A Guide To The Largest Crypto Exchanges

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There are currently hundreds of exchanges offering Bitcoin and cryptocurrency trading, with new platforms coming online almost every month.

Some estimates put the figure at more than 500 active exchanges at any given time, but many of these are small start-ups which often shut down abruptly.

If you’re looking to buy crypto you may want to choose one of the bigger exchanges as these tend to be far more secure and reliable.

When entering the world of crypto, security is paramount as there are many bad actors and scam sites looking to steal your coins, so choosing the right exchange is extremely important.

Make sure you thoroughly research a cryptocurrency exchange when signing up, and ensure that the web address is correct when logging in.

The largest exchanges are currently:

• Binance
• Coinbase
• Kraken
• KuCoin
• Crypto.com

To anyone who knows about crypto or is researching which exchange to use to buy coins, these exchanges may seem familiar, as they all appear high in Google search results.

This means they are widely used and trustworthy, which backs up by the exchange score allocated to them in the CoinMarketCap table.

This score is based on a number of factors, including web traffic, average liquidity, volume and, perhaps most importantly, confidence that the volume reported by the exchange is legitimate.

So, taking these factors into account, the site gives the following scores: Binance 9.9, Coinbase 8.6, FTX 8.4, Kraken 8.0 and KuCoin 7.7. Anything above 6.0 is classed as good, with exchanges classed as poor receiving scores of 4.0 or less.

At the time of writing CoinMarketCap was tracking 314 spot crypto exchanges with a 24 hour trading volume of more than £250 billion.

Of course, the rankings are subject to change as crypto exchanges operate 24/7. However, this snapshot offers a useful tool for anyone researching which exchange to buy crypto from.

It’s also worth noting that while CoinMarketCap is one of the largest tracking sites in the world, other platforms offer their own figures giving a different snapshot of the biggest crypto exchanges.

Interestingly though, whichever stats you look out, Binance consistently appears in the number one spot.

CoinGecko, for example, offers its own top cryptocurrency exchanges list complete with ranking score.

Again, Binance sits at the top, with Coinbase taking the number 4 spot. The other exchanges in its top five are Gate.io, OKX and Crypto.com.

All of the exchanges in the CoinGecko’s top 5 have secured a trust score of 10. Like CoinMarketCap, the list changes frequently.

The largest 10 crypto exchanges and platforms

In addition to the top 5 cryptocurrency exchanges as per the CoinMarketCap data listed above, the top 10 list also includes in ranking order from 6-10:

• Huobi Global
• Bitfinex
• Gate.io
• Bybit
• Crypto.com

All receive a score of 7.2 or above and are considered safe and legitimate exchanges to use when it comes to buying and selling cryptoassets.

Make sure you get your exchange information from reliable sources and not sites set up purely to secure commissions for recommending crypto exchanges.

You’ll find many pages claiming to list the largest Bitcoin exchanges which aren’t giving any accurate information at all – just the top sites for earning referral commission.

CoinMarketCap is a widely used independent source of crypto data and exchanges ranking information which is trustworthy and a good starting point for your research.

ng criticism from several quarters, including Edward Snowden, and it has been dubbed the ‘CIAs wet dream’.

The lowest fee crypto exchanges

While the lowest cryptocurrency exchange fees is a whole other topic, it’s important to note that often the top exchanges aren’t the cheapest.

For example, if you use the standard version of Coinbase to make your crypto purchase you’ll pay a significantly higher fee on each transaction than if you shop around.

You can reduce your fees by switching to Coinbase Pro, but you have to use a professional trading screen to carry out transactions, which isn’t ideal for people who are new to the world of cryptocurrency.

Binance is cheaper, but there is a much steeper learning curve to trading than with the standard version of Coinbase, which is designed to make it as simple as possible to buy crypto.

Other exchanges offer lower fees or other incentives to entice customers, but you need to balance your trust in the exchange and technical knowledge against paying more for a platform that’s easy to use.