Exchanges
List of Exchanges.
Top Cryptocurrency Spot Exchanges
CoinMarketCap ranks and scores exchanges based on traffic, liquidity, trading volumes, and confidence in the legitimacy of trading volumes reported.
10 Best Crypto:
Binance (Binance.us For USA users)
Coinbase
Kraken
eToro
Crypto.com
Uphold
Bisq
Robinhood
Trade Station
Gemini
Good Binance US for US residents.
50+ cryptocurrencies
Reputable
Low fees
Easy website interface
Good security
Bad
Not available in 7 US states
Not ideal for beginners
Poor customer service
Launched in China, in 2017, Malta-based Binance is among the most popular crypto trading exchanges globally. In 2019, Binance USwas launched in San Francisco for US residents.
Binance allows you to buy, sell, and trade cryptocurrency, charging 0.1% on trades. You have the option to earn interest on your coins by staking them for a while and earning an interest rate of between 0.5-10%.
You can purchase crypto using bank deposits, bank transfers, and credit/debit cards, so there are a lot of payment methods to choose from. However, a heavy 4.5% fee is charged on debit card purchases.
Good
See all your coins in one place
Simple UI for beginners
Insured
Buy Bitcoin easily
Good variety of altcoins
Bad
Expensive compared to other crypto exchanges
Few payment options
Custodial wallet
Launched in 2012, in San Francisco, California, Coinbase has accrued over 30 million users worldwide, with users cutting across 103 countries.
This crypto exchange mostly caters to inexperienced investors looking to trade in cryptocurrency, so this is perfect if you’re a beginner who’s looking to learn the ropes without being overwhelmed by graphs and data all over the screen.
Coinbase allows for bank deposits, bank transfers, PayPal, and credit/debit card transfer payments. However, the exchange has rather expensive fees at $0.99-$2.99 for purchases under $200 and an additional 0.5% fee depending on the amount traded.
On matters of security, Coinbase has FDIC insurance that allows users to be fairly compensated if the company ceases to exist, and cold storage is used to set aside 98% of user funds, so theoretically only 2% of your money could ever be stolen at any time.
Great for beginners.
Good
Good security features
Stylish user interface
Reputable site
7 fiat currencies
50+ cryptocurrencies
Bad
Not for beginners
Slow account verification
Poor customer support
Based in the US, Kraken launched in 2011 and relaunched in 2013. The exchange currently offers 50+ cryptocurrencies, so you’ve got plenty of options to trade with.
Kraken offers 3 packages of accounts: starter, intermediate, and pro. The starter account allows for deposits, exchanges, and withdrawal of cryptocurrency.
Great for a beginner.
Fees on trades: between 0.9%-1.5% depending on the amount of the trade. This makes it one of the cheaper crypto exchanges that's a good reputation.
24/7 availability, there are some bad reviews about the service.
You are required to provide ID for any deposit for account verification, which is great for security, and there are 7 fiat currencies accepted at the time of writing (USD, EUR, CAD, GBP, CHF, JPY, and AUD).
Good
No commission on cryptocurrency
Easy-to-navigate user interface
Easy for US crypto investors to sign up
Multiple coins traded (BTC, ETH, etc.)
Bad
High trading fees
Poor customer service
One account-based currency
eToro was established in 2007 in Tel Aviv, Israel, as a social trading exchange. It now has its headquarters in London, with 17 million users globally spread over 100 countries. In 2018, it launched in the US with a cryptocurrency-only platform.
The exchange offers 6 crypto coins (Bitcoin, Bitcoin Cash, Ethereum, XRP, Litecoin, and XLM) for investors. While it’s not a lot, these are the biggest crypto coins that most people are looking to trade, so it makes sense.
On crypto charges worth $1,000, eToro offers a $50 bonus. However, eToro charges a high 0.75%-2.90% trade fee, depending on the trade amount.
Deposits take about 7 days to be cleared for use, with only one standard currency ―USD. All foreign currency deposits and withdrawals are subject to a fee, so it’s definitely best if you’re a US trader.
Good
Good security
Low fees
Huge crypto coin collection
Up to $50 sign-up bonus
Regular promotions
Bad
Complex app system
Poor customer service
Poor privacy
Unclear source of funding
Founded in 2016 and based in Hong Kong, Crypto.com is a popular cryptocurrency platform that allows its users to trade, buy, sell, and spend. The exchange service is most popular for its remarkably low fees of between 0.04%-0.20%.
Crypto.com allows you to have a non-custodial DeFi wallet that has a separate app of its own. With it, you can link that account to your main one for ease of transfer of funds.
The exchange service also offers a program called Crypto Earn where users can stake their coins for a renewable period of 1 or 3 months and earn interest of up to 12%.
Typically, the longer you stake, the more interest you can earn.
In case of inquiries, Crypto.com boasts 24/7 customer care with options of in-app live chat, email, and phone support. However, slow customer service has been the source of their biggest criticisms, with some users reporting calls going unanswered or delayed services.
Crypto.com runs on mobile apps only, so you’d better be an on-the-go trader!
Good
Fast and easy signups
Customizable and intuitive tile desktops platform
A new AutoPilot feature
Intuitive account purchase and funding options
Instant transfers
One-step ordering
Automatic currency conversion
Innovative products designed to make investing more accessible and easier
The Uphold Card
Bad
Slow response from Uphold customer service team.
Compared to some of the leading cryptocurrency exchanges, the spread charged by Uphold is on the higher side.
There have been instances of Uphold locking users out of their accounts.
Users have complained about being unable to login into their Uphold accounts because of issues related to authentication codes.
Uphold has placed a weekly cap on funding user accounts via debit/card.
Users withdrawing BTC, ETH & ERC20 tokens from Uphold will have to pay a fixed fee along with the network fee.
27
National currencies
58
Cryptocurrencies
and Utility Tokens
50
U.S. Stocks
4
Precious Metals
Good
Decentralized exchange
Good security
Variety of payment options
Low fees
Not geo-restricted
Bad
Low liquidity
Open for fraud
Bisq was launched in 2014 and is a decentralized exchange ― servers are distributed all around the world as opposed to having a headquartered central building. In other words, it’s basically impossible for someone to steal your money.
Bisq offers 120+ cryptocurrencies and many fiats too.
Bisq doesn’t need personal user information, as it does not need verification. That’s both good and bad, depending on your motives.
Traders have to agree to what the mode of the payment would be for funds to be accepted.
A trader who makes an order pays a commission of 0.1%, and a trader who takes the offer pays a fee of 0.3%, making it about 0.00005 Bitcoins in fees at the least.
Good
Easy user interface
No commission fee
Good security
Instant access to cash deposit
Takes many fiat currencies
Bad
Funds are not withdrawable
Only 7 cryptocurrencies
No anonymity
Hidden fees
Launched in 2013 and based in the US, Robinhood was started as a broker company for stock traders. However, in 2018 it started offering crypto services and appealed to mostly young and inexperienced investors looking to try crypto trading.
The crypto exchange, which currently offers 7 main cryptocurrencies, receives most of its reputation for its pleasant user-friendly mobile app interface and no fees charged on crypto trades.
Security measures, with two-factor Google authentication to ward off hackers and a device management system that allows you to remove access to other devices that you don’t authorize.
On the downside, although most of the services are free, some users have pointed out hidden charges with claims that fees charged by intermediary companies are delegated to the users.
Robinhood does not offer withdrawable crypto funds, so you’re forced to transfer funds to other external accounts.
Good
Good quality educational tools
Crypto trader community
Advanced tools
Reputable
Bad
Only 4 cryptocurrencies
Poor customer service
Unclear pricing structure
Not a crypto-specific exchange
Based in Florida and founded in 1982, Trade Station has gained popularity due to its longevity and credibility. It is most popular among advanced and intermediate crypto investors.
Trade Station allows users to buy, sell, invest, trade, and earn, offering just 4 cryptocurrency options: Bitcoin, Bitcoin Cash, Litecoin, and USD Coin.
Still, this brokerage offers a 6% interest rate, accruing daily and paid monthly, allowing you to deposit and trade assets to your heart’s content while building up decent interest.
The mobile app comes with an easy-to-navigate interface that you can customize to your preferences, and they have 24/7 customer care, though many reviews allege sloppy customer care.
Good
Good security
Easy-to-use interface
No deposit fees
Good liquidity
Bad
Serves limited countries
Needs a lot of personal information
Higher fees than other exchanges
Launched in 2014 n New York, Gemini is a crypto exchange with 20 cryptocurrencies and over 25 fiat currencies.
Offers a bonus of $10 on sold or bought Bitcoins worth $100, and it also runs a Gemini Earn promotion for users to earn up to 3.5% interest with Bitcoins when they save crypto.
$5,000 daily deposit limit and a $30,000 monthly deposit limit, so it’s not ideal for high rollers. You can also withdraw a maximum of $100,000 daily.