The short answer
Each futures payout has a maximum amount, set by your account size and how many payouts you have already taken. The cap rises with every approved payout. You keep 99% of your profit, the minimum payout is $100, and you can only withdraw profit that is already realized (all positions closed).
Find your account size in the table for your program below. The columns show the maximum you can withdraw on your first payout, second payout, and so on.
How the payout caps work
The cap is a ceiling on a single payout, not a limit on your total profit. Profit above the cap stays in your account and can be withdrawn on a later payout, once a higher cap applies.
A cap only moves up to the next tier once a payout is fully approved. Each successive payout unlocks the next column, and the caps scale with your account size, so a larger account reaches larger payouts sooner.
Profit split: you keep 99% of the profit on every payout. On a $2,000 profit, you take home $1,980.
Minimum payout: $100.
Eligibility: the standard payout conditions still apply. You need at least 1% profit since your last payout ($500 on a $50,000 account), all positions closed, drawdown compliant, and within the Best Day Rule.
Challenge profit share: on the challenge products (Thunderbolt Classic and Thunderbolt Legacy), if you grow the funded account enough with a clean payout record, you earn a bonus of 15% of your challenge-phase profit. This does not apply to Vanguard, which has no challenge phase.
After the final payout tier shown for your program, the account resets to its initial balance and the per-payout caps lift, in line with the standard Upcomers payout structure.
Thunderbolt Classic: payout caps by account size
Thunderbolt Classic scales across five payouts. Find your account size in the left column, then read across to your payout number.
Account size | Payout 1 | Payout 2 | Payout 3 | Payout 4 | Payout 5 |
$25,000 | $500 | $1,000 | $1,500 | $1,500 | $1,500 |
$50,000 | $800 | $1,600 | $2,400 | $3,000 | $3,000 |
$100,000 | $1,400 | $2,800 | $4,200 | $5,000 | $6,000 |
$150,000 | $2,000 | $4,000 | $5,000 | $5,000 | $9,000 |
$200,000 | $2,600 | $5,000 | $5,000 | $5,000 | $12,000 |
$250,000 | $3,100 | $5,000 | $5,000 | $5,000 | $15,000 |
$300,000 | $3,700 | $5,000 | $5,000 | $5,000 | $18,000 |
$400,000 | $4,700 | $5,000 | $5,000 | $5,000 | $23,500 |
Vanguard (Instant Funding): payout caps by account size
Vanguard scales across seven payouts. It has one extra condition before your first payout.
Minimum trading days: 5 qualifying days before your first payout.
What counts as a qualifying day: a day where you make at least 0.5% profit. On a $50,000 account, that is $250 of profit in the day. The 5 qualifying days do not have to be consecutive.
Account size | Payout 1 | Payout 2 | Payout 3 | Payout 4 | Payout 5 | Payout 6 | Payout 7 |
$25,000 | $500 | $1,000 | $1,500 | $1,500 | $1,500 | $1,500 | $1,500 |
$50,000 | $1,000 | $2,000 | $3,000 | $3,000 | $3,000 | $3,000 | $3,000 |
$100,000 | $1,600 | $3,200 | $4,800 | $5,000 | $6,000 | $6,000 | $6,000 |
$150,000 | $1,900 | $3,800 | $5,000 | $5,000 | $9,000 | $9,000 | $9,000 |
$200,000 | $2,300 | $4,600 | $5,000 | $5,000 | $11,500 | $12,000 | $12,000 |
$250,000 | $2,600 | $5,000 | $5,000 | $5,000 | $13,000 | $15,000 | $15,000 |
$300,000 | $3,100 | $5,000 | $5,000 | $5,000 | $15,500 | $18,000 | $18,000 |
Thunderbolt Legacy: payout caps by account size
Thunderbolt Legacy scales across five payouts, with one extra rule: each payout is the lower of the cap in the table or 50% of your current profit. You can withdraw up to half of your profit, never more than the cap for that payout.
Example: on a $100,000 Legacy account with $6,000 of profit, your payout 3 cap is $5,000, but 50% of your profit is $3,000. You would withdraw $3,000, the lower of the two.
Account size | Payout 1 | Payout 2 | Payout 3 | Payout 4 | Payout 5 |
$25,000 | $500 | $1,000 | $1,500 | $2,000 | $2,500 |
$50,000 | $1,000 | $2,000 | $3,000 | $4,000 | $5,000 |
$100,000 | $2,000 | $4,000 | $5,000 | $5,000 | $10,000 |
$150,000 | $3,000 | $5,000 | $5,000 | $5,000 | $15,000 |
$200,000 | $3,900 | $5,000 | $5,000 | $5,000 | $19,500 |
$250,000 | $4,700 | $5,000 | $5,000 | $5,000 | $23,500 |
$300,000 | $5,000 | $5,000 | $5,000 | $5,000 | $27,500 |
$400,000 | $5,000 | $5,000 | $5,000 | $5,000 | $35,000 |
Related articles
See also: Futures payout conditions, How to request a futures payout, and the payout processing fees.
Need help?
If you are unsure which cap applies to your next payout, contact Upcomers support, available 24/7, through live chat, the help center, or at [email protected].