6 Best Crypto Margin Exchanges: 2023 Reviews

Leveraged margin trading in cryptocurrencies is an increasingly popular method for advanced traders to amplify their profits on coins and tokens. As such, some of the best cryptocurrency exchanges that offer margin trading and futures markets have seen a rise in their customer bases.

In this article, we cover and compare some of the most popular crypto platforms that offer leverage margin trading available on the market. In terms of their features, each platform listed below is individual in its own right so choosing the right one for your trading needs is of utmost importance.

Best Crypto Margin Trading Platforms In 2023

Based on our reviews, here are the best crypto margin trading platforms that are available on the market.

1. FTX (best margin trading platform for non-US traders)
2. Bybit (best for mobile app trading)
3. Binance (best for futures trading)
4. KuCoin (best for ease of use)
5. Huobi (best for highest leverage)
6. Kraken (best for US-based margin traders)

Comparing The Best Margin Trading Platforms

Best Leverage Margin Exchanges: Our 2023 Picks

1. FTX

BEST MARGIN TRADING PLATFORM FOR NON-US TRADERS

Read our complete FTX review for an in-depth breakdown of its features and benefits.

Notable Features

• Over 320+ supported cryptocurrencies, 250+ trading pairs, and an enviable list of markets including futures (20x), spot (10x), leveraged tokens (3x), MOVE contracts, and options.
• Extremely low maker and taker trading fees starting at 0.02% and 0.07%, respectively.
• A well-designed trading interface that allowers experienced traders aptly analyze the price action of crypto. The TradingView powered interface is highly responsive with no latency issues, and simple navigation between the futures, spot, or leveraged token trading panels.

Why We Picked It

FTX has been specifically designed for crypto margin trading. The highly liquid exchange is well-known for its extremely large assortment of indices and leveraged tokens that can be traded on the futures or options market. With its modern and feature-rich interface and low trading fees, FTX is the number 1 option for non-US crypto margin traders.

FTX Overview

FTX is a popular cryptocurrency exchange that has established its standing as one of the world’s best derivatives trading platforms. The 2019 founded exchange is headed by Sam Bankman-Fried and backed by Alameda Research, a quantitative cryptocurrency trading firm that provides liquidity worldwide. In terms of traffic, trading volume, and liquidity, FTX is currently ranked #2 in the world.

FTX was built by traders for traders so it’s no surprise that the exchange is laden with cutting-edge and innovative crypto trading features and markets. These include futures, leveraged tokens, MOVE contracts, options, and spot trading with margin.

The Futures market allows you to speculate on the price of crypto. There are over 250 trading pairs with Bitcoin (BTC), Ethereum (ETH), EOS, Ripple (XRP), and Tether (USDT) where contracts can be set for the current quarter, following quarter, or perpetually. However, FTX’s Futures market is unique in the crypto industry in the following ways:

• FTX futures are stablecoin settled where USD or USDT can be deposited as collateral. This means that profit and loss outcomes are measured by USD without the need for a bank account.
• A backstop liquidity provider is in place to help mitigate clawbacks.
• Futures margin calls are carefully measured to avoid significant price deviations.
• Leverage of up to 20x can be applied on short and long positions.

Depending on the market conditions and your risk appetite, there are four leverage options to choose from including Bull (3x), Bear (-3x), Hedge (-1x), and Half (1/2x). The bull, bear, and hedge tokens are useful risk mitigation tools as FTX will automatically reinvest the profits on a 3x position. Conversely, if these tokens lose money then the risk is reduced if the position is negative.

MOVE contracts represent the absolute value of a digital currency irrespective of whether the market price decreased or increased over a period of time (daily, weekly, or quarterly). This means that trading is based on the volatility of the crypto market.

Options contracts are contracts where you can choose to buy or sell at a predetermined price but are not obligated to complete the transaction. Similar to futures trading, you can take a long or short position using leverage. When the contract expires, the amount is settled in USD.

The spot trading market offers over 240 trading pairs that can be traded using USD, BRZ, BTC, EUR, TRYB, and USDT. FTX has recently added margin to its spot trading market where leverage up to 10x can be applied.

On top of its diverse range of margin markets and trading pairs, FTX offers premium features to make it a robust platform for margin traders.

• Some of the lowest crypto trading fees in the market. Its maker and taker fees start at 0.02% and 0.07%, respectively, and can be reduced further if you hold certain volumes of its native FTT token. Other than ETH and ERC-20 tokens, there are no fees for cryptocurrency deposits or withdrawals.
• A clean, modern, and feature-rich trading interface with TradingView charting. Navigating the futures, spot, or leveraged token trading panels as well as switching trading pairs is easy and responsive.

One of the downsides of FTX is that US residents will need to use its sister platform FTX.US, which is slightly more restrictive in its features due to US regulations. Other than that, FTX is highly regulated and implements market-leading security features including 2FA, whitelisting addresses, and engages external parties to monitor suspicious transactions.

Overall, the sheer size and variety of FTX derivatives markets, along with its low trading fees, and smooth trading interface makes FTX the best leveraged margin option available to non-US traders.

FTX Pros and Cons

2. Bybit

BEST FOR MOBILE APP TRADING

Read our complete Bybit review for an in-depth breakdown of its features and benefits.

Notable Features

• Crisp and seamless mobile apps for iOS and Android devices that provide margin trading abilities.
• A world-class trading interface with seamless TradingView charting and the full suite of advanced analytical tools and indicators.
• Significant liquidity and a variety of trading markets including spot, USDT perpetual, inverse perpetual, and inverse futures.
• A dual-price mechanism to prevent unfair liquidations and market price manipulations.
• Highly competitive maker and taker fees of -0.025% and 0.075%, respectively.

Why We Picked It

Bybit is a top cryptocurrency exchange that made its name with its premium margin trading markets where up to 100x leverage can be applied. Bybit offers a modest list of over 80 cryptocurrencies in markets including spot, perpetual, and futures trading. However, Bybit shines with its exquisite trading interface. The TradingView interface is clearly presented and highly functional with access to a suite of advanced indicators and tools.

Bybit Overview

Bybit is a Singaporean-based cryptocurrency exchange that offers leveraged margin to traders in a multitude of countries including Canada, Europe, and Southeast Asia. Bybit is not available to margin traders located in the United States due to regulatory reasons.

The margin markets that Bybit offers include:

• Tether (USDT) Perpetual Trading: You can use perpetually use USDT as collateral to trade with high market-cap coins such as BTC, ETH, XRP, SHIB, LTC, LINK, and DOT. Different leverages can be applied to short and long positions.
• Inverse Perpetual Trading: BTC, ETH, EOS, XRP, BIT, and DOT are the base currencies that must be held in your wallet for inverse perpetual trading.
• Inverse Futures: BTC and ETH can be used as collateral and leverage of up to 100x can be applied. Inverse futures contracts have a pre-determined settlement date where all positions must be settled on a specific date.

Spot trading is also supported where USDT can be exchanged for over 80 digital currencies including BTC SOL, ETH, SAND, XRP, ADA, DOT, DOGE, and more. Currently, Bitcoin could only be used to purchase XRP and ETH.

Choosing a margin trading platform that provides a clean and modern interface is crucially important for analyzing the price action of crypto trading pairs. Whilst the range of markets is not as exhaustive as other platforms, Bybit excels with its professional trading interface which is perfect for leveraged margin trading.

The TradingView powered window takes center stage and allows you to use the full suite of advanced analytical tools and indicators (e.g. advance/decline, ratio, average price, and oscillators) to analyze the price action of crypto. The order book and buying panels are neatly positioned to the right of the window where limit, market, and conditional orders can be attached to positions. Other features of the Bybit margin trading experience include:

• A dual-price mechanism to prevent unfair liquidations and market price manipulations.
• Highly competitive maker and taker fees of -0.025% (rebates) and 0.075%, respectively.
• Limit, market, and conditional orders can be attached to positions.

The Bybit app for iOS and Android mobile devices is one of the best apps for mobile margin trading and is used by over 1 million customers. The app provides you with access to all of Bybit’s margin trading markets as well as ancillary features such as account and portfolio management tools.

If you’re located in the United States then you will need to seek an alternative margin trading platform such as FTX as Bytbit is currently not permitted to offer its services in the USA.

Although Bybit is a legitimate Singaporean-based crypto exchange, it is one of the few margin trading platforms that is not regulated in its operating jurisdictions. This means that verifying your identity via KYC is not required and you can begin trading with leveraged margin immediately after you create your account.

Bybit Pros and Cons

3. Binance

BEST FOR FUTURES TRADING

Read our complete Binance review for an in-depth breakdown of its features and benefits.

Notable Features

• An appealing range of futures, leveraged tokens, and options markets that provide traders with risk control tools and flexibility.
• First-class TradingView charting package and analytical tools.
• The world’s largest trading volume and deep liquidity.
• One of the largest lists of supported crypto trading pairs (over 90+) with USDT.

Why We Picked It

Binance is a highly reputable and reliable crypto exchange that presents as one of the better options for margin and futures trading. It offers deep liquidity for its multitude of crypto trading pairs, a first-rate trading interface with all the tools an advanced trader will need, some of the lowest maker and taker fee structures, and a suite of margin and futures markets.

Binance Overview

Binance is an established and popular cryptocurrency exchange that offers investors and traders around the world the option to buy, trade, and sell 418 digital assets in over 180 countries. Founded in 2017 by Changpeng Zhao, the exchange has quickly grown into the world’s largest exchange in terms of trading volume, liquidity, and traffic.

Binance offers margin trading or futures trading to speculate on the price of digital assets with leverage. You will need to transfer funds to your Binance margin or Futures wallet to use as collateral to begin trading with high leverage.

In terms of margin trading, Binance offers cross and isolated trading where leverage up to 3x and 10x, respectively, can be applied to short and long positions.

Binance Futures is accessible through the main Binance website. The available markets to trade include:

• USDS-M Futures: Perpetual or Quarterly Contracts that are settled in USDT or BUSD.
• Coin-M Futures: Perpetual or Quarterly Contracts settled in Cryptocurrency.
• Leveraged Tokens: Trade with leverage without the need to put up collateral, maintain and margin level, or worry about the risk of liquidation.
• Options: Cash-settled contracts where the options can be exercised before the time expires.

Binance is also known for its competitive fees which follow a maker and taker structure. Leveraged margin fees on Binance start at 0.1% (maker) and 0.1% (taker) and can be reduced if your 30-day trading volume satisfies certain thresholds. A daily management fee of 0.01% of the net value of leveraged tokens will apply.

Traders located in the USA will need to use the sister platform, Binance.US, since Binance was banned from operating in the US based on regulatory grounds. Other Binance exchanges include Binance Australia, Binance Singapore, Binance UK, and Binance Uganda

Binance Australia Pros and Cons

4. KuCoin

BEST FOR EASE OF USE

Read our complete KuCoin review for an in-depth breakdown of its features and benefits.

Notable Features

• Competitive maker and taker fees for spot and futures markets that can be reduced. Spot fees are 0.1% (maker) and 0.1% (taker), and futures fees are 0.02% (maker) and 0.06% (taker).
• Over 60+ trading pairs that can be leveraged up to 10x against BTC, ETH, or USDT in isolated or cross mode.
• Up to 100x times leverage on long and short futures positions. There are 80+ support trading pairs against base currencies BTC, ETH, and USDT.
• High-performance trading interface with modern charting and tools.

Why We Picked It

KuCoin is a popular global exchange that has been used by 1 in 4 crypto holders around the world and is suitable for a wide range of traders including novices. Whilst the margin trading interface is similar to others, the rest of the KuCoin platform caters to beginners. Supporting features such as the trading bots, and account management panels are clean and visually intuitive.

KuCoin Overview

KuCoin is a popular cryptocurrency exchange platform that has provided over 10 million investors and traders in over 205 countries with an innovative ecosystem of products and services. The Singaporean-based exchange caters to beginner and advanced crypto users, however, is not available to those residing in the USA. KuCoin is currently ranked #5 in the world for trading volume with a daily trading volume of nearly $4 billion.

In terms of its leveraged margin and derivatives market offerings, KuCoin provides the following:

• Leveraged tokens – tokens that you can buy and sell with up to 10x leverage using an isolated or cross-margin mode.
• Futures trading – otherwise known as contracts trading, futures trading allows you to buy or sell cryptocurrencies at a predetermined price at a specific time in the future.

KuCoin offers a modest number of trading pairs (60+) that can be leveraged up to 10x against the base currencies of BTC, ETH, and USDT. The cross-margin mode means that all margin assets, regardless of the currency) will be used as principal to avoid forced liquidation. The advantage of this is that the risk of liquidation is very low provided that the debt ratio is moderate.

For its futures markets, KuCoin allows you to apply up to 100x leverage on long or short positions. There are 80+ margin supported digital currencies that can be paired with the base currencies of BTC, ETH, and USDT. KuCoin divides its futures trading into Perpetual contracts and Delivery contracts.

The main features of KuCoin Futures trading comprise:

• Risk hedging – Hedge against downside risks of price volatility in the spot trading market for selling/short contracts.
• Two-way profit – Earn a profit from both uptrends and downtrends when buying or selling a futures contract.
• High leverage – Earn greater profits than what your capital would otherwise provide with a margin of up to 100x.

If you’re familiar with trading bots, then you can also take advantage of the Futures Grid bot which will automatically divide your investment capital into grids and keep buying low and selling high within the preferred price range.

Other ancillary or supporting features that have propelled KuCoin into one of the better leveraged margin platforms for non-US traders include:

• Well-developed and mature crypto borrowing and lending services. Over 144 digital assets can be deposited. Lending durations vary for the coin deposited and interest is calculated daily.
• Two different ways to earn passive crypto, Savings, and Staking. Savings lets you earn compounding interest (up to 8.6%) on 25 digital assets. KuCoin currently supports the staking of 18 currencies to earn up to 52% APY.
• Premium TradingView charting, indicators, and tools.

KuCoin is a cost-effective margin trading platform with low fees. Whilst you will incur a 1.8% fee to deposit fiat currencies using a Visa or Mastercard, transferring cryptocurrencies into your wallet can be done free of charge. KuCoin makes up for the minor Visa and MasterCard fiat deposit fees with its extremely low maker and taker fees for its futures markets. Maker and taker fees for futures start from 0.02% and 0.06%, respectively, and can be reduced further depending on your 30-day trading volume.

If trading on the go fits your needs, then you should consider KuCoin. KuCoin provides apps for iOS and Android mobile devices to allow its customers access to all of its features including account management and financing, tradings bots, and its spot, leveraged margin, and futures markets. We found the app to be highly responsive and as easy to use as the desktop website.

KuCoin Pros and Cons

5. Huobi Global

BEST FOR HIGHEST LEVERAGE

Read our complete Huobi review for an in-depth breakdown of its features and benefits.

Notable Features

• A vast list of over 567 digital currencies to buy, trade, and sell.
• Up to 3x leverage on spot trading markets, and up to 125x leverage on derivatives and futures markets.
• Superb ancillary features such as interest-earning accounts, coin staking, crypto-backed loans, and an excellent mobile app.

Why We Picked It

Huobi offers an impressive list of over 560+ supported cryptocurrencies to buy, trade, and sell. Leverage up to 3x can be applied to its spot trading markets, with leverage of up to 125x on derivatives markets. Huobi may appeal to non-US crypto margin traders who are looking for a crypto one-stop shop. Huobi also offers other services such as interest-earning accounts, staking, and crypto loans.

Huobi Overview

Huobi is a well-established cryptocurrency platform that expanded from its Asian market origins to over 190 countries around the world. As well as being listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange (HKG:1611), Huobi Global, the holding group and owner, has offices in several countries including Japan, South Korea, Brazil, and Hong Kong. At the time of writing, Huobi is ranked #7 in the world for trading volume with nearly $5.8 billion of trades completed daily.

Huobi’s crypto products and services primarily cater to intermediate and advanced investors and traders. You can speculate on the price of digital currencies using the Spot Exchange, Margin Exchange, Coin-margined Swaps, and Futures Market, with leverage up to 125x.

Huobi provides several markets to trade coins with leverage, including:

• Spot trading with leveraged margin up to 3x. There are currently 62 trading pairs against USDT, and 43 trading pairs against BTC.
• Coin-M Futures: USD is the base currency and open positions are closed with the arithmetic average of their last hour index prices.
• Coin-M Swaps: Similar to spot trading, coin-margined trading lets you take long or short positions where contracts have no expiration dates.
• USDS-M Contracts: Contracts that use USDT as the margin and have no expiration date. Profit/losses are settled every 8 hours.

The Huobi trading interface is one of the most advanced charting interfaces on the market. The various panels of the Huobi trading are clearly laid out and visually pleasing without sacrificing functionality. The live charting is powered by TradingView and you have access to the full suite of advanced indicators (e.g. advance/decline, ratio, average price, and oscillators) and tools to make the most out of your trades.

However, one of the downsides is that the charting window is a little on the small side compared to other exchanges such as FTX. Additionally, the buying and selling panels as well as the order books take up a bit of unnecessary space that could be better served for charting.

In terms of value for money, Huobi is very competitive with exchange trading fees of 0.04% and 0.05% for maker and taker orders, respectively. Buying and holding the Huobi native token, Huobi Token (HT), will net you cheaper fees as maker and taker fees follow a tiered structure.

However, spot trading will incur a base trading fee of 0.2% for crypto-to-crypto transactions and is higher than most other exchanges in this list including Binance which is 50% cheaper (0.1% maker and takers fees).

For those who are located in China, Taiwan, Israel, USA, Iraq, and retail investors in the United Kingdom, leveraged margin and futures trading is restricted.

Huobi Pros and Cons

6. Kraken

BEST FOR US-BASED MARGIN TRADERS

Read our complete Kraken review for an in-depth breakdown of its features and benefits.

Notable Features

• Leverage up to 5x can be applied to the trading of 36 popular cryptocurrencies including Bitcoin, Ethereum, Tether, and Cardano.
• Professional Kraken Pro trading platform with high trading volumes and significant liquidity.
• Excellent avenues to customer support including 24/7 live chat, direct phone support, and email tickets.
• A highly secure platform that implements bank-like security measures and protocols. No reported security breaches since its establishment in 2011.

Why We Picked It

The Kraken Pro exchange is a world-class cryptocurrency platform that is well-designed for novice and experienced margin traders. the platform supports a modest list of 36 high-capitalization digital assets such as Bitcoin, Ethereum, and USDT to trade with up to 5x leverage. Kraken is licenced in the United States with exception of Washington State and New York.

Kraken Overview

Established in 2011, Kraken is one of the longest-serving cryptocurrency exchanges in the world. In terms of trading volume, Kraken is ranked #4 in the world and provides professional crypto products and services to investors and traders in over 190 countries including the United States.

One of Kraken’s main selling points is its Kraken Pro trading platform where leverage of up to 5x can be placed on long or short positions. Currently, Kraken Pro supports 36 cryptocurrencies that can be traded with leverage including Bitcoin, Ethereum, Ripple, Tether, Litecoin, Ethereum Classic, and Monero. Whilst the number of supported crypto and trading pairs is not as large as other margin platforms, the coins that are supported are typically those with high market capitilization.

Kraken Pro fees follow a tiered maker and taker structure that can be reduced based on your 30-day trading volume. Base fees start at 0.16% and 0.26% for maker and taker orders, respectively. Fees for opening and closing a margin position on cryptocurrencies and other digital assets range between 0.01% and 0.02%, rolling over every 4 hours. An additional fee of 0.02% will be charged to keep the position open.

Kraken Pros and Cons

What Is Crypto Margin Trading?

In simple terms, margin trading is where you borrow funds from other users on the exchange to access a greater buying power than your capital allows. Specifically, it is a product offered by some exchanges where you can maximize your profits by opening a short or long position that is larger than your collateral funds. One of the advantages of leveraged margin trading is that you don’t need to hold as much crypto in your wallet to perform trades.

An important factor to keep in mind is the liquidation price. When the market price of the digital asset reaches the liquidation price, then the exchange will automatically close the position. This is done to protect the funds that were borrowed. When leverage is applied, the liquidation price increases to the purchase price of the asset.

What Does Leverage Margin Mean?

Leverage is a term used in crypto trading that describes the level of buying or selling power. The amount of leverage that is applied to margin trades is expressed as a ratio. For example, a 1:10 ratio means that the buying and selling power of your collateral assets is 10 times (10x). Therefore, if you want to open a position with $100 of Ethereum, you actually have $10,000 worth of buying power.

Pros & Cons Of Leverage Margin Trading

Leveraged margin trading is a high-risk, high-reward crypto trading strategy that is utilized by advanced traders who know how to time the market. Here are some of the pros and cons associated with margin trading.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can You Margin Trade Crypto In The US?

In the United States, margin trading exchanges such as FTX.US, Binance, and Kraken are highly regulated at state and Federal levels to provide margin trading with Bitcoin, Ethereum, and USDT. Leverage margin trading lets you open larger positions than your capital allows.