Kraken vs Coinbase

Kraken and Coinbase are two of the longest-running US crypto exchanges, launched in 2011 and 2012, and both serve the US and the UK. Each runs a simple app that quotes a price with a fee and a spread built in, and an order-book platform, Kraken Pro or Coinbase Advanced, with maker and taker fees. Everything below is as at 12 October 2026.

The Short Version

• App fees: Kraken publishes 1% on instant buys and sells, plus a spread. Coinbase sets its fee per order and shows it, with the spread, in the order preview.
• Pro platform fees: Kraken Pro starts at 0.40% maker and 0.80% taker. Coinbase shows Advanced rates only after sign-in, so we could not confirm them.
• Futures: both offer CFTC-regulated futures in the US. UK retail traders cannot trade crypto derivatives at either.
• US coverage: Kraken does not serve New York or Maine. Coinbase holds a New York virtual currency licence.
• Offers: Kraken's app referral pays $20 to each side in the US, not the UK. Coinbase says FCA rules bar trading incentives in the UK.

Fees

Kraken's fee schedule charges 1% on instant and recurring app trades and 1.5% on custom orders. The price also includes a spread, which Kraken may keep and which varies with volatility, asset and order size, and payment fees can apply. Kraken+ members pay no trading fee on up to $10,000 a month of app trades, though the spread remains.

Coinbase's pricing and fees disclosures say its simple trade fee depends on payment method, order size, market conditions and location, and appears in the preview with the spread. Simple limit orders add a 1% execution fee. Its US state disclosures cap the fee at $10 on orders under $200 and 6% above that. Coinbase One members pay no trading fee, with limits, but still pay the spread and the limit order fee.

On the order books, Kraken Pro charges 0.40% maker and 0.80% taker under $2,500 of 30-day volume, falling to 0.22% and 0.38% from $10,000. Coinbase's Advanced fees article explains its tiers but points to a signed-in page for the rates. Advanced adds no spread.

As at 12 October 2026	Kraken	Coinbase
App buy or sell	1% plus spread	Set per order, plus spread
App limit or custom orders	1.5%	Extra 1% execution fee
Pro platform, entry tier	0.40% maker, 0.80% taker	Shown after sign-in
Futures, entry tier	0.02% maker, 0.05% taker (not US)	Not confirmed
Staking commission	20% on some flexible staking, others by balance	35% standard on listed assets

What You Can Trade

Both offer crypto spot, with coins that vary by country. Kraken's fee schedule also lists commission-free trading in more than 11,000 stocks and ETFs, for US clients only, and app perpetuals at 0.25% to open and 0.25% to close in certain regions.

Coinbase offers US perpetual-style futures that run for five years, trade around the clock apart from a weekly hour, and pay funding every hour. More venues are on /markets/crypto.

Liquidity and Volume

As at 12 October 2026, the CoinGecko figures behind our tables show:

• Coinbase Exchange spot: $907 million 24-hour volume.
• Kraken spot: $610 million 24-hour volume.
• Kraken Futures: $533 million 24-hour volume and $532 million open interest.

The comparison table sets Kraken's futures figures against Coinbase's spot figure, so its volume rows measure different markets. Coinbase's US futures are not in our data. Our guide on how to read trading volume and open interest explains the measures.

Campaigns and Rewards

Kraken's one live listing, The Pre-IPO Challenge, shares $10,000 USDG among traders on two pre-IPO perpetuals until 6 November, but excludes the UK, the EEA and the US. Kraken's app referral program pays a fixed $20 in local currency to both the new client and the referrer, after a cash deposit and qualifying trades. It is open in the US (not Maine or New York) and several other countries, not the UK.

Our calendar has no live Coinbase campaign. In the UK, Coinbase says the FCA's financial promotion rules prohibit trading incentives.

Coinbase says staking is available in most jurisdictions, but not for new stakes in California, Maryland, New Jersey or Wisconsin. Kraken says its Rewards feature runs only in select US states, and UK clients cannot use Opt-in Rewards. Staking rewards vary, both venues take a commission, and staked coins can fall in value.

Who Can Use It

In the US, Kraken is a FinCEN-registered money services business and does not serve New York or Maine, per its licensing page. Stocks run through Kraken Securities LLC, an SEC-registered broker-dealer and FINRA and SIPC member, and futures through Kraken Derivatives US, a CFTC-registered futures commission merchant and NFA member. Coinbase, Inc. lists state money transmitter licences and a New York virtual currency licence. Its futures sit with Coinbase Financial Markets, a CFTC-registered futures commission merchant and NFA member.

In the UK, both are on the FCA's cryptoasset register: Kraken as Payward Ltd (928768) and Coinbase as CB Payments Ltd (900635). New UK retail users at both wait 24 hours before trading, and Coinbase adds an appropriateness test. The FCA has banned crypto derivatives for retail consumers since January 2021. Kraken offers them only to UK clients who qualify as elective professional clients, and Coinbase's futures page does not list the UK.

Track Record and Safety

In 2021 the CFTC fined Kraken $1.25 million for offering margined retail trades without registering. In February 2023 Kraken paid $30 million to settle SEC charges over its US staking program and agreed to end it. A later SEC lawsuit was dropped with prejudice in March 2025, Kraken said.

In 2021 the CFTC fined Coinbase $6.5 million over inaccurate reporting and wash trading by a former employee. In July 2024 the FCA fined CB Payments £3.5 million for breaching a requirement not to take on high-risk customers. The SEC dismissed its civil case against Coinbase in February 2025.

Coinbase says crypto balances are not covered by the FDIC or SIPC, and Kraken says clients may not be protected by compensation schemes.

Which Fits Which Trader

• New York and Maine residents: Coinbase lists licences in both states. Kraken serves neither.
• Occasional app buyers: Kraken publishes a flat 1%. Coinbase shows a per-order fee, so compare both previews.
• Order-book traders checking fees before signing up: Kraken Pro publishes its tiers. Coinbase Advanced needs an account.
• US traders who want stocks and crypto in one account: Kraken lists US stocks and ETFs.
• US futures traders: both use CFTC-registered futures commission merchants. Coinbase's perpetual-style contracts run five years with hourly funding.
• UK traders: both offer retail clients spot only, after the same 24-hour wait, and Kraken's referral is not open there.

Compare more venues on /crypto-exchanges and /rankings/crypto-exchanges.

This comparison is information, not financial advice. Crypto prices are volatile and you can lose all the money you put in. Fees and terms change: check each venue's own pages before you trade.