GETTING STARTED GUIDE

Build Your First Bot Portfolio

Here's exactly how to use the Portfolio Builder — even if you've never traded futures before.

Most traders complete their first portfolio build in under 30 minutes.

STEP 1

Download Software (Windows)

When you download the file, double-click the .exe file to install it on a Windows PC. This installer is not compatible with Mac. You may see a security warning because Microsoft doesn’t recognize the software—this is expected; choose "More info" → "Run anyway" to proceed.

Then follow the installation prompts. INSTALL CODE: WH8KPO5

If you have any installation issues, please email support we'll help you out.

STEP 2

Know Your Funded Account Size

The Portfolio Builder is designed around funded account rules, so the first thing you need to decide is what account size you're planning to trade....

Common starting sizes:

$25,000 account
$50,000 account (our favorite size)
$100,000 account
$150,000 account

If you don't have a funded account yet — that's fine. Pick the size you're planning to work toward and build your portfolio around those rules. It's important to know the account rules and drawdown limits so you can build a portfolio that follows these rules.

STEP 3

Choose Your Bots

The Portfolio Builder gives you access to different bot strategies, each built for a different type of market condition.

Trending markets — 10 EMA Bot, Mega ORB Bot
Ranging / choppy markets — Mega Snapback Bot
Breakout setups — Mega ORB Bot, NR7 Narrow Range Bot
Scalping — Mega Scalper Bot
Volume-based setups — Volume Bot

For beginners, we recommend starting with 4–10 bot configurations that cover different market conditions. That way your portfolio isn't dependent on the market behaving one specific way every day.

STEP 4

Select Your Settings

All portfolio tools come with over 430+ pre-defined settings. You don't need to build anything from scratch — just filter by your account size, risk level, and trading goals and the Portfolio Builder will show you the settings that match.

Start conservative. You can always dial up risk later once you've seen how the portfolio performs in the Analyzer.

STEP 5

Run it through Portfolio Analyzer

Once your portfolio is built, take it straight to the Analyzer. This is where you'll see:

How your portfolio would have performed over 4 years of real market data
Whether your drawdown stays within your funded account limits
Which bots are carrying the portfolio and which ones need adjusting
Whether your best-day performance would trigger Topstep's consistency rule

If something looks off — go back and tweak. The whole point of the planning tools is to stress test before you go live.

Trust the Process

Most traders can build their first portfolio build in under 30 minutes.

If you get stuck at any point, just email us and one of our coaches will help you out.

Futures trading involves substantial risk of loss and is not suitable for all investors.

Past performance is not indicative of future results. Only risk capital should be used for trading.