Apex Scaling Plan Explained: Contract Scaling & the Safety Net

Passing the evaluation isn't the end of Apex's rules. Funded accounts open at half contracts, and the full allowance only unlocks once balance clears a specific threshold — the safety net. Here's the exact math and how to build it into an automated strategy.

Published 2026-07-14

The rule in one table (50k example)

Phase	Contracts allowed (MES)	Condition
Evaluation	Full (10)	No scaling restriction
Funded — before safety net	Half (5)	EOD balance below $52,600
Funded — after safety net	Full (10)	EOD balance reached $52,600 once

The safety net formula: starting balance + trailing drawdown + $100. On a 50k account that's $50,000 + $2,500 + $100 = $52,600. Clearing it does two things at once — the trailing floor stops advancing (it locks in place), and the half-contract restriction lifts starting the next session.

Apex overhauled its evaluation/funded product line on March 1, 2026. Accounts opened before that date can keep renewing under legacy terms; new purchases follow the current EOD/Intraday Trailing Drawdown lines. The half-contracts-until-safety-net structure applies either way — confirm your account's exact threshold in the Apex dashboard, since the figures above are for a standard 50k trailing account.

Why Apex scales contracts on funded accounts

A freshly funded account sitting a mere $2,500 away from its drawdown floor is exactly the account most likely to swing full size into a losing streak and blow through it. Scaling to half contracts for the early phase means the same losing run that would breach a full-size account instead leaves room to recover. From Apex's side it filters variance early; from a trader's side it forces a buffer-building phase that most strategies should be running anyway.

Building the scaling rule into a Pine Script strategy

1. Make position size an input, not a constant

A hard-coded contract count is the most common way a strategy that passed the evaluation breaks once funded. Expose quantity as a script input so the exact same logic runs the eval at full size and the funded account at half size without touching the code.

2. Check the safety net on closed sessions only

The threshold is measured on end-of-day balance, not intraday equity. Touching $52,650 intraday and closing back at $52,400 does not unlock full size — wait for a session that actually closes above the safety net before stepping the input up.

3. Re-check risk-per-trade at half size

Half contracts does not mean half of the drawdown risk — the $2,500 trailing floor is unchanged regardless of position size. A 5-contract MNQ position with a wide stop can still risk a meaningful share of that floor in a single trade; re-run the size-versus-stop math rather than assuming "half contracts" automatically means "half as risky."

4. Pair it with the consistency rule

The scaling phase overlaps with Apex's consistency rule: an oversized single day accelerates reaching the safety net but can simultaneously threaten payout eligibility once funded. A daily profit cap coded into the strategy addresses both constraints with the same variable.

Position-size gate — Pine Script sketch

Pine Script

// ── Apex funded-account contract scaling ──────────────────────────
// Runs half size until a closed session clears the safety net, then
// steps up to full size. Feed in the eval's passing size as fullQty.

fullQty      = input.int(10, "Full Contract Count (post safety net)")
startBalance = input.float(50000.0, "Starting Balance")
trailAmount  = input.float(2500.0, "Trailing Drawdown Amount")
safetyNet    = startBalance + trailAmount + 100

isNewSession = ta.change(time("D")) != 0
var float eodBalance = na
var bool  netCleared = false

if isNewSession
    eodBalance := nz(eodBalance[1], strategy.equity)
    if eodBalance >= safetyNet
        netCleared := true

qty = netCleared ? fullQty : math.round(fullQty / 2)
// use qty as strategy.entry(..., qty = qty)

FAQ

What is the Apex scaling plan?

Apex's contract scaling rule limits a funded Performance Account to half its maximum contracts until the account reaches its safety net. On a 50k account with a 10-contract MES maximum, that means trading up to 5 until end-of-day balance reaches $52,600 — starting balance plus the $2,500 trailing drawdown plus a $100 buffer. Past that point, the full contract count unlocks permanently.

What is the Apex safety net?

The safety net is the end-of-day balance at which the trailing drawdown floor locks in place and the full contract allowance unlocks: starting balance + trailing drawdown + $100. On a 50k account that's $52,600. Once reached, the floor stops trailing upward and full contract size is available even if balance later dips below that figure.

Does the scaling rule apply during the Apex evaluation?

No. Contract scaling only applies to funded Performance Accounts. During the evaluation, the full contract allowance is available from day one — the half-contract phase begins only after flipping to a funded account, and ends at the safety net.

How should an automated strategy handle Apex contract scaling?

Expose position size as a script input rather than a hard-coded number, and run the funded account at half size until the safety net clears. Since the check is end-of-day, step the input up only after a closed session confirms the balance is above the threshold — an intraday touch doesn't count.