KuCoin Review 2025 - Is KuCoin Exchange Safe?
- 1,000+ tradable crypto assets
- Low trading fees
- Great for advanced traders
Founded in 2017, KuCoin has grown to become one of the leading crypto exchanges by trading volume.
With more than 1,000 tradable cryptocurrencies, this Seychelles-based trading platform offers a wide number of altcoins, providing early access to newer projects before they reach the broader market.
In this Kucoin review, we’ll explore KuCoin’s pros, cons, features, and overall safety.
To review KuCoin, we followed the steps a new user would follow, noting key characteristics such as regional availability, regulatory status, fees, and trading tools. We also evaluated the overall user experience and areas where Kucoin offers advantages or disadvantages compared to other platforms.
Let’s begin our KuCoin exchange review with the platform’s pros and cons before exploring the features in more detail.
KuCoin Review: Pros and Cons
Overall, KuCoin provides an impressive platform well-suited to traders who have used advanced trading platforms before. With 1,000+ assets available for trading, the platform has become an altcoin haven for traders who want access to the latest coins. Two key security certifications help ensure a safe trading environment, while a wide range of trading tools support nearly any trading style. However, we could see where the platform could be confusing for newer traders. We also found the limited fiat on-ramp options to be a disadvantage, which may increase the costs of initial account funding. Let’s summarize the pros and cons before diving into our full KuCoin review.
- 1,000+ cryptocurrencies
- Competitive fee structure
- SOC 2 Type II and ISO 27001:2022 certifications
- Futures (up to 100x)
- Trading bots for automated trading
- Limited fiat on-ramp options
- Restricted in some key markets
- It can be overwhelming for new traders
- Wallet breach incident (2020)
What is KuCoin?
KuCoin is a top-ten crypto exchange based on trading volume. The exchange began operating trading services in 2017 and became informally known as “The People’s Exchange,” in part due to its goal of making crypto accessible to everyone.
However, KuCoin’s roots date back further, with founders Michael Gan and Eric Don exploring blockchain tech as early as 2011 and designing the platform’s architecture in 2013.
KuCoin’s launch happened during the ICO boom of 2017/2018, allowing the exchange to raise $27.5 million in Bitcoin to fund the launch with the Kucoin Shares (KCS) token. In 2018, KuCoin raised another $20 million in Series A funding.
In the following years, KCS reached a market capitalization of more than $2 billion, rewarding early investors handsomely. The KuCoin token serves as a loyalty token on the platform, granting access to additional features and discounts.
The KuCoin exchange now offers more than 1,000 cryptocurrencies, making it a top destination for altcoin traders, in addition to staples like BTC, ETH, and SOL. Typical daily trading volume on the exchange exceeds $1.4 billion in spot trading and $3 billion in futures trading. The platform now offers a full suite of trading tools, ranging from perpetual futures to trading bots.
KuCoin Exchange Overview
KuCoin’s strengths center on its wide altcoin selection, competitive futures trading fees along with other fees, and a wide range of trading tools. However, we did find room for user error in the trading platform, and KuCoin reviews from users represent a broad range of experiences from stellar to less than complimentary.
| Category | Our Rating (out of 5) | Comment |
| Supported coins | 4.5 | 1,000+ coins available to trade. |
| Trading products | 4.5 | KuCoin offers a wide range of trading tools for advanced traders. |
| Fees | 4.5 | Competitive fees (spot: 0.1% or lower) make trading affordable. |
| User experience | 4.0 | Trading screens could be simplified for newer traders. |
| Features | 4.0 | Kucoin offers a complete trading platform, although limited in options pairs and expiry futures pairs. |
| Security | 4.5 | SOC 2 Type II and ISO 27001:2022 certifications help ensure safety. |
| Reputation | 4.0 | KuCoin enjoys a strong reputation for altcoins, but has thin regulatory oversight. |
| Customer service | 3.0 | The platform has mixed reviews for support. |
Is KuCoin Secure?
KuCoin employs several security measures to protect users and assets on the exchange. These include 24/7 monitoring and even device-level checks on mobile. Let’s look at the primary security measures the platform provides for users.
- Strong Passwords: KuCoin enforces strong password requirements, including letters, numbers, and symbols.
- Two-Factor Authentication (2FA): Users can use apps like Google Authenticator to secure their KuCoin account with a key-based six-digit code.
- Anti-Phishing Code: Users can also set an anti-phishing code to authenticate emails from KuCoin.
- IP Lock: Optionally, KuCoin lets users set an IP lock, restricting access to specific IP addresses or locations.
KuCoin also uses cold storage for most of the coins on the platform, securing the private keys offline. As importantly, KuCoin provides audited proof of reserves (PoR) to ensure the exchange has the crypto it shows in the user dashboard.
While KuCoin utilizes several security strategies, the platform has experienced major security breaches in the past. In a 2020 incident, hackers gained access to the hot wallets on the exchange. The resulting loss was estimated at more than $275 million. Much of the loss was recovered (approximately $222 million), and KuCoin covered customer losses stemming from the incident.
In 2025, KuCoin passed an SOC II Type 2 audit, which is a standard that measures security effectiveness over several months.
Although security has improved greatly, KuCoin’s regulatory status remains spotty. The exchange is not regulated in the US or UK, and does not allow users from these countries to use the platform.
KuCoin Supported Coins and Trading Pairs
KuCoin’s massive selection of 1,000+ coins makes it a leading destination for altcoin traders. Coins like $KASPA were listed on KuCoin long before reaching platforms such as Kraken. In short, KuCoin provides early access to tokens before they reach other trading platforms. Traders can also find niche assets like Monero (XMR) on KuCoin.
However, liquidity for smaller altcoins can be much lower than on more popular trading assets like BTC, ETH, or SOL, so limit orders can help manage trading prices. Top spot and futures trading markets on the platform include BTC, ETH, XRP, and SOL. Perpetual trading markets mirror this selection, with BTC and ETH pairs trading more than $500 million in daily volume.
KuCoin Trading Products and Services
The KuCoin exchange now offers a wide range of trading products, including traditional spot trading and margin trading. Other trading tools include perpetual futures, options, and leveraged tokens. Let’s explore some ways to trade in more detail.
Spot and Margin Trading
KuCoin offers an instant buy feature tailored for newer buyers, while most spot trading on the platform utilizes advanced trading strategies. You can expect standard options, such as market and limit orders, and tools like stop-limit, stop-market, and trailing stop options.
The platform combines the trading interface for spot trades with margin, trading bots, and futures. While convenient for experienced traders, this makes it imperative to confirm the type of trade before clicking any buttons.
Margin trades support isolated margin (single asset) and cross margin (all assets) with up to 10x leverage to amplify gains without using futures trades.
Futures
Advanced traders can access up to 100x on specific pairs using perpetual futures. These trading contracts allow traders to bet on the price direction of supported assets and keep the position open indefinitely, assuming sufficient margin for the trade.
Like margin trades, perpetual futures (perps) contracts on KuCoin support cross or isolated margin. Liquidity is highest for larger assets like BTC, ETH, and SOL, although a wide selection of meme coins and utility tokens is also available for perps traders.
The platform supports both coin-margined and USD-margined futures, with the latter being backed by USDT.
In addition to perpetual futures, KuCoin offers coin-margined standard (quarterly) futures for BTC.
Options
Like perpetual futures, options allow traders to bet on the price direction of a specific asset, but with an expiration date. Additionally, options represent the “option” to buy or sell at the contract price.
KuCoin simplifies the options trading interface, making it suitable for traders with limited experience. A streamlined four-step process guides you through the trade, starting with selecting a direction (up or down) and then a price. KuCoin recommends available options contracts that match your selection, allowing you to choose and then complete your trade as the final steps.
Only BTC and ETH options are available on KuCoin, which is common on other trading platforms as well.
Leveraged Tokens
KuCoin offers spot margin trading and leveraged futures, but maintaining these positions can get complicated due to maintenance margin requirements. As an alternative, traders can use leveraged tokens that offer 3x leverage for long or short positions.
Only BTC and ETH are currently supported as leveraged tokens. These tokens automatically rebalance daily, with intraday rebalancing during extreme volatility.
KuCoin Earn
The KuCoin earn program includes a variety of yield products, ranging from low-risk staking and lending to higher-risk dual investment pairs. Staking offers fixed-term options (up to 90 days) or flexible staking, with higher yields often available for fixed-term staking. Kucoin now also offers Smart Earn to make choosing the right KuCoin Earn product easier.
KuCoin Dual Investment offers higher yields but without principal protection. In effect, investors earn interest while also setting up a future buy or sell trade. While APR yields can reach stratospheric levels of more than 300%, volatility risks can erase gains if the market moves against your target price.
Other KuCoin Earn products include high-yield principal-protected products, such as Shark Fin, lending (KuCoin Savings), and a KuCard crypto-funded debit card that offers cash back on purchases.
KuCoin Trading Bot Review
Aside from KuCoin’s wide altcoin selection, trading bots are a key draw for the platform. These automated trading tools can serve a variety of goals, ranging from dollar-cost averaging (DCA) to grid trading within a range. Let’s explore some of the most popular bots.
- Spot Grid: The Spot Grid bot works by buying at the low end of a predefined range and selling at the high end of the range. This bot effectively captures gains from sideways markets with moderate volatility. An AI-guided option helps beginners select an optimal trading range. A similar Futures Grid bot allows 2x leverage.
- DCA Bot: As the name suggests, KuCoin’s DCA Bot is designed to help traders build a position on autopilot. The bot automatically invests a fixed amount at a fixed interval. This strategy optimizes purchases during dips by buying more when prices are lower.
- Infinity Grid Bot: One downside to spot grid trading is that it can miss additional upside gains. KuCoin’s Infinity Grid Bot allows the grid to adjust during bullish momentum to capture higher gains.
- Smart Rebalance Bot: Traders seeking a diversified portfolio may consider the Smart Rebalance Bot, which buys assets that have fallen in price and sells those that have risen in price. This bot automates buy-low, sell-high strategies while maintaining a portfolio of your preferred crypto assets.
Traders can also customize bots according to their needs, with logical “auto” defaults and AI-assisted options available.
KuCoin Launch Hub
In keeping with KuCoin’s commitment to offering a wide selection of altcoins, the platform also provides a Launch Hub for new projects before they are listed on the exchange’s spot markets. The Launch Hub offers several ways to participate in new token launches, including GemPool, Pre-Market, GemVote, Spotlight, and BurningDrop. Each of these options allows traders to participate by staking, committing USDT, or completing tasks.
The most popular among these by total value locked (TVL) is KuCoin’s GemPool, which can reach more than $3 billion in TVL. Users stake predefined tokens, typically KCS or USDT, although some pools allow staking the pool’s base token as well. Stakers who lock their tokens receive free airdrops of the pool’s base token. Expect one or two running GemPool events at any given time.
KuCoin Web3 Wallet
Similar to OKX, Coinbase, Binance, and other exchanges, KuCoin now offers a Web3 wallet that integrates with the exchange to move assets from the custodial exchange wallet to the non-custodial Web3 wallet.
As a Web3 wallet, supported assets focus on chains that support smart contracts, including Solana, Ethereum, BNB Smart Chain, Polygon, and the Kucoin Community Chain (KCC). However, BTC is also supported.
KuCoin’s Web3 Wallet also supports WalletConnect, a protocol that has become the de facto standard for connecting to decentralized applications. A clean UI makes this mobile application (iOS and Android) suitable for beginners. WalletConnect compatibility makes KuCoin’s Web3 Wallet a powerful tool that gives users access to staking, Web3 gaming, and decentralized finance (DeFi) applications.
KuCoin Payment Methods
Depending on your location, several funding methods are available. The most commonly used payment options center on third-party providers or direct crypto deposits.
- Third-Party Providers: Buy USDT or other supported crypto assets through a trusted third-party provider. KuCoin lets you compare exchange rates and providers, which then deliver coins or tokens to your exchange trading account. Most providers support debit or credit cards.
- Peer-to-Peer (P2P) Trading: KuCoin’s P2P platform provides a marketplace for buyers and sellers, sortable by ratings. This allows transactions without using a bank or financial intermediary. Several payment methods may be supported, depending on the seller’s policies.
- Direct Fiat Deposits: In key regions, KuCoin also supports direct cash transfers from a bank, such as SEPA payments in Europe or Brazilian Real (BRL) transactions in Brazil.
Third-party providers and P2P transactions can be costlier due to markups or vendor fees, making direct crypto transfers a common way to fund trading accounts on the platform.
KuCoin Fees
Like most trading platforms, KuCoin’s fees vary depending on the type of trade, as well as by 30-day trading volume or KCS holdings. Generally low fees combined with an available 20% discount for paying fees with KCS make KuCoin one of the lowest-fee crypto exchanges.
| Fee Type | Fee Rate | Notes |
| Crypto Deposits | Free | KuCoin does not charge a fee for crypto deposits; crypto network fees apply. |
| Withdrawals | Varies by asset and network | Fees are based on network congestion. Minimum withdrawal limits apply. |
| Spot Trading and Leveraged Tokens | Maker: 0.1% Taker: 0.1% | KuCoin uses tiered VIP levels to determine trading fees (Level 0 to 12). Accounts with higher trading volume or KCS holdings may pay lower trading fees. |
| KCS Discount | 20% discount | Paying fees with the KCS token reduces trading costs vs. USDT or other crypto assets. |
| Futures Trading | Maker: 0.02% Taker: 0.06% | KuCoin uses VIP tiers to reduce trading costs for futures. Variable funding rates apply separately. |
| Third-Party Fiat On-Ramps | Varies by provider | The third-party provider sets fees that can reach over 3%. |
| Direct Fiat Transfers | Often low or zero | In regions like Europe (SEPA) and Brazil (PIX), direct transfers typically have no fees. |
| P2P Trading | Generally free (spread markups apply) | KuCoin does not charge a fee for P2P transactions. The cost is typically a small markup in the exchange rate set by the seller. |
Is KuCoin User-Friendly?
Generally, KuCoin provides a user-friendly interface, with well-defined categories making it easy to find specific trading tools. However, its focus on advanced trading tools can make it daunting for newer traders.
The platform provides a web application, with a mobile application for iOS and Android that largely parallels the web app’s functionality. Beginners can learn the ropes with KuCoin’s “paper trading,” a demo trading platform that focuses on futures trading with virtual funds.
In our KuCoin review, we found the platform to be responsive and more intuitive to navigate than many competing platforms. However, KuCoin’s bias toward experienced traders can be confusing for newer traders. Help tips throughout the trading interface offer a lifeline, explaining key terms and how specific trading tools work.
Where is KuCoin Available?
KuCoin is available worldwide, with some notable exceptions. Restricted regions include the US, Ontario, Canada, the UK, Mainland China, Hong Kong, and Singapore. Additionally, KuCoin is not available in sanctioned countries and regions, such as Iran, North Korea, and Cuba.
KuCoin Customer Support
KuCoin offers several support channels, including 24/7 live chat, an email ticketing system, and a help center with FAQs. Additionally, help tips throughout the app link to help pages or short summaries of features.
Other support options include community support channels on X or Reddit, where users might receive helpful responses. Most questions can be resolved through help pages or live chat. Email ticketing proves handy in cases where screenshots or other documentation are required.
Like many crypto exchanges, KuCoin fares poorly on consumer review sites like Trustpilot, where the exchange has a 1.6 out of 5-star rating. Several complaints center on KYC account verification issues and P2P transactions.
By contrast, KuCoin earns 4.5 out of 5 stars for its mobile app on the Google Play Store and 4.7 out of 5 stars on Apple’s App Store.
Where Can KuCoin Improve?
KuCoin’s areas for improvement center on usability, availability, and payment options, and the last two are related. Let’s start with usability.
While less complex than some exchanges we’ve reviewed, KuCoin’s goal of making crypto accessible to everyone falls somewhat short. Newer traders are likely to find the platform challenging to use or struggle to understand specific trading tools. This can lead to unintentional trading losses.
We’d prefer a less integrated advanced trading screen that doesn’t include several types of trading tools. With a single misclick, users could be trading perpetual futures instead of spot markets.
Several major markets, including the US and the UK, still cannot access the platform. We also found that specific features were not available in supported regions. This restriction limits liquidity on the platform but also affects payment options. Also, due to limited support for direct fiat deposits based on region, many users are forced to use P2P or third-party providers.
How to Get Started With KuCoin
Next in our KuCoin review, let’s do a quick walkthrough on getting started in our trading journey. We’ll use the desktop web app, although the process is similar for mobile users.
1) Sign up for a KuCoin Account
Visit the KuCoin website and click on Sign Up. The platform supports email or phone numbers, as well as Telegram, Google accounts, and Apple accounts.
Enter the verification code sent to your device and then create a secure password.
2) Verify Your Identity
Next, complete the Know Your Customer (KYC) identity verification. This step is required to comply with regulations in many countries and unlocks essential features like deposits and trading.
You’ll need to upload an accepted government-issued photo ID, such as a passport or driver’s license, to unlock trading permissions on KuCoin.
3) Fund Your Trading Account
Navigate to Buy Crypto on the main menu. From here, you can deposit fiat (supported regions only), buy crypto with a debit or credit card, or use P2P to fund your trading account.
Alternatively, if you already have crypto, you can deposit supported assets into your KuCoin trading account.
4) Start Trading
Once you’ve completed KYC and funded your trading account, you’re ready to start trading. Use the main menu to find your preferred trading tool, such as spot trading, futures, options, trading bots, or KuCoin Earn.
KuCoin Review Conclusion: Is It Worth It in 2025?
KuCoin provides a powerful trading platform with a massive selection of 1,000+ coins and tokens. Low trading fees combined with tools like futures and options give traders more opportunities to maximize their gains than on some competing exchanges.
We see KuCoin as a good fit for traders with a few trades under their belt already, but the platform does offer some newbie-friendly features, including “paper trading” and help tips located throughout the UI.
Advanced and intermediate traders will appreciate features like trading bots and a wide range of futures pairs. The platform also provides early access to newly launched tokens, often well before these promising projects reach other trading markets.
Overall, we see KuCoin as a solid choice for traders, giving little reason to look elsewhere if in a supported region.
Our Methodology: How We Tested and Reviewed KuCoin
For our KuCoin review, we followed the steps a new user would follow, noting ease of use and questions new users might have during the signup process.
We also tested the platform’s features, weighing UI layout and responsiveness on both web and mobile platforms. KuCoin performed well here, with logical menus that help users find the trading tools they need.
Fees played an important role as well. KuCoin provides a transparent fee schedule with competitive fees even at the lowest VIP levels.
Lastly, we evaluated safety and regulatory status. While KuCoin is expanding its licensing to additional markets, availability could be improved. However, the platform scored well in safety, boasting 114% reserves at press time and offering several ways for users to secure their accounts.
FAQs
Is KuCoin legal in the US?
Is KuCoin better than Coinbase?
What are the risks of using KuCoin?
Why is KuCoin so popular?
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Does KuCoin accept fiat currency?
References
- KuCoin Completes Independent Hacken-Audited Proof of Reserves (prnewswire.com)
- The KuCoin Hack: What We Know So Far (chainalysis.com)
- KuCoin Launches KCS Loyalty Level Program: Redefine the KCS Ecosystem and Unlock New Privileges (prnewswire.com)
- Terms of Use (kucoin.com)
- Coin-Margined Contract Delivery Rules (kucoin.com)
- KUCOIN (trustpilot.com)
- KuCoin: Buy Bitcoin & Crypto (play.google.com)
- KuCoin: Buy Bitcoin & Crypto (apps.apple.com)
