Maker and taker fees compared across 8 crypto exchanges

Crypto exchange maker and taker fees compared across eight major platforms for spot and futures trading in 2026.

The trading fee is the one cost you pay on every single order, win or lose, so over a year of activity it quietly becomes one of the biggest line items a trader faces. Most exchanges split that fee into two rates: a maker fee when your order adds liquidity to the book and rests there, and a taker fee when your order removes liquidity by filling against what is already there. A resting limit order is usually the maker side, and a market order that lifts the offer is usually the taker side. The gap between the two, and how far each falls as you trade more, is what separates a cheap venue from an expensive one.

This guide compares the maker and taker fees across eight major crypto exchanges, on both spot and futures, and looks at the first discount each one lets you reach, because the rate you can actually unlock matters more than a headline VIP tier you never will. Every figure was checked against exchange documentation, and where fees vary by product or region, we flag it.

Risk warning: Trading crypto, especially with leverage, carries a high risk of loss. Fees are only one part of the cost of trading. This article is informational and is not financial advice.

The fee comparison

The table is sorted by regular futures taker fee, cheapest first, since the taker rate is the number that hits most market orders. These are standard entry-tier rates before token discounts or VIP steps, checked against each venue’s fee schedule and cross-referenced with independent trackers like CoinGecko’s exchange rankings.

Two numbers can look identical and still cost you differently, because the discount path is where real money is saved or lost. A venue with a slightly higher regular taker but a discount you can actually reach can end up cheaper than one with a lower headline rate you will never qualify for.

What each exchange charges

MEXC is the cheapest on paper, with 0% maker and 0.050% taker on spot and 0% maker and 0.020% taker on futures as a standing policy rather than a promotion. There is no token to hold or threshold to clear for the base rate, and it pairs the pricing with a vast altcoin catalog, though liquidity thins on the smallest listings. If your only goal is the lowest published rate, MEXC leads.

Coinbase is a study in contrast: its perpetual futures are cheap at 0% maker and 0.030% taker, but Advanced Trade spot taker fees run as high as 0.60% at the lowest tier, so it is inexpensive for perps and pricey for casual spot buys. The premium buys regulatory standing and a polished, US-listed platform, and spot fees fall with monthly volume, but casual buyers pay the most of anyone here.

Binance sits at 0.10% spot and 0.020% maker with 0.050% taker on futures such as BTC USDT, and paying futures fees in BNB shaves off a further 10%. Its VIP ladder scales down further with volume or BNB holdings, so heavy traders push the effective rate well below the entry tier. Paired with the deepest liquidity in crypto, it is cheap where it counts for active traders.

OKX matches Binance on futures at 0.020% and 0.050%, with slightly lower spot maker fees at 0.080%, and layers on OKB-based discounts. Its VIP 1 is reachable at 50,000 USDT in assets on the futures side, one of the friendlier asset paths among the majors, which makes its effective rate competitive for a funded account.

Bybit charges 0.020% maker and 0.055% taker on futures, competitive on paper, but its first VIP discount needs $100,000 in assets, so most retail accounts stay on the regular rate. What offsets the distant discount is a fast matching engine and deep books on BTC USDT, so execution quality is part of the value even at the regular rate.

BloFin lists a regular futures rate of 0.020% maker and 0.060% taker on pairs such as BTC USDT, which is at the higher end of this group, but its discount path is the most reachable here. VIP 1 drops the taker to 0.0500% and is available with $50,000 in account assets, half of what the comparable Bybit tier requires, so a funded mid-size account actually reaches a cheaper rate rather than just seeing one advertised. You can compare its published schedule at this low-fee crypto exchange.

Bitget matches BloFin’s 0.020% and 0.060% regular futures rate, but its first VIP badge does not move the taker at all, which only falls at VIP 2, so the first upgrade many traders reach changes nothing on cost. In its favor, it lists more perpetual markets than almost any rival and adds BGB-token discounts, so the value is in the range it offers rather than the lowest single rate.

KuCoin also sits at 0.020% maker and 0.060% taker on futures, with spot around 0.10% and discounts through KCS-token holdings or 30-day volume. It supports up to 100x leverage across a broad perpetual catalog, so it is a capable mid-tier venue even if its fees are not the lowest here.

What it takes to reach your first discount

Most fee round-ups stop at the headline rate, but the tier you can actually reach is where real money is saved. Exchanges gate their first discount behind either a balance of assets held on the platform or a rolling 30-day trading volume, and those thresholds vary enormously. The table below shows the easiest path to a first meaningful discount on each venue, which is the part most comparisons leave out.

The pattern that matters is this: an asset-based path to a discount is rare, and where it exists the threshold decides everything. BloFin and OKX let a $50,000 balance unlock a lower futures rate, Bybit asks for double that, and Binance, KuCoin, and Coinbase mostly gate discounts behind trading volume you have to grind out. If you hold a funded account but do not trade millions a month, the asset-path venues are where your first discount is genuinely within reach rather than just advertised.

The standouts

Different traders optimize for different things, so the fee winner depends on the job:

• Lowest headline fees: MEXC, with 0% maker and 0.020% futures taker as a baseline, no token or threshold required.
• Best reachable discount for a funded account: BloFin, because a $50,000 balance unlocks a 0.050% futures taker where the comparable Bybit tier needs $100,000, so the discount is real rather than aspirational.
• Cheapest where it counts at scale: Binance, pairing a low 0.050% futures taker with the deepest liquidity, so your fills land near the mark as well as cheaply.

The lesson is that “lowest fee” and “lowest fee you will actually pay” are different questions, and the second one depends on your balance and volume.

Questions about trading fees

What is the difference between a maker and a taker fee? A maker order adds resting liquidity to the order book and is usually charged less or even rebated, while a taker order removes liquidity by filling immediately and is charged more. Binance Academy explains the maker-taker split in plain terms, and every rate in the table above is that split rather than a flat commission.

How do I actually pay the lower maker fee? Use resting limit orders instead of market orders where you can, since a limit order that does not fill immediately typically posts as a maker. Kraken’s help center has a clear walkthrough of how maker and taker fees are applied.

Do exchange-token discounts really help? They can, if you already hold or are willing to hold the token. BNB on Binance, OKB on OKX, and KCS on KuCoin all cut fees, but they add token exposure, so weigh the discount against holding an asset you might not otherwise want.

Are there fees beyond maker and taker? Yes. Funding on perpetual futures is a separate periodic charge between longs and shorts, and deposits, withdrawals, and network fees sit outside the trading fee entirely, so the maker-taker rate is not the whole cost of trading.

How to choose on fees

1. Match the rate to your order style. If you mostly post limit orders, weight the maker fee, and if you mostly take liquidity with market orders, weight the taker fee, since that is the one that hits you.
2. Look at the discount you can actually reach. A reachable first tier, like BloFin’s $50,000 path to a 0.050% taker, can beat a lower headline rate locked behind a threshold you will not hit.
3. Separate spot from futures. Some venues are cheap on one and expensive on the other, as Coinbase’s low perp fees and high spot fees show, so compare the product you actually trade.
4. Add up the whole cost. Factor funding, withdrawal, and network fees alongside maker-taker, and use a neutral reference like Investing.com’s crypto section to track the markets you trade while you compare venues.

The bottom line: MEXC wins on the lowest published fees, Binance is cheapest where liquidity matters most, and BloFin offers the most reachable discount for a funded mid-size account, so the right pick depends on your balance, your product, and how you send orders.