The best crypto exchange is a title that many have bestowed upon themselves, but as a user, how do you know which ones to trust?
This guide is designed to make your life a little easier in your search for a safe crypto exchange by whittling out the weak, and focusing on the best. The hard part even for our team in delivering this information to you, is what actually makes the best crypto exchanges stand out from the rest.
- Coinbase – Best for Beginners
See More Details… | Go To Coinbase - eToro – Best Crypto Exchange With Multi Asset
See More Details… | Go To eToro - Gemini – Great Security & Regulation
See More Details… - Crypto.com – Huge Range Of Cryptocurrency Offered, All With Low Fees
See More Details… - Binance – Amongst The Cheapest Crypto Exchanges With A High Trust Rating
See More Details… - Uphold – Fee free deposits and a user friendly platform
See More Details… - StormGain – Strong Platform With Advanced Trading & Futures Options
See More Details… - Coinjar – Flat rate fees
See More Details… - CEX.IO – High Liquidity & Strong Customer Support
See More Details… - Luno – Low Fee Crypto Exchange
See More Details… - Coincorner – Cashback in BTC on Online Shopping
See More Details…
There will be many variances in the different lists put together across other trusted sources depending on the point of view of the reviewer. To make things more streamlined and consistent, we have settled on a few vitally important metrics, and then fed in user reviews and feedback from across the available resources.
The full breakdown of how and what criteria we use for the best crypto exchange can be found in a separate section below.
Coinbase – the best crypto exchange for beginners & as a PLC, additional regulatory oversight
Founded in 2012, Coinbase is one of the largest and best crypto exchanges in the World. The crypto exchange users have also pegged it as one of the most trustworthy providers of digital assets. With such a prestigious accolade, Coinbase has built up a massive 68 million clients and has provided a secure and reliable cryptocurrency exchange over the past 10 years.
Considering from a liquidity perspective, the quarterly trade volume on Coinbase has reached $462 billion and continues to build steam.
UK citizens are able to buy Bitcoin from Coinbase with a variety of different payment methods. Credit or debit card and bank transfer are most popular, and you are also able to purchase Bitcoin in GBP or EUR.
Coinbase is suitable for beginners and also more seasoned crypto enthusiasts. The basic interface is user friendly, and any novice should be able to pick it up in no time with a Coinbase minimum deposit from just $2. Beginners and more advanced crypto traders are able to trade a wide variety of different crypto currencies.
Coinbase Pro is the more advanced version of the crypto platform and offers even more choices in crypto. This Pro platform is insurance-backed and more secure. This feature may peak the interests of Pro traders more so than beginners.
Another subsidiary of Coinbase is Coinbase Earn, which is a platform where users are able look into current block chain projects and be given the chance to Earn crypto currency. Traders who have more of an interest in mining and earning crypto currencies would find this feature useful to have.
The only real downside to Coinbase as a cryptocurrency exchange would be that there have been some reports of difficulty in reaching customer service representatives and of fraudsters targeting users of the platform to try and lure them into giving up confidential information. You would typically be advised on any ‘soft’ exchange to consider an external hardware wallet if you would like to increase security and move your assets off exchange. To do this is not a huge undertaking in terms of time or effort, but does involve investing in a hardware wallet should you deem necessary.
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eToro – Best Multi Asset Crypto Exchange & trading Platform
eToro, a prominent player in the online financial brokering world offers many different trading markets and cryptocurrency is just one of them. Their extensive crypto trading platform also offers traditional trading in the form of Stocks, Indices, ETFs, Commodities and Forex. With millions of users worldwide and access to many major jurisdictions, it is popular with all different levels of traders, from the casual beginner trader, to a much more experienced trader.
Beginners wishing to trade cryptocurrency may find eToro a user friendly platform to enable them to trade up to 94 different pairs of cryptocurrency. These cryptocurrencies can be traded against various different altcoins or fiat currencies.
eToro also offers demo trading accounts which may boost the confidence of even the newest traders. You can find here the detailed review of this online trading giant.
Another standout feature of eToro is its social trading community. Beginner traders are able to sort and filter our particular investors’ portfolios and successfully mimic their trading strategies. The filtering allows the traders to set strict parameters, such as the return on investment, how much acceptable risk, and also place suitable stop losses. The social aspect of the trading platform means that traders can come together to share different ideas and strategies all with or without leverage.
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Gemini – Great security & regulation
New York based firm Gemini, founded by the Winklevoss twins, is a regulated cryptocurrency exchange that UK customers can access. Crypto traders are able to buy, sell and store Bitcoin and other popular Cryptocurrency. GBP and other fiat currencies are easily deposited into Gemini via debit or credit card and bank transfer via CHAPS, or SWIFT and Faster Payments.
Gemini is becoming one of the most popular options for cryptocurrency trading. One of their standout features would be a secure wallet, a user friendly mobile app, a custody service, and off-exchange crypto trades.
Gemini’s security features are held in high regard by its users, and this is attributed to their high security measures. The Gemini team have put safety measures at the forefront of this platform, and have ensured that their customers are fully protected with a number of unique security features, such as multi-signature withdrawal processes, encryption, cold wallet storage, and two factor authentication.
Zero deposit fees for transfers to fiat currencies and cryptocurrencies is also a pretty big bonus, although there is a fee of 3.49% with debit card purchases.
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Crypto.com – great range of 250+ cryptocurrency to trade, and one of the cheapest crypto exchanges available
Crypto.com has over 1 million users worldwide, including the US, UK and Australia. Crypto.com uses Tradingview which is a commonly known charting software that experienced traders should be familiar with which is a nice touch. Inexperienced traders can also use this user-friendly cryptocurrency exchange easily, and can be set up to trade almost immediately.
The platform offered by Crypto.com includes the option of a user friendly mobile app, available for iOS and android, as well as the usual desktop support. We all know how important it is to be able to check on trades on the go, so to be able to access your crypto exchange on your mobile phone is a necessity more than an advantage.
The app also offers excellent trade incentives, such as zero fees for purchasing Bitcoin via the app. Zero credit card fees are also applicable when purchasing via the app. New users can also benefit from a great introductory offer of 0% trading fees for the first 90 days which is a nice way to get integrated within the ecosystem.
Investors can branch out and exchange their cryptocurrency to other digital currencies such as XML, XTC, ATOM but in total, the range of more than 250 crypto available to trade is considerably higher than even that of other mainstays such as Coinbase Pro. If you are looking for one of the best crypto exchanges for the pure range of options available, then Crypto.com may be worth you taking a more detailed look at.
Crypto.com makes use of a “maker and taker” model for the exchange so they are able to offer far better exchange rates in general than some of their competitors. Their rates vary with the volume of trades executed in a 30 day period. It starts at an already competitive rate of 0.25% and then will reduce according to the volume of trades so if you are an active trader in and out of positions, this can be a plus.
The wider ecosystem offered by Crypto.com is pretty substantial and allows for staking, borrowing, trading, buying & selling, plus more all within one place. If you would like to get your hands on the card offered for use in day to day purchases/activity then this can be provided either with a fee, or by staking various amounts of CRO. The native token of crypto.com, CRO can be used throughout the platforms for various incentives if you are prepared to stake them and has performed reasonably well against competitor benchmarks over the past years.
If you are still curious about how to decide when to buy cryptocurrency, and what simple trends you can consider, we have put together a simple guide for you linked above.
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Binance – best crypto exchange for Low Fees & a high trust factor
Binance is a trusted crypto exchange that can help exchange fiat to cryptocurrency and is one of the best for giving users a trusted and first entry into the world of crypto.
The trading platform itself is designed to provide support for more experienced crypto traders that use charting software, and are able to place orders with this knowledge and experience. This does not mean that inexperienced users are not welcome to use the Binance platform.
New traders can easily set up an account within minutes and can start trading relatively simply. Binance offer a rather unique KYC (Know-Your-Customer) processing feature, that will allow the platform to fact find about the new user and allow almost instant trading. We all know in the world of cryptocurrency time is of the essence.
You can trade fiat to crypto currency on Binance, and it supports GBP and EUR for UK traders.
Binance allows users to deposit money through SEPA and Faster Payment, but there is a small charge. There is also a withdrawal fee. Binance has made a very good name for themselves, and are trusted by many users due to their stability and competitive exchange rates.
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Uphold – Fee free card deposits & a user friendly platform
Founded in 2015, Uphold is a digital currency exchange that offers both fiat and digital currencies. Uphold also offers US stocks and commodity trading. UK users are drawn to this currency exchange because of their “Anything for Anything” attitude, which means traders are able to trade and exchange cryptocurrency for stocks, commodities or traditional fiat currencies. Another unique feature of Uphold is allowing users a debit card linked to their cryptocurrency accounts so they can pay for everyday purchases using their chosen asset.
Like most cryptocurrency exchange platforms, Uphold is user friendly and visually appealing. It is straightforward to set up and beginner users can start exchanging immediately. The variety of different products available. Depositing funds, buying and exchanging, selling and withdrawing, and viewing portfolios isn’t complicated and can be done within minutes of setting up your account.
The 0% trading commissions is a big bonus. There are also zero deposit fees when utilising a bank transfer, and zero withdrawal fees to draw cash out. The prices associated with each asset are locked-in pre-trade including a spread. Uphold does not have any hidden fees, with the “what you see is what you get” mantra will ensure that you are getting the best deals when buying crypto without fees.
All that being said, whilst the fee structure is clear, the spreads are higher than average and with just over 70 cryptocurrency assets available, this a slightly more limited range than some of the other best crypto exchanges.
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Stormgain – Crypto exchange with advanced trading and futures stacks up pretty well
StormGain, like many other popular crypto exchanges, is available in desktop format and also iOS and Android mobile apps. It is geared towards advanced users with more of an in depth trading experience.
The investing platform has many different trading tools, and allows traders to investigate the world of crypto futures contracts. These can allow users to possibly leverage up to 200x their investment. StormGain caters to investors buying, selling, exchanging crypto, but also considers users who prefer to purchase and hold onto cryptocurrency long term.
The whole process of being a customer with StormGain is all quite user friendly. Sign up and registration is a rapid process, so you can start trading and exchanging crypto almost immediately. Depositing money into StormGain is also relatively simple, with all major fiat currencies supported and other payment methods such as Visa and Mastercard (both credit and debit cards) also accepted.
Once you are a client of StormGain, there are loyalty programmes, and also a cloudminer tool, which allows you to mine crypto from the mobile app. Demo crypto trading is also a fantastic tool which allows more early stage users to adjust to the world of crypto before committing.
All around, whilst StormGain wont necessarily hold the crown as the best crypto exchange, the overall trading experience and options provided can still compete amongst some of the bigger players.
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Coinjar – FCA registered with a flat rate trading fee
CoinJar UK is a crypto exchange that was founded in Australia. They have since expanded to a UK customer base. CoinJar is FCA registered and offers a secure wallet, a crypto debit card and a sophisticated trading platform which is available on desktop and mobile iOS and Android apps.
Coinjar UK has charges a flat 1% trading fee, which is higher than other exchanges, although there are no fees to deposit money into the exchange. CoinJar UK uses Faster Payment to deposit funds and they do not change a fee for withdrawal.
CoinJar UK is a good regulated crypto exchange, with a flat fee, and the ability to send and receive payments from external accounts and other CoinJar accounts. The exchange platform has built in price alerts and secure wallets for your currency.
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CEX.IO – High security & high liquidity exchange with good customer support
CEX.IO is a crypto exchange that allows users to instantly buy bitcoin via their website, or their intuitive mobile app, availible on both iOS and android operating systems. Depositing money into CEX.IO could not be simpler, as it uses all the familiar payment methods such as credit, debit cards, bank transfers and Skrill.
Many major fiat currencies are also accepted, such as USD, GBP, EUR and RUB. They provide a 24/7 support team if you do come into any difficulties. CEX.IO boast a high liquidity order book with relatively low spreads.
CEX.IO also allows you to instantly buy and sell crypto, which in the ever moving climate of the crypto market is definitely a bonus. This exchange also allows you to withdraw your profits in fiat format onto either a VIsa or a Mastercard, again pretty much instantly.
CEX.IO boasts a strong and stable crypto exchange with no hacked accounts or thefts since its official launch in 2013. This of course is expected of any reliable crypto exchange, and users should rest assured knowing this exchange is legally compliant.
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Luno – low transaction fees & fee free deposit
Luno, a Singaporean based cryptocurrency exchange, with users in over 60 countries worldwide. Luno currently has over 6 million users, and has a whopping 17 billion USD transactions. Luno is popular with UK users who like to invest in Bitcoin, or various other altcoins, like XRP, Litecoin and Ethereum.
Luno’s user platform is easy to use, and beginners shouldn’t find any problem with setting up an account and instantly starting to trade. Bank transfers is the preferred method of topping up your account with Luno accepting most of the major fiat currencies. Luno also offers an online wallet for their users, they can use this to temporarily store their crypto currency before moving it to a more secure wallet.
Luno’s platform is geared more towards beginner users rather than high level experienced traders. It provides a very good introduction towards crypto currency exchange and to all digital currencies. The app is available on iOS and android, which is handy to have on the go.
Uk residents can benefit from a trading fee of between 0% to 0.1%, which is very competitive if you compare it other popular flat fee exchanges. There are also 0 zero fees for depositing and withdrawing funds to a local bank, which is always a bonus.
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CoinCorner (Previously CoinFloor) – cashback in BTC on online purchases
CoinCorner, one of the more established and oldest crypto exchanges in the UK. It was established in 2013 and has become almost a household name to buy and sell popular cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin. The main 4 fiat currencies used by Coincorner are GBP, USD, EUR and PLN.
Users are able to deposit these currencies into Coincorner by bank transfer, SEPA, wire transfers, or Faster Payments and there is also the ability to earn cashback in BTC on your online purchases with many different reputable retailers.
Another great feature of Coincorner would be the Auto-Buy Bitcoin tool. This tool allows users to automatically top up their accounts and deposit funds to place reoccurring orders.
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Best Crypto Exchange Criteria
When deciding on the best crypto exchange for yourself, you may want to think about some of the variances of a centralized vs decentralized exchange. You will also have to carefully consider some of the specifics of what you are planning to do and how you plan to do it. See some of the main criteria we use for rating any crypto exchange below:
- Coin support : ensuring that the particular coin or token you are considering is supported. Whilst in the below list of best crypto exchanges you will find the total number of coins supported, you will not find the full list of each of them (for reasons owing mainly to space and changing support)
- Trading support : Whether the type of trading you are intending is supported. Certain exchanges will allow futures, options, leveraged trading, as well as direct purchases or sells. But not all will do everything. This list cannot tell how you intend to trade, but we will provide an overview of the best crypto platform for each category to help you along.
- Country approval : whilst we will include those exchanges that provide relatively wide country approval, there are certain countries which will typically require slightly different approval processes by local regulators and as such we will break them out separately below. If you are looking for the best crypto exchange in Malaysia, Thailand, ….. blah blah , you can jump to a more relevant page here and save some time.
- Charting detail : Each crypto trading platform and exchange will provide access to charting of some kind, but the level of detail and functionality can vary quite considerably. If you are considering trading using technical analysis or indicators, your idea of the best crypto exchange could quite well be different from a buy and hodler.
- DeFi functionality : if you are considering staking, farming, liquidity pools, or borrowing against your existing crypto assets then you will want to cross check the support of these types of functions as they are not by default provided by all crypto exchanges. We have included the best crypto exchange for DeFi, but there are more granular details to consider.
Criteria for the best crypto exchanges relevant to all
- Technology – The foundation on which an exchange is built is a pretty important starting block. Login authentication should be 2 factor, the site should have appropriate SSL, and ideally customer deposits should be stored offline.
- Security – Choosing a crypto exchange that has a top line level of security is of the utmost importance. This is in line with one of the most important criteria we are considering when it comes to ranking the best exchanges for crypto. If your funds are not secure, then the price movements of underlying token are not so relevant. Safety first.
- Transparency – The level of transparency of the owners or UBOs of any crypto project are important considerations, but particularly when it comes to a crypto exchange. Those that are willing to disclose more information than may be legally required are showing a propensity for transparency which helps provide more reassurance that they can be trusted. We will prioritize those with a visible team, and visible financials.
- Liquidity – Liquidity in this sense is referring to the total amount of trading volume that takes place during a given time period. A higher liquidity crypto exchange, is usually better for a few reasons. Firstly it can ensure it is easier for you to get in and out of positions at the optimal pricing. High liquidity crypto exchanges will also usually have this volume being transacted because they have a large user base who are applying a level of social trust score by continuing to execute trades there.
Then, there is the consideration that usually high liquidity will mean that the exchange is performing well financially and could be deemed more stable in that sense. This is due to the fact that a larger amount of transactions would equal a larger amount of fees being taken by the exchange on a daily basis. - Fees – This is always going to be a ranking factor in any of our best platforms lists. The all around fee structure of the crypto exchange is important, as this is where you can make the small gains in percentages of fees in every transaction add up significantly over time. Whilst you can never be 100% certain on the price of your particular crypto when it is time for you to sell, you can be close to certain on the fees you will have to pay to complete the transaction. Deposit and withdrawal fees are also going to be considered in ranking the best cryptocurrency exchange.
- User experience – A vital criteria for ranking the best crypto exchanges, as without a good user experience, many platforms will fall flat on their faces as newer competitors emerge. An interface that is simple to use, yet layered with additional features is going to rank out above one which does the absolute minimum to cater to the user experience. That is unless the other criteria are not being met.
All being said, choosing the best crypto exchange is no easy task and there will be many that may well disagree with the list we have put together. These differences are one of the reasons that cryptocurrency exists and continues to grow, as there are many alternative views and models being catered for.
The sheer volume of tokens and coins available in the cryptocurrency ecosystem is a clear example as to the number of differing opinions in the industry that diverge on specific points and that should be considered an advantage as opposed to a negative. That is even before you start considering the view of those outside of cryptocurrency.
Healthy debate and opinion is welcome, and whilst we hope you will gain a lot of value from what we have put together above, what cannot be debated is that you should choose the best exchange for your needs.
MINIMUM DEPOSIT : $2
COINS SUPPORTED : 100+
FEES : SPREADS 0.5%
SUMMARY : Best for beginners