Featured Partners
1
Coinbase
Fees (Maker/Taker)
1.99%*/1.99%*
Cryptocurrencies Available for Trade
50+
2
Crypto.com
Fees (Maker/Taker)
0.40%/0.40%
Cryptocurrencies Available for Trade
100+
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Everyone seems to want cryptocurrency these days. But to get in on the action, you’ll need a crypto exchange where you can buy and sell digital currencies, like Bitcoin, Ethereum and Dogecoin.
To help you pick the right one, Forbes Advisor combed through the leading exchange offerings, and reams of data, to determine the best crypto exchanges. All of these, however, come with one caveat: Cryptocurrencies are speculative investments and should only be made if you’re willing to accept wild price swings and a decent risk of losing everything.
1
Fees (Maker/Taker)
1.99%*/1.99%*
Cryptocurrencies Available for Trade
50+
2
Fees (Maker/Taker)
0.40%/0.40%
Cryptocurrencies Available for Trade
100+
0.1%/0.1%
50+
Binance.US, a domestic exchange run by global crypto powerhouse Binance, provides much of its parent company’s pros, including industry-low fees and a broad range of cryptocurrencies available to trade.
For the casual crypto fan, Binance.US offers a simple, form-based platform (under the Buy Cryptocurrency tab) designed for transactions under $10,000 that lets you pretty intuitively buy, sell and convert its tradable cryptocurrencies.
More advanced users, though, can take advantage of a myriad of trading order types, including limit, market and stop-limit, as well as two powerful trading dashboards chock full of important data, like spot price and 24-hour highs, lows and trading volume. New users blissfully unaware of what a candlestick graph is (much less how to read one) may feel overwhelmed and should stick with the Buy Cryptocurrency tab until they get a better lay of the land.
Binance.US’s 50+ available coins may satisfy most crypto investors, but enthusiasts may miss the more than 300 cryptos this domestic version doesn’t offer. In addition, not all U.S. residents currently can access the platform: Those who live in Connecticut, Hawaii, Idaho, Louisiana, New York, Texas and Vermont cannot hold Binance.US accounts.
Unfortunately Binance.US’s educational resources lag behind those offered by the original Binance’s Binance Academy as well as those from slightly more beginner-friendly exchanges, like our pick for newbies, Coinbase.
1.99%*/1.99%*
50+
Coinbase, 2021’s belle of the IPO ball, is the crypto exchange you may be most familiar with if you’re just now getting interested in crypto. That’s for good reason: In addition to the buzz surrounding its exuberant valuation, Coinbase Pro, the robust exchange powering Coinbase, is one of the largest and safest platforms out there. (In fact, Coinbase Pro was a top contender for our Best Overall Cryptocurrency Exchange.)
Coinbase’s 60-odd tradable cryptocurrencies should satisfy most looking to break into the crypto space, like those hoping to hitch their wagons to Bitcoin and Ether, but sadly, you’ll have to go elsewhere to invest in the highly memeable Dogecoin. (Not necessarily a bad thing for your long-term wealth.)
Coinbase stands out for its easy-to-use interface that makes one-time or recurring crypto investments a snap. But this convenience comes at a cost.
Its confusing fee structure charges you more than it would to make the same purchase on the company’s less beginner-friendly Coinbase Pro platform, which is also free to use.
That said, if you’re ready to level up and go to Pro, you’ll probably find lower fees at most other major crypto exchanges, unless you’re trading above a million monthly.
0.1%/0.1%
50+
As with its international industry-leading counterpart, Binance.US offers a still-extensive array of cryptocurrencies, from mainstays like Bitcoin and Ether to BNB, the platform’s proprietary stablecoin. This last one is important because frequent traders may lower trading costs by 25% when converting their investing dollars to BNB.
As with most exchanges, Binance.US rewards high-volume crypto traders with progressively lower transaction fees, though this won’t kick in until you trade at least $50,000 of cryptocurrency within a 30-day period. (Keep in mind its base trading fee may be lower than competitors’ even before you hit that volume.)
Binance.US provides two comprehensive market dashboards, named Simple and Advanced, with real-time market data.
As mentioned in its Best Overall writeup, Binance.US enables multiple order types, including limit, market and stop-limit, which should cover most crypto traders’ needs, as well as over-the-counter (OTC) trading.
You’ll be able to make these trades using U.S. dollars, USDT (a U.S. dollar stablecoin) and Bitcoin. It’s important to note, however, that Binance.US does not currently support margin trading—a risky practice that allows traders to use borrowed money to amplify returns while similarly increasing the amount they can lose. That is why it’s generally not recommended for beginner or even intermediate investors.
U.S. regulators are currently investigating how to handle crypto margin trading, and big names like Coinbase Pro have recently ceased margin trading in the U.S. for retail investors. Those dead set on using margin to trade crypto may look to Kraken, which has slightly higher trading fees that similarly decrease for high-volume traders.
Binance.US does not currently offer futures trading either; this feature is even pending regulatory approval for Kraken in the U.S.
0.16%/0.26%
50+
One of the oldest U.S. crypto exchanges, founded in the Paleolithic era of crypto (2011), Kraken offers a solid range of coins with low fees.
0.40%/0.40%
100+
Crypto.com provides a broad amount of cryptocurrencies—currently more than 70—as well as unique perks, like a crypto rewards debit card for those hoping to optimize for coin-based rewards.
0.25%/0.35% *
40+
0.25%/0.35% *
40+
Similar to Coinbase, Gemini may be best for beginners looking to dip their toes in the crypto waters. Its convenience and easier usability come with a higher (and confusing) fee structure that may be worthwhile as you learn the ropes before graduating to its (or another platform’s) lower-cost spot trading options.
0.2%/0.2%
650+
0.2%/0.2%
650+
Gate.io gives users access to a prodigious more than 600 different coins, according to CoinMarketCap.com, making it better for advanced crypto traders on the hunt for less common altcoins.
0.1%/0.1%
300+
0.1%/0.1%
300+
Another heavy hitter when it comes to the sheer amount of coins available, KuCoin provides access to a wide library of altcoins at low fees.
0.5%/0.5%
20+
0.5%/0.5%
20+
An early entrant to the crypto exchange space, Bitstamp currently provides a rather limited range of cryptos, though these may be enough to satisfy most traders.
0.75%/0.75%
350+
0.75%/0.75%
350+
Boasting a veritable cornucopia of coin options, Bittrex may be best suited to high volume traders who are able to take advantage of its discounted fee schedule.
0.1%/0.1%
Less than 10
0.1%/0.1%
Less than 10
bitFlyer offers a very limited range of coins but very low trading costs, making it a strong fit for those who want to trade a lot (or a little) of a small variety of cryptos.
Forbes Advisor reviewed the top 10 centralized cryptocurrency exchanges on CoinMarketCap.com based on their web traffic, liquidity, trading volume and availability for U.S.-based customers.
We then collected more than 20 data points per crypto exchange to assess important features, like the types of cryptocurrencies available, fees, cybersecurity features (per crypto exchange security rating agency CER.live), user reviews and educational resources, among others. To determine rankings of these exchanges, Forbes Advisor weighted each of these data points in accordance with their importance to different types of cryptocurrency investors.
Picking the best crypto exchange can be a complicated process.
“Important features to consider,” says Stephen McKeon, an associate professor of finance at the University of Oregon, “are fees, security, and whether they list the assets that you are interested in buying.”
First and foremost, you’ll want a secure exchange, says Spencer Montgomery, founder of Unita Crypto Consulting, which helps the uninitiated learn how to start investing in digital currencies.
As crypto has grown more popular and desirable, it’s become an increasingly large target for hackers, and many leading exchanges, including Binance’s international operation and KuCoin, have been hacked recently to the tune of tens of millions of dollars. While exchanges often reimburse those whose coins are stolen through their insurance, you probably don’t want to be in that position to begin with. That’s why it’s important you only invest your money on reputable exchanges, says Montgomery.
You can minimize your risk by spreading your crypto purchases across multiple exchanges or moving your crypto off of an exchange’s default wallet to your own secure “cold” wallet that is not connected to the internet (and therefore much harder to hack), though you’ll need to keep up with your passcode or you could lose access to your crypto forever, he notes. But you’ll also need to look out for withdrawal fees when you move crypto off of an exchange. These often vary by coin type.
Also consider the cryptocurrencies available on a given exchange. You might be perfectly OK using a crypto exchange with only one coin if it’s the only coin you want. Conversely, if you’re a crypto fiend, you may want access to all of the more than 600 available on Gate.io.
But sheer availability of coins isn’t sufficient if there are no trades happening. You’ll ideally want to see hundreds of millions of dollars of daily crypto trading happening to ensure you’ll have enough liquidity, so you can easily trade your coins and dollars when you want or need to.
What’s more, low-trading markets may end up costing you on sales.
“If there’s not a lot of volume and you put an order in, there’s what’s called slippage, where you could be buying at a higher or lower than you want,” says Montgomery. “When there’s a lot of volume you can ensure that you can sell your coins without affecting their price.”
If you’re an advanced crypto trader, you may want to make sure your preferred exchange offers the trading types—like limit orders, which can prevent slippage by setting a hard price—and margin you want. Remember trade types involving the latter are still evolving in the U.S., so different exchanges’ offerings may vary over time.
If you’re just getting started with buying cryptocurrency, look for an easy-to-use platform with thorough educational resources to help you understand this complex, rapidly developing commodity.
And don’t forget about fees. You may be fine with paying a premium for a simple interface when you’re still learning the ropes, but higher fees eat into your eventual returns. High-frequency traders especially want to lower costs.
Finally, don’t assume that an exchange is available in your country, or even state, just because you can access its website. Many state and federal governments are still figuring out how exactly they want to treat cryptocurrencies from a legal and tax standpoint.
A crypto exchange is a marketplace where you can buy and sell cryptocurrencies, like Bitcoin, Ether or Dogecoin.
Crypto exchanges work a lot like brokerage platforms you may be more familiar with. Each offers a portal where you can create different order types to buy, sell and speculate on cryptocurrencies with other users.
Crypto exchanges can be centralized, meaning they are managed by one corporate authority, like a brokerage company that facilitates the security of trades, or decentralized. Decentralized exchanges generally distribute verification powers to anyone willing to join a network and certify transactions, much like cryptocurrency blockchains themselves. This may help increase accountability and transparency as well as ensure an exchange can keep running if something happens to a company running an exchange.
To buy cryptocurrency, you’ll need to create an account with a crypto exchange. You may need to obtain a crypto wallet to hold your cryptocurrency, or your exchange may provide one. Be careful when picking a crypto exchange as some, like Robinhood, provide wallets that do not let you transfer your coins off of the platform. This may create security risks, for instance if Robinhood were hacked, or tax issues if you ever wanted to move your crypto off of the platform. You’d have to sell and rebuy your coins, which might cause you to realize some capital gains.
Once you’ve picked an exchange and a wallet, you’ll be able to buy crypto by transferring U.S. dollars into your account via an ACH or wire transfer. You may even be able to buy crypto with a credit or debit card, though this may carry additional fees, some of which can get quite high, possibly up to 5% of your transaction. Some crypto exchanges will let you use other cryptocurrencies or their own branded stablecoins to fund transactions.
Note: If you want to use crypto to save for retirement, you’ll need to open a self-directed individual retirement account (IRA) or a Bitcoin IRA.
Exchanges have different requirements, often depending on the type of cryptocurrency you want to buy. You may be able to buy fractional shares of coins for pennies or just a few dollars. Be sure to check your chosen crypto exchange’s requirements for the coin you want to buy.
To open a crypto exchange account, visit the exchange’s website or download its app. Each crypto exchange has its own unique registration process, and with some, you may be able to make an account and buy and sell small amounts of crypto without verifying your identity or submitting much sensitive information. But as the industry has evolved, the U.S. government has introduced certain Know Your Customer regulations to prevent money laundering and fraud. In general, you’ll need to provide:
You may also have to verify your identity by submitting a photo or scan of a government-issued ID.
Taylor is an award-winning journalist who has covered a range of personal finance topics in the New York Times, Newsweek, Fortune, Money magazine, Bloomberg, and NPR. He lives in Dripping Springs, TX with his wife and kids and welcomes bbq tips.
John Schmidt is the Assistant Assigning Editor for investing and retirement. Before joining Forbes Advisor, John was a senior writer at Acorns and editor at market research group Corporate Insight. His work has appeared in CNBC + Acorns’s Grow, MarketWatch and The Financial Diet.