Position Sizing

Fixed contracts: same number on every trade, regardless of account balance or volatility. Simplest, predictable, makes risk-per-trade a fixed dollar amount based on stop distance.

Multiplier of master: the follower trades a constant ratio of the master account's size. If the master trades 2 contracts and the multiplier is 0.5, the follower trades 1. Useful when the master and follower have different account sizes but the same strategy.

Percent of account balance: contract count adjusts based on the follower's current equity. As the account grows, sizing grows; as it draws down, sizing shrinks. Mathematically clean but can chase performance.

When you copy trades across multiple accounts, each follower has different rules. A $50K combine has a smaller daily loss limit than a $150K funded account. A trailing drawdown that's tighter on one account constrains what you can size at, full stop.

A copier that only supports a single sizing rule across all followers forces a compromise — you size for the most constrained account, leaving capital underused on the larger accounts. Per-follower sizing is what makes simultaneous combines and funded accounts work without either over-risking small accounts or under-using large ones.

Sizing all accounts identically and assuming "the strategy will work the same way." It won't. A 2-contract strategy on a $50K combine is a different risk profile than the same 2 contracts on a $150K funded account.

Using percent-of-balance during a drawdown sequence. The sizing scales down with equity, which means recovering from a drawdown takes longer because you're trading smaller. Some traders prefer this; others find it psychologically punishing.

For combines: size to the daily loss limit. Pick a stop distance you're comfortable with, calculate the max contracts that keep one trade within ~30% of the daily limit. That gives you room for 2-3 losers before the day is forced to end.

For funded accounts: size to the trailing drawdown distance, not the daily limit. The trailing rule is the long-term constraint; daily is just the worst-day cap. A strategy that's safe against the trailing drawdown will rarely bump the daily limit.