KuCoin vs FTX Fees

Fiat deposits and withdrawals on FTX are free, except for a few select currencies: USD, CAD, CHF, EUR, GBP, BRL, and HKD. KuCoin, on the other hand, does not support fiat currency deposits and withdrawals. Users, therefore, use third-party merchants to buy crypto, and the rates vary depending on the merchant. For instance, buying crypto using Visa/Mastercard or Apple Pay will cost users around 3-5%.

When it comes to trading fees, KuCoin offers a tiered fee structure that starts at 0.1% for makers and 0.1% for takers, with 20% discount available for users who pay with KCS tokens. FTX also has a tiered fee structure, with fees starting at 0.02% for makers and 0.07% for takers. Both exchanges offer significant discounts to users who hold their native tokens, with KuCoin offering up to 20% off trading fees and FTX offering up to 50% off trading fees. If you decide to sign up with FTX, you can receive a further 5% discount on all trading fees when you use this link to register.

KuCoin vs FTX Deposit Methods

One of the factors to consider when choosing a crypto exchange is how you plan on depositing funds. If you want to deposit fiat currency – such as USD, EUR, GBP, etc – then you'll need to find an exchange that supports those methods.

FTX is one such exchange; it allows you to deposit fiat via credit/debit cards or wire transfer for free, then convert it to your preferred cryptocurrency. Depending on your location, you may also be able to access other deposit methods, such as PayPal, Silvergate Exchange Network (SEN), Signature SIGNET, and SEPA, and you can also make cryptocurrency deposits.

KuCoin, on the other hand, does not support fiat deposits; users must instead buy cryptocurrency directly using third-party payment merchants, which charge a substantial fee of 3-5%. Supported payment methods on KuCoin include Visa/Mastercard, Giropay, Apple Pay, IDEAL, EPS, Bankcontact, and SOFORT Banking. Crypto deposits are of course accepted, and the most common way of transferring funds into KuCoin to start trading.

KuCoin vs FTX Features 

Features are one of the most important factors to consider when choosing a cryptocurrency exchange. After all, an exchange is only as good as the tools it provides for traders. Here’s a quick rundown of the features offered by KuCoin and FTX.

KuCoin Features:

Advanced Trading Platform

KuCoin provides users with a variety of different trading options, including spot, margin, and futures trading. With over 700 cryptocurrencies available for trade, KuCoin gives you plenty of options when choosing your assets. You can always find the perfect trading pair for your needs.

For those looking for a more advanced trading experience, KuCoin also supports margin and futures trading. Margin trading is available for with up to 5x leverage, while futures trading offers 60 perpetual contracts with up to 20x leverage.

For beginners, there is the option to use the Futures Lite interface, while more experienced traders can use the Futures Classic interface. Futures Classic offers more features like charts, indicators, and candles that advanced traders can use to make more informed decisions.

P2P and NFT Marketplaces

KuCoin's P2P marketplace offers a fresh alternative to traditional centralized exchanges, and it's definitely worth checking out if you're looking for a more user-friendly experience. This marketplace supports over 30 currencies so you can choose what to pay or get paid in when buying or selling. Five major cryptocurrencies (USDT, ETH, BTC, KCS, USDC) are available for trading. You can set your preferred price and payment method, so you're sure to find a crypto investor that suits your needs. And with a growing community of users, you're sure to find a great deal on the cryptocurrency you're after.

KuCoin also supports NFT trading through Windvane and Wonderland. NFTs are a new type of digital asset that is growing in popularity. They include things like digital art, music, and other collectables, and like cryptocurrencies, they can be bought, sold, or traded on KuCoin. With KuCoin's NFT marketplace, you can easily buy, sell, or trade these assets.

Trading Bots

If you're looking for a way to streamline and automate your trading process, trading bots might be just what you need, and KuCoin has several of these included for FREE. With these bots, you can automate your strategy and take a hands-off approach to your trading. Plus, you can configure your settings to suit your preferences or copy other successful bot configurations for even greater success. 

Crypto Lending and Borrowing

Crypto lending is a great way to earn interest on your digital assets, and KuCoin has a feature just for that. KuCoin crypto lending platform allows you to lend your crypto to other traders and earn interest on your holdings. The APY on the platform can reach as high as 30%, making it a great way to grow your digital assets. You can choose to lend manually with Normal Lend or use Auto Lend, which will automatically lend out available funds and reinvest returned funds. 

KuCoin also allows users to borrow crypto from the platform. You can either manually borrow and select your preferred duration and interest rates or auto-borrow and set a limit for the interest range. This feature is a great way to access extra funds when you need them without having to sell your existing crypto holdings. And because the loans are backed by cryptocurrency, there is no need for a credit check or collateral.

KuCoin Earn

As any savvy investor knows, one of the best ways to grow your money is by earning interest on it. And with KuCoin Earn, you can do just that! With products like Savings and Staking, you can earn great interest rates on a variety of popular cryptocurrencies.These products are available on flexible and fixed terms, so users can choose what best suits their needs.

KCS

Like other popular crypto exchange platforms, KuCoin has its own token. The KuCoin native currency, KCS, can be used to pay for trading fees and can also be traded. If you use KCS to pay trading fees, you'll get a 20% discount. In addition, users who hold at least 6 KCS qualify for daily bonuses with up to 30% APR. 

FTX Features:

Spot Trading

FTX provides access to a wide range of cryptocurrencies, as well as crucial information that can help traders make informed decisions. With over 275 different coins available to trade, FTX has one of the most comprehensive selections of digital assets on the market, with a huge variety of spot trading pairs, allowing users to take advantage of market fluctuations. Perhaps most importantly, the platform provides detailed information on all its assets, including 24-hr volume, current price and rate of change data. This real-time information can be essential for making profitable trades.

Margin Trading, Borrowing and Lending

FTX offers margin trading, lending, and borrowing features to its verified users. With up to 20x leverage, users can trade in spot markets using cryptocurrency, fiat currency, or FTT (FTX token) as collateral.

Lenders can earn interest on their idle assets, and borrowers can get access to the assets they need without having to sell their own holdings. This service is useful for traders who want to take advantage of market opportunities without having to tie up all their capital in one spot market. It also allows traders to speculate on the market direction without having to own the underlying assets. 

Derivatives Trading

In addition to spot trading, FTX offers a unique derivatives trading experience with perpetual futures trading each month, tokenized stocks, leverage tokens, volatility tokens, a predictions market, and fiat-to-fiat trading.

FTX's perpetual futures are different from traditional futures because they do not have a fixed expiration date; instead, they roll over monthly. This allows traders to take advantage of the benefits of both short-term and long-term futures contracts. In addition, FTX's leverage tokens provide up to 3x leverage on a variety of assets, including Bitcoin, Ethereum, Litecoin, and USDT. And for those wishing to speculate on the direction of the markets, FTX's volatility tokens offer exposure to 10+ major cryptocurrencies. FTX also offers a predictions market where users can trade on the outcomes of events such as presidential elections.

While most exchanges focus on crypto-crypto trading, FTX also supports fiat-to-fiat trading pairs. This is a huge development for FTX, as it opens up a much wider range of potential trades. Now, instead of being limited to trading between cryptocurrencies, you can trade between any two fiat currencies like EUR/USD. There are 12 such pairs currently supported, with more likely to be added in the future.

FTX Card

The FTX card is a Visa-branded crypto debit card that can be used anywhere that accepts Visa and while making online purchases at no extra cost. The FTX debit card is linked to your FTX account, and you can use it to spend your cryptocurrencies like cash. When you make a purchase with the FTX card, the funds are converted from cryptocurrency to USD at the point of sale. The FTX debit card is a convenient way to spend your cryptocurrency without having to convert it to fiat currency beforehand.

FTX Token 

FTX Token (FTT) is the native currency of FTX, and offers a variety of benefits to holders. Chief among these is a fee rebate of up to 60% on FTX trading fees and a 0.02% discount on FTX OTC fees. In addition, staking your FTT tokens can earn you interest and give you access to a wide range of benefits, such as increased referral rates, bonus votes in polls, airdrop rewards and waived fees.

KuCoin vs FTX Security

In matters of security, both exchanges take a proactive stance. KuCoin boasts that they have "deployed the most advanced security protocols available today" that keep user funds safe. This includes features like Two-factor authentication (2FA), which is required for all account logins, and IP restrictions can be set up to further secure accounts. For users looking to withdraw larger amounts or access other features like fiat to crypto conversions, KYC verification is required. In addition, KuCoin accounts have an anti-phishing security function that allows users to set a unique security phrase to indicate they are on the offical website. 

FTX takes a similar approach by offering comprehensive protection for user accounts. This includes Two-factor authentication (for withdrawals and password changes) and IP whitelisting. As the cryptocurrency industry matures, exchanges are increasingly implementing best practices from traditional financial institutions to enhance their compliance efforts. FTX is the latest exchange to take such steps, partnering with Chainalysis to monitor suspicious transaction alerts in real-time. This move will help FTX comply with anti-money laundering (AML) regulations and better protect its customers' assets. 

In addition to its partnership with Chainalysis, FTX also operates a Backstop Liquidity Fund that holds approximately $200 million. This fund provides additional security for FTX customers by ensuring that there is always enough liquidity in the event of a sudden market sell-off.

So far, FTX has not been hacked, but KuCoin has. In September 2020, KuCoin suffered a major security breach that resulted in the loss of over $280 million worth of cryptocurrencies. Although the exchange has since made efforts to improve their security, this event casts doubts on their ability to protect user funds. However, in the event that platform is breached, it's reassuring to know that user funds are safeguarded. KuCoin has partnered with insurance company Onchain Custodian to insure user funds.

Number of Cryptocurrencies

When it comes to the sheer number of cryptocurrencies, KuCoin definitely has the upper hand. With over 700 cryptos to choose from, KuCoin offers investors a wide range of options.

In contrast, FTX only offers around 275 different coins. However, where FTX falls short in terms of the sheer number of coins, it makes up for in other areas. For example, FTX offers more margin trading pairs than KuCoin (105 vs. 14). It also offers more trading options like more than 10 volatility tokens and over 12 fiat currencies for forex trading.

Verdict - FTX

Both KuCoin and FTX offer a wide variety of features that will appeal to different types of traders. They both have features like advanced charting tools, multiple order types, and trading markets like spot, margin, and futures trading. In terms of features, they both tie for first place. When it comes to security, both exchanges take security seriously. They both use state-of-the-art security protocols; again, they tie for first place in this category.

The main difference between the two exchanges is in the type of currencies they support. KuCoin has a much wider selection of cryptocurrencies available for trading than FTX does. So, if you're looking for an exchange with a large selection of coins, KuCoin is the better option.

However, FTX has some major advantages over KuCoin. Firstly, FTX supports fiat currency deposits, which means you can deposit USD or EUR directly into your account and use it trade for your preferred crypto to trade. While it is possible to purchase crypto directly on KuCoin, the fees are much higher than if you deposit fiat on FTX, and trade it for the crypto you want. In addition, FTX allows fiat withdrawals, which means when you have made some profits, you can withdraw money into your bank account. On KuCoin, you can only withdraw cryptocurrency.

FTX's trading fees are also much lower than KuCoin's, at only 0.02% for makers and 0.07% for takers, compared to 0.10% for KuCoin. Moreover, if you sign up with our unique link, you will receive 5% discount on all your trading fees on FTX!

Still Researching?

If you want to learn more about these two crypto exchanges, read our detailed reviews of KuCoin (here) and FTX (here). If you are from the US, you won't be able to access FTX, but there is a sister site FTX.US, or you can read the best crypto exchanges in the US article. We have included a quick comparison table below that summarizes some key info.