Best crypto exchanges in Australia

Binance is a feature-rich exchange with competitive fees and a huge range of supported cryptocurrencies. This makes it our pick for the best overall exchange in Australia. You can start building a cryptocurrency portfolio today with over 300 coins available to buy with AUD.

Binance is by far the world's most popular exchange with around 30 million registered users and more trading volume than any competitor. The exchange is registered with Australian Transaction Reports and Analysis Centre (AUSTRAC) and has a US$1 billion private insurance fund.

Binance also has a broad range of earning opportunities with staking, savings accounts and yield farming available for over 100 coins. It's also home to an NFT marketplace.

More experienced traders will enjoy the platform's suite of advanced trading options, including several order types, automated trades and charting options.

In 2020 Binance released its own blockchain, Binance Smart Chain (BSC). BNB is the native coin of BSC and offers Binance users a number of benefits. In particular, using BNB to pay for trading fees results in a 25% discount.

Several of BSC's features have now been added to the Binance exchange. Users can access decentralised finance (DeFi) services from within the platform, preventing the need to learn how to use a blockchain or a Web3 wallet.

Crypto.com's mobile-first approach and user-friendly app make it our choice as the best exchange for beginners. It is also complemented by an online exchange for more in-depth trading.

You can download the app and simply link a credit card or bank account for a straightforward way to buy, sell and hold over 200 cryptocurrencies. You can also put your crypto to work by earning passive income though an Earn account, which pays yield on your holdings. It even supports TAUD, an Australian-dollar-based stablecoin.

The online exchange is just as user-friendly and allows you to set your own price when buying or selling cryptocurrency on the spot market. If you're interested in trading crypto regularly, this could be an easy way to get started.

The platform also offers a native coin, CRO, which can be staked using Crypto.com's Visa card to cut fees and access benefits like a free Spotify premium membership.

Digital Surge offers some of the lowest fees of any Australian platform, which makes it our pick for the best-value exchange.

Digital Surge only charges a 0.5% fee to instantly buy and sell over 250 cryptocurrencies. This is useful for anyone using a dollar-cost averaging strategy.

Digital Surge's spreads – a fee often hidden by crypto exchanges – are regularly under 0.4%. The exchange is one of the only Australian platforms to offer spreads of less than 1%.

Digital Surge does charge a deposit fee for POLi bank transfers, though this is capped at $3.30. There are no fees for PayID deposits or AUD withdrawals, making buying and selling crypto on the platform cost-efficient.

Binance has one of the largest lists of cryptocurrencies available to Australians. It offers markets for over 300 cryptocurrencies and 500 trading pairs.

Binance is constantly expanding its offerings, with new trading pairs and cryptocurrencies often listed weekly. Investors looking for more obscure or novel coins and tokens will likely find what they need on Binance.

Binance also has a unique Fan Token platform for fans of Formula 1 and soccer. Investors can buy tokens for a specific club and receive benefits such as exclusive NFTs, badges and fan experiences.

Kraken is rich with sophisticated trading options for Australians, which is why it's our pick for trading.

Users have access to a range of order types such as stop-loss, market and limit orders with customisable charts. In addition to cryptocurrencies, Kraken also offers forex, making it a one-stop shop for currency traders.

If you qualify as an Intermediate or Pro user, you'll get access to margin trading and futures contracts. Kraken allows verified accounts to trade with 5 times leverage on more than 30 cryptocurrencies.

Cryptocurrency derivatives are high-risk and should only be used by experienced traders. Using leverage will further amplify your losses as well as your gains.

Kraken regularly exceeds a daily trading volume of US$500 million and the platform is renowned for its deep liquidity. This means that traders don't need to worry as much about slippage. Trading fees work on a volume system, meaning high-wealth traders can get fees as low as zero. Another benefit is API integration, allowing experienced traders to add third-party plug-ins.

Binance is at the cutting-edge of emerging crypto products, which is why it's our pick for the best exchange for features.

Whether you want to buy NFTs, access comprehensive earning options or DeFi products or just learn about crypto, Binance has all bases covered.

For instance, once you purchase a cryptocurrency, you can deposit it into a savings account to earn yield. There are also opportunities to invest in early-stage crypto projects.

If you're interested in DeFi but don't feel ready to use a blockchain yet, Binance can help. It offers a range of DeFi services based on its own Binance Smart Chain, which was designed as a low-cost alternative to Ethereum.

There is even a learn-and-earn program to help encourage beginners to learn more about blockchain technology.

Swyftx is our pick for the best exchange for earning due to its simple interface and minimal fees.

With an Earn account, Australians can earn a passive income on more than 20 cryptocurrencies, including popular options such as Ethereum, Bitcoin and AUD stablecoins.

The annual percentage yields (APY) for earning on Swyftx are very competitive, with several coins earning over 10% APY. There are no fees associated with using Earn on Swyftx and rewards are paid out daily.

Founded in 2018, Swyftx is an Australian-owned and operated exchange with a local customer support team.

FTX is our pick for trading cryptocurrency derivatives because it holds an Australian Financial Services Licence (AFSL). This means it is one of the only cryptocurrency exchanges authorised to offer crypto futures contracts and options to Aussie traders.

On FTX, you can trade a wide range of derivatives, including futures, options contracts and exotic products such as tokenised stocks and predictions markets. All contracts are settled in USD.

FTX offers quarterly or perpetual futures on over 30 major cryptocurrencies, including BTC, ETH and USDT and altcoins such as SOL, AVAX and AAVE. It also offers futures on unique indexes built around a single theme. For instance, the DeFi Index tracks the price of a bundle of 25 DeFi tokens.

Cryptocurrency derivatives are high-risk and should only be used by experienced traders. Using leverage will further amplify your losses as well as your gains.

In addition to derivatives, FTX features a regular spot exchange with over 250 cryptocurrencies available to trade. If you're an experienced trader looking for an all-in-one platform, FTX could be a great solution.

Margin trading is available on both futures (20x) and the spot market (10x), although you will need to meet certain criteria before being eligible to use margin.

CoinSpot is integrated with OpenSea.io, the world's largest NFT marketplace, which is why it's our pick for the best exchange for NFTs.

Customers can access more than 20 popular NFT collections such as Bored Ape Yacht Club (BAYC) and Cool Cats.

Perhaps the most compelling feature of CoinSpot's NFT marketplace is its supported payment methods. Most NFT platforms require customers to pay in Ethereum, which can introduce crippling network or gas fees. CoinSpot allows account holders to buy NFTs with any cryptocurrency in their wallet. It does charge a 0.9% fee on NFT transactions, but this is still lower than many competitors. Users can also list their own NFT creations for sale, but they must be minted elsewhere.

CoinSpot is one of Australia's longest-running exchanges and has over 2.5 million registered users.

Disclaimer: CFD service. Your capital is at risk.

eToro pioneered the concept of copy trading back in 2010. Since then, the platform has expanded to include a range of social features, with a Facebook-style newsfeed that lets you engage directly with other traders.

eToro's copy trading feature allows you to view and mirror trades made by experienced investors. Getting started is easy – simply choose a trader you want to copy and then set your account to follow their trading moves.

With a minimum of US$200, you can automatically repeat trades from some of eToro's top-performing crypto traders. There is no additional fee charged for this service.

Beyond copy trading, eToro provides a comprehensive social experience, making it just as much a social media platform as a broker. Traders can discuss their moves, speculate on prices and share important news with each other.

Cointree allows SMSF-eligible customers to add Bitcoin, Ethereum and other cryptocurrencies to their retirement portfolio. All up, Cointree supports over 280 assets on their platform with fees as low as 0.5%.

The process of opening and managing an SMSF can be complex and time-consuming. Cointree can assist you with the process all the way through, such as setting up a trust deed. The platform also provides digestible performance overviews to help review investment strategies. Users can even compare their SMSF accounts to other top-performing investors and copy their portfolios.

The exchange is partnered with ExpertSuper and integrated with BGL Simple Fund 360 to ensure that your personal SMSF needs are met. It's always a good idea to consult a financial advisor before opening an SMSF.