Activation fees and data feed fees
Two fees catch new traders by surprise: the activation fee after you pass, and the monthly market data fee on futures accounts.
Activation / PA fee
After passing, some firms charge a fee to open the funded or performance account (PA). It can be a single payment or a monthly subscription for as long as the account stays open. Some firms charge nothing. A cheap evaluation with a large monthly activation fee can cost more over six months than an expensive one with none.
Data feed fees (futures)
Futures traders need exchange market data. Some firms include Level 1 data (best bid/ask) in the price; others pass on the cost of CME data packages monthly. If you want depth-of-market (Level 2) it is often extra.
What to check
Is the activation fee one-time or monthly? Is data included? Are fees refunded after the first payout? Firms sometimes refund evaluation fees on the first payout; we note this when we can verify it.