated. Then you take oversized positions, break your rules, and blow it.
The 5% target is lower. Treat it as a reason to be more conservative, not less. Smaller position sizes, fewer trades, same discipline.
Watch the 60-second rule. If you've been scalping through Phase 1 and every trade lasted over 60 seconds, great. But if you switch to a faster style in Phase 2, you might accidentally have days that don't count.
What Mistakes Get Traders Eliminated?
Ignoring the 60-second minimum. This is the number one surprise disqualification. You think you've completed 5 trading days, but two of those days only had sub-60-second trades. Now you're at 3 valid days and can't figure out why the system says you haven't met the requirement.
Risking too much on day one. The no-time-limit structure tempts traders to think "I'll just smash the target in one day." You can. But you'll breach the 5% daily drawdown trying more often than you'll succeed.
Confusing static and trailing drawdown. If you've traded with firms that use trailing drawdown, you might assume your total drawdown floor rises as you profit. At Brightfunded it doesn't. Static means static. The 10% total drawdown is always from your starting balance. This actually works in your favor once you're in profit, because your buffer grows while the floor stays fixed.
Skipping the KYC preparation. Have your documents ready before you pass Phase 2. If you need to order a new passport or dig up utility bills for address verification, that delays everything. Get your SumSub materials organized during the evaluation.
Overtrading during drawdown. When you're down 3-4% in a session and the 5% daily limit is looming, the worst thing you can do is keep trading. Close the platform. Come back tomorrow. You have no time limit. Use it.
How Does Brightfunded Compare to Competitor Evaluations?
Brightfunded's 2-step structure is standard in the prop firm industry. What separates it from competitors is the combination of no time limit, no consistency rule, and static drawdown. Many firms offer one or two of these. Few offer all three.
| Feature | Brightfunded | FTMO | MyFundedFutures | FundingPips |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Steps | 2 | 2 | 1 | 1, 2, or 3 |
| Phase 1 Target | 8% | 10% | Varies | 8% |
| Phase 2 Target | 5% | 5% | N/A | 5% |
| Time Limit | None | 30/60 days | None | None |
| Consistency Rule | No | No | Yes | No |
| Drawdown Type | Static | Relative (daily), Static (total) | EOD Trailing | Relative |
| Min Trading Days | 5 (per phase) | 4 (per phase) | Varies | 3 (per phase) |
| Free Retry After Pass | Yes | Yes (fee refund) | No | Yes (fee refund) |
Brightfunded's 8%/5% targets are lower than FTMO's 10%/5%, which matters over hundreds of attempts. The absence of a consistency rule gives aggressive traders and news traders a real edge, since one outsized winning day can carry the entire evaluation.
The static drawdown is less forgiving in one sense: you don't get a trailing floor that protects locked-in gains. But it's more predictable. You always know exactly where your breach level is. No surprises.
Where Brightfunded falls behind is the 5 minimum trading days per phase. FundingPips only requires 3. For traders who can consistently hit targets in a few sessions, that's two extra days of forced waiting per phase.
Frequently Asked Questions
How many phases does Brightfunded's evaluation have?
Brightfunded's evaluation has exactly 2 phases. Phase 1 (BrightFunded Challenge) requires an 8% profit target, and Phase 2 (Verification) requires a 5% profit target. Both phases share identical drawdown rules: 5% daily and 10% total, both static.
What is the minimum number of trading days at Brightfunded?
Brightfunded requires a minimum of 5 trading days in each evaluation phase. A trading day only counts if at least one trade is held for 60 seconds or longer. Sub-60-second trades don't satisfy the requirement, which catches scalpers off guard.
Does Brightfunded have a time limit on evaluations?
No. Brightfunded does not impose any maximum time limit on either Phase 1 or Phase 2 of the evaluation. You can take as long as you need to hit the profit target, whether that's 5 days or 5 months. Your account stays active indefinitely.
Does Brightfunded use trailing or static drawdown?
Brightfunded uses static drawdown at every stage of the evaluation. The 10% total drawdown is calculated from your initial starting balance and never moves upward, regardless of how much profit you make. The 5% daily drawdown resets based on your balance at the start of each trading day.
How fast can you complete the Brightfunded evaluation?
The fastest possible completion at Brightfunded is approximately 12 days without add-ons (5 minimum trading days per phase plus 1-2 days for funded activation). With the No Min Days add-on, you can complete both phases in as few as 2 trading days, making the total timeline roughly 4 days including activation.
What happens after you pass Phase 2 at Brightfunded?
After passing Brightfunded's Phase 2, you go through KYC verification via SumSub, a Risk Team security check reviewing your trading data, and digital contract signing. This post-evaluation process typically takes 1-2 business days, though it can extend to 3-4 days during peak periods.
Does Brightfunded have a consistency rule?
No. Brightfunded does not enforce a consistency rule at any stage of the evaluation or on funded accounts. You can earn all your profits in a single trading day if the opportunity presents itself. This is a notable difference from firms like MyFundedFutures that cap daily profit contribution percentages.
Do you get a free account after passing Brightfunded's evaluation?
Yes. Brightfunded automatically gives you a free evaluation account after you complete Phase 2. No coupon code or support ticket required. On top of that, Brightfunded awards a 15% eval profit reward once your funded account grows by 10% from the starting balance.
Can you hold trades overnight during Brightfunded's evaluation?
Brightfunded allows overnight and weekend holding during the evaluation phases on most instruments. The rules are the same in evaluation as on funded accounts. Check Brightfunded's specific instrument-level restrictions for any exceptions, particularly around high-impact news events.
Is Brightfunded's evaluation harder than FTMO's?
Brightfunded's Phase 1 profit target is 8% compared to FTMO's 10%, making the initial hurdle lower. Brightfunded also has no time limit (FTMO caps Phase 1 at 30 days) and no consistency rule. The drawdown limits are comparable. On paper, Brightfunded's evaluation is more forgiving for traders who need flexibility on timing and trade distribution.
