How Much Do Day Traders Make?

Sam Saleh
October 28, 2025

Introduction

If you’re considering day trading, you’re likely doing so to make some money. But how much do day traders actually make? Is day trading really profitable? And how does day trading income work? Let’s find out.

Read on to find out everything you need to know about the average income of day traders, how profits are made, and how you can increase your earning potential as a day trader.

What Is Day Trading?

Day trading is when you buy and sell financial instruments within the same trading day, with the aim of profiting from small price movements. You close all positions before the market closes.

Day trading typically involves technical analysis, chart patterns and price action strategies, which help you to make quick and data-driven decisions.

Although you can trade using your own capital, many day traders opt for prop firms and trade with simulated funds or funded accounts. This can help minimise risk, as with day trading prop firms, you only lose what you put in. However, there are usually strict risk management rules to stick to, as well as certain criteria to meet to pass the initial evaluation stage.

You can learn more about prop trading in our helpful guide to prop trading.

Types of Day Traders

One size does not fit all when it comes to day trading. There are a range of different types of day traders, specialising based on strategies, markets and timeframes.

Some of the different types include scalpers, momentum traders, swing traders (short-term) and news traders.

Scalpers – Can make dozens of trades a day, requiring fast execution. Usually make small profits per trade..
Momentum traders – Trade assets or stocks showing strong trends, riding price movements for quick gains. Positions held from minutes to hours.
Swing Traders (short-term) – Can hold positions for a few hours to capture short-term trends, focusing on technical analysis/ market patterns.
News traders – Trade based on news or economic announcements, requiring fast decisions and risk management.

How Day Trading Income Works

Unlike salaried careers, day trading profits depend on performance instead of hours worked. This means that if your trades don’t perform well, you could end up with nothing.

Some factors that can affect the amount you earn day trading include:

Trading capital – The more capital you have, the larger the position sizes, which means the potential for higher gains
Leverage – This increases profit potential but may also increase losses
Risk management – Consistently cutting losses and letting winners run helps maintain profitability
Market traded – Forex and futures often offer higher leverage and liquidity than stocks.
Experience level – When starting out, you may earn less – but as you grow your skills, you may become consistently profitable.

How Much Can You Make Day Trading With a Prop Firm?

Prop trading is one of the fastest ways to profit from prop trading. With prop firms like Hola Prime, you can trade simulated capital of up to $300,000 and retain up to 95% of your profits.

How Much Do Day Traders Make Per Day or Month?

Experience Level	Average Daily Profit	Notes
Beginner (0–1 year)	-$10 to $50	You may not earn much to begin with (until you grow your skills)
Intermediate (1–3 years)	$50–$250	Some begin to find consistent setups
Professional (3+ years)	$250–$1,000+	Often trading with larger accounts or prop firm funding

Please note that these figures are just for an example. Profits can vary significantly depending on market conditions, capital, and your trading experience and skillset.

Here’s an example of how much you may make per month as a day trader:

As a beginner, you may not earn much to begin with – but working with a prop firm means you will not lose more than you put in. As your confidence and skill levels grow, you may start to find consistent setups – and you can start trading with larger accounts and get more prop firm funding.

Taxes on Trading Income

If you’re based in the United States, any trades held less than a year are taxed as ordinary income. The rate you get taxed depends on your tax bracket, but you may be taxed up to 37%. Long-term capital gains aren’t usually relevant for day traders, as you’ll be closing positions on the same day.

One option is to qualify for Trader Tax Status (TTS) – which can allow deductions for expenses such as trading software, home office costs, subscriptions and more.

Make sure you keep accurate trade logs – this is a must for IRS reporting.

Tip for global readers: Tax rules differ by country. Always check local regulations or consult a tax professional to optimize your trading profits.

Can You Make a Living as a Day Trader?

Yes, you can make a living as a day trader. However, this will not happen overnight. Making a living through day trading takes skills and emotional control, and many traders spend a year or two developing their techniques before seeing sustainable profits.

Many day traders choose to start part-time or use simulated funding through prop firms to build experience without financial risk.

Tip – to succeed in making a living as a day trader, start treating day trading like a business. Track your performance, manage risk effectively, and focus on steady growth as opposed to quick wins.

How Can You Earn More as a Day Trader?

Focus on one market (e.g forex or indices) to build expertise
Keep a trading journal to analyse what works
Limit daily losses to protect capital
Avoid overtrading (quality over quantity)
Join a prop firm for access to larger capital and profit splits

For more tips on how to earn more, check out our futures day trading strategies.

Getting Started With Funded Trading

If you’re ready to start day trading but don’t have much capital to work with, consider going with a funded program.

With Hola Prime, you can:

Trade simulated capital up to $300,000
Keep 95% of profits
Access flexible trading conditions and quick payouts

Apply for Hola Prime’s forex account today to start trading with simulated capital.

FAQs

1. What is the average income for day trading?

Income can vary greatly. Many new traders can expect to earn a handful of hundreds to a few thousand dollars a month, while a more experienced trader or prop trader trading with larger amounts may earn several thousand. It will depend on skill, discipline, risk management, and consistency.

2. Do day traders make money?

Not all of them. While studies show a small percentage of all day traders to be consistently profitable, the differences are often within strategy, discipline, and emotional control, not necessarily account size.

3. How do prop traders make money in day trading?

Prop traders trade with the capital of a firm, rather than their own personal capital. They are often paid a portion of the profits they generate for the firm, which can be from 70% to 90%, depending on the firm. This arrangement enables prop traders to receive more profit from their trading than a new trader with a 5-10K account.

4. What is going to affect a trader’s income the most?

Experience level, market conditions, trading strategy, and a level of risk management level are important. Consistency is more important than a large win — the traders who manage their losses and trade their plan are always more profitable than the trader seeking a quick profit.

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Disclaimer: All information provided on this site is for educational purposes only, related to trading in financial markets. It is not intended as financial advice, business or investment recommendation, or as an opportunity or recommendation to trade any investment instruments. Hola Prime only provides an educational environment to traders, including tools, materials and simulated trading platforms which have data feed provided by Liquidity Providers. The information on this site is not directed at residents in any country or jurisdiction where such distribution or use would be contrary to local laws or regulations.