Start with a cash ledger

Imagine a participant buys three evaluations at an invented €150 each. Evaluation spending is €450. If each attempt also uses an optional €20 data service, total cash outlay becomes €510. These are not a provider’s quoted prices. Track retries, resets, platform services and currency conversion separately, distinguishing paid costs from future commitments.

A refund remains conditional until received

FTMO’s refund FAQ distinguishes non-refundable 1-Step fees from 2-Step fees that may be refunded with the first reward. Do not assume every failed attempt is reimbursed. In our hypothetical ledger, receiving only one €150 refund would reduce evaluation and data costs to €360; earlier attempts still cost money.

Separate a result from a payable reward

With an invented €600 simulated result and an assumed 80% share, the calculated reward is €480. Subtracting €510 of costs gives −€30 before refunds, or €120 after actually receiving the €150 refund. This arithmetic excludes taxes and further costs; it predicts neither performance nor payment and is no reason to buy another attempt to recover past spending.

Before requesting payment

FTMO’s payout FAQ permits requests from day 14 after the first trade and requires open positions and pending orders to be closed. Check the selected agreement, trading objectives, identity checks and payment method as well. Keep separate records for evaluation completion and payment approval so the remaining conditions are visible.

Set the retry budget before the first purchase

In the earlier hypothetical example, a €150 evaluation plus an optional €20 service costs €170 per attempt and €510 after three attempts. If the original total budget was €600, a fourth purchase would bring spending to €680 and exceed it. The next price tag is €170, but cumulative cash committed is a different figure. These are invented budget amounts, not a provider’s price list.

Before another purchase, write down which rule failed and what you would change. Distinguish a misunderstood calculation from account conditions that do not fit your trading pattern. Money already spent does not itself improve the economics of the next payment. Consider whether practice or a review of existing records can answer the same unresolved question before paying again.

Break-even needs assumptions and actual receipts

Keeping an invented 80% reward share and excluding further costs and tax, covering €510 entirely with a reward requires €637.50 of simulated profit: €510 divided by 0.8. If an eligible €150 fee refund is actually received alongside that payment, net costs are €360, corresponding to €450 of simulated profit. Neither calculation tells you how likely that performance or payment approval is.

FTMO distinguishes a non-refundable 1-Step entry fee from a 2-Step fee that may be refunded with the first reward. Do not expand that into reimbursement of every earlier failed attempt. Enter the selected share, refund eligibility and money received separately. The worksheet can then compare products without turning an unverified pass rate into a fictional monthly income.

After requesting a reward, track the payment route

The earliest request date and the arrival date are different. FTMO’s FAQ ties the request window to the first trade, then describes account review, invoice approval and transfer. Record purchase, first trade, request, approval and actual receipt as separate dates. Published business-day processing estimates describe stages; they do not guarantee a particular arrival date for every participant.

For a crypto payment, confirm the asset, network, address and receiving route in the actual payment interface. A dollar figure on a prop dashboard does not automatically become spendable card balance. Reconcile the payout record, network transaction, wallet receipt and any card funding separately. Record final conversion and transfer costs when the payout and spending currencies differ so that the net amount can be compared with your worksheet.