Choosing the right cryptocurrency exchange is a very important decision for any cryptocurrency investor or trader. Coinbase and Kraken are two mainstream crypto exchanges that have established a reputation as some of the most reputable trading platforms in the crypto industry.
If you’re deciding between the Kraken exchange vs Coinbase, we’ll help you make the right pick by outlining the main differences between the two exchanges and highlighting their biggest strengths and weaknesses.
Kraken vs Coinbase – Which is the better crypto exchange?
When trying to find the best crypto exchanges, you’ll often encounter Kraken and Coinbase mentioned as two of the best choices for crypto traders around the world.
Frankly, Kraken and Coinbase both have very similar offerings and there isn’t much of a difference between the two exchanges from the perspective of the average cryptocurrency investor and trader. In other words, you won’t be making a big mistake regardless of which of the two exchanges you pick.
Here is a quick breakdown of the most substantial differences between the two exchanges which might sway your decision if you’re currently deciding between Kraken and Coinbase.
- Kraken has noticeably lower fees than Coinbase. Trading fees on Kraken start at 0.25% for makers and 0.40% for takers, while the Coinbase fee structure starts at 0.40% for makers and 0.60% for takers. Trading fees on both exchanges can be reduced depending on the user’s trading volume.
- Coinbase offers a Visa debit card that makes it possible to spend the cryptocurrencies you hold in your Coinbase account anywhere Visa is accepted. The exchange also provides crypto cashback rewards on purchases made with the card. Kraken currently has no equivalent product to the Coinbase Card.
- Coinbase supports PayPal for both deposits and withdrawals. If you want to use PayPal with Kraken, the exchange only supports deposits but not withdrawals. Both exchanges allow users to fund their account with a bank transfer or buy crypto with a credit card.
- Kraken supports a larger number of cryptocurrencies for staking than Coinbase.
- Coinbase lists a wider variety of cryptocurrencies than Kraken.
Coinbase Pros and Cons
Pros:
- Lists more cryptocurrencies than Kraken
- Excellent track record on security
- Coinbase Card allows users to easily spend crypto and earn crypto cashback rewards
- Offers crypto staking to US customers
- High-quality mobile app
Cons:
- Some of the highest trading fees in the crypto industry
Kraken Pros and Cons
Pros:
- Significantly lower fees than Coinbase
- Excellent track record on security
- High-quality mobile app
- Known for great customer service
Cons:
- Doesn’t provide staking services to US customers
- Doesn’t have its own crypto card
Now, let’s take a closer look at the two exchanges to see how they compare to each other in more detail.
Kraken vs Coinbase – Trading fee comparison
Trading fees are an important consideration when choosing a cryptocurrency exchange, if you’re someone who makes trades frequently. If you only trade occasionally, however, trading fees become less relevant.
Both Kraken and Coinbase have tiered fee structures where fees gradually get lower if the user generates more trading volume. The exchanges keep track of the user’s 30-day trading volume, which is how the fee tier is determined.
Coinbase trading fees
| 30-day trading volume | Maker fee | Taker fee |
|---|---|---|
| $0 – $10,000 | 0.40% | 0.60% |
| $10,000 – $50,000 | 0.25% | 0.40% |
| $50,000 – $100,000 | 0.15% | 0.25% |
| $100,000 – $1 million | 0.10% | 0.20% |
| $1 million – $15 million | 0.08% | 0.18% |
| $15 million – $75 million | 0.06% | 0.16% |
| $75 million – $250 million | 0.03% | 0.12% |
| $250 million – $400 million | 0% | 0.08% |
| $400 million+ | 0% | 0.05% |
Kraken trading fees
| 30-day volume | Maker fee | Taker fee |
|---|---|---|
| $0 – $10,000 | 0.25% | 0.40% |
| $10,000 – $50,000 | 0.20% | 0.35% |
| $50,000 – $100,000 | 0.14% | 0.24% |
| $100,000 – $250,000 | 0.12% | 0.22% |
| $250,000 – $500,000 | 0.10% | 0.20% |
| $500,000 – $1 million | 0.08% | 0.18% |
| $1 million – $2.5 million | 0.06% | 0.16% |
| $2.5 million – $5 million | 0.04% | 0.14% |
| $5 million – $10 million | 0.02% | 0.12% |
| $10 million+ | 0% | 0.10% |
When it comes to trading fees, Coinbase is one of the most expensive exchanges in the industry and Kraken wins in this category easily. However, there are ways to reduce your fees on Coinbase – learn more in our guide on how to avoid Coinbase fees.
Kraken vs Coinbase – Staking
Both Kraken and Coinbase allow users to earn yield on their idle cryptocurrency holdings through staking. Currently, Kraken has a stronger staking offering, as you can stake 27 different cryptocurrencies on Kraken. Meanwhile, Coinbase supports staking for 9 different cryptocurrencies at the time of writing this article.
The staking rewards offered by both exchanges are comparable. However, Kraken does give users the option to choose between flexible and bonded staking. Bonded staking provides higher APYs, but requires users to temporarily lock up their holdings. Meanwhile, flexible staking provides lower rewards, but the tokens can be unstaked at any time.
However, an important distinction between the two exchanges is that Kraken isn’t offering its staking services in the United States. US customers can stake their crypto on Coinbase, although some restrictions may apply depending on the state the customer lives in.
Coinbase vs Kraken – Fiat currency and supported countries
Coinbase accepts deposits in a variety of fiat currencies, including USD, EUR, CAD, AUD and GBP. Meanwhile, Kraken also supports these same fiat currencies, but also accepts CHF and JPY. In terms of payment methods, you can use a bank transfer, credit cards or PayPal to purchase crypto on both exchanges.
Both Coinbase and Kraken are available in a broad range of countries. Kraken claims that they accept users from all countries except for Crimea, Donetsk, Luhansk, Cuba, Iran, North Korea and Syria. We weren’t able to find a comprehensive list of all the countries supported by Coinbase, although we do know that the exchange accepts customers from 100 countries.
Coinbase vs Kraken – Listed cryptocurrencies
When it comes to the selection of listed cryptocurrencies, Coinbase and Kraken have very comparable offerings.
At the time of writing, Coinbase lists just under 250 different crypto assets, while Kraken lists around 215 different cryptocurrencies. Coinbase has a slight edge here, although you’ll likely be able to find the coins you’re interested in on both exchanges, except if you want to trade altcoins with an extremely low market cap.
If you’re primarily interested in trading major cryptocurrencies, both Kraken and Coinbase are great choices. Here’s just a small sample of cryptocurrencies listed on both exchanges:
Kraken vs Coinbase – Security
Security is one of the most important aspects of choosing a cryptocurrency exchange. After all, you have to trust that the exchange will keep your cryptocurrency safe up until you choose to withdraw your coins. We have unfortunately seen many high-profile security breaches in the cryptocurrency industry where hackers were able to steal hundreds of millions of dollars worth of users’ funds.
Thankfully, both Coinbase and Kraken have excellent track records when it comes to security. Both exchanges have managed to prevent unauthorized access to their wallets despite operating for well over a decade.
Kraken secures the majority of its assets in air-gapped cold storage and enforces strict platform-wide surveillance, with multiple checkpoints during the signup process. Coinbase also stores 98% of deposits in offline, geographically distributed cold storage.
Both exchanges also provide multiple 2FA (2-factor authentication) options so that you can help protect your account from unauthorized access.
When it comes to security, both Coinbase and Kraken are top-tier choices.
The bottom line
Overall, Kraken and Coinbase are very similar cryptocurrency exchanges. They have both been on the market for well over a decade, have an excellent reputation for security, and provide strong fiat currency integrations with multiple options for depositing and withdrawing money.
Kraken has the upper hand in terms of fees, as its trading fees are substantially lower than what’s charged by Coinbase. On the other hand, Coinbase lists a larger number of cryptocurrencies and provides the Coinbase Card, which makes it easy to spend your cryptocurrency balances for everyday purchases.
Both exchanges have high-quality mobile apps (Coinbase App and Kraken Pro), although Coinbase has a slight edge here because they also provide the Coinbase Wallet, which is a non-custodial crypto wallet that’s seamlessly integrated with Coinbase’s centralized exchange.
In our opinion, it’s difficult to go wrong with picking either Kraken or Coinbase. Both are excellent exchanges that lead the industry in terms of security and quality. If low fees are important to you, Kraken is the better choice. Meanwhile, if you’re looking for a more complete set of features, you’ll likely have a better experience with Coinbase.
If you are a crypto day trader, neither Coinbase nor Kraken are very good options as they have relatively high trading fees. Instead, you should consider using one of the exchanges featured in our list of the best crypto exchanges for day trading.
