[September 2026] We Calculated BluSky's Expected Value: The 3-Stage Model Favors Propel (30OFF), +$2,988/Year at Zero Edge
※ Pricing and rules were confirmed on BluSky's official help center (help.blusky.pro) and pricing page (blusky.pro) on September 25, 2026. The figures are Monte Carlo results and do not guarantee future performance.
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TL;DR
- BluSky runs a 3-stage model: "Evaluation → Buffer Zone → Sim Funded." If you fail the Buffer Zone, you don't have to redo the evaluation — you only reset the Buffer Zone, for $250
- Propel $50K is best (list price $160/month → $112/month with the code
30OFFshown on the official site; renewals are the same price). At 0.30 lots and zero edge: +$2,988/year (69% chance of finishing positive) - Launch (month $59 + $99 on passing) has a cheaper monthly fee but loses to Propel. The reason is the minimum balance on Sim Funded — Launch's is $1,000 (leaving $2,000 of headroom) versus Propel's $100 (leaving $2,900 of headroom)
- Orbit (a one-time $199) has a 30-day deadline from purchase for the evaluation. Since a reset doesn't extend it, it comes to −$284/year at zero edge
- It doesn't reach FTMO Futures Pro $50K (+$4,836/year at zero edge). Automated trading is allowed, and there's no stated VPS rule
Pricing and rules (measured September 25, 2026)
| Launch $50K | Propel $50K | Orbit $50K | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Price | $59/month (evaluation only) + $99 on passing | $160/month → $112/month with 30OFF | One-time $199 |
| Evaluation reset | $49 | $79 | $99 |
| Evaluation deadline | None | None | 30 days from purchase (not extended by a reset) |
| Evaluation target / max loss | $3,000 / $2,000 (closing-price-based trailing) | Same | Same |
| Evaluation consistency | 50% | 34% | None |
| Buffer Zone | Target $3,000, max loss $2,000, consistency 34% | Same | None |
| Buffer Zone reset | $250 (rises $50 every 3 resets) | Same | — |
| Starting balance after passing | $3,000 balance (the Buffer Zone's profit) | $3,000 balance | Account size ($50,000) |
| Max loss after passing | Minimum balance $1,000 (headroom of $2,000, fixed) | Minimum balance $100 (headroom of $2,900, fixed) | $2,000 trailing → fixed at the starting balance |
| Payouts | Anything above the starting balance, daily (minimum $250) | Same | From above $52,000, every 3 business days (minimum $500) |
| 7-day payout cap | $2,500 | $2,500 | $2,000 |
| Consistency after passing | None | None | 40% (resets with each payout) |
| Split | 90% | 90% | 90% |
Common to all plans:
- The monthly fee only applies during evaluation. Billing stops the moment you pass — you pay nothing during the Buffer Zone or Sim Funded stages
- If your evaluation has failed by the time the monthly fee renews, the renewal includes one free reset (a reset doesn't move the renewal date)
- Consistency is measured as "the biggest day ÷ the sum of your profitable days." Since losing days aren't subtracted, this is looser than firms that divide by net profit
- Once Sim Funded profit reaches a cumulative $10,000, you're reviewed for a live account. Up to $10,000 per account (minus what you've already withdrawn) moves to live
- The daily forced close is around 4:45 PM ET (5:45am JST next morning in summer, 6:45am in winter). No overnight holds
- Trustpilot 4.7 (900 reviews). Japan is not on the restricted-country list
Launch also shows a pop-up for new visitors offering "enter your email and get a 50%-off code." Since it's not a public code, we didn't include it in the calculation.
Automated trading and VPS
The official blog states, "Automated trading with bots are allowed. We welcome all kind semi-automated and full automated," so automated trading is allowed. The February 2026 code of conduct bans automated software used to unfairly influence outcomes (AI, ultra-high-speed, mass order placement), mirroring other people or signals, and abusing latency.
We couldn't find a stated VPS rule. Supported platforms include NinjaTrader, Tradovate, TradingView, and Quantower, among others (third-party info says the NinjaTrader license is free).
Assumptions
Same as the FTMO Futures expected-value article.
- One trade per business day in Micro Gold (MGC). At a 0.6% stop-loss, a 0.10-lot (1 MGC contract) loss is $262
- The evaluation, Buffer Zone, and post-pass account all use the same lot size. One year (252 business days)
- Fees are $1.00 round-trip per MGC contract (a one-way fee of $0.50 is third-party info)
- If you fail the evaluation, you pay for a reset (we don't use the free reset bundled with renewal — the conservative side)
- If you fail the Buffer Zone, only the Buffer Zone resets
- The 7-day payout cap is approximated as "up to the cap every 5 business days"
- We cap total withdrawals per account at a cumulative $10,000 and stop counting after moving to live (since we can't fully read the post-move conditions — the conservative side)
- Orbit's 30 days is treated as 21 business days
Result ①: annual expected value at a uniform 0.30 lots
| Edge | Launch | Propel (30OFF) | Orbit |
|---|---|---|---|
| −0.10R | −$2,918 | −$2,502 | −$3,595 |
| −0.04R | −$534 | +$552 | −$1,902 |
| Zero edge | +$1,408 (57%) | +$2,988 (69%) | −$284 (39%) |
| Small (50% win rate, 1.2 R:R) | +$6,903 | +$9,630 | +$4,669 |
| Medium (55% win rate, 1.2 R:R) | +$15,790 | +$19,339 | +$13,089 |
| Strong (60% win rate, 1.2 R:R) | +$26,115 | +$29,750 | +$22,546 |
The number in parentheses is the probability of finishing positive. "Strong" is a reference value that basically no one hits in reality.
- Propel is best at every edge level. Its monthly fee is roughly double Launch's, but it has no $99 pass fee, and its post-pass headroom of $2,900 is much larger
- Orbit is negative at zero edge. If you can't pass within 30 days, you have to buy in again — and a reset doesn't extend the deadline
Result ②: cash flow (0.30 lots, zero edge)
| Annual cost | Annual receipts | Evaluation passes | Payouts | Times losing the post-pass account | Evaluation resets | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Launch | $4,267 | $5,675 | 4.0 | 4.9 | 3.3 | 11.4 |
| Propel | $4,148 | $7,136 | 3.6 | 6.5 | 2.8 | 10.2 |
| Orbit | $4,185 | $3,901 | 6.1 | 2.8 | 5.8 | 18.3 |
Having a Buffer Zone means it takes longer from passing to actually seeing money — that's BluSky's defining trait. You have to build up $3,000 during evaluation, then another $3,000 during the Buffer Zone, before payouts finally start. In exchange, the Buffer Zone's profit becomes the balance of your post-pass account, and from your very first payout you can withdraw "anything above the starting balance."
Result ③: the best-performing setting
| Edge | Launch | Propel | Orbit |
|---|---|---|---|
| Zero edge | +$1,408 (0.30) | +$2,988 (0.30) | +$128 (0.70) |
| Small | +$10,176 (0.50) | +$12,638 (0.50) | +$8,141 (0.50) |
| Medium | +$21,867 (0.50) | +$24,574 (0.50) | +$17,004 (0.50) |
The number in parentheses is the lot size. If you have an edge, going up to 0.50 lots pays off more. That said, since we cap withdrawals at $10,000 per account, sizing up produces smaller gains here than it would at other firms.
Comparison with FTMO Futures and Topstep ($50K, 0.30 lots)
| Edge | BluSky Propel | FTMO Futures Pro | Topstep |
|---|---|---|---|
| Zero edge | +$2,988 | +$4,836 | +$2,519 |
| Medium | +$19,339 | +$26,306 | +$24,982 |
At zero edge it beats Topstep but doesn't reach FTMO Futures Pro. The gap widens at "medium" because of our $10,000-per-account cap. If you could keep earning at the same rate after moving to live, the gap would narrow considerably.
Cautions
- The "minimum balance $1,000" shown on the pricing page refers to the live (Brokerage) account column. We used the help center's figures for Sim Funded's minimum balance (Launch $1,000, Propel $100)
30OFFis a code shown on the pricing page; we haven't confirmed whether it actually works at checkout- You can hold up to 3 Sim Funded accounts per person. If you hold opposing positions in the same product across separate accounts, the broker will permanently close them
- A Sim Funded account with no trading activity for 30 days may be closed
FAQ
Q. Which plan should I buy?
Propel $50K. With 30OFF it comes to $112/month, and even at zero edge it produced the highest expected value of the three plans at 0.30 lots: +$2,988/year.
Q. What is the Buffer Zone?
It's a second stage between the evaluation and the post-pass account. You hit a $3,000 target with a $2,000 max loss and 34% consistency. The $3,000 you build up here becomes the starting balance of your post-pass account. If you fail, you don't redo the evaluation — you can reset just the Buffer Zone for $250.
Q. It says Orbit gets you funded faster?
The evaluation has no consistency requirement, so you can pass in a single day, and there's no Buffer Zone either. However, the evaluation has a 30-day deadline from purchase, and a reset doesn't extend it. At zero edge, it came out to −$284/year, the lowest of the three plans.
Reference links (official)
- BluSky official site (pricing)
- Launch Plans: Phases, Rules and Costs
- Propel Plans: Phases, Rules and Costs
- Orbit Plans: Two Phases, Faster Payouts
- Sim Funded Accounts Rules
- Evaluation Rules
Simulation script: scripts/sim-futures-blusky-ffn-ev.py (engine: scripts/sim-futures-prop-ev.py)
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Written by
Hosono P | the prop firm strategist
I buy challenges with my own money and record everything through to the payout. Recorded payouts: ¥6.1M in total from Fintokei, Fundora and Funded7, plus $4,776 from The5ers (as of September 2026). Author of the semi-discretionary EA "ELDRA".