Updated Rules checked 2026-10-17
If you want to be a referrer yourself, first check whether your exchange gives regular users a “fee commission”. Binance, KuCoin, Bybit, MEXC, Gate, BingX, XT.COM, Pionex and Ourbit all do: once you’ve signed up, you can create a referral code on the referral page. Regular user referrals at OKX and Bitget only pay promotional rewards. To share a fee rebate with friends there, you first have to join the affiliate (partner) program.
The rebate you give a friend is carved out of your own commission. You decide how much when you create the referral code, and the exchange does not pay anything extra. Binance, the MEXC affiliate program, OKX affiliates and XT.COM all cap the share you can pass on at 20%, while KuCoin lets you share up to your current commission. Once the share is set, Binance futures shares, MEXC referral strategies and OKX invitee rates cannot be lowered, and a change at Gate only applies to people you invite afterward, so decide before you create the code.
I put the official referrer rules of 13 exchanges, including Binance, OKX and Bitget, into the table below. I also ran the numbers on “how much you give your friend and how much you keep”, and on when commission is paid and what gets it cancelled.
Key points
Binance regular users start with 20% spot and 10% futures commission. In Referral Pro you can create up to 50 referral codes and share up to 20% each for spot and futures with friends; if your commission is below 20%, you can share all of it.
Regular user referrals at OKX and Bitget only give promotional rewards or airdrops, with no fee rebate to share with friends. OKX affiliates can set an invitee rebate of 0%–20%, and once set it can only be raised.
Since October 25, 2025, Binance futures shares cannot be changed once set; MEXC affiliate referral strategies cannot be edited or deleted after creation; changes at Gate only apply to users invited afterward.
Bybit’s regular referrer commission is 20%–30%, and since February 7, 2026 each referrer is capped at USD 5,000 per quarter. Bybit does not state officially that any of it can be shared with invitees.
MEXC and Pionex explicitly ban self-referrals, and Binance, OKX, KuCoin and WEEX also ban earning commission through multiple or duplicate accounts. Violations get commission cancelled.
The information below was checked against official pages on 2026-10-17 (fact-check date) and is provided for reference.
Can regular users be referrers? Where do you create a referral code?
Yes, but what a referrer gets varies a lot between exchanges. Some give regular users a fee commission that they can partly share with friends. Others only hand out fixed rewards, and however much your friend trades, the referrer gets no share of the fees. Where the official pages say to create a referral code:
- Binance: on the website, log in and go to “Profile → Referral”, or click “Referral” in the footer and choose Referral Pro; in the app, tap “Referral” on the home screen to open Referral Pro. Then click “Change referral settings” → “Add New Referral” and use the sliders to set how much spot and futures commission goes to your friend (Binance Referral Pro explainer).
- OKX: on the website it’s under “More → Referral”, in the app under “Menu → Referral” (in the Earn and rewards section). Copy the referral code or link to share it; your invite history is under “Referral → My referrals” (OKX Referral Program FAQ). This is a promotional-reward program with no share setting.
- Bitget: regular referrals use the Referral event page on the website; in the app, tap the “Referral” icon and then “Referral” to generate a link (Bitget Referral Program). Links with a rebate share setting come from the affiliate dashboard.
- BingX: in the app, tap “Invite to Earn” → “Other Referral Codes” to set your friend’s commission share (BingX referral program tutorial).
- MEXC, XT.COM, Gate: MEXC generates an invite code or link on its invite page (MEXC Referral Program); on XT.COM, click “Invite Friends” on the referral page (XT.COM referral guide); Gate’s referral page has a slider to split the rate between you and your invitee (Gate referral rebate page).
At every exchange, the referral relationship has to be set up when your friend signs up. Binance and OKX both state that a referral relationship cannot be changed or removed once it exists, so make sure your friend enters the right code before signing up. If your friend wants to confirm the binding, see the guide to checking your referral code.
How much commission do referrers get, and how much can they share?
In the table, “referrer commission” is the share you receive, and “share with friends” is the part you can give up for the exchange to refund automatically to your friend. Both are calculated on the fees your friend pays. Cells marked “not stated officially” mean I could not find a rule in the exchange’s help center, event pages or announcements.
| Exchange | Referrer commission for regular users | Sharing with friends: setting and cap | Can it be changed later? | Duration | Sources |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Binance | From 20% spot and 10% futures, up to 50% based on quarterly assessment | Up to 20% each for spot and futures; all of it if your commission is below 20% | Since 2025/10/25, futures shares cannot be changed once set | Spot: no duration stated; futures: 1 year (unlimited at 30% commission or more) | Rules, Announcement |
| OKX | Promotional rewards only (capped each period), no fee commission | Affiliates only; invitee rate 0%–20% | Invitee rate can only be raised, not lowered or removed | Not stated officially | Affiliate FAQ, Rebate FAQ |
| Bybit | From 20%; 25% or 30% based on quarterly invites or trading volume; capped at USD 5,000 per quarter | Not stated officially | — | 365 days; may end after 180 days without trading | Referral FAQ |
| Bitget | BGB airdrops and mystery boxes, no fee commission | Set in the affiliate dashboard; cap “varies by account and product” | Some links cannot be edited after creation; you have to create a new link | Not stated officially | Referral, Affiliate links |
| MEXC | 40% for spot and futures | Regular referrals: not stated officially; affiliates can set up to 20% | Affiliate referral strategies cannot be edited or deleted after creation | Regular: 1,080 days | Referral, Affiliate portal |
| Gate | Up to 40%; the page’s example is 30% referrer, 10% invitee | Slider on the referral page; cap not stated officially | Changes only apply to users invited afterward | 1 year | Referral page |
| BingX | Lv1 10%; Lv2 20% after inviting 10 friends who trade | You can set a share for friends; cap not stated officially | Not stated officially | Not stated officially | Tutorial |
| KuCoin | From 25%, up to 35%, reassessed monthly | You can set a custom rebate, up to your current commission | Not stated officially | 365 days; stops when your friend reaches VIP 3 | Referral page |
| HTX | 30% | Custom invite codes can set an invitee share; cap not stated officially | Not stated officially | 2024 rules say no time limit | Custom code |
| XT.COM | Referrer and invitee combined up to 20% | Split within 20% | Not stated officially | Not stated officially | Announcement |
| WEEX | 40%; the page says lifetime | Not stated officially | — | Lifetime | Referral page |
| Pionex | 20% spot, 15% futures (fixed) | Part can go to friends as a fee discount, up to your own commission | Not stated officially | 365 days for non-KOLs | Rules v3 |
| Ourbit | 30% combined; official example is 20% referrer, 10% invitee | Split within 30% (spot currently has zero fees) | Not stated officially | 1,080 days | Referral page |
The column people overlook most is the fourth one. Binance futures shares, MEXC affiliate strategies and OKX invitee rates cannot be lowered once submitted. Gate does allow changes, but they only affect people who sign up afterward; friends you’ve already invited keep their original rate. In other words, the share you set the first time is often the one that applies to you and that group of friends from then on.
How do you set the rebate share in Binance Referral Pro?
Binance’s referrer program is called Referral Pro. Each account can create up to 50 referral codes or links, and each one can have a different share. Spot and futures are set on separate sliders: you can give any part of your commission to your friend, up to 20%. If your commission itself is below 20%, such as the 10% starting futures rate, you can share all of it (Binance Referral Pro explainer).
Referrer commission is assessed every 3 months, separately for spot and futures (Binance referral rules, updated 2026-08-05):
| Tier | Spot commission | Spot requirement (per quarter) | Futures commission | Futures requirement (per quarter) | Futures duration |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tier 0 | 20% | None | 10% | None | 1 year |
| Tier 1 | 30% | USD 200,000 volume, 3 new traders | 30% | USD 1 million volume, 3 new traders | Unlimited |
| Tier 2 | 41% | USD 2.5 million, 10 traders | 40% | USD 25 million, 10 traders | Unlimited |
| Tier 3 | 50% | USD 30 million, 15 traders | 50% | USD 500 million, 15 traders | Unlimited |
A few rules that are easy to miss. First, since October 25, 2025, the futures share you give friends cannot be changed once set; shares that were set higher before stay as they are (Binance Referral Pro update announcement). Second, commission is now calculated on “net fees”: from April 29, 2026 for spot and July 15, 2026 for futures, maker rebates are deducted before the rate is applied. Third, once your friend reaches VIP 3 or higher, both spot and futures commission stop, and so does the part you share with them. Fourth, since November 25, 2025, new traders go through a risk assessment, and those flagged as “unqualified” don’t count toward the assessment.
Reaching Tier 1 or higher makes you a Binance Affiliate automatically, with no separate application. Commission is settled in USDC by default, converted every hour and credited to your spot account within 6 hours.
Can you share a rebate with friends through an OKX referral code?
Not as a regular user. OKX regular referrals pay promotional rewards, which may be a fixed amount of crypto or a reward with a value cap. Each period has a reward cap, and nothing more is paid once it’s reached. Your friend has to complete tasks after signing up (trading tasks may require reaching a trading volume within 14 days). Rewards are locked for 7 days after they’re issued, can only be claimed on the invite history page in the app, and expire if not claimed before the event ends (OKX Referral Program FAQ, updated 2026-10-05).
To share a fee rebate with friends, you have to be an affiliate. The official affiliate rules state that you can apply after successfully inviting 10 valid new users. Once you become an affiliate, you no longer receive regular referral task rewards; instead you get a rebate equal to your friends’ net fees multiplied by your commission rate (OKX affiliate rebate FAQ). An affiliate’s commission rate depends on a monthly tier rating; see the official page for the figures at each tier.
- Invitee rate: 0%–20% (OKX Affiliate FAQ).
- Where to set it: in the app, go to “Menu → Affiliate → Users → Users”, select a user, tap the settings icon, then choose “Modify Commission Rebate Ratio”.
- Can it be changed: the invitee rate can only be raised, not lowered or removed. Sub-affiliate rates can be changed at any time and take effect the next hour.
- Where your friend sees it: in the app under “Menu → User center → My rewards”. If that section isn’t there, no rebate has been set for them.
- Limits: people who haven’t completed identity verification don’t receive rebates; broker and market maker accounts don’t count; VIP 5–6 have a monthly rebate cap, and VIP 7 and above generate no rebate.
Where is the rebate setting on Bitget?
Bitget’s regular user referrals are task rewards. When your friend’s valid trading volume reaches 500 USDT, you each get a USD 15 BGB airdrop, and you each get another one at 50,000 USDT. There are also mystery boxes, which must be claimed and opened within 30 days; if your friend doesn’t complete the tasks within 15 days, neither of you gets anything (Bitget Referral Program). This system has no ongoing fee share, so there is no “how much to share with friends” setting.
Only affiliate referral links have a rebate setting. On the website, when you create a link in the affiliate dashboard, step 3 sets the direct referral rebate share (and the sub-affiliate share if you have sub-affiliates), and step 4 expands more settings. In the app, step 3 is where you choose which rebate setting to apply. Spot, futures and on-chain trading can be set separately, provided your account has those options enabled. Bitget gives no number for the cap, only that it “varies by account and product”, so go by the range shown on the creation page. You can keep everything or set a share for your invitees (Bitget affiliate referral link tutorial, 2026-05-19). Bitget also notes that some link settings cannot be edited after creation; to change them, you have to create a new link.
How do MEXC, KuCoin, Gate and BingX handle the share?
- MEXC: regular referrers get 40% commission on spot and futures for 1,080 days, but the official page doesn’t describe a way to share it with friends. In the affiliate dashboard, click “New Strategy” and set a strategy name, referral code, validity period and share, up to 20% for spot and futures. A strategy cannot be edited or deleted after creation. If you set an end date, users who signed up with that code move to the default referral code when it expires and lose their original share (MEXC affiliate portal guide, 2026-05-25).
- KuCoin: from when your friend completes identity verification until the end of that month, the referrer commission is 25%. After that it is reassessed every month based on the previous month’s referral performance, up to 35%. Referrers can set a custom rebate for friends, up to their own current commission; once a friend reaches VIP 3 or higher, no more commission is generated (KuCoin Referral Program).
- Gate: the referral page says up to 40% per trade, with an example of 30% to the referrer and 10% to the invitee, for a one-year rebate period. The page notes that “after you adjust the rebate ratio, it only applies to users invited after the adjustment”, and each user can sign up through only one invitation mode (Gate referral rebate page).
- BingX: Lv1 commission is 10%, on direct referrals only. Inviting 10 friends who sign up and trade moves you to Lv2 with 20% commission, and Lv2 and above also earn indirect commission. The setting for your friend’s share is under “Invite to Earn → Other Referral Codes”, and the official tutorial doesn’t give a cap (BingX referral program tutorial).
Pionex’s referrer commission is a fixed 20% for spot and 15% for futures, and part of it can go to your friend as a fee discount. Your friend has to make a first deposit and a first trade within 30 days of signing up, and only a deposit of 100 USDT or more counts as a valid invite (Pionex referral rules v3, 2026-09-15). Since August 20, 2024, XT.COM’s regular user referrer and invitee can share at most 20% combined (XT.COM referral commission adjustment announcement).
How much should you share? Running the numbers
The share is a pie of fixed size: your commission rate times your friend’s net fees is the total available, and whatever your friend gets, you lose. Assuming your friend pays 200 USDT in net fees a month, here is how it works out at each exchange’s official rates:
| Scenario | Commission available | Shared with friend | Friend gets back per month | You keep per month |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Binance spot Tier 0 (20%), no share | 40 USDT | 0% | 0 | 40 USDT |
| Binance spot Tier 0 (20%), split in half | 40 USDT | 10% | 20 USDT | 20 USDT |
| Binance spot Tier 0 (20%), share all | 40 USDT | 20% | 40 USDT | 0 |
| Binance futures Tier 0 (10%), share all | 20 USDT | 10% | 20 USDT | 0 (and only for 1 year) |
| Binance spot Tier 3 (50%), share up to the cap | 100 USDT | 20% | 40 USDT | 60 USDT |
| KuCoin starting rate (25%), share 10% | 50 USDT | 10% | 20 USDT | 30 USDT |
| XT.COM (20% combined), share 10% | 40 USDT | 10% | 20 USDT | 20 USDT |
| Pionex spot (20%), share 10% | 40 USDT | 10% | 20 USDT | 20 USDT |
The table shows that when a regular Binance user shares up to the cap, the friend gets back 40 USDT, exactly the same as when a Tier 3 affiliate shares up to the cap, because the share for friends is capped at 20% either way. The only difference is how much the referrer keeps. Your friend cares about the fourth column, so when comparing referral codes at the same exchange, look at “how much goes to the friend”, not how high the referrer’s commission is. For how your friend’s fees are calculated, see maker vs taker fees, and for actual fee rates after the rebate, see actual fees after referral rebates.
Bybit needs a separate calculation for its cap. The USD 5,000 quarterly commission cap, at 20% commission, equals 25,000 USDT in your friends’ combined net fees per quarter; at 30% commission it’s about 16,667 USDT. Anything above that earns no commission for the rest of the quarter. The cap is lifted for the next quarter only if you invited at least 15 new users in the previous quarter who deposited USD 100 and completed their first trade (Bybit Referral Program FAQ, updated 2026-10-10).
When is referral commission paid, and in which coin?
| Exchange | Payout timing | Coin and account | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Binance | Converted hourly, credited within 6 hours | USDC by default, to the spot account | Referral rules |
| OKX (affiliates) | Usually 1–2 hours after the trade | Coin not stated officially; records under “Assets → Order center → Funding history” | Affiliate FAQ |
| Bybit | Daily at UTC 4:00 (12:00 noon Taiwan time) | Net fees settled in USDT | Referral FAQ |
| MEXC | Next day, spot at UTC 0:00, futures at UTC 1:00 | Same coin your friend paid fees in | Referral Program |
| KuCoin | Settled daily, paid the next day | Same coin as the fees | Referral page |
| XT.COM | T+1 | Spot account, “Funding records → Distribution” | Referral guide |
| BingX | Not stated in the official tutorial | Funding account, viewable under “My Assets” | Tutorial |
| WEEX | Task rewards within 3 business days of completion | Spot commission paid in the fee coin | Referral page |
At exchanges that pay in the fee coin (MEXC, KuCoin, WEEX), if your friend pays fees with the platform token or another coin, that’s what you receive, and its value after it’s credited moves with the coin’s price. Bitget’s and Pionex’s referral rule pages don’t state the payout timing or coin.
What happens if you refer yourself or open multiple accounts?
Your commission gets cancelled, and in serious cases the account may be suspended. The official terms say:
- MEXC: self-invitation is strictly prohibited and the related commission is cancelled; fees paid with futures trial funds and fees from abnormal trading don’t earn commission either.
- Pionex: for self-registration or self-invitation, Pionex reserves the right to claw back commission already paid; violating the user code of conduct can lead to disqualification.
- Binance: if the same identity verification details were previously tied to another referral relationship, the account’s commission ends and it can’t receive rebates; if you close an account and open a new one for referral perks, the new account’s commission can be terminated; sub-accounts can’t invite others.
- OKX: registering multiple accounts, using other people’s accounts or details, providing false identity verification, wash trading, volume farming and device farms are prohibited and can lead to disqualification, reward clawback or account suspension. Invitees also can’t switch referral channels by deleting and reopening an account.
- KuCoin, WEEX: KuCoin prohibits mass-registering accounts to earn extra commission, rebates or rewards; violations can lead to disqualification and forfeiture of unpaid commission, and sub-accounts can’t take part. WEEX prohibits mass registration and volume manipulation and can disqualify users once verified.
- Bybit: rewards can be withheld if an invitee engages in improper, dishonest or abusive behavior; after 180 days without trading, the referral relationship may end.
Some official pages don’t mention “self-referral” directly, but using your own second account as the invitee usually runs into the multiple-account, duplicate identity verification or wash trading terms at the same time. Each exchange’s cancellation conditions are in rebate cancellation rules, and how VIP levels relate to commission stopping is covered in VIP levels and referral rebates.
When should you apply for an affiliate (KOL) program?
If you only invite a few people, regular referrals are enough. Affiliate programs offer higher referrer commission and longer durations, but most require approval, and the higher commission usually depends on hitting monthly or quarterly targets. Some official thresholds:
- Binance: no application needed. Reach Tier 1 in a quarter with USD 200,000 spot volume plus 3 new traders, or USD 1 million futures volume plus 3 new traders, and you become an affiliate automatically.
- Bybit: regular referrers move to 25% after inviting 5 qualified invitees in a quarter, and to 30% with 100 invitees or USD 15 million in invitee futures volume. The affiliate program is open to bloggers, content creators, people with a website or app, and users with a wide trading network, subject to Bybit’s approval (Bybit Affiliate Program FAQ).
- OKX: you can apply to become an affiliate after successfully inviting 10 valid new users (OKX affiliate program rules).
- Bitget, MEXC, KuCoin: Bitget requires 100 followers on a social platform or a 500-member community (Bitget affiliate application guide); MEXC requires content creators to have at least 500 followers (MEXC Affiliate Program); KuCoin requires 5,000 followers or a 500-member community (KuCoin Affiliate Program).
One thing to think through first: at Binance, OKX and MEXC, the most an affiliate can share with friends is still 20%. Applying for an affiliate program mainly raises the referrer’s own commission; on the friend’s side, the maximum stays at 20%. For a full comparison of regular referrals and affiliate programs at 13 exchanges, see KOL vs regular referral codes; for the difference between referrer commission and invitee rebate, see referrer commission vs invitee rebate.
What risks and limits should referrers know about?
- Rules change, often downward: Bybit added a USD 5,000 quarterly cap from February 7, 2026; on September 9, 2025 Binance retired its commission structure based on BNB holdings and also dropped the 10% first-month futures rebate; XT.COM cut regular user commission to 20% combined in 2024. The share you set today is no guarantee that your commission will stay the same.
- Commission stops: Binance futures Tier 0 only counts for 1 year and stops when your friend reaches VIP 3; KuCoin and Bybit run for 365 days, as does Pionex for non-KOLs; OKX invitees generate no rebate at VIP 7 and above.
- Don’t promise friends anything the exchange doesn’t state: the share you give friends is paid automatically by the exchange, at the rate set in your dashboard. Privately promising “extra top-ups”, or asking friends to transfer money or send their UID first before they get a rebate, is no longer the exchange’s referral mechanism. Scammers often use these tactics; the warning signs are listed in rebate scam warning signs.
- Rebates don’t make your friend’s trading risk any smaller: a rebate only refunds part of the fees. Futures can be traded with leverage, and if the price moves against a position, it may be forcibly liquidated and the margin lost. Before recommending futures to a friend, you can have them read how futures fees are calculated and use the liquidation price calculator.
Just want the rebate without being a referrer?
If you’re the one being invited, what matters is how much the referral code you enter at sign-up gives to the invitee. The referral codes listed on this site come with an automatic exchange rebate, paid by the exchange straight into your account. The rates sync daily with the exchanges’ settings, and changes are logged in the monthly rebate rate report:
| Exchange | Referral code | Automatic exchange rebate | Guide |
|---|---|---|---|
| Binance | KEVINWU | 20% | Binance referral code |
| OKX | KEVINWU | 20% | OKX referral code |
| Bitget | KEVINWU | 20% | Bitget referral code |
| MEXC | mexc-KEVINWU | 20% | MEXC referral code |
| KuCoin | KEVINWU | 60% | KuCoin referral code |
| Pionex | KEVINWU | 15% (fee discount) | Pionex referral code |
For Bybit, this site has no automatic exchange rebate; the rebate channel is Fee Otter. The extra rebate is paid by Fee Otter, not by the exchange and not by Kevin Wu. How it works is explained in Bybit fee rebate (Fee Otter). For other exchanges, see the exchange referral code overview.
FAQ
What is the highest rebate share you can set on a Binance referral code?
Up to 20% each for spot and futures, and all of it if your commission is below 20%. Binance regular users start with 20% spot and 10% futures commission, so the most you can share is 20% for spot and 10% for futures. You set it with the sliders under “Add New Referral” in Referral Pro, and you can create up to 50 codes.
Can you change a referral code’s rebate share after setting it?
At most exchanges you can’t, or you can only raise it. Since October 25, 2025, Binance futures shares cannot be changed once set; OKX affiliates can only raise the invitee rate; MEXC affiliate referral strategies cannot be edited or deleted after creation; changes at Gate only apply to people invited afterward. Binance lets you create multiple referral codes, so if you want a different share, create another one.
Can regular OKX users set a rebate for friends?
No. OKX regular user referrals only pay promotional rewards, capped each period, with no fee commission to share. To set an invitee rebate of 0%–20%, you first have to become an affiliate; under the official rules, you can apply after successfully inviting 10 valid new users.
Does the exchange pay more if you share a rebate with friends?
No. The part you share comes out of your commission, and the total is still “your friend’s net fees × your commission rate”. For example, with Binance spot Tier 0 at 20% commission and your friend paying 200 USDT in net fees, 40 USDT is available; share 10% with your friend and you each get 20 USDT.
Is there a cap on referral commission?
At some exchanges, yes. Since February 7, 2026, Bybit has capped each referrer at USD 5,000 per quarter, which at 20% commission equals 25,000 USDT in friends’ net fees per quarter; OKX regular referrals have a reward cap each period. Binance states that affiliate commission has no amount cap, but commission stops once your friend reaches VIP 3.
Can you use your own second account as the invitee?
No. MEXC and Pionex explicitly ban self-invitation, and Binance, OKX, KuCoin and WEEX ban multiple accounts, duplicate identity verification or mass registration. Violations get commission cancelled or clawed back, and OKX may also suspend the account. Details are in rebate cancellation rules.
How long does referral commission take to arrive?
Binance is fastest: converted hourly and credited to your spot account in USDC within 6 hours. OKX affiliates usually get it 1–2 hours after the trade; Bybit pays daily at UTC 4:00; MEXC, KuCoin and XT.COM all pay the next day, with MEXC and KuCoin paying in the coin your friend used for fees.
Can Bybit referrers share a rebate with friends?
Not stated officially. The Bybit Referral Program FAQ only covers the 20%–30% referrer commission, the 365-day duration and the quarterly cap, with nothing about a setting for sharing with invitees; the Affiliate Program FAQ only mentions a 50% total rebate cap for VIP accounts. To lower your fees on Bybit, see Bybit fee rebate (Fee Otter).
To understand how referral codes work first, see what is a referral code and the rebate glossary. If your friend has already signed up and wants to add or switch a referral code, see can you add a referral code after sign-up and the guide to switching referral codes. To estimate how much you could save in fees over a year, see how much can rebates save you. The referral relationship is tied to your account UID; what the UID is for is explained in what is an exchange UID. Among Taiwan’s exchanges, MAX and BitoPro also have referral offers; their guides are on the Traditional Chinese version of this site.