Editorial Policy
Last updated: March 2026
PropFirm Key is an independent prop trading firm comparison platform. We publish detailed reviews, pricing data, and challenge comparisons to help traders make informed decisions. This page explains how our editorial team works, how we collect and verify data, and how we handle commercial relationships — so you can trust the information we publish.
1. Our Mission
Our mission is to provide independent, data-driven comparisons of proprietary trading firms so that traders at every level can find the firm that best suits their trading style, risk tolerance, and financial goals.
We do not accept payment to alter, improve, or manipulate ratings and rankings. Every firm is evaluated using the same objective criteria regardless of whether or not we have a commercial relationship with them. Our editorial positions are formed independently from our business development team.
We believe transparency is foundational to trust. That is why this page exists: to explain exactly how we work so you can evaluate our content critically.
2. How We Review Firms
Each firm review follows a structured research process that involves multiple verification steps:
- 01
Account Purchase & Testing
Where possible, our team or verified community contributors purchase real challenge accounts and document the experience from onboarding through challenge, funded stage, and first payout. We note discrepancies between marketing claims and actual platform behavior.
- 02
Official Source Verification
All pricing, challenge rules, profit splits, drawdown limits, payout schedules, and platform specifications are verified directly from the firm's official website, pricing pages, help center, and Terms & Conditions documents. We do not rely on third-party blogs, YouTube reviews, or social media claims.
- 03
Trustpilot Cross-Reference
We pull verified Trustpilot rating data including total review count and average score. We read recent reviews to identify recurring complaints around payouts, support response times, or rule enforcement. Trustpilot scores are used as one input in our overall rating but are never the sole determinant.
- 04
Community Feedback Integration
We monitor prop trading communities (Reddit, Discord, dedicated forums) for patterns in trader experiences. Anecdotal data is not taken at face value — we flag common concerns only when corroborated by multiple independent sources.
- 05
Editorial Review
All research is reviewed by a senior editor before publication. Any claim that cannot be verified from an official source is either removed or explicitly marked as unverified. Our editors have final authority over all published content.
3. Data Sources
We use the following sources, in order of priority:
| Priority | Source | Used For |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Official firm website (pricing pages) | Prices, account sizes, profit targets |
| 2 | Official help center / FAQ | Trading rules, consistency rules, payout schedule |
| 3 | Terms & Conditions documents | Legal entity, jurisdiction, refund policy |
| 4 | Trustpilot (verified reviews only) | Community rating input, recurring complaint patterns |
We do not use third-party review blogs, influencer content, social media posts, or any source that could carry a commercial bias as primary data sources. If a data point cannot be verified from an official source, we either leave the field blank or mark it as “not disclosed”.
4. AI Disclosure
PropFirm Key uses AI-assisted tools in parts of our research and content workflow. Specifically:
- AI tools help us draft initial firm descriptions, summaries, and blog articles.
- AI tools assist with data extraction and structuring from official firm documentation.
- AI tools are used to translate and localize content for our 10 supported languages.
All AI-generated content is reviewed, edited, and approved by a human editor before publication. AI outputs are never published verbatim — they serve as a starting point that is then verified against primary sources and refined to meet our editorial standards.
Factual data (prices, drawdown limits, profit splits, platform availability) is always verified directly from official firm sources regardless of what an AI model returns. AI-generated figures that cannot be confirmed are discarded.
5. Affiliate Disclosure
PropFirm Key participates in affiliate programs with some of the prop trading firms listed on this site. This means we may earn a commission when a trader clicks our tracked link and purchases a challenge account — at no additional cost to the trader.
Our affiliate relationships do not influence our ratings, reviews, or rankings in any way. We apply identical evaluation criteria to all firms regardless of affiliate status. Firms that do not have an affiliate agreement with us are reviewed and ranked on the same basis as those that do.
Exclusive promo codes listed on this site are affiliate codes provided to us by the firms. The discount you receive is real — these codes have been verified to apply the advertised discount at checkout.
Pages containing affiliate links display an “Affiliate Disclosure” notice in the footer of the page. We also maintain a full financial disclaimer in our site footer.
6. Rating Methodology
Our firm ratings (displayed as a score out of 5) are calculated from a weighted combination of objective data points. No single metric determines a firm’s overall score.
Trustpilot Community Score
Verified Trustpilot rating weighted by review volume. More reviews = more representative score. Minimum 50 reviews required for this component to be counted.
Challenge Value
The ratio of account size to challenge price. A $100K account at $500 scores better than the same account at $1,000. We use the standard 2-phase challenge price as the reference point.
Rules Fairness
Assessment of trading rules including: daily drawdown limit, maximum drawdown, consistency rules, news trading restrictions, weekend holding policy, and EA/bot permissions. More permissive and trader-friendly rules score higher.
Payout Speed & Reliability
Stated payout processing time, minimum payout thresholds, available withdrawal methods, and community-reported payout experiences. Firms with faster, more flexible payouts score higher.
Ratings are recalculated automatically when any underlying data point changes. A firm’s score can go up or down as their pricing, rules, or community sentiment evolves. We do not manually override algorithmic scores except to correct data errors.
7. Content Updates
Prop trading firm offerings change frequently. We maintain the following update schedule:
| Content Type | Update Frequency |
|---|---|
| Challenge prices & account sizes | Monthly (or immediately upon reported change) |
| Trustpilot ratings & review counts | Monthly |
| Trading rules & challenge parameters | Quarterly or upon firm notification |
| Full firm reviews (editorial content) | Quarterly |
| Blog articles & comparison guides | Reviewed annually; updated when core facts change |
| Promo codes & discount percentages | Verified monthly; expired codes removed immediately |
Each firm review page displays a “Last verified” date so readers know when the data was most recently checked. If you notice information that appears outdated, please contact us — we treat correction requests as high priority.
8. Corrections & Contact
We take factual accuracy seriously. If you believe any information on PropFirm Key is incorrect, outdated, or misleading, please report it to our editorial team. We will investigate and correct verified errors within 5 business days.
We distinguish between:
- Factual errors — incorrect price, rule, or specification that can be verified from an official source. These are corrected immediately.
- Editorial opinions — our assessment of a firm’s quality or value. These reflect our analysis and are not changed based on pressure from firms or their representatives.
- Missing information — data points not yet covered. We prioritize adding these when reported.
Editorial contact
editorial@propfirmkey.comPlease include the page URL and the specific data point you believe is incorrect, along with a link to the official source confirming the correct information.
This editorial policy was last updated in March 2026. We review and update this policy annually or whenever our practices materially change. Questions about this policy can be directed to editorial@propfirmkey.com. PropFirm Key is not a financial advisor and nothing on this site constitutes financial advice. Trading involves substantial risk of loss. See our full Terms of Service for complete legal information.