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Best cryptocurrency exchanges
Compare cryptocurrency exchanges on things like fees, coins and payment methods.
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Top pick for
Beginners
Top pick for
AUD
Top pick for
Low fees
Top pick for
Altcoins
Top pick for
Trading
How we chose these exchanges
We reviewed more than 50 cryptocurrency exchanges compared in the table on this page. We looked at the beginner-friendliness, suitability for fiat currency purchases, fees, cryptocurrency selection and advanced trading features of each exchange to select a stand-out in each category. You can read more in our full methodology.
Bear in mind this isn't an exhaustive list of all the cryptocurrency exchanges out there. Some exchanges may be better for some situations and currencies. What's best for you depends on your own circumstances.
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Compare cryptocurrency exchanges you can use in Australia
Disclaimer: This information should not be interpreted as an endorsement of cryptocurrency or any specific
provider, service or offering. It is not a recommendation to trade.
Find the right crypto exchange for you
What's in this guide?
Best exchanges for:
Picking the best crypto exchange isn't a simple gesture. To come to these choices we compared dozens of cryptocurrency exchanges on a variety of factors, including but not limited to user-experience, fees, payment methods and selection of cryptocurrencies.
In our opinion, the best crypto exchanges depend on your situation:
- Most beginner friendly: CoinSpot
- Best for AUD transactions: Digital Surge
- Lowest fees: Binance
- Best for altcoins: Swyftx
- Best for traders: eToro
Determining your cryptocurrency exchange needs will help you find the best crypto exchange for you. Don't be afraid to use multiple exchanges to benefit from their specific perks, as fees are typically only charged when you perform trades.
Beginner friendly: CoinSpot
CoinSpot is designed to allow easy access to 100+ cryptocurrencies, including some that haven't been widely listed on other exchanges yet.
- Offers countless dozens of different cryptocurrencies, purchasable with AUD.
- Easy broker-style purchases and provided wallet for supported coins.
- Consistently low fees, although crypto exchange rates may vary by coin.
- Also supports selling of the full range of cryptocurrencies.
AUD transactions: Digital Surge
Digital Surge provides Australians with instant deposit and withdrawal methods, plus you can even pay your bills using cryptocurrency.
- An Australian exchange so there's no need to worry about currency conversion fees.
- You can make instant payments straight from your bank account using Osko or PayID, as well as deposit using the POLi Pay secure network for a small fee.
- As for taking money out, Digital Surge goes one further and even lets you pay bills using BPAY and Bitcoin to help you maximise the efficiency of your holdings.
Low fee: Binance
Binance is popular for a reason, with a wide selection of cryptocurrencies, a wide range of features and low trading fees.
- You'll simply pay a flat 0.1% trading fee at most when trading crypto to crypto.
- It's possible to reduce this even further by taking advantage of the exchange's native cryptocurrency, Binance Coin (BNB), and simply paying your trading fees with BNB held in your exchange account.
- There are different trading fee tiers, with lower fees for users who hold enough BNB coins and maintain certain monthly trading volumes.
Range of altcoins: Swyftx
Swyftx is a cryptocurrency broker with an emphasis on extremely competitive pricing across a wide selection of cryptocurrencies. It's easy to use, popular among people of all skill levels, has a reputation for very helpful customer service and lets users explore a wide range of coins without worrying about accidentally racking up surprise costs.
- Offers fiat purchases of a wide range of cryptocurrencies, provides a wallet for customers, has a clean and simple interface.
- Automatically converts AUD deposits to USD and back again upon withdrawal, with minimal (~0.4% to 0.6%) fees. This is the trick to its great rates. These costs are clearly shown in the displayed cryptocurrency prices, so there are no surprises.
- Allows payment with bank transfer, POLi, BPAY or PayID.
- An AUSTRAC-registered, regulated exchange.
Trading: eToro
eToro also offers non-crypto assets so you can trade various stocks and commodities on the same platform as your crypto.
- Can be used by both beginner and advanced traders, and frequent and infrequent traders.
- Offers margin trading, CFDs and advanced trade types. Disclaimer: Volatile investment product. 75% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider. You should consider whether you can afford to take the high risk of losing your money.
- Has limited API integration compared to some other exchanges, which may limit the use of trading bots, but makes up for it with copy trade features, which includes copy-trading bots.
How to choose a cryptocurrency exchange
It's important to research a wide range of platforms and compare the pros and cons of each option. The best Bitcoin exchange for you depends on what you're looking for.
Consider the following factors when comparing crypto exchanges.
How to use a cryptocurrency exchange
For the sake of our example, let's assume that you have AUD$500 that you want to use to buy Bitcoin.
- Compare cryptocurrency exchanges to find one that offers the right service for you.
- Register for an account on the platform, including providing any personal details and proof of ID required.
- Navigate your way to the "Buy" screen.
- Select Bitcoin as the cryptocurrency you want to buy.
- Select your payment currency, which in this case is AUD, and specify the amount you want to spend as $500.
- Select your payment method, such as a credit card payment or bank transfer.
- Enter your payment details, such as your account number and BSB if sending a bank transfer or your card number and CVV if paying by credit card.
- Review the full details of your transaction, including the fees that will apply and the amount of BTC you are purchasing.
- If you're happy to proceed, click "Buy BTC".
- Once the transaction has been processed, the BTC will be deposited into your exchange wallet. However, please note that some brokers will automatically send your purchased BTC to an external wallet address nominated by you.
How to pay for your cryptocurrency
You'll need to deposit funds on your cryptocurrency exchange, or otherwise make a transfer. Bitcoin exchanges accept all sorts of deposit methods, including the following:
- Credit and debit cards
- PayPal and other online payment services
- Cash deposits
- Bank transfers
- POLi
- Prepaid cards
- Cryptocurrency transfers
- PayID, Osko and other NPP payments
- Wire transfers
The payment types accepted will vary between exchanges though, so it's worth checking to ensure your preferred payment method is supported before signing up.
The different types of cryptocurrency exchanges
The term "exchange" can be used to refer to a variety of cryptocurrency brokers, trading platforms and other services. Different types of exchange are often more geared towards beginners or experienced users.
- For beginners - cryptocurrency brokers. Buy directly from cryptocurrency dealers for simple, quick and easy purchases. Many beginners use brokers for their first purchase. Examples of cryptocurrency brokers include CoinSpot is an example of a cryptocurrency broker.
- For intermediates - cryptocurrency trading platforms. Buy and sell cryptocurrency on an open market for competitive fees, a wide selection of cryptocurrencies and optional extra features like margin trading. While a bit trickier than brokers, these platforms can still be quite beginner-friendly. Binance is an example of a cryptocurrency trading platform.
- For advanced users - cryptocurrency derivatives platform. These trading platforms don't sell cryptocurrency outright. Instead, they let you trade cryptocurrency derivatives. They're for advanced traders who want high speed, high leverage, deeply liquid platforms with a full range of features.
Is it safe to store your cryptocurrency on an exchange?
Cryptocurrency is held in digital wallets. Some exchanges will give you your own wallet, which lets you hold cryptocurrency in your exchange account and then transfer it anywhere as desired, while others will require you to have your own wallet at the time of purchase.
However, using an exchange for long-term storage is not recommended. As the exchange controls the private key to your wallet, you don't have total control of your funds. And with exchanges regularly (and sometimes successfully) targeted by hackers, storing crypto on an exchange long-term is very risky.
Next steps
Not all crypto exchanges are created equal, and not all crypto buyers and sellers have the same trading needs. The best exchange for one person might not necessarily be the right choice for someone else, so it's essential that you do your own research.
Check out our reviews on a range of leading cryptocurrency exchanges in Australia and around the world. Compare the features, fees and pros and cons of each Bitcoin exchange and consider how they align with your trading requirements.
Best cryptocurrency exchanges list
CoinSpot Cryptocurrency Exchange
CoinSpot is an Australian exchange that lets you easily buy, sell and trade more than 250 cryptos.The best Bitcoin exchanges
The best Bitcoin exchange is cheap, easy and fast, with a wide range of payment options. It doesn’t need to have a wide selection or any advanced trading features. It’s for people who just want to buy Bitcoin. Generally, the most important factor is whether you’re using a local exchange, as this typically means you can pay with the local currency, and enjoy faster, cheaper transactions.
By this measure, the best Bitcoin exchange in Australian might be CoinJar. Its rates and fees are about on par with other top Australian cryptocurrency exchanges, and it doesn’t have an especially wide selection of cryptocurrencies, but its flexibility and Bitcoin-related features go above and beyond.
Some of the things that set CoinJar apart from other Australian Bitcoin exchanges are that it has both a simple brokerage service and a reasonably active trading platform, that it offers a Bitcoin debit card and its wide range of payment options, including cash deposits.
The best altcoin exchanges
The best altcoin exchange has a wide selection first and foremost, ideally with good liquidity across all pairs. Low fees, extra features, fiat payment options and other extras are nice, but sheer selection is more important.
There are two altcoin exchanges that may be considered to be the best, and between them, you can find hundreds upon hundreds of different coins.
The first is CoinSwitch. It’s actually an aggregator that lets you trade across several different partner exchanges at once. Between those partners, CoinSwitch lets you access about 400 different cryptocurrencies all in one place, with trading fees usually ranging from 0% to 0.5%, although there may be other costs in the spread. If you’re looking for a wide selection and low fees, CoinSwitch could be a good place to start.
KuCoin could be a good place to look second. It offers several hundred cryptocurrencies by itself, and it’s not one of CoinSwitch’s partners, which means you can find things on KuCoin that you won’t find on CoinSwitch. KuCoin’s trading fees are 0.1%, and as a proper exchange, it has some features that CoinSwitch doesn’t, such as margin trading.
The cheapest cryptocurrency exchanges
The cheapest cryptocurrency exchange isn’t always the one with the lowest trading fees. It’s also important to look for good spreads, to get good exchange rates and to make sure the deposit or withdrawal fees are reasonable.
The cheapest exchange may depend on whether you’re looking for a place to buy cryptocurrency, or if you want to trade cryptocurrencies instead. It can also depend on whether you’re buying Bitcoin, or a more obscure altcoin.
If you’re just buying Bitcoin with AUD, CoinJar may be the cheapest option. It offers zero fee deposit and withdrawal options, good rates and low fees.
If you want to buy altcoins with AUD, it may be worth checking the prices at Swyftx instead. It charges deposit and withdrawal fees on smaller transfers, and its fees aren’t the lowest, but it will often more-than make up for it with much better spreads on AUD altcoin purchases.
If you want to actively trade cryptocurrencies for each other, Binance could be the cheapest choice. Its trading fees start at 0.1%, with easy avenues to additional discounts. Simply by paying fees with BNB, it’s possible to get an easy 25% discount on trading fees. Importantly, it’s also one of the world’s most liquid cryptocurrency exchanges, which can be key to saving money by avoiding slippage.
The largest cryptocurrency exchanges
There are different ways of measuring "largest", but the most common is trading volume. More volume is good because it can indicate more popular, responsive and liquid exchanges. Unfortunately, you can't just take the exchange's word for it or trust exchange volume rankings from sites like CoinMarketCap. Fake volume and wash trading are common in cryptocurrency.
There are some exchanges which, after heavy scrutiny, are believed to show entirely genuine volume though.
The world's highest real-volume exchange is consistently Binance, according to reports from the Blockchain Transparency Institute, Bitwise and others.
The most popular cryptocurrency exchanges
If someone wants to find a reliable and all-around good cryptocurrency exchange without spending too much time sifting through the options, it can be helpful to beeline right for the most popular.
Popularity can be tricky to measure though, and many exchanges don’t disclose their total number of user accounts, and this figure will often be very different to the number of active users.
However, according to Similarweb, the most-visited cryptocurrency exchange website in the world between November 2019 and January 2020 was Coinbase, with over 57 million website visits worldwide. The second most-visited cryptocurrency exchange was Binance, with 53 million visits.
This echoes findings from the Blockchain Transparency Institute, which reported in December 2018 that Coinbase was the world’s most popular cryptocurrency exchange.
The best cryptocurrency trading platforms
The best cryptocurrency trading platforms are very liquid, very fast and offer a full range of features such as margin trading with up to 100x leverage, cryptocurrency derivatives such as futures and options, and good integration with third-party trading tools such as cryptocurrency trading bots. Ideally, they will also be well-regulated, popular and have a good reputation.
There are no exchanges which fit all of the above criteria, so the best cryptocurrency trading platform for you may depend on which of these criteria is most important to you. There are a number of options to consider.
Binance offers the highest leverage of any exchange (125x) and a wide selection of crypto derivatives, but it’s been known to experience technical issues.
Kraken only offers up to 5x leverage on a comparatively small range of coins, but it’s got a good reputation and offers both futures and options contracts. eToro allows trading of a wide range of assets beyond cryptocurrency, and has unique features such as Copy Trade, but it’s primarily a CFD platform which means you’re only betting on the prices rather than actually taking possession of the underlying cryptocurrency.
Cryptocurrency exchanges that don’t require ID
As a general rule of thumb, crypto-to-crypto trading doesn’t always require user verification, and people can do it without ID. Exchanging fiat currency for cryptocurrency typically does require ID.
Many of the exceptions to the rule are peer-to-peer exchanges, such as Paxful, where users can arrange fiat-to-crypto trades directly with each other that don’t always require ID.
However, there are often strict purchase limits and other downsides when using exchanges that don’t require ID.
Read the full guide to buying cryptocurrency with no ID for more information and a list of exchanges that don’t require ID.
Cryptocurrency exchanges that let you pay with cash
There are two main types of exchange that let you pay with cash, or three if you include Bitcoin ATMs.
You can check the map of Bitcoin ATM locations in Australia to see if there’s a Bitcoin ATM near you.
The other exchanges that let you buy crypto with cash include those such as CoinSpot, which let users pay with cash via cash vouchers, and peer-to-peer cryptocurrency exchanges such as Paxful where traders can find sellers who are willing to accept cash.
Read the full guide to buying cryptocurrency with cash for more information and more options.
The safest cryptocurrency exchange
Most exchanges will claim to be perfectly safe and secure right up until they get hacked, so you can’t just take their word for it. Instead, you can find the safest exchanges by looking at their security history, their security policies and any additional measures they take to protect their exchanges.
In this light, the safest Australian cryptocurrency exchange is arguably CoinSpot. It's never been hacked, and as of March 2020 it's the only Australian cryptocurrency exchange with ISO27001 security certification.
Internationally, the safest cryptocurrency exchange might be Gemini. It was founded in 2014, it's never been hacked, it was one of the world's first exchanges to get ISO27001 certified and it's also created its own captive insurance company specifically to ensure coverage for digital assets.
As safe as Gemini is, non-custodial or decentralised cryptocurrency exchanges are arguably even safer. Non-custodial exchanges send funds directly to your personal wallet when you make a purchase, while decentralised exchanges allow direct peer-to-peer cryptocurrency swaps.
In both cases, the exchanges don’t hold user funds, which means there’s no risk of losing your money to an exchange hack.
Non-custodial and decentralised exchanges put you in personal control of your security.
If you have a secure hardware wallet and know how to use it, non-custodial exchanges are arguably as safe as cryptocurrency exchanges can ever get. Decentralised exchanges are theoretically just as safe, but they’re also more experimental so bugs and unforeseen vulnerabilities may pose problems.
The best non-custodial cryptocurrency exchange
Non-custodial cryptocurrency exchanges send your cryptocurrency directly to your personal wallet after you make a purchase. This can be convenient, and it’s also perceived to be safer than entrusting funds to centralised exchanges.
The best non-custodial exchanges are characterised by variety, a wide range of payment options and fast delivery.
Coinmama is a well-known non-custodial exchange. It doesn’t hold your funds or cryptocurrency. Instead, it simply takes payment and then sends cryptocurrency directly to your wallet address as soon as payment is received and your wallet address is confirmed.
The best decentralised cryptocurrency exchange
All decentralised exchanges (DEXs) struggle to a certain extent with liquidity problems, complex user interfaces and slow trading, and you can expect to find combinations of these issues on any DEX.
No decentralised exchanges are without problems, and the best might depend on which ecosystem you’re trying to access.
The Waves platform is a relatively well-known general-purpose DEX, while more Ethereum-specific DEX protocols include 0x and Kyber Network. Elsewhere, DEXs such as Stellarport offer access to the Stellar Lumens ecosystem, while the Binance DEX serves as a token swap system in the Binance Chain ecosystem.
Frequently asked questions
Does every exchange list every possible cryptocurrency?
No. The list of currencies available varies widely from one exchange to the next. Some Bitcoin exchanges will only offer Bitcoin or a select few currencies while others support hundreds, but there's no guarantee that all the cryptos you want to buy and sell will be available on any one platform.
How do I avoid scams on cryptocurrency exchanges?
While regulators are gradually implementing laws and guidelines to help protect consumers against fraud, there are still plenty of dodgy exchange operators out there. Falling victim to theft is a major concern for any crypto buyer.
Read our guide to cryptocurrency scams for a checklist to help you avoid falling victim to fake or disreputable exchanges.
What if I want to place large-volume crypto trades, for example trades worth $50,000 or more?
You may want to consider using the services of an over-the-counter (OTC) broker in order to avoid slippage. Check out our guide to OTC services for more details.
Are there any exchanges that allow leverage trading of cryptocurrencies?
Yes. Take a look at our cryptocurrency margin trading guide for more information.
Where can I find a list of the world's biggest crypto exchanges?
You can view 24-hour trading volume for crypto exchanges on sites like CoinMarketCap, but be aware that the information is not always correct, and many unscrupulous exchanges try to cheat the rankings with fake trading volume.
You can find a more in-depth selection of the world's biggest cryptocurrency exchanges here.
Why do some crypto exchanges ask me to verify my identity?
Exchanges in Australia and several other countries are subject to anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism financing (AML/CTF) regulations. In order to comply with these regulations, exchange operators must gather certain details about their customers – which is why you may be asked to provide proof of ID. This process is typically referred to as "know your customer" or KYC.
A-Z list of cryptocurrency exchanges
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CoinSpot Cryptocurrency Exchange
CoinSpot is an Australian exchange that lets you easily buy, sell and trade more than 250 cryptos.
Disclaimer: Cryptocurrencies are speculative, complex and involve significant risks – they are highly
volatile and sensitive to secondary activity. Performance is unpredictable and past performance is no guarantee of
future performance. Consider your own circumstances, and obtain your own advice, before relying on this information.
You should also verify the nature of any product or service (including its legal status and relevant regulatory
requirements) and consult the relevant Regulators' websites before making any decision. Finder, or the author, may
have holdings in the cryptocurrencies discussed.
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Ask an Expert
I have for several years been informed by email that I have 10.2 Bitcoins. Recently I have also been informed that this balance is worth some $18,000 plus and that I can withdraw the money at any time. Is this likely to be true or is it a scam?
Hi Wisebanc.com
Thanks for your inquiry and sorry for the delay.
I’m afraid we can’t tell if that is true or a scam. Have you traded bitcoins before or do you have any deals with cryptocurrencies? That could be adverts from the exchanges you’re with. If you didn’t engage in any of the bitcoin trades, then you should have a second thought and start to investigate yourself. You may refer to our guide about bitcoin scams. It has a list of 11 common crypto scams to keep an eye out for.
Hope this helps.
Cheers,
May
Now is a large selection of exchangers, but not all of them meet the requirements of users. For example, I used shapeshift earlier, but they made an account. I think you know what kind of hate this has caused among users. Then I used changelly, but they recently delay the execution of applications. This is inconvenient, because I need an exchange in a short time. Now I found changenow, in my opinion it meets the requirements of the crypto community, so I look forward to your review. Thanks!
Hi Emily,
Thank you for reaching out to finder.
Let me go and forward your comment over to our publishers. Definitely, this is something that would be checked by the team. Please follow our pages and check for updates regarding this. Again, thanks for your comment.
Cheers,
Reggie
Agree with Almore. Changenow should rank on this list. Using it recently, I found a service that completely suits me. Hope I will see it here.
Hi Ricko,
Thank you for reaching out to finder.
I have already forwarded your suggestion to our publishers for validation. Thank you for your interest in helping finder.
Cheers,
Reggie
Could you please add changenow to this list? I wanna to compare it with other services. They are writing about their best rates
Hi Almore,
Thank you for reaching out to finder.
I will forward your request to our team who publishes these articles and this would be validated. Once we have enough information about this Crypto Exchange, we will have it published on our site. Hope this helps!
Cheers,
Reggie
Hello
Here is a new cryptocurrency exchange(BITKER which founded in Singapore), we would like to link our information on your cryptocurrency plate. Also as the cooperation exchange condition, we would offer BITKER media resource, BITKER exchange has over 100K user and attention in China market. Now is continue to increase the overseas market. including but not limited to Southeast Asia, Middle East, Africa and North America.
If you are interested for our cooperation.
Please, Email me
Thank you
Mibo
Hi Mibo,
Thank you for your interest in Finder.
Please check our partner with us page. Once there, please fill in the form provided. Once submitted, our client services team will get in touch with you to discuss your proposal.
Hope this helps!
Cheers,
Reggie