Updated Rules checked 2026-10-18
Binance or KuCoin? On fees alone, Binance is cheaper: for regular users (VIP 0), the USDT perpetual futures Taker fee is 0.05% on Binance and 0.06% on KuCoin. Binance spot is a flat 0.1%, while KuCoin splits coins into classes A, B and C, and 481 of its 968 trading pairs charge 0.2% or 0.3%. KuCoin’s strengths are coin selection and rebate duration: it lists 814 tradable spot coins against Binance’s 512, and the KuCoin affiliate program states that rebates for invitees who signed up after 2022-09-22 last for life, while Binance’s futures rebate usually lasts only 12 months.
If you forgot to enter a referral code, Binance’s rules for fixing it are much clearer. Within 30 days of sign-up, before any deposit or trade, you can add one yourself; if you have traded but have no referrer, an affiliate can still submit a switch request for you. On KuCoin, you have to submit a Link Referrer request under Self-Service in the Help Center and wait for KuCoin’s review, and the time limit and conditions aren’t published (checked 2026-10-22). Both have had platform wallets hacked: Binance lost 7,000 BTC on 2019-05-07, covered in full by SAFU; KuCoin lost about 281 million USD on 2020-09-25, recovered 84%, and covered the rest from its insurance fund. The difference in scale is large: Binance’s 2026-10-01 reserve snapshot shows 688,572.68 BTC held by users, while KuCoin’s 2026-09-30 edition shows 7,358.67 BTC.
Choose Binance if you often place market orders, mainly trade major coins, are willing to hold BNB, or have already signed up but forgot to enter a referral code. Consider KuCoin if you often buy small coins listed only on KuCoin, or plan to trade futures for the long term and want a rebate that doesn’t expire, but check which fee class a coin belongs to before you place an order. Neither exchange has a direct New Taiwan dollar (TWD) deposit channel, and Taiwan is not on either exchange’s list of restricted regions.
Sign up to Binance with the referral code KEVINWU and the exchange automatically refunds 20%, on both spot (including margin) and USDT-margined futures.
Sign up to KuCoin with the referral code KEVINWU and the exchange automatically refunds 60%, on both spot (including margin) and futures.
Key points:
1. Futures Maker is 0.02% on both; Taker is 0.05% on Binance and 0.06% on KuCoin. Binance spot is 0.1% / 0.1%; KuCoin charges 0.1% for class A, 0.2% for class B and 0.3% for class C.
2. BNB discounts spot (25% off, 0.075%) and USDT-margined futures (10% off, Taker 0.045%); KCS only discounts spot and margin (20% off, class A 0.08%) and does not apply to futures.
3. Binance’s futures rebate runs for 12 months from when you open a futures account (with no such limit if the referrer’s futures commission rate is 30% or more); the KuCoin affiliate program states that invitees who signed up after 2022-09-22 get it for life.
4. On Binance you can add a referral code within 30 days of sign-up, before any deposit or trade; on KuCoin you can submit a Link Referrer or Unlink Referrer request after sign-up, which KuCoin reviews under conditions it doesn’t publish.
5. Moving USDT from Binance to KuCoin over BEP20 costs 0.01 USDT; in the other direction, KuCoin’s cheapest option is Plasma at 0.4 USDT, and BEP20 costs 1 USDT.
The information below was checked against official pages on 2026-10-18 (the data check date) and is provided for reference.
Binance vs KuCoin: what’s the difference?
| Item | Binance | KuCoin |
|---|---|---|
| Spot Maker / Taker (VIP 0) | 0.1% / 0.1%, same for every coin | Class A 0.1% / 0.1%; class B 0.2%, class C 0.3% |
| USDT perpetual futures Maker / Taker (VIP 0) | 0.02% / 0.05% | 0.02% / 0.06% |
| Platform-token discount | BNB: 25% off spot (0.075%), 10% off USDT-margined futures (Taker 0.045%) | KCS: 20% off spot and margin (class A 0.08%); not available for futures |
| Reaching VIP on account assets | VIP 1 requires holding 5 BNB first, plus 100,000 USD in assets or a trading volume requirement; VIP 1 and VIP 2 only lower spot Maker | The asset route starts at VIP 5 and requires 1,000,000 USDT; holding 1,000 KCS gets you VIP 1, but it only lowers Maker |
| Referral code rebate | 20% | 60% |
| Rebate duration and VIP limits | No term stated for spot; futures 12 months (no limit if the referrer’s futures commission is 30% or more); stops at VIP 3 or above | Affiliate program: for life for invitees who signed up after 2022-09-22; the referral program states that invitees at VIP 3 or above generate no commission |
| Adding a referral code after sign-up | Within 30 days of sign-up, with no deposits or trades and no referrer, you can add one yourself | You can submit a Link Referrer request, which KuCoin reviews; the conditions aren’t published |
| Switching referrers | Not possible if you already have a referrer; with no referrer and a trading history, an affiliate can submit a switch request | You can request Unlink Referrer, which KuCoin reviews; it doesn’t say whether you can then link a different referrer. Older accounts registered before 2023-08-31 and never verified may also be able to open a new account instead |
| Identity verification | New users must complete “Verified” verification before they can deposit and trade | Required for all new users since 2023-08-31; one person can verify only one account |
| Unverified accounts | Older accounts are limited to withdrawing, canceling orders, closing positions and redeeming | Older unverified accounts can’t deposit or open or add to futures positions; they can sell coins, close positions and redeem, and withdrawals are not affected |
| Restricted regions | Taiwan not included; the list covers the US, Canada, the Netherlands and 6 sanctioned regions | Taiwan not included; covers the US, Singapore, mainland China and Hong Kong, Malaysia, France, the Netherlands, and the Canadian provinces of Ontario and British Columbia |
| TWD deposits | No TWD bank deposits; P2P has a TWD option, with 0 USDT buy and sell ads when checked on 2026-10-18 | No TWD bank deposits; P2P showed 0 USDT buy and sell ads in TWD when checked on 2026-10-18 |
| Tradable spot coins | 512 (1,380 trading pairs) | 814 (968 trading pairs) |
| USDT perpetual futures | 525 crypto, plus 220 TradFi perpetual futures (stocks, commodities and more) | 692: 518 crypto, 165 stocks, 9 metals and commodities |
| Maximum futures leverage | 150x on BTC and ETH | 125x on BTC, 100x on ETH |
| Crypto futures with funding settled every 4 hours | 419 of 525 (80%) | 408 of 518 (79%) |
| Copy trading | Futures and spot copy trading; futures profit share up to 30%, settled from a snapshot every Monday at 08:00 | Futures copy trading only; profit share of 10% to 32% depending on trader level (since 2026-09-06), settled daily |
| Cheapest USDT withdrawal network and fees | BEP20 0.01 USDT (minimum 5); ERC20 0.4, TRC20 1.5 | Plasma 0.4 USDT (minimum 5); Aptos 0.5, BEP20 1, TRC20 1.99, ERC20 5.5 (minimum 30) |
| Proof of reserves (latest snapshot) | 2026-10-01: BTC 100.35%, ETH 100.0001%, USDT 103.88% | 2026-09-30: BTC 109%, ETH 117%, USDT 110% |
| Protection fund | SAFU 15,000 BTC | Insurance fund used in 2020; current size not found |
| Major security incidents | Hot wallet hack of 7,000 BTC on 2019-05-07, covered in full by SAFU | Hot wallet hack of about 281 million USD on 2020-09-25; 84% recovered, the rest covered by the insurance fund |
| US legal record | Guilty plea on 2023-11-21; settlements totaling about 4.3 billion USD | Guilty plea on 2025-01-27; fines and forfeiture totaling more than 297 million USD |
Sources and date: fees come from the Binance spot fee page, the Binance futures fee guide, the Binance guide to BNB fee discounts, the KuCoin VIP fee structure and the KuCoin guide to paying fees with KCS. Spot coins, KuCoin fee classes, futures counts and funding settlement intervals are the items in trading on 2026-10-18, counted through both exchanges’ official public APIs (Binance spot, Binance USDT-margined futures, Binance funding rate settings, KuCoin spot, KuCoin futures), and they change as listings are added or removed. USDT withdrawal fees were read the same day from the Binance deposit and withdrawal fee page and the KuCoin official currency API. Sources for the other rows are given in the matching sections below.
How much do Binance and KuCoin fees differ?
Suppose someone trades 200,000 USDT of USDT perpetual futures and 20,000 USDT of spot each month, all at the official VIP 0 rates. For KuCoin there are three cases: spot only in class A major coins, class A with the KCS discount turned on, and spot entirely in class C small coins.
| Monthly fees (USDT) | Binance | Binance (BNB discount on) | KuCoin (class A) | KuCoin (class A with KCS) | KuCoin (class C) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Futures 200,000, all Taker | 100 | 90 | 120 | 120 | 120 |
| Spot 20,000, all Taker | 20 | 15 | 20 | 16 | 60 |
| Total (all Taker) | 120 | 105 | 140 | 136 | 180 |
| Total (all switched to Maker) | 60 | 51 | 60 | 56 | 100 |
Sources and date: both exchanges’ official VIP 0 rates (see the fee sources in the previous section), checked on 2026-10-18; with the BNB discount, futures Maker is 0.018% and Taker 0.045%.
The calculation is trade value times the fee rate: Binance futures 200,000 × 0.05% = 100 USDT, KuCoin 200,000 × 0.06% = 120 USDT. If every order takes liquidity, Binance costs 120 USDT a month, or 105 USDT with BNB; KuCoin with class A only costs 140 USDT, and since KCS only discounts spot, it is still 136 USDT with KCS. Most of the gap comes from futures Taker, and because BNB discounts futures and KCS does not, the gap widens by another 10 USDT. If every order is switched to Maker, futures is 0.02% on both, and KuCoin with KCS at 56 USDT comes in below Binance without BNB at 60 USDT, but Binance with BNB comes to 51 USDT.
Class C is not a rare exception. Calculated from official trading pair data on 2026-10-18, KuCoin’s 968 trading pairs include 487 class A, 229 class B and 252 class C pairs. If all your spot trades are in class C, the same 20,000 USDT costs 60 USDT, 3 times what Binance charges; before you place an order, you can check the coin’s class on the trading page. Both exchanges let you place Maker-only orders: Binance futures calls it “Post Only”, and KuCoin futures orders also call it Post Only, with the system canceling any order that would fill immediately (KuCoin futures order types). For details, see Maker vs Taker fees explained.
For large account holders: both set a high bar for reaching VIP on assets
Since 2026-07-21, Binance VIP 1 requires holding 5 BNB first, plus one of the following: 1 million USD in 30-day spot volume, 5 million USD in futures volume, or 100,000 USD in assets; and VIP 1 and VIP 2 only lower spot Maker (Binance VIP program update announcement). KuCoin’s asset route only starts at VIP 5 and requires 1 million USDT; VIP 1 can be reached by holding 1,000 KCS, but VIP 1 and VIP 2 only lower Maker, and futures Taker doesn’t drop from 0.06% to 0.053% until VIP 4 (How to become a KuCoin VIP). For most people, reaching VIP through assets is hard on both exchanges; platform-token discounts and referral code rebates are more realistic. Moving up VIP levels also affects rebates: Binance stops the rebate at VIP 3 or above, and the KuCoin referral program also states that invitees at VIP 3 or above generate no commission.
How big does the KuCoin rebate need to be to match Binance?
A referral code rebate returns part of the fee you actually pay. KuCoin’s futures Taker fee is 0.01 percentage points higher than Binance’s, and the rebate has to make up that gap. KuCoin’s net cost = 0.06% × (1 − rebate rate); for it to equal Binance’s rate, KuCoin’s rebate has to reach the thresholds in the table below:
| Binance futures Taker used for comparison | Binance net cost | Minimum KuCoin rebate |
|---|---|---|
| No BNB, no rebate | 0.05% | 16.7% |
| BNB discount on, no rebate | 0.045% | 25% |
| No BNB, rebate at the official cap of 20% | 0.04% | 33.3% |
Sources and date: calculated from both exchanges’ official VIP 0 futures Taker rates, 2026-10-18; the formula is 1 − Binance net cost ÷ 0.06%, for example 1 − 0.045 ÷ 0.06 = 25%.
Binance’s official cap on the invitee rebate is 20%. For spot and margin it is stated in Binance affiliate program basics, and since 2025-10-25 futures has also been capped at 20% (Binance Referral Pro update announcement). The third row applies only to the first 12 months of the Binance futures rebate: one year after you open a futures account, the futures rebate stops unless the referrer’s futures commission rate is 30% or more, and the threshold goes back to the first or second row. The rebate for invitees in the KuCoin affiliate program has no expiry date, so the longer you trade futures, the better KuCoin’s chance of catching up.
This site’s KuCoin referral code currently gets an automatic exchange rebate of 60%, which you can compare directly with the thresholds in the table above.
The two calculators below each use their own exchange’s official futures Taker rate, and the rebate rates update in sync with the exchanges. Enter the 200,000 USDT from the example above in each one to see which is cheaper after the rebate.
Calculator: Binance futures (Taker 0.05%)
| Monthly volume | Fees (0.05%) | Auto rebate (20%) | Net fees |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10,000 USDT | 5 USDT | 1 USDT | 4 USDT |
| 100,000 USDT | 50 USDT | 10 USDT | 40 USDT |
| 1,000,000 USDT | 500 USDT | 100 USDT | 400 USDT |
Example at a futures fee rate of 0.05% and the current 20% automatic rebate (rate updated 2026-10-24). Your exchange statement prevails.
Sign up with this site’s Binance referral code and the exchange’s automatic rebate is 20%, on both spot (including margin) and USDT-margined futures. Binance does not state officially whether the rebate is calculated on the fee before or after the BNB discount.
Calculator: KuCoin futures (Taker 0.06%)
| Monthly volume | Fees (0.06%) | Auto rebate (60%) | Net fees |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10,000 USDT | 6 USDT | 3.6 USDT | 2.4 USDT |
| 100,000 USDT | 60 USDT | 36 USDT | 24 USDT |
| 1,000,000 USDT | 600 USDT | 360 USDT | 240 USDT |
Example at a futures fee rate of 0.06% and the current 60% automatic rebate (rate updated 2026-10-24). Your exchange statement prevails.
Sign up with this site’s KuCoin referral code and the exchange’s automatic rebate is 60%, calculated on the trading fees you actually pay. Fees on class B and class C coins are 2 and 3 times as high, and the rebate grows in proportion to the amount actually paid; KuCoin does not state officially how the rebate is calculated on fees after the KCS discount.
For full rates, VIP tables and withdrawal fees, see Binance fees and KuCoin fees. How futures costs are calculated is covered in how futures fees are calculated, and you can run your own numbers with the perpetual futures cost calculator.
How do Binance and KuCoin futures rules differ?
The two have about the same number of crypto futures (525 on Binance, 518 on KuCoin), and their funding settlement schedules are similar. The differences are in maximum leverage, limits on new accounts and what happens after liquidation:
| Item | Binance | KuCoin |
|---|---|---|
| Maximum BTC leverage | 150x (positions up to 300,000 USDT) | 125x (positions up to 250,000 USDT) |
| Maximum ETH leverage | 150x | 100x |
| Leverage limit for new accounts | Up to 20x in the first 30 days after opening a futures account | Not mentioned in the official futures tutorials |
| BTC tier 1 maintenance margin rate | 0.40% | 0.40% |
| As positions grow | Tiered by position value; above 300,000 USDT the maximum drops to 100x | Isolated margin defaults to tier 1 and the system won’t raise it automatically; you have to switch the risk limit tier manually first |
| Funding settlement for crypto futures | 419 every 4 hours, 105 every 8 hours, 1 every hour | 408 every 4 hours, 109 every 8 hours, 1 every hour |
| Funding rate cap and floor | BTC ±0.3%; ±2% for 503 contracts | BTC ±0.3%; ±2% for 480 contracts |
| When liquidated | An extra liquidation clearance fee: 1.25% for BTC and ETH, 1.5% to 2.5% for others | Positions are reduced tier by tier at the bankruptcy price, and any surplus from fills better than the bankruptcy price goes to the insurance fund; the futures terms of use state that users are responsible for any negative balance after liquidation |
Sources and date: Binance data comes from the Binance leverage and margin page, the USDT-margined futures leverage and margin guide, the Binance funding rate settings API and the Binance futures trading rules page; KuCoin data comes from the KuCoin risk limit API, the KuCoin isolated margin guide, the KuCoin funding fee guide, the KuCoin insurance fund guide and the KuCoin futures terms of use. Futures counts, leverage and funding settings were read on 2026-10-18.
On both exchanges, about 80% of crypto futures settle funding every 4 hours, so the same 0.01% rate is paid 6 times a day; when a contract with a ±2% cap hits that cap, a 10,000 USDT position pays 200 USDT in one go. Funding is paid between longs and shorts; neither exchange collects it, and it earns no rebate on either. For how it works, see what the funding rate is. KuCoin’s isolated margin risk limit needs special attention: once a position goes above the tier 1 cap of 250,000 USDT, you first have to switch tiers manually. For the difference between cross and isolated margin, see cross vs isolated margin. Leverage magnifies the position, and if the price moves against you, the position may be forcibly liquidated and you lose your margin. You can estimate the liquidation price with the liquidation price calculator, and full walkthroughs for both exchanges are in the Binance futures guide and the KuCoin futures guide.
How do Binance and KuCoin referral rebate rules differ?
On both exchanges, the exchange pays the rebate directly to the invitee. The differences are how long it lasts, and whether you can still fix things after entering the wrong referral code or none at all:
| Rule | Binance | KuCoin |
|---|---|---|
| Calculation base | Net fees (after market maker rebates) | Trading fees actually paid |
| Markets covered | Spot (including margin) and USDT-margined futures | Spot (including margin) and futures |
| Duration | No term stated for spot; futures 12 months from when you open a futures account (no such limit if the referrer’s futures commission rate is 30% or more) | Affiliate program: for life for invitees who signed up after 2022-09-22; the standard referral program states that the referrer earns for 365 days |
| VIP limit | Stops at VIP 3 or above, resumes when you drop back to VIP 2 or below | Referral program: invitees at VIP 3 or above generate no commission; the affiliate program gives two versions, Level 3 and LV4, on the same page |
| Payout | Converted to USDC every hour and paid to your spot account within 6 hours | The referral program states that commissions are paid in the same coin, settled daily and paid the next day |
| What earns no rebate | Zero-fee trading pairs; funding fees | API trading, zero-fee trading; funding fees |
| Do copy trading fees count toward the rebate? | Officially stated to count toward referral commissions | Not stated officially |
| Adding a referral code | Within 30 days of sign-up, with no deposits, no trades, no referrer, and identity details not used on another account in the past 180 days, you can add one on the binding page | You can submit a Link Referrer request under Self-Service in the Help Center, which KuCoin reviews; the time limit and conditions aren’t published |
| Switching referrers | Not possible if you already have a referrer; with no referrer and a trading history, an affiliate can submit a switch request (trading volume under 5,000 USD in the 90 days before submission, and reaching 150,000 USD within 30 days after) | You can request Unlink Referrer, which KuCoin reviews; it doesn’t say whether you can then link a different referrer. For older accounts registered before 2023-08-31 and never verified, you can open a new account after checking with customer support |
| Other restrictions | If you close an account and open a new one to get referral benefits, commissions on the new account may be terminated | Mass-registering accounts to earn commissions or rebates is prohibited, and KuCoin can claw back commissions; account deletion is permanent |
Sources and date (checked on 2026-10-18; KuCoin’s Link Referrer and Unlink Referrer requests rechecked on 2026-10-22): Binance rules come from the Binance Referral Pro FAQ, the Binance affiliate switch FAQ and the Binance futures copy trading FAQ; KuCoin rules come from the KuCoin referral program, the KuCoin affiliate program announcement, the KuCoin affiliate program 2025 guide, the KuCoin sign-up guidelines and the KuCoin account deletion guide.
For futures traders, the biggest difference is duration: Binance’s futures rebate usually lasts only 12 months, while KuCoin affiliate program invitees have no expiry date. Going by the threshold table in the previous section, from the second year onward a KuCoin rebate of 16.7% matches Binance’s 0.05% without BNB, and only at 25% does it match Binance’s 0.045% with BNB. For people who already have an account, Binance’s rules are clearer: within 30 days, before any deposit, you can add a code yourself, and if you have traded but have no referrer you can still apply for a switch. On KuCoin, you can submit a Link Referrer or Unlink Referrer request under Self-Service in the Help Center, but both go through review, and KuCoin doesn’t publish the time limit, conditions or review time (checked 2026-10-22). Separately, an account registered before 2023-08-31 that was never verified has not used up its “one verified account per person” slot, so you can check with customer support first and then sign up through a new referral link with a new email address. For details, see switching your Binance referral code, switching your KuCoin referral code and how to check whether you’re linked to a referral code; for choosing between fee vouchers and rebates, see fee vouchers vs referral code rebates.
Do Binance and KuCoin require identity verification? What should users in Taiwan know?
Identity verification: both require verification before normal use. New Binance users must complete “Verified” verification before they can deposit and trade; older accounts that haven’t been verified are now “withdrawal only”, and each person can have only one verified main account (Binance identity verification guide). Since 2023-08-31, KuCoin has required new users to complete verification, and one person can verify only one account. Older accounts registered before then and never verified can’t deposit and can only sell coins, close positions and redeem Earn products, though withdrawals are not affected; they also can’t open or add to futures positions (KuCoin identity verification guide). For the steps and the documents you need, see the Binance KYC guide and the KuCoin KYC guide.
TWD deposits and withdrawals: neither exchange offers direct New Taiwan dollar bank deposits. When we checked the public ads on the Binance P2P TWD market and KuCoin P2P on 2026-10-18, there were 0 buy ads and 0 sell ads for USDT in TWD. The practical route is the same for both: buy USDT with TWD on a Taiwanese exchange (such as MAX or BitoPro), transfer it to Binance or KuCoin, and reverse the route to cash out. The cost of moving funds back to a Taiwanese exchange differs a lot: from Binance you can use BEP20 to either MAX or BitoPro for 0.01 USDT; from KuCoin, the cheapest option to MAX is Aptos at 0.5 USDT, and to BitoPro it’s Polygon at 0.8 USDT. For fees by network, see USDT withdrawal fees compared.
Regions and apps: Taiwan is not on the Binance list of prohibited countries (updated 2026-01-05), nor among the restricted regions in Section 17 of the KuCoin terms of use (updated 2026-09-29). Both restrict the US and the Netherlands; Binance also restricts all of Canada, and US citizens living abroad can’t use it either; KuCoin restricts Singapore, mainland China and Hong Kong, Malaysia, France, and the Canadian provinces of Ontario and British Columbia. Section 49A of the KuCoin terms prohibits using a VPN or proxy server to hide your location, and while you are in a restricted region you may be unable to manage your positions, so be careful when you travel abroad. When checked on 2026-10-18, both apps were available on the Taiwan App Store, the Binance app and the KuCoin app, and both have a Traditional Chinese interface. For which countries each exchange restricts, see exchange restricted countries.
What are Binance and KuCoin each good at?
Binance‘s strengths are scale, its platform token and the breadth of its products. Users hold about 94 times as much BTC on Binance as on KuCoin (see the reserve figures in the next section), and BNB discounts both spot and futures, while KCS only discounts spot. Besides 525 crypto perpetual futures, the official API on 2026-10-18 also lists 220 TradFi perpetual futures based on stocks, commodities and more.
- Copy trading: futures and spot copy trading. The futures copy trading profit share is up to 30%, based on a snapshot of total profit and loss every Monday at 08:00, charged only on the part not already shared, with a minimum of 10 USDT; lead traders also get 10% of their copiers’ fees (Binance lead trader benefits).
- Trading bots: spot grid, futures grid, DCA, rebalancing, TWAP and arbitrage (Binance trading bots).
- Earn and on-chain: according to Simple Earn data read on 2026-10-17, USDT Flexible pays a base APR of about 2.40%, with an extra 4% on the first 500 USDT (Simple Earn); there are also Launchpool, Launchpad and Binance Wallet.
KuCoin‘s strength is the number of spot coins. From the official API read on 2026-10-18, it lists 814 tradable spot coins, about 1.6 times as many as Binance, so KuCoin gives you more choice if you want small-cap coins; the trade-off is that nearly half of its trading pairs charge 0.2% or 0.3%. Its futures also include 165 stock contracts and 9 metal and commodity contracts.
- Copy trading: futures copy trading only. The profit share is calculated on realized profit and loss after fees and funding, charged only on cumulative profit above what has already been shared, and settled daily at 00:00 (UTC, 08:00 Taiwan time); you can copy each trader with 10 to 10,000 USDT (KuCoin copier guide). Under the Elite+ program that started on 2026-09-06, the trader’s profit share ranges from 10% to 32% depending on level (KuCoin Elite+ announcement).
- Trading bots: spot grid, Infinity Grid, Smart Rebalance, DCA, Martingale, futures grid and DualFutures AI. Spot bots get 20% off the VIP 0 rate on some coins; futures bots charge a flat 0.06%, whether Maker or Taker (KuCoin trading bot guide).
- Earn and more: USDT Flexible (Simple Earn) paid 1.30% on 2026-10-13, with no tiers, and fixed terms range from 1.80% for 7 days to 4.10% for 365 days (KuCoin Earn); there are also spot margin and coin-margined futures.
Earn rates on both exchanges are variable; for a comparison across exchanges, see USDT flexible savings rates compared. Copy trading costs include fees too: copying a trader who makes 40 round trips a month with 1,000 USDT at 5x leverage, all as Taker, costs 5,000 × 0.05% × 2 × 40 = 200 USDT in fees on Binance and 240 USDT on KuCoin. Rebates differ as well: Binance states that copy trading fees count toward referral commissions, while KuCoin doesn’t say. For the full calculation, see the cost of copy trading, and for how grids work, see what grid trading is.
How do Binance and KuCoin compare on proof of reserves and security?
Both publish proof of reserves regularly, and both offer a tool that lets you confirm your account is included:
- Binance: a snapshot on the 1st of each month at 00:00 (UTC), verified with zk-SNARKs and covering 55 coins. The latest edition, 2026-10-01, shows BTC 100.35%, ETH 100.0001% and USDT 103.88%, with 688,572.68 BTC held by users (Binance proof of reserves page, Binance account balance verification guide).
- KuCoin: when checked on 2026-10-18, the latest edition was the 2026-09-30 snapshot, showing BTC 109%, ETH 117% and USDT 110%; users hold 7,358.67 BTC and the platform 7,994.37 BTC, a surplus of 635.70 BTC, verified with a Merkle tree (KuCoin proof of reserves page). The page says it was verified by an independent third party but does not name the firm.
A high reserve ratio doesn’t mean large scale. KuCoin’s BTC reserve ratio is about 9 percentage points higher than Binance’s, and Binance sits close to 100%, which leaves little buffer; but KuCoin users’ BTC is only about 1% of Binance’s. The major events at the two exchanges are:
- Binance hack, 2019-05-07: hackers obtained a large number of users’ API keys and 2FA codes and withdrew 7,000 BTC from the BTC hot wallet. Binance announced it would cover the loss in full with the SAFU fund, and deposits and withdrawals were suspended during the security review, which Binance estimated would take about a week (Binance security incident announcement).
- KuCoin hack, 2020-09-25: the private keys of several hot wallets were obtained, with losses of about 281 million USD. On 2020-11-11 the CEO announced that 84% had been recovered (The Block), and the remaining roughly 16%, about 45.55 million USD, was covered by the insurance fund (Decrypt). Deposits and withdrawals were suspended and then resumed in stages.
- Binance guilty plea, 2023-11-21: Binance pleaded guilty in the US, with settlements with the Department of Justice, the Treasury and the CFTC totaling about 4.3 billion USD, and founder Changpeng Zhao (CZ) stepped down as CEO (US Department of Justice case page). This was a compliance case, not a loss of user assets.
- KuCoin guilty plea, 2025-01-27: its operating entity, Peken Global, pleaded guilty in the US to operating an unlicensed money transmitting business, with a 112.9 million USD fine plus 184.5 million USD in forfeiture, more than 297 million USD in total, and agreed to exit the US market for at least two years (US Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York). In 2025, the Financial Transactions and Reports Analysis Centre of Canada imposed an administrative monetary penalty of 19.552 million CAD on Peken Global, which KuCoin has appealed (FINTRAC).
On protection funds, Binance converted SAFU to 15,000 BTC on 2026-02-12 and said it would top it back up to 1 billion USD if its value fell below 800 million USD (The Block). KuCoin used its insurance fund in 2020, but we couldn’t find its current size, and the futures terms of use also state that users are responsible for any negative balance left in a futures account after liquidation. Proof of reserves only reflects assets at the moment of the snapshot and is not deposit insurance; coins you don’t plan to trade for a long time can be moved to a self-custody wallet. To compare the records of 13 exchanges side by side, see exchange safety records and exchange proof of reserves compared; full profiles of each exchange are in the Binance review and the KuCoin review.
What should you watch for when switching from Binance to KuCoin (or the other way)?
Switching platforms means opening a new account on the other exchange and moving your assets over. We suggest doing it in this order:
- Sign up for the new account first, entering the referral code on the sign-up page. If you’re moving to KuCoin, this is the safest moment, since afterward you can only submit a Link Referrer request and wait for review; if you’re moving to Binance and miss it, you can still add it within 30 days, as long as you haven’t deposited or traded.
- Complete identity verification on the new account; both exchanges require it before you can deposit.
- On the old account, close positions, cancel orders and redeem Earn products first, transfer funds from the futures account back to the spot or funding account, then withdraw USDT.
- The first time you send to a new address, send a small amount and confirm it arrives before sending a large one.
There are no internal transfers between the two, so USDT has to go out as an on-chain withdrawal. The fee is a fixed amount per withdrawal, charged by the sending exchange. The table below lists the 14 networks open for both withdrawals and deposits in both directions, in USDT; each cell shows “fee (minimum withdrawal)”:
| Network | Withdraw from Binance to KuCoin | Withdraw from KuCoin to Binance |
|---|---|---|
| BEP20 (BNB Smart Chain) | 0.01 (minimum 5) | 1 (minimum 10) |
| Plasma | 0.012 (minimum 5) | 0.4 (minimum 5) |
| Avalanche C-Chain | 0.04 (minimum 5) | 1 (minimum 2) |
| Polygon | 0.07 (minimum 5) | 0.8 (minimum 1.6) |
| Aptos | 0.1 (minimum 3) | 0.5 (minimum 1) |
| Tezos | 0.1 (minimum 5) | 1 (minimum 2) |
| Polkadot Asset Hub | 0.1 (minimum 5) | 1 (minimum 10) |
| NEAR | 0.2 (minimum 3) | 0.5 (minimum 3) |
| KAVA EVM | 0.2 (minimum 5) | 1 (minimum 3) |
| Solana | 0.3 (minimum 5) | 1.5 (minimum 3) |
| TON (Memo required) | 0.3 (minimum 3) | 0.5 (minimum 1) |
| Arbitrum One | 0.4 (minimum 3) | 1 (minimum 5) |
| ERC20 | 0.4 (minimum 5) | 5.5 (minimum 30) |
| TRC20 | 1.5 (minimum 5) | 1.99 (minimum 4) |
Sources and date: data from the Binance deposit and withdrawal fee page and the KuCoin official currency API, read on 2026-10-18. KuCoin’s Optimism deposits were suspended that day, so it is not listed. Withdrawal fees change with on-chain conditions; go by the amount shown on the withdrawal page before you confirm.
What stands out for this pair is how much cheaper it is to send from Binance. From Binance, BEP20 costs just 0.01 USDT and Plasma 0.012 USDT; from KuCoin, even the cheapest option, Plasma, costs 0.4 USDT, and BEP20 is 1 USDT with a 10 USDT minimum. For a round trip of 1,000 USDT from Binance to KuCoin and back, using TRC20 both ways costs 3.49 USDT in total, while BEP20 out and Plasma back costs 0.41 USDT. If you want the same network in both directions, Plasma (0.412 USDT combined) is cheapest. KuCoin’s ERC20 costs 5.5 USDT with a 30 USDT minimum, so it’s best avoided. Choose the network that matches on both sides; choosing the wrong one may mean losing the funds permanently (Binance withdrawal fee guide). On TON, also enter the Memo (tag) shown on the deposit page. For full fees across all networks at 13 exchanges, see USDT withdrawal fees compared.
Who are Binance and KuCoin best for?
- Beginners mainly buying major coins on spot: choose Binance. Spot is a flat 0.1%, or 0.075% with BNB, so you don’t have to worry about buying a 0.3% class C coin; if you forgot the referral code, you can still add it yourself within 30 days as long as you haven’t deposited, while on KuCoin a missing or wrong code can only be handled through a request KuCoin reviews.
- Futures traders who often place market orders (VIP 0): choose Binance. Futures Taker is 0.05%, lower than KuCoin’s 0.06%, and drops to 0.045% with BNB; at 200,000 USDT of futures volume a month, Binance with BNB costs 30 USDT less than KuCoin.
- Planning to trade futures for the long term: it depends on the rebate rate. Binance’s futures rebate usually stops after 12 months, while the rebate for KuCoin affiliate program invitees lasts for life; from the second year, KuCoin needs a rebate of at least 16.7% to be cheaper than Binance without BNB, and at least 25% to be cheaper than Binance with BNB.
- Frequent small-coin buyers: KuCoin has more choice, with 814 spot coins against Binance’s 512, but check the fee class before you order, since class C is 0.3%. For coins listed on both, trading on Binance is usually cheaper.
- Traders who want high leverage on BTC and ETH: Binance has the higher cap, 150x on both BTC and ETH, against KuCoin’s 125x and 100x; but a newly opened Binance futures account is limited to 20x for the first 30 days.
- Anyone who cares about reserve transparency and a protection fund: choose Binance. It publishes a reserve snapshot on the 1st of every month, and SAFU holds 15,000 BTC; KuCoin’s reserve ratio is higher, but its user BTC is only about 1% of Binance’s, and we couldn’t find the size of its insurance fund.
Many traders open accounts on both: major-coin spot and most futures on Binance, and small coins listed only on KuCoin traded on KuCoin, which also spreads the risk of a single platform suspending withdrawals. To move USDT between them, use BEP20 when sending from Binance and Plasma when sending from KuCoin.
How we checked the data in this article
Fees, VIP thresholds, platform-token discounts, identity verification and the rules on adding or switching referral codes were checked against both exchanges’ official help centers and fee pages between 2026-10-11 and 2026-10-18 (KuCoin’s Link Referrer and Unlink Referrer requests were rechecked on 2026-10-22). Spot coins, futures counts, funding settlement intervals, USDT withdrawal fees, P2P ad counts, and KuCoin’s fee classes and risk limits are figures read from official pages and public APIs on 2026-10-18. Binance’s leverage tiers are data from 2026-10-17. Earn rates are snapshots from 2026-10-13 and 2026-10-17. Reserve figures come from each exchange’s most recently published report. Events were cross-checked against official announcements, press releases from judicial authorities and news reports. How this site compiles its data is described in our rebate data methodology, and the disclosure for referral links is in referral and rebate disclosure.
FAQ
Which has lower fees, Binance or KuCoin?
At VIP 0, Binance. Futures Maker is 0.02% on both, and Taker is 0.05% on Binance and 0.06% on KuCoin. Binance spot is a flat 0.1%; KuCoin class A is 0.1%, and classes B and C are 0.2% and 0.3%. With the platform token, Binance spot drops to 0.075% and futures Taker to 0.045%, while KuCoin’s KCS only lowers class A spot to 0.08% and does not apply to futures.
Can I use Binance and KuCoin at the same time?
Yes. Binance and KuCoin are separate companies, so you just sign up and verify your identity on each. The limits apply within each exchange: on Binance one person can have only one verified main account, and on KuCoin one person can verify only one account. Enter the referral code when you sign up on each one; moving USDT from Binance to KuCoin over BEP20 costs 0.01 USDT, and Plasma in the other direction costs 0.4 USDT.
Should users in Taiwan choose Binance or KuCoin?
Most users in Taiwan will save more with Binance, because its futures and spot fees are lower, and moving USDT back to MAX or BitoPro over BEP20 costs only 0.01 USDT. The conditions of use are similar on both: Taiwan is not on either exchange’s restricted list, both apps are on the Taiwan App Store, and neither accepts New Taiwan dollar deposits, so you first buy USDT on a Taiwanese exchange and then transfer it over.
Which is safer, Binance or KuCoin?
Neither can be called absolutely safe. Both have had hot wallets hacked, and both have pleaded guilty in the US. Binance lost 7,000 BTC on 2019-05-07, covered in full by SAFU; KuCoin lost about 281 million USD on 2020-09-25, recovered 84% and covered the rest from its insurance fund. On reserves, Binance’s 2026-10-01 snapshot shows BTC at 100.35%, Binance publishes every month, and SAFU holds 15,000 BTC; KuCoin’s 2026-09-30 snapshot shows BTC at 109%, and the current size of its insurance fund can’t be found.
Which pays more in referral code rebates?
KuCoin’s rebate lasts longer: the KuCoin affiliate program states that invitees who signed up after 2022-09-22 get rebates for life, while Binance’s futures rebate usually lasts only 12 months. On both, the rebate stops once the invitee reaches VIP 3 or above (for KuCoin, as the referral program words it), and Binance’s official cap on the invitee rebate is 20%. KuCoin’s futures Taker fee is higher, so its rebate has to reach 16.7% to match Binance’s 0.05% without BNB and without a rebate. The current rates for this site’s referral codes on both exchanges are shown, in sync with the exchanges, in this article’s comparison table and calculators.
Which network should I use to send USDT from Binance to KuCoin?
From Binance to KuCoin, choose BEP20 at 0.01 USDT; from KuCoin back to Binance, choose Plasma at 0.4 USDT (2026-10-18). KuCoin’s BEP20 withdrawal costs 1 USDT with a 10 USDT minimum, and ERC20 costs 5.5 USDT with a 30 USDT minimum; TRC20 is 1.5 USDT on Binance and 1.99 USDT on KuCoin. For small amounts, watch the minimum withdrawal: Binance BEP20 requires at least 5 USDT.
I’ve already signed up. Can I still add a referral code?
On Binance, yes, under certain conditions; on KuCoin, only through a request it reviews. A Binance account within 30 days of sign-up, with no deposits or trades and no referrer, can add one on the binding page; if you have traded but have no referrer, an affiliate can submit a switch request. On KuCoin, if you didn’t enter a code at sign-up, you can submit a Link Referrer request under Self-Service in the Help Center; if you already have a referrer, you can request Unlink Referrer. KuCoin reviews both and doesn’t publish the time limit, conditions or review time (checked 2026-10-22). Older accounts registered before 2023-08-31 and never verified can also check with customer support first and then open a new account.
Which offers higher futures leverage, Binance or KuCoin?
Binance: up to 150x on BTC and ETH, against KuCoin’s 125x on BTC and 100x on ETH (official data from 2026-10-17 and 2026-10-18). The difference only matters for BTC and ETH, since most contracts on both exchanges are capped at 50x or less. Binance limits futures accounts to 20x for the first 30 days after opening, and on KuCoin, isolated positions above 250,000 USDT require a manual switch of risk limit tier. At 125x, a move of only about 0.34% against you on BTC is enough to get liquidated.
If you want to sign up now, see the Binance referral code and KuCoin referral code pages; fee details are in Binance fees and KuCoin fees; if you already have an account, the switching rules are in switching your Binance referral code and switching your KuCoin referral code. The actual fees at each exchange after rebates are compiled in real fees after referral rebates, the cheapest exchanges are in low-fee exchanges compared, and how much you can save in a year is in how much a referral rebate can save you; for referral codes and rebates at other exchanges, see crypto exchange referral codes. To compare other pairs, see Binance vs OKX, Binance vs Bitget, Binance vs Gate, OKX vs KuCoin and KuCoin vs Bitget.