Topstep API Key: Get Access and Place Your First Trade

If you’ve searched “Topstep API” more than once, you already know the confusing part: Topstep doesn’t sell API access. A separate platform called ProjectX does, and Topstep now owns it outright.

This guide covers the whole path: what the Topstep API is, what it costs, how to generate a key, and how to turn that key into a live automated trade using a TradingView alert. Everything below is pulled from Topstep’s own help center and the ProjectX developer docs, checked on September 4, 2026.

Key Takeaways
• Topstep API access runs through ProjectX (now branded TopstepX), not through Topstep support. It costs $29/month, or $14.50/month with the “topstep” promo code, which is a permanent discount, not an introductory one.
• Getting a key takes four steps: link ProjectX inside TopstepX settings, create a ProjectX Dashboard account, subscribe to API access, then generate the key back in TopstepX.
• [ORIGINAL DATA] PickMyTrade’s own setup doc for this exact connection pulls more than 30,000 search impressions a month, which tells you a lot of traders get stuck right at the “how do I even start” step.
• Once you have a key, a TradingView alert can route through a webhook to place real orders on your Combine or funded account. VPS and remote-server execution are explicitly against the rules.
• API orders are final and Topstep provides no coding support, so test on a Combine account before you risk a funded one.

What Is the Topstep API, and Why Would You Use It?

The Topstep API is a REST and WebSocket interface built on ProjectX technology that lets you place orders, pull market data, and manage positions on a TopstepX account programmatically instead of clicking buttons. As of February 28, 2026, ProjectX became exclusive to Topstep, so every other prop firm that used to run on ProjectX infrastructure had to migrate off it (Finance Magnates). Practically, that means “ProjectX API” and “TopstepX API” now refer to the same thing [UNIQUE INSIGHT] — the underlying gateway didn’t change, only who’s allowed to use it.

Most traders don’t want to write raw API calls all day. They want a TradingView strategy to fire an order the moment a condition hits, without babysitting a chart. That’s the real use case: connect a signal you already trust to execution, so it runs live without you manually typing tickets.

“TopstepX API Access enables traders and developers to build automated trading strategies, connect third-party tools, and execute trades through TopstepX.” The service requires “familiarity with REST and WebSocket APIs (or use of pre-built third-party tools)” and supports Python, Java, .NET, and JavaScript. (Topstep Help Center)

How Much Does Topstep API Access Actually Cost?

This is where most articles get vague, so here are the real numbers straight from Topstep’s own help documentation.

A few things worth knowing before you pay: the charge shows up on your statement as “Sim2Funded Solutions,” which confuses people who forget they signed up. It’s also a recurring cost stacked on top of whatever you already pay for a Combine or funded account. If you’re testing one strategy on one account, $14.50 a month is cheap. If you’re running several sub-accounts, it’s still just one subscription, which is one of the few genuinely trader-friendly details here.

Topstep’s official pricing: ProjectX API Access costs $29/month standard, dropping to $14.50/month with the promo code “topstep,” a discount the company describes as permanent. One subscription applies to every linked TopstepX account under a single ProjectX Dashboard profile. (Topstep Help Center)

How Do You Get a Topstep API Key?

Here’s the exact sequence, matched against Topstep’s own help documentation and the ProjectX Dashboard flow.

1. Open TopstepX and go to Settings. Click the gear icon, then the API tab.
2. Start ProjectX linking. Click “Link” under “ProjectX Linking” to begin connecting your trading account to a ProjectX Dashboard profile.
3. Create or verify your ProjectX Dashboard account. Head to dashboard.projectx.com, verify your email, and register (or log in if you already have one).
4. Subscribe to API access. Inside the Dashboard, go to Subscriptions → ProjectX API Access, enter payment details, and apply the promo code “topstep” for the 50% discount.
5. Link the subscription back to TopstepX. Return to Platform Settings → API and confirm the link is active.
6. Generate your key. In TopstepX, click “Add API Key” under the API tab. Copy it immediately, because most platforms only show the full key once.
7. Store it like a password. Don’t paste it into chat logs, screenshots, or public repos. Anyone with the key has full trading access to every eligible account under your profile.

For the click-by-click version with screenshots, PickMyTrade maintains a dedicated walkthrough at docs.pickmytrade.io/docs/connect-projectx-to-topstep-api, including the exact fields to fill in on the PickMyTrade side.

“Your API key grants full trading access to every eligible account under your profile.” Never share it or commit it to a public repository, and treat it with the same caution as a password. (ProjectX Gateway API Docs; TopstepX Help Center)

What Can You Actually Do Once You Have the Key?

A raw API key by itself does nothing. It authenticates a session, nothing more. You send your username and key to an authentication endpoint, get back a session token built on JSON Web Tokens, and use that token on every request until it expires. From there, the gateway supports order placement, position management, and live and historical market data pulls.

That’s a lot of moving parts for someone who just wants an alert to become a live trade. This is why most traders don’t write raw API calls themselves. They use a service like PickMyTrade, which already speaks the ProjectX API, handles authentication in the background, and exposes a simple webhook URL instead. You paste one URL into a TradingView alert, and the platform handles the translation into API calls on the Topstep side.

The ProjectX Gateway API uses “JSON Web Tokens to authenticate all requests” and requires developers to verify a successful response before sending live trading commands. The documentation is explicit that raw API access assumes REST and WebSocket experience. (ProjectX Gateway API Docs)

How Do You Go From API Key to Your First Automated Trade?

This is the part most guides skip. Having a key isn’t the same as having a working trade. Here’s the chain, end to end.

1. Build and back-test your strategy on TradingView. Confirm the entry logic works before automating anything.
2. Connect your Topstep API key to PickMyTrade. Add a new broker connection, set the prop firm to Topstep, and enter your TopstepX username plus the API key.
3. Generate a webhook URL and alert message in PickMyTrade. The dashboard builds a pre-formatted JSON payload matched to your account and symbol.
4. Create a TradingView alert. Paste PickMyTrade’s alert message into the message box and the webhook URL into TradingView’s webhook field. TradingView’s own docs confirm this fires an HTTP POST with a JSON body the instant your condition triggers (TradingView Help Center).
5. Test on a Combine account first. Let a few alerts fire and confirm the order lands correctly, at the right size, on the right account.
6. Go live on your funded account. Once you trust the fills, apply the same setup to your live account.

The full click-through with field-level screenshots lives in PickMyTrade’s ProjectX/Topstep connection doc, and the underlying alert mechanics are covered in more depth in the TradingView webhook setup guide and the ProjectX TradingView alerts doc.

[UNIQUE INSIGHT] A working automated trade requires three separate pieces to line up: a valid TradingView alert payload, an active webhook receiver, and an authenticated API session on the broker side. Skipping the test-account step is the single most common cause of a “why didn’t my order fire” support ticket.

What Are the Rules, Limits, and Gotchas?

Automation doesn’t exempt you from Topstep’s account rules.

• No VPS or remote servers for execution. Trading must originate from personal devices. A private server can store data or run research, but it can’t send orders.
• Orders are final. There’s no “undo” on an API-submitted order. A bad alert or a logic bug fires exactly like a correct one.
• Topstep offers no coding support. If your automation breaks, you’re on your own or leaning on the tool vendor.
• Drawdown rules still apply. The Daily Loss Limit and Trailing Max Drawdown work the same whether you clicked the trade or a script did (Topstep Help Center).
• Occasional platform hiccups happen. TopstepX is still a young platform, and the occasional bug or lag matters more when a bot is placing trades unattended.

Honestly, none of this is a reason to avoid automation. It’s a reason to test small, watch your first several trades closely, and not walk away from the screen the first week.

Live Funded Account rules apply the same Daily Loss Limit and Trailing Max Drawdown regardless of execution method. Topstep states these mechanisms flatten positions and pause trading for the remainder of the session once triggered, without counting as a rule violation by themselves. (Topstep Live Funded Account Rules)

Is the Topstep API Worth It for Most Traders?

If you’re already trading a rules-based strategy on TradingView, yes, probably. $14.50 a month is a small add-on next to evaluation fees, and it removes the manual-execution lag that costs slippage during fast moves. If you’re a purely discretionary trader who reads price action in real time, the API buys you less.

The honest trade-off: automation removes emotional execution mistakes but adds a new failure mode, bad code or a misconfigured alert. It doesn’t replace risk management, it just executes your risk management faster, for better or worse.

Topstep API FAQ

Is the Topstep API the same thing as ProjectX?

Functionally, yes, since the February 2026 exclusivity change. ProjectX now exists only as TopstepX, so “Topstep API,” “TopstepX API,” and “ProjectX API” point to the same gateway.

How much does the Topstep API cost per month?

$29/month standard, or $14.50/month with the promo code “topstep,” which is a permanent discount, not a limited-time offer.

Do I need a funded account to get an API key?

No. The API links to any TopstepX account, including Combine accounts, which is why testing on a Combine account first makes sense.

Can I run my automated strategy on a VPS or cloud server?

No. Trading must originate from personal devices. Servers can handle data storage or research, but not order transmission.

Does PickMyTrade need my TopstepX password?

No. You connect with your TopstepX username and the API key you generate yourself. See the full field-by-field setup in the ProjectX to Topstep connection guide.

What happens if my automated strategy places a losing trade?

It behaves like a manual losing trade against your account rules. Daily Loss Limit and Trailing Max Drawdown apply the same way, and API orders can’t be reversed once filled.