Best Crypto Exchanges and Apps of 2024 [Licensed and Regulated]

Whether you’re a beginner or an experienced investor or trader, finding the best crypto exchange is crucial for safe and efficient trading. It’s also the first step you need to take to invest in this growing asset class.

We evaluate security, fees, user experience, available cryptocurrencies and other criteria across more than 40 providers to find the best crypto exchanges and trading platforms for buying and selling crypto.

All providers on our list are US government-regulated and licensed to operate within the US. Many providers on our list also carry crime insurance covering fiat currency and digital asset theft.

See which crypto exchange is right for you and learn how to start investing in crypto today.

Best crypto exchanges and apps of 2024

• Best for beginners: Coinbase
• Best for advanced trading: Kraken
• Best for multi-asset trading: Uphold
• Best broker for buying crypto: Robinhood Crypto
• Best for copy trading: eToro
• Best for nationwide availability: Gemini
• Best for automated crypto investing: Betterment
• Best for low fees: Crypto.com

Why you can trust Finder's crypto experts

Best for beginners

Best for advanced trading

Best for multi-asset trading

Best broker for buying crypto

Best for copy trading

Best for nationwide availability

Best broker for automated crypto investing

Best for low fees

Methodology: How we choose the best crypto exchanges and platforms

Finder’s investments experts reviewed over 40 cryptocurrency platforms available to narrow down the best exchanges in the USA for trading and investing in crypto. Only platforms registered with the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network operating in the US were considered part of the final methodology.

We analyze each platform based on 98 key metrics we collect directly from exchanges and brokers and assess each provider’s performance based on eight different categories, weighing each metric based on the expertise and insights of Finder’s investment experts. We then score and rank each provider depending on its performance in each category.

How we weigh the overall rating

Category	Weighting
Availability	20%
Support cryptocurrencies	20%
Trading costs	20%
Security	15%
Storage	10%
Customer support	5%
Mobile app store ratings	5%
Features and amenities	5%

We update our best picks as products change, disappear, or emerge. We also regularly review and revise our selections to ensure our best provider lists reflect the most competitive.

How to choose the best crypto exchange

You won’t know if a crypto exchange or platform is right for you until you try it. That said, the following factors are typically universally important when choosing a provider:

• User-friendliness. Getting started buying and selling coins and tokens can be complicated and confusing. Look for a platform with a straightforward user interface that’s easy to understand.
• Payment methods. Choose an exchange that has deposit and withdrawal options that work for you. Remember to check the fees associated with different methods.
• Fees. Consider all relevant costs to use a specific platform, from depositing to trading and withdrawing funds and assets. For instance, fees for credit card purchases are usually higher than for a bank transfer.
• Type of trading. Consider the type of trades you want to place. Some exchanges offer only fiat-to-crypto, while others offer fiat-to-crypto and crypto-to-crypto trades. If you want to buy BTC with US dollars, you’ll need to find a platform that lets you buy coins via bank transfer or card. Alternatively, if you want to exchange your BTC or ETH holdings for another cryptocurrency, you’ll want a platform that offers direct crypto-to-crypto trades.
• Cryptocurrency selection. Traditional brokers tend to offer fewer cryptos than exchanges. Major cryptocurrencies are listed on most exchanges, while you may only find rarer altcoins on certain platforms.
• Trading platforms. Certain platforms only let you trade through a web browser, though many also have mobile apps. However, mobile apps typically have paired down trading capabilities.
• Liquidity. An exchange’s level of liquidity — also known as trading volume — affects the ease and speed at which you can complete trades. If there’s a high level of liquidity, then trades should be completed quickly and easily. One of the biggest benefits of trading on larger crypto exchanges is they get enough orders to match buyers and sellers easily. However, low liquidity can lead to substantial price fluctuations. Websites such as CoinGecko and CoinMarketCap provide information about an exchange’s liquidity level.
• Account verification process. Like stock brokers, most regulated centralized crypto exchanges implement a know-your-client (KYC) identity verification process. Expect to provide your name, email address, phone number, residential address and proof of ID to create an account. The verification process is usually instant but can sometimes take two to three business days.
• Security features. Security is a crucial factor to consider when choosing a crypto exchange. Hacks happen, so determine what security measures and insurance are in place to protect your funds. Is the exchange licensed and regulated by the proper authorities? Does it support two-factor authentication (2FA)? What percentage of customer funds are stored offline or in cold storage? Check the exchange’s trust score on CoinGecko or CER.
• Local regulation. US-based cryptocurrency exchanges are regulated by the Bank Secrecy Act (BSA), which requires that crypto exchanges register with the US Treasury Department’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN).⁽¹⁾ FinCEN requires all exchanges in the US to be licensed and to comply with Anti-Money Laundering (AML) and Know Your Customer (KYC) requirements. However, certain states such as New York also have specific regulatory requirements under a “BitLicense” that requires “virtual currency businesses” to go through several bureaucratic procedures to obtain a license to do business in the state. You’ll know you’re using a regulated exchange if you’re asked to provide KYC information to create an account.
• Customer support. Consider customer support availability and contact methods. Some exchanges offer 24/7 customer support with phone, email and live chat options, while others are only available by email and during specific hours.
• Reputation. All the providers on our list are US government regulated and licensed to operate in the US. They also hold the majority of customer assets in cold storage. Online reviews can shed light on overall customer sentiment when learning about an exchange’s reputation.

Should you buy crypto with a broker or an exchange?

Here are the most notable differences between buying and selling crypto via a traditional broker versus a crypto exchange:

Crypto exchanges

• Direct ownership. Buying through a crypto exchange usually means you directly own the cryptocurrency, which you can store in a digital wallet. However, some brokers offer this too.
• Variety of cryptocurrencies. Exchanges often support a wide range of cryptocurrencies, giving you more options for buying, selling and trading.
• Liquidity. High liquidity on major exchanges allows for quick trade execution and usually better market prices.

• Regulatoty uncertainty. Crypto exchanges vary widely in terms of regulatory compliance, making it crucial to choose reputable platforms.
• Security concerns. Crypto exchanges have been targeted by hackers, resulting in high-profile security breaches and significant losses of investor funds. While some exchanges have robust security measures, the risk of hacking remains a concern.

Traditional brokers

• Fees and commissions. Brokers typically have a more straightforward fee structure, which usually consists of a flat buy or sell fee or a spread.
• Access to other assets. Traditional brokers let you trade other assets like stocks, bonds and exchange-traded funds (ETFs), providing a more diversified trading platform.
• Regulation. Traditional brokers are often heavily regulated, providing an added layer of security and consumer protection compared to some crypto exchanges.

• Indirect ownership. Though this isn’t always the case, buying crypto through a traditional broker often means you do not directly own the cryptocurrency. You may not be able to transfer your crypto to an external wallet.
• Limited cryptocurrency selection. Traditional brokers generally offer a more limited selection of cryptocurrencies compared to dedicated crypto exchanges.

The different types of cryptocurrency exchanges

The term “exchange” may refer to a variety of cryptocurrency brokers, trading platforms and other services. Different types of exchanges can be geared toward beginners or experienced users.

• Cryptocurrency brokers (suited to beginners). Buy directly from cryptocurrency dealers for simple and quick purchases. Many beginners use brokers for their first purchase. A broker will facilitate an instant purchase of the digital asset of your choosing and will not offer spot trading.
• Cryptocurrency trading platforms (suited to beginner/intermediate users). Buy and sell cryptocurrency on an open market for competitive fees, a wide selection of cryptocurrencies and optional features like margin trading. Many exchanges now offer brokerage services to be more beginner-friendly.
• Cryptocurrency derivatives platforms (suited to advanced users). These trading platforms don’t sell cryptocurrency outright. Instead, they let certain users trade cryptocurrency derivatives in regions where this restricted-access feature is available. They’re for advanced traders who want high speed, high leverage and deeply liquid platforms with a full range of features.

Risks of using a crypto exchange

• Cybersecurity breaches. Hacks and scams are, unfortunately, commonplace in the crypto space. Exchange-related security breaches and targeted phishing scams remain a major concern for exchanges and their customers.
• Not your keys. “Not your keys, not your crypto” is a common industry saying and refers to holding your digital assets in a wallet that another person or company controls, such as on an exchange. By storing cryptos on an exchange rather than in a non-custodial wallet, you’re relinquishing full ownership of those assets and putting trust in a third party – which some may see as contradictory to the decentralized philosophy of crypto.
• Lack of consumer protection. While crypto exchanges are increasingly regulated in the US and may be registered with FinCEN, they are still lacking a lot of consumer protections such as mandatory insurance or strict rules about how user assets are managed.
• Proof of reserves. Since the widely publicized collapse of FTX, many traders and investors have demanded centralized exchanges provide proof of reserves and user deposits. This may be done by a third-party auditor or through the use of on-chain data. Proof of reserves is still an evolving concept, and it’s not clear yet what the best practices are or how reliable it will prove to be.
• Transaction limits. Most crypto trading platforms have daily deposit and withdrawal limits. This means that even though you may have, for example, 10,000 USD available, you may not be able to access and withdraw the total balance. Transaction limits depend on the exchange and FinCEN stipulations and typically increase as you provide additional KYC information.
• Frozen accounts. Crypto exchanges freezing deposits and withdrawals can happen without warning. If your account is frozen, you will not be allowed to remove your funds until the exchange approves or denies your request. Precautionary measures such as only holding a trading balance on an exchange are recommended.
• Asset delistings. Centralized exchanges can opt to delist a cryptocurrency at any time. This can happen for numerous reasons, including poor asset performance, security concerns or anti-money laundering (AML) breaches. If delisting is taking place, you will be notified by the exchange and forced to sell your assets or remove them from the platform.

Is it safe to store your cryptocurrency on an exchange?

Securely store your crypto:

• Best crypto wallets
• Best hardware wallets

Cryptocurrency is held in digital wallets. Some exchanges will give you your own wallet that lets you hold cryptocurrency in your exchange account and then transfer it anywhere as desired.

However, once you have purchased what you consider to be a sizeable amount of digital assets, you may want to consider transferring the private keys to those assets to a self-custodial wallet.

This is because the exchange controls the private key to your wallet, which means you don’t have total control of your funds. And with exchanges sometimes falling victim to hackers, there is some degree of risk involved with leaving the private keys to your crypto in the hands of a centralized exchange.

Learn about wallets

2024 crypto exchange industry predictions report

We polled 56 specialists in the fintech industry to get their opinion on what the future looks like for centralized crypto exchanges and what the demise of FTX means for the crypto industry.

The vast majority of our panelists (83.93%) don't think the collapse of FTX was the beginning of the end for crypto, while 8.93% think it was and 7.14% are unsure.

However, because of the FTX collapse, more than half of our panelists (58.49%) believe that crypto exchanges should be regulated just as much as other financial trading platforms.

22.64% believe that crypto exchanges should be regulated, but less so than other financial trading platforms. 15.09% don't believe that crypto exchanges should be regulated to the same degree.

Over one-third of our panelists (35.19%) believe all crypto exchanges will be regulated as traditional financial institutions by 2030. A further 22.22% believe this will happen by 2025 and another 14.81% think it will happen by 2024.

In the future, the majority of our panelists (86.79%) feel that crypto exchanges should be required to disclose both their proof of reserves (PoR) and records of their liabilities.

42.31% think that more crypto exchanges will face bankruptcy as a result of a reduction in their customer base. 15.38% believe this will play out over the next 5 years while a quarter (26.92%) think it'll happen within the year.

Finder surveyed 56 fintech specialists in January 2023. Panelists are able to answer as many or as few questions as they like, meaning the number of responses received varies by question. Panelists may own some cryptocurrencies.

Frequently asked questions

Which crypto exchange is safest?

The safest exchanges have stringent security measures like Know Your Customer (KYC) registration, password protection and two-factor authentication (2FA). They’ll hold most customers’ funds in cold storage and offer a publicly available insurance policy for user deposits, as well.
Remember: all centralized cryptocurrency exchanges are vulnerable to hacking and exploits.

Which crypto exchange has the lowest fees?

There are lots of fees to take into account when choosing an exchange. Exchanges like Crypto.com, Binance.US and Coinbase are known for having competitive transaction fees.
But, it’s also important to consider deposit and withdrawal fees, possible account inactivity fees and spreads.

What is the most trustworthy crypto exchange?

Due diligence and research are incredibly important when choosing a crypto exchange you can trust.

As a good rule of thumb, look for exchanges headquartered in the US with a long history of serving customers without hacks — like Coinbase, Kraken or Gemini.

A great way to dive deeper is by reading extended reviews of each crypto exchange and researching customer feedback and industry data on platforms like Trustpilot.

Which crypto exchange is best for the US?

To answer this question, you’ll need to research a range of crypto exchanges to see which meets your needs and budget.

It’s also important to understand that there are different state laws and regulations that influence where you can buy crypto in the USA.

We’ve given you a headstart by sharing some of our picks for the best crypto exchanges in the US at the top of this page.

How do major crypto exchanges in the US compare?

Easily compare the following major crypto exchanges:

• Binance vs. Coinbase
• Gemini vs. Coinbase
• Robinhood vs. Coinbase
• Binance vs. Binance.US
• Kraken vs. Binance
• eToro vs. Coinbase
• Coinbase vs. Kraken
• Uphold vs. Coinbase

How much crypto do Americans own?

According to a 2023 Finder survey, respondents had about $19,881 on average invested in crypto. However, the median dollar amount our respondents had invested in crypto was only $1,000.⁽²⁾

Finder’s crypto exchange reviews