Kraken is a robust crypto exchange offering sophisticated trading features, including margin trading, top-notch security measures, and 24/7 customer support. It has a self-custody hardware wallet (aka cold storage) and an NFT marketplace with zero gas fees.
Business Insider's personal finance team compared Kraken to the best crypto exchanges. We found its security and library of educational content to be an industry leader.
Pros and Cons
Kraken Pros
- Beginner-friendly interface with advanced trading tools
- Variety of educational resources and tutorials
- Institutional services (OTC trading, WebSockets API, one-on-one consultations)
Kraken Cons
- Kraken futures and staking are not available in the US
- High fees for regular accounts
- Not available to residents of New York and Washington
Open an Account
$10
1/5%; 0% - 0.40% maker/taker fees
- Can exchange 200+ crypto assets
- Margin trading available
- Variety of educational resources and tutorials on cryptocurrencies
- Over-the-counter (OTC) trading and account management support available
- Kraken's futures and staking isn't currently available in the US
- Not available to residents of New York and Washington
- Features: More than 100 cryptocurrencies, margin and futures trading, OTC trading, account management for HNW individuals and institutional clients, multiple trading platforms, and educational resources.
- App store rating: 4.7 iOS/ 4.2 Android
Compare Kraken
$2
0.50% spread for buy/sell transactions; transaction fee from $0.99 to $2.99; up to 0.60% for Coinbase Pro and Coinbase Advanced Trade
- Buy, sell, or store more than 250 cryptocurrencies like bitcoin and dogecoin
- Educational investment resources, mobile access, digital storage, and customer support
- Low account minimums
- Can earn rewards for certain cryptocurrencies
- Coinbase card lets you spend crypto or USD anywhere and earn crypto rewards; can deposit your paycheck into your account and convert from USD to crypto with no fees
- Pay more for lower balances
- High trading and transaction fees
- Limited staking options
Coinbase is one of the best investment platforms for crypto trading, staking rewards, and crypto storage. The crypto exchange offering nearly 250 coins and tokens and is great for active real investors who can utilize Coinbase's services, account options, and investment tools.
Coinbase- Promotion: Get $5 of bitcoin when you join Coinbase; earn up to $200 when you set up a new account and make your first purchase
- Features: Coinbase Earn rewards, Coinbase Pro advanced account, user-controlled storage, stablecoins, staking, and institutional trading tools.
- App store rating: 4.7 iOS/ 4.1 Android; Coinbase Pro: 4.7 iOS/ 4.1 Android
- Awards: Named Best Prime Broker in Hedgeweek's annual European Digital Assets Awards
$100 (in the USA and UK)
1% when you buy or sell a crypto asset; 0% stocks and ETFs, $2 monthly fee on uninvested cash if your cash balance is under $5k
- Can trade bitcoin, dogecoin, ethereum, Litecoin, and a dozen other popular virtual assets; stock and ETF trading available
- eToro's Copy Portfolios let you follow and copy the portfolios of experienced traders to enhance your investment returns
- Several educational resources
- Web and mobile app access
- Not available to residents of New York, Minnesota, Nevada, Puerto Rico, Tennessee, Hawaii, Guam, American Samoa, Northern Marianas, and the US Virgin Islands (see a full list of its geographic restrictions here)
- Limited selection of cryptocurrencies (eToro USA currently offers over 25)
eToro USA is a popular cryptocurrency exchange and investment platform that is best suited for beginners interested in automatic investing tools, Smart Portfolio options, crypto wallet storage, and more. But its crypto selection is fairly limited compared to other crypto exchanges.
eToro USA- Earn 4.90% APY on uninvested cash but if your cash balance is under $5k, you'll pay a $2 monthly fee
- Features: Dogecoin and more cryptocurrencies, CopyTrader system, Copy Portfolios, and eToro Trading Academy
- App store rating: 4.6 iOS/ 4.3 Android
- Cash is FDIC insured for up to $5 million with partner banks
$0
0.00% to 0.40% maker/taker fees (additional 0.5% fee on mobile trades)
- Want to trade 70+ digital assets
- Value account security and want your assets securely stored and insured against theft
- Features like faster order execution, crypto trading pairs and auctions, and charting tools
- Gemini Credit Card
- Crypto derivatives trading not available in the US
- Only stakes ether and polygon assets
- High trading fees and complex fee structure
- Promotion: Receive $15 of bitcoin (BTC) when a referral exchanges $100 or more within the first 30 days of creating an account.
- Features: Trading options for beginners, experts, and institutions; Gemini Earn, Gemini Wallet, and $200 million insurance in Gemini Custody.
Kraken Overview
Kraken is one of the oldest and best cryptocurrency exchanges. The global exchange allows users to buy, sell, store, and manage hundreds of cryptocurrencies and NFTs in one place. For as low as $10, you can easily diversify your crypto portfolio and learn the ins and outs of the decentralized trading industry.
Novice cryptocurrency traders and experienced investors can benefit from Kraken's easy-to-use interfaces, generally low trading fees, educational resources, and Pro trading platform. Technically, Kraken offers futures trading, but it's unavailable in the U.S. Staking is also unavailable.
Additional trading and asset management services are available for institutions and high-net-worth individuals. These include account management, one-on-one consultation services, over-the-counter (OTC) trading, and expert market insights.
Ways to Invest with Kraken
Let's explore how Kraken works.
Kraken Investing Account
Beginners and intermediate crypto traders can open a regular Kraken personal account to access hundreds of cryptocurrencies, including popular ones like Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Cardano. You can track, trade, and manage your account on web or mobile.
Kraken's Buy Crypto tool allows investors to buy, sell, or convert certain crypto and cash combinations. The "convert" function can be especially handy for investors who want to convert one type of coin to another directly. Certain geographic restrictions may apply, and cash-to-cash pairs are unavailable in the U.S.
One of Kraken's strongest features is its comprehensive library of educational content. It includes many helpful webinars, blog posts, and the Crypto 101 video series. However, most of Kraken's educational content is already available on its website without an account.
A regular Kraken account gets you a free offline, self-custody wallet for securely storing and managing digital coins and NFTs.
The wallet supports multi-chains (including Bitcoin, Ethereum, Dogecoin, Solana, and Polygon), DeFi Deposits, and large NFT collections.
While suitable for basic crypto trading and learning, a regular Kraken account has limited trading tools and features. Plus, trading fees are higher compared to Kraken Pro pricing.
Kraken users generally suggest that new account holders upgrade their verification level to Kraken Pro soon after opening an account to capitalize on lower trading fees and get access to more features. There are no additional fees involved in upgrading to Pro status.
Kraken Pro
Kraken Pro, the crypto exchange's advanced trading platform, offers expert trading tools, additional order types (e.g., market, limit, stop-loss, and take-profit orders), margin trading, and more.
With Kraken's margin trading options, you can leverage or borrow up to five times your account balance to place more trades on up to 30+ assets. Kraken margin services include access to advanced order options and an intuitive trading platform.
Kraken Pro is the highest verification level on the platform. To upgrade your personal Kraken account to a Kraken Pro account, you must first be verified for Intermediate limits, add two-factor authentication, and then click the "Get Verified" tab on the Settings page under the Verification tab. Under account details, select "Get higher limits." It can take up to two days to get a response.
Kraken Institutional
Kraken says its OTC trading services are best for institutions and high-net-worth individuals (investors with at least $1 million) who need to place larger orders that might be too disruptive for the open market/Kraken exchange.
This account option includes expert market insights, staking, full support for all Kraken exchange-listed crypto assets and fiat currencies, one-on-one expert consultation services, and 24/7 global support.
Kraken offers another option for advanced traders: an account management program with one-on-one support from a Kraken account manager.
Finally, the exchange's offerings include a WebSockets API that provides real-time market alerts, public key support, and offline cold storage for your crypto assets.
Kraken Fees
When trading cryptocurrencies using Kraken's regular platform, you'll be charged a flat 1.5% fee. Additional fees may apply depending on the funding method.
Kraken Pro uses a cryptocurrency maker/taker fee structure based on a 30-day trading volume. The more you trade, the lower the fees. Maker fees range from 0.00% to 0.25%, and taker fees range from 0.10% to 0.40%.
Stablecoins, pegged tokens, and FX pairs have maker/taker fees ranging from 0.00% to 0.20%. Margin fees typically include 0.02% for opening and a rollover fee of 0.02% per four hours.
Kraken Trustworthiness
Kraken has a D- rating with the Better Business Bureau. The BBB evaluates companies with a grade range of A+ to F, indicating that Kraken has underperformed in some aspects of its customer support services.
The SEC filed charges against Kraken, claiming the company did not register its crypto staking-as-a-service program and sold unregistered securities. In February 2023, Kraken paid a $30 million fee to settle the lawsuit.
On November 20, 2023, the SEC filed more charges against Kraken, saying it was operating as an unregistered securities exchange and commingling customer crypto assets and cash with the company's own to pay company expenses. Kraken denied these allegations. These charges are still under investigation.
Kraken Alternatives
Here's how Kraken compares to similar online exchanges.
Kraken vs. Coinbase
Kraken and Coinbase are neck and neck regarding available cryptocurrencies, with Coinbase offering 250+ coins and tokens. Both platforms offer a basic version and a Pro version. But they offer different fees and services.
Kraken offers an intuitive interface with straightforward trading solutions, making it the better option for beginners. Kraken also has more comprehensive customer support, with 24/7 available customer service through email, online chat, or phone call. However, beginners will pay higher fees on trades.
Advanced traders will prefer Coinbase's robust selection of trading products and features. There are multiple advanced trading platforms on Coinbase: Coinbase Advanced and Coinbase One. Coinbase is also better for private clients looking for dedicated support, enhanced security, and curated services.
Kraken and Coinbase are both under investigation by the SEC.
Kraken vs. Binance
Kraken and Binance.US both provide access to features like over-the-counter (OTC) trading. But you'll take advantage of a wider selection of trading platforms at Kraken. However, futures are not available in the US or US territories.
Binance.US only supports 130+ cryptocurrencies, significantly less than Kraken's selection. Binance.US also has a more limited selection of resources for beginners. So, if you're a new or intermediate trader, Kraken is a better option.
Binance.US, however, may be better suited for advanced traders and users interested in peer-to-peer trading. But keep in mind that Binance.US doesn't offer future or margin trading.
Kraken FAQs
Is Kraken safe?
Kraken is a generally safe cryptocurrency exchange with industry-leading security protocols to protect user information, funds, and digital assets. Data encryption, real-time monitoring, PGP signatures, and encrypted emails ensure security. Kraken wallet is an offline, self-custody cold wallet that can't be hacked.
What are the fees on Kraken?
Kraken charges spread fees per transaction. Kraken Pro trades use a 30-day volume-based maker/taker fee structure. The larger your trading volume, the lower your fees. You may be charged additional transaction fees depending on how you fund your account.
Does Kraken offer margin trading?
Yes, Kraken offers margin trading through its Kraken Pro trading platform. You can trade up to five times the leverage for eligible users and cryptocurrencies.
Why You Should Trust Us: How We Reviewed Kraken
We examined Kraken using Business Insider's rating methodology for investing platforms to compare pricing, account flexibility, ethics, security, and overall customer experience when reviewing investing platforms. Exchanges are given a rating between 1 and 5.
Crypto exchanges offer multiple assets, trading tools, fees, and other resources. Kraken was evaluated with a focus on how it performed in each category.
Business Insider's Overall Kraken Rating
| Feature | Insider rating (out of 5) |
| Fees | 3.00 |
| Investment selection | 4.00 |
| Access | 4.50 |
| Security | 4.50 |
| Ethics | 2.00 |
| Customer service | 3.50 |
| Overall score | 3.57 |
