There are many different strategies for investing in cryptocurrency. There are the diamond hands, who’ll HOLD to the moon. On the other hand, there are the day traders, flipping new investments hour by hour to make their profits.
To serve them all, we’ve seen an explosion in crypto exchanges in recent years. Many of them have appealing options for different types of investors. But with so many different options, it can be hard to pick.
In this article, we’ll compare the pros and cons of two of the biggest cryptocurrency trading platforms: Binance and Kucoin.
The two platforms are very similar, right down to the fee structure. But there are some key differences between Binance and Kucoin that will determine what’s best for your situation.
Binance has lower trading fees than Kucoin, as long as you’re not trading super high volumes.
Binance also has fun features like an NFT marketplace integrated into the exchange, and a rewards center that does crypto giveaways often.
Read on to learn about the different scenarios in which you might want to use Binance vs. Kucoin.
In-Depth Comparison
Get all the details you need to know to decide which platform is best for your trading needs.
Binance Overview
Binance is the largest crypto exchange in the world. It often markets itself as the most trusted.
It also has some of the lowest fees around, making it attractive to everyday investors and hardcore crypto experts.
Bonus features like its integrated NFT marketplace and rewards center make it stand out from the crowd.
That said, if you live in certain U.S. states, you may not be able to log on.
Binance Pros:
- Super low fees for non-high volume traders
- Largest, most trusted crypto exchange in the world
- NFT marketplace
- Earn free crypto through the rewards center
Binance Cons:
- Not available in some U.S. states
- Not as many cryptos supported
- No live chat support
Kucoin Overview
Kucoin’s platform is great for those who do lots of high-volume trading and aren’t worried about withdrawing their earnings in fiat currency right away.
It has a user base that’s significantly smaller than Binance, but still a solid number of users at more than 11 million.
Kucoin Pros:
- Better fees for high-volume traders
Kucoin Cons:
- Higher fees for low-volume traders
- Can’t withdraw fiat currencies
- No live chat support
Fees Comparison
Fees are arguably the most important criterion for deciding on a crypto exchange. After all, you’re here to make money. You don’t want to give away any more than you have to.
Trading fees for both platforms start at 0.1% and move up as you trade more crypto.
Kucoin is better on fees for high-volume traders due to its competitive fees for those doing a lot of work through its platform. It also offers dividends of half of its token’s exchange earnings, which is a great bonus.
Binance is better for small-time traders. Its fee structure means you’ll pay lower rates if you’re not trading lots of volume. Binance also won’t hit you with any deposit fees. Withdrawal fees depend on the asset being taken out.
And Binance will give you an extra 25% discount if you pay with BNB, the coin that powers the BNB Chain ecosystem.
Kucoin will also give you a discount if you use its dedicated coin, KCS — but it’s only 20%.
Also, Binance has a cheaper taker’s fee than Kucoin. That means Binance is better if you’re going to use the futures market.
User Interface Comparison
The user interface (UI) of your trading platform might seem like a minor issue. And while it won’t affect the money you make from the exchange directly, it can help you make the right decisions, leading to higher profits.
A great UI will show you all the options you need to see, and none of those you don’t. Plus, an attractive UI can make you want to come back to the exchange and makes trading feel less like a chore.
For personalization, Binance is the clear winner. It has an interface that can be much more customized based on your trading preference.
Kucoin’s UI is more simplistic, which will suit many traders just fine. It displays many features and information in a straightforward way. If your trading strategy isn’t that complicated, or you simply prefer a less complex outlook, Kucoin’s UI might be the best option for you.
Currencies Supported Comparison
Both Binance and Kucoin support hundreds of cryptocurrencies, including Bitcoin (BTC), Ethereum (ETH), Litecoin (LTC), and many more. If there are specific coins or tokens you want to trade, check out each website’s listing of available cryptos to make sure it’s there before you sign up.
Kucoin has the edge in terms of the number of cryptos supported (over 600 compared to more than 300 on Binance) but both are solid choices.
Deposit Methods Comparison
One important note is that Kucoin won’t let you deposit or withdraw fiat currency, while Binance does. This can be important for newbie investors who don’t want to deal with the hassle of transferring their crypto profits to an exchange that will let them take out cash they can use day to day.
Binance and Kucoin accept many of the same deposit methods, including credit cards, debit cards, and of course, crypto. But some methods are exclusive to each platform.
Only Binance supports:
- Bank transfers (ACH)
- PayID
- SWIFT
- SOFORT/iDEAL
And only Kucoin supports:
- PayPal
- Apple Pay
- Skrill
Which exchange is better for deposit methods will depend on the ones you like to use. If you need to deposit your funds with PayPal, Kucoin is the clear winner. If you use PayID, Binance is the best option.
Security Comparison
Security has to be top of mind when choosing a crypto exchange. After all, one of the key features of trading in cryptocurrency is its secure, decentralized nature.
But that very nature makes wallets vulnerable to hackers looking to take advantage of inexperienced users. And the amount of money floating around in cyberspace nowadays makes crypto exchanges prime targets for hackers.
Both platforms use two-factor authentication to secure logins to their exchanges.
Neither support biometric security, like fingerprints, which is more available on hardware like phones than software like crypto exchanges. (And you should really hand over your fingerprint to as few people as possible, anyway).
Both exchanges support cold storage of funds — meaning the “wallets” that hold your crypto aren’t connected to the internet and are therefore impenetrable to hackers unless they gain physical access to the drives your crypto is stored on.
Only Binance is ISO 27001 certified, however. The certification is an international marker of security, originally published jointly by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO). Organizations wishing to be certified must go through an audit to prove they meet the high standards.
International Availability Comparison
Despite the decentralized future of finance and the internet in general, lines on a map still define much of what we can do online.
For instance, Binance isn’t fully available in the United States. Americans have to use Binance.us instead. And seven states can’t even access that: Connecticut, Hawaii, New York, Texas, Vermont, Idaho, and Louisiana.
Customer Service Comparison
As with any review of customer service, your results may vary. One person’s experience with a customer service rep may be totally different from the next.That said, there are some easy ways to tell what kind of an experience you’ll have on each platform should you run into problems.
For instance, both platforms lack live chat support, meaning in order to get an issue resolved, you may have to wait longer than you’re used to.
But both teams have active customer service teams on Reddit. If you make a post on either of their subreddits — r/Binance or r/Kucoin — you should receive a comment and an issue ticket from the relevant customer service account very quickly.
Some people on social media have said both sites have taken months to deal with issues, while others have had their problems resolved right away.
Bonus Features Comparison
There is a burgeoning non-fungible token (NFT) marketplace on Binance, if NFTs are your thing. Like an infinite art gallery, you can browse a seemingly endless supply of NFTs just waiting for you to purchase them. It’s fully integrated with the exchange, meaning it’s easy to buy and store them within Binance’s ecosystem.
Binance is so big it’s also partnered with payments giant Visa. The two have created a card that will let users spend their crypto at more than 60 million merchants worldwide. It has up to 8% cash back, which is a huge amount — and best of all, it’s free.
Kucoin lets users engage in crypto lending to other traders. This lets investors lend out their crypto at pre-defined interest rates, allowing them to create passive income without investing it, per se.
Binance also lets users grow their crypto with interest, instead of just HOLDing — through staking, a savings account, or the BNB vault, which also offers interest rates for users.
Kucoin also supports trading bots if you feel like outsourcing your trading activities to your non-human helpers. You can choose from a ton of different bots, including:
- Spot Grid: automatically sells high and buys low
- Smart Rebalance: spreads out your investment risk for steady long-term gains
- DCA (Dollar-Cost Averaging): invests amounts regularly to defray risk from market fluctuations
Binance offers a rewards center that will reward users with crypto giveaways once they complete certain challenges. This is a fun way to earn extra cash and participate in the community.
Both platforms have mobile apps for iPhone and Android devices.
Binance vs. Kucoin: The Winner
The best overall crypto trading platform, in our opinion, is Binance.
It offers ultra-low fees, an enormous user base, and a user interface that Kucoin just can’t beat.
And the ability to withdraw and deposit fiat currency is a boon to those of us who aren’t ready to give up our dollars and cents just yet. That’s just another way Binance is more attractive to the everyday investor.
That said, if you live in one of the U.S. states where Binance isn’t active, you’re going to have to look for alternatives. And you could do a lot worse than Kucoin.
Which Exchange is Best for High-Volume Traders?
For people looking to trade high volumes of crypto, Kucoin is a no-brainer. That’s because it has better fees at the top end of its scale.
That’s not where Binance is focused — that platform is targeting new and everyday crypto investors curious to learn more about the decentralized finance world without committing a ton of money right away.
If you’re dipping your toe into crypto investing, or if you see it as a side project, you likely can’t go wrong with Binance. But if you’re an expert investor looking to pony up large amounts, Kucoin is most likely for you.
How to Start Trading with Binance or Kucoin
So, now that you’re an expert in whether you want to trade with Binance or Kucoin, it’s time to get started.
Luckily, both platforms offer super easy onboarding processes. Setting up a trading account only takes a few minutes and a few clicks.
To sign up for Binance, click here.
To sign up for Kucoin, click here.
We hope you’ve learned everything you need to know about these two top-tier crypto exchanges. In a world with many of them, it’s hard to go wrong with either choice.
Happy trading!
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