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Exchanges

Binance

Best for lowest published spot fees, outside the EU

Entry spot fee:0.100% maker / 0.100% takerVolume tiers:VIP 1–9, $1m to $4bn 30-day volumeProof of reserves:Quarterly, Merkle tree, per-account checkIndependent trust score:10 — rank 1Rubric:v2.0 · verified 9 Aug 2026
Last verified August 9, 2026
Confidence ARubric v2.0Verified August 9, 2026
9.7
out of 10
Open account
Scorecard

How it rates

Counterparty & custody risk · 35%10.0
Cost transparency · 20%9.0
Market quality · 20%10.0
Transparency & track record · 15%9.0
Public documentation surface · 10%10.0
Pros
  • Cheapest published entry-tier spot pricing in this comparison
  • Quarterly Merkle proof of reserves with per-account verification
  • Highest independent trust rank and 24h volume in the group
Cons
  • Which services you can use varies significantly by country
  • Group structure spans many entities and jurisdictions
  • Per-asset withdrawal costs not published on the main fee page
How this score was built

Each indicator scores 2, 1 or 0. A pillar is the points earned over the points available; the overall score is the weighted sum. Every source below is public — check any of them yourself.

Counterparty & custody risk · 35% weight10/10 points · 10.0/10
Cost transparency · 20% weight9/10 points · 9.0/10
Market quality · 20% weight10/10 points · 10.0/10
Transparency & track record · 15% weight9/10 points · 9.0/10
Public documentation surface · 10% weight10/10 points · 10.0/10

Binance prices spot trading at 0.100% on both sides for regular users — the cheapest entry tier here — publishes quarterly Merkle-tree reserve proofs, and leads the independent trust ranking on volume. It holds authorisations across Dubai, Abu Dhabi, France, El Salvador and Kazakhstan, published in its own licence register.

Our assessment

Binance is the cheapest venue in this comparison at the entry tier and the largest by a wide margin on independent volume data. It publishes quarterly Merkle-tree proof of reserves with per-account verification and maintains a licence register on its own domain covering authorisations in Dubai, Abu Dhabi, France, Italy, Spain, Poland, El Salvador and Kazakhstan.

Pricing that sets the floor for the group

Regular users pay 0.100% maker and 0.100% taker on spot, with a nine-level VIP ladder published from $1m to $4bn of 30-day volume and a further discount for paying fees in the exchange token. No other venue here publishes a lower entry rate. For an active trader that difference compounds into real money over a year, which is the honest reason its market share looks the way it does.

Reserves and the licence register

The reserve programme does what our rubric asks: a quarterly publication where a customer can confirm their own balance sat inside the attested total, rather than a wallet address and a sum. The licence register is equally unusual — most venues in this table state their regulatory position in marketing copy, if at all, and this one lists entities and jurisdictions on a page anyone can read.

What varies by where you live

Availability of individual services differs sharply by country, and in mid-2026 users in the European Union lost access to new spot orders, deposits, sign-ups and earn products. Our methodology excludes country availability from scoring entirely — a venue is not a worse counterparty because a regulator in one market changed its mind — but it would be useless to omit the fact. Check what is actually offered in your jurisdiction before funding an account.

Who it suits

Binance fits cost-sensitive traders who want depth and the widest asset coverage, and who are comfortable with a group structure spanning many entities and jurisdictions. Readers who want a single, clearly supervised counterparty in their own country will find that easier to establish at Kraken, Coinbase or Bitstamp.

Alternatives

How rivals compare

ServiceScoreBest for
Kraken9.7verifiable reserves and EU authorisationRead →
Reference

Frequently asked

Which regulators has Binance been authorised by?

Its published licence register lists authorisations including Dubai (VARA), Abu Dhabi (ADGM), France, Italy, Spain, Poland, El Salvador and Kazakhstan. The group holding company is incorporated in the Cayman Islands.

Does Binance publish proof of reserves?

Yes — a quarterly Merkle-tree publication that lets a customer verify their own balance was included in the snapshot.

What are Binance's spot trading fees?

0.100% maker and 0.100% taker at the regular tier, falling across nine VIP levels based on 30-day volume and token holdings.

Is Binance available in my country?

Availability varies and changes; in mid-2026 EU users lost access to several products. We do not score country availability, so check the platform's own terms for your jurisdiction.