Research
How Many Prop Firms Are There in 2026?
How many prop firms exist? Trackers disagree. PropFirmPal held 633 active records in October 2026; why counts differ and what founders should take from it.
- By PipValley Editorial
- Published
- 3 min read
Founders ask how many prop firms exist to judge how crowded the market is. The honest answer is a range with caveats, and the caveats are more useful than the number.
Why do counts differ?
- Definition: some trackers count only firms with verified payouts; others count every live website.
- Brands vs companies: one company may run several brands on different platforms or markets.
- White labels: dozens of brands can share one provider's engine, dashboard and documents.
- Churn: firms close, rebrand or pause sales faster than lists update.
What do our own records show?
PropFirmPal held 633 active firm records in October 2026. Among the 245 firms with enriched platform data in September 2026, MT5 appeared at 56 firms, cTrader at 30, TradeLocker at 28, Match-Trader at 19 and DXtrade at 9 on the CFD side, and NinjaTrader at 22 and Tradovate at 21 in futures. Firms list several platforms, so the counts overlap.
Payout volume is far more concentrated than firm counts. Prop Firm Match tracked about $325 million of payouts in 2025, with FundedNext at about $108 million and FundingPips at about $97 million, according to Finance Magnates. A handful of firms take most of the market.
What should a founder take from it?
Hundreds of firms compete for the same traders, most of them small and many on the same white labels. You will not stand out by existing. You stand out with a niche, rules that are easy to understand, honest proof and a site that looks and reads unlike the template every other firm on your provider uses.
The platform counts are also a planning tool. A platform that dozens of firms already run is one traders know, but it is also one where a single vendor decision can hit many firms at once, as MetaQuotes' 2024 action and cTrader's 2026 US restriction showed. Count your competitors per platform before you choose one, and plan a second route.
Questions
How many prop firms closed in 2024?
Finance Magnates estimated 80 to 100, many after MetaQuotes withdrew platform access in February 2024.
How many futures prop firms are there?
There is no reliable count. Finance Magnates describes the industry as roughly evenly split between CFD and futures firms, and Volumetrica says more than 20 futures prop firms use its dashboards or platforms.
Is the prop firm market saturated?
It is crowded at the generic end, with hundreds of similar firms. Niches by market, language, trading style or community remain open to firms that build trust.
Which platform do most prop firms use?
In PropFirmPal's September 2026 data for 245 firms, MT5 appeared most often on the CFD side (56 firms) and NinjaTrader (22) and Tradovate (21) in futures. Most firms offer more than one platform.
Sources
- Finance Magnates: 80–100 prop firms wiped out in 2024's industry collapse
- Finance Magnates: Prop Firm Match tracked about $325 million in payouts in 2025
- Finance Magnates: Prop trading is finding its way back to the US, but can it beat futures dominance?
- PropFirmPal: prop firm comparison (a site we own)
Illustrative figures, not a forecast. Nothing on this site is legal, tax or financial advice. PipValley is a web design studio; we don’t sell challenges, run trading accounts or provide trading platforms. Spotted something out of date? Tell us and we’ll fix it with the date.
Keep reading
Related guides.
Are Prop Firms Going Away? Where the Industry Is Heading
What Trading Platform Should a New Prop Firm Use?
How to Start a Prop Firm in 2026: An Operator's Guide
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