PancakeSwap Review: How Does It Fare Against The Competition in2025

Marina Avramovikj

Verified by Tsvetomir Koychev

Last updated

December 2, 2025 07:32 EST

22min read

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PancakeSwap is probably the most popular decentralized exchange on the BNB Smart Chain that supports a wide range of trading products and services. If you want to learn what makes this platform stand out from the competition, check out our extensive PancakeSwap review, in which we’ll cover its main features and fees. We’ll also compare PancakeSwap with other popular DEXs to determine its main strengths and limitations.

Our methodology included testing its trading products, checking its security score on CertiK and code on GitHub, and participating in its prediction games, lotteries, and CAKE.PAD events. With that in mind, here’s all you need to know about PancakeSwap.

What is Pancakeswap?

We’ll start our PancakeSwap review by explaining its history. PancakeSwap is a decentralized exchange that was launched in 2020. This platform was created by an anonymous team of developers (called Chefs). What made this platform stand out was that it was built on the Binance Smart Chain (BSC). This enabled it to offer faster and cheaper transactions than platforms that run on Ethereum.

PancakeSwap initially supported only the Binance Smart Chain and offered only BEP-20 token swapping. However, today this exchange supports multiple blockchains and enables cross-chain swaps.

PancakeSwap went through two upgrades. In 2021, we saw the release of PancakeSwap V2, an upgraded version of the original PancakeSwap, which uses an automated market maker (AMM) model instead of traditional order books to facilitate trades. Not long after, in 2023, another upgrade was launched, PancakeSwap V3, which introduced new features such as concentrated liquidity.

PancakeSwap currently has over 143 million users, 200,000+ Telegram members, and more than 2.1 million followers on its social media channels.

What Type of Exchange is Pancakeswap?

PancakeSwap is a decentralized exchange, meaning it allows you to trade cryptocurrencies without relying on a centralized authority. DEXs also support anonymous trading, i.e., you won’t need to create an account and go through KYC verification. You’ll only need to connect your private wallet to the exchange to conduct trades.

PancakeSwap is recognized as one of the best DEXs for trading BSC-based tokens due to its fast and low-cost transactions and high liquidity for BSC tokens.

Is Pancakeswap Exchange Safe and Trustworthy?

PancakeSwap is audited by CertiK, SlowMist, PeckShield, BlockSec, OtterSec, Zellic, and Halborn, which indicates its commitment to security and transparency. PancakeSwap currently has a security score of 92.89 on CertiK, which places it in the AA category. This score also places it 13th on CertiK’s Top BNB Chain Projects list.

PancakeSwap is built on open-source software, which means that its smart contracts are publicly visible on GitHub. Moreover, PancakeSwap’s vault utilizes anti-flashloan protection to prevent malicious activities and MEV Guard to prevent sandwich attacks.

Since its launch, PancakeSwap has experienced little to no significant hacks. The most recent incident happened on Oct. 8, 2025, when hackers carried out a targeted phishing attack on its official Chinese X account. Hackers used this account to promote a fake token (Sir Pancake). They also managed to generate more than $20 million in trading volume before they got caught.

PancakeSwap quickly deleted all fake posts and warned its users about the scam. They also confirmed that no user funds were affected and that the hack was limited to its Chinese X account.

PancakeSwap also has a bug bounty program to find vulnerabilities in its smart contracts, blockchain, website, and apps.

Pancakeswap Supported Coins and Networks

As mentioned at the beginning of our PancakeSwap review, the platform initially supported only the Binance Smart Chain. However, today, besides the BNB Chain, PancakeSwap also supports Ethereum, Solana, Aptos, Base, Arbitrum One, Zksync Era, Linea, opBNB, and Monad Testnet.

You can trade over 3,000 coins, depending on the platform’s version and network. For example, PancakeSwap V2 supports 2,964 coins, PancakeSwap V3 on the BNB Smart Chain supports 837 coins, while PancakeSwap on Ethereum supports 10 coins.

The most popular tokens on PancakeSwap include USDT, WBNB, CAKE, PALU, USDC, ARK, and ASTER, while the most popular trading pairs are USDT/WBNB, USDT/DM, and CAKE/WBNB.

Pancakeswap Key Features

PancakeSwap offers multiple trading services. On that note, you can buy crypto, conduct swaps, trade perpetuals, forex pairs, and NFTs, as well as earn passive income by participating in yield farming, syrup pools, and prediction games. Now, let’s explain these features in more detail.

Swaps and Purchases

You can use the platform to swap tokens via automated liquidity pools on BNB Smart Chain, Ethereum, and Aptos. You can also use the time-weighted average price (TWAP) strategy to break your order into smaller chunks or place a limit order to buy or sell assets at a specified price. You’ll also earn a 0.1% trading fee every time your limit order gets filled.

PancakeSwap supports cross-chain swaps between the following chains:

Thanks to PancakeSwap Infinity (the latest version of its AMM), you’ll get to swap tokens much faster and much cheaper since its modular design supports different types of trading pools and pricing models.

PancakeSwap is partnered with Mercuryo, MoonPay, Transak, and Topper, which means you’ll be able to buy crypto using credit/debit cards and bank transfers. PancakeSwap offers its on-ramp services on BNB, Ethereum, Arbitrum, Base, Linea, Polygon zkEVM, and zkSync Era chains.

Perpetuals

PancakeSwap supports perpetual futures in three modes – classic, degen, and dumb. The classic mode lets you use up to 250x leverage, while the degen mode enables up to 1001x leverage. On the other hand, the dumb mode doesn’t offer leverage, which makes it suitable for beginners. The duration of positions is determined by time (5, 10, 15, 30 minutes, 1 hour). The longer the expiration period, the higher the ROI.

At the time of writing, PancakeSwap supports perpetual pairs on BNB Chain, Arbitrum, opBNB, and Base. The fee to open and close a position on V2 stands at 0.08% and 0.05%, respectively.

Pancakeswap Stocks, Commodities, and Forex

PancakeSwap lets you trade stock perps, such as Apple (AAPL), Amazon (AMZN), and Tesla (TSLA), with up to 25x leverage and forex pairs. Keep in mind that stock perpetual markets are only available for trading during US stock market hours – from Monday to Friday, from 13:30 to 20:00 UTC.

Under the Commodities tab, you can trade PAXG – a tokenized gold asset backed by physical gold

NFT Marketplace

You can use PancakeSwap’s NFT marketplace to buy and sell NFTs on the BNB Smart Chain and list your own NFT collections. All trades are settled in WBNB (wrapped BNB). You’ll also get to swap your WBNB for BNB for zero fees. Keep in mind that PancakeSwap charges a 2% fee on all NFT sales.

Pancakeswap Earn

In this part of our PancakeSwap review, we’ll discuss its Earn products. On that note, PancakeSwap supports earning passive income by participating in yield farming and syrup pools. The former lets you earn rewards by staking two tokens and providing liquidity. In return, you’ll receive a liquidity position NFT or LP tokens, which you can then stake to earn rewards.

To start farming, you’ll first need to get the tokens you wish to farm. For example, if you choose the CAKE‑BNB farm, you’ll need to get CAKE and BNB. Next, you need to choose a liquidity pool and tap the Add Liquidity button. And finally, you’ll have to stake your positions into a farm.

To harvest the rewards, tap the Harvest button. Keep in mind that if you have multiple staked positions, you’ll have to harvest them separately.

On the other hand, syrup pools give you rewards by staking a single token, usually CAKE. The lock duration ranges between one and 52 weeks. To start staking, go to the Pools page and choose a pool you want to stake in. Enter the amount you wish to stake and tap the Confirm button.

Pancakeswap Play

PancakeSwap’s Play service lets you earn rewards by participating in prediction games and lotteries. For example, you’ll win rewards by predicting whether cryptocurrency prices will go up or down. First, you’ll need to choose an asset to bet on. We noticed that only three crypto pairs are available for predictions: BNB/USD, BTC/USD, and ETH/USD. Next, you need to tap the Up or Down button and place your bet (any BNB amount).

If your prediction is correct, you’ll share the prize pool with other winners. If your prediction is incorrect, you’ll lose the bet amount. Each betting round lasts for 5 minutes, which makes this game very dynamic.

If you choose to participate in the lottery, you’ll get to earn CAKE rewards. To participate in the lottery, you’ll need to buy a ticket (you can buy up to 100 tickets at once), which costs about $5 in CAKE. Each ticket contains a 6-digit combination. Your task is to match the numbers in the correct order, from left to right. You’ll win a prize even if you match just the first number. However, a larger number of matched numbers equals higher rewards. A lottery draw occurs every 12 or 36 hours.

Cake.pad (Formerly Ifo)

PancakeSwap is known for its CAKE.PAD events (Formerly IFO). During these events, you’ll get early access to new tokens, such as WBAI, SOLV, LISTA, CKP, and SABLE. To participate in the events, you’ll need to commit your CAKE tokens (as many as you like). Once the events end, you’ll get to claim the CAKE.PAD tokens you bought.

CAKE.PAD events are time-limited. They usually last for 24 hours, which means that you’ll have to react quickly if you want to benefit from this service. You can also participate in multiple events at the same time. Keep in mind that if the CAKE.PAD event is oversubscribed, you’ll have to pay a participation fee that ranges between 0.05% and 1%.

What is the Best Crypto Wallet to Use With Pancakeswap?

After testing more than 45 wallets, we concluded that Best Wallet is the top option for PancakeSwap. It supports 1,000+ tokens across 60+ networks and is fully compatible with the PancakeSwap exchange.

The wallet is available on both iOS and Android mobile devices and features a beginner-friendly interface, two-factor authentication, and private key encryption. In addition, it’s fully non-custodial and anonymous, making it an excellent option to use with any DEX.

Pancakeswap ($CAKE) Token

PancakeSwap has a native token called CAKE. CAKE is built on the BNB Chain, which means that it uses the BEP-20 token standard. This is both a utility and a governance token that has multiple use cases. You can use it for trading, staking, voting, and gaining access to PancakeSwap’s prediction games and lottery tickets. CAKE token holders also get a 5% discount on perpetual trading fees.

As mentioned before in our PancakeSwap review, you can use CAKE to gain early access to new tokens during the CAKE.PAD events.

As of Oct. 2025, the price of the CAKE token is $3.21, while its market cap stands at $1.1 billion. You can purchase CAKE on both centralized and decentralized exchanges.

Pancakeswap Fees

PancakeSwap’s Exchange V2 liquidity pool comes with a fixed 0.25% trading fee per swap, while its Exchange V3 liquidity pool utilizes four different fee tiers: 0.01%, 0.05%, 0.25%, and 1%. We also noticed that token swaps on Aptos come with a fixed 0.25% fee, while cross-chain transactions are free.

When it comes to trading perps, the fees for opening and closing positions stand at 0.08% (BSC, opBNB, Base) and 0.05% (Arbitrum), respectively, while trading FX comes with a 0.02% fee. Moreover, all trades are subject to a fixed execution fee that depends on the network. For example, you’ll have to pay a $0.5 execution fee when opening a position on the BNB Chain, a $0.2 fee for trades on Arbitrum, a $0.01 fee for trades on opBNB, and a $0.3 fee for trades on Base.

PancakeSwap also charges fees for selling NFTs (2%). In addition to that, you’ll have to pay a 2% fee on the rewards generated by flexible staking and a 0.1% fee for early withdrawals, i.e., if you unstake your tokens within 72 hours of the last deposit.

PancakeSwap doesn’t charge deposit and withdrawal fees. You’ll only need to cover network fees, while fees for buying crypto depend on the third-party provider. For example, Mercuryo charges a 3.95% fee for debit/credit card transactions and a 3.95% fee for bank transfers/SEPA. If you use Moonpay, you’ll have to pay a 2.75% fee for debit/credit transactions, a 1.25% fee for SEPA, and a 2.95% fee for PIX transactions.

You won’t be able to use USD on Base, Arbitrum, and Linea, since these blockchains don’t support the USD‑on‑ramp option.

To conclude, PancakeSwap’s fee structure is not as competitive when compared to other platforms, such as Best Wallet, Binance, and MEXC, which are recognized as one of the lowest fee crypto exchanges.

What Wallets Does Pancakeswap Support?

To get started on PancakeSwap, the first thing you’ll need is to set up a wallet that supports BNB Smart Chain (BSC). To connect to PancakeSwap, open the wallet, find the dApps section, select PancakeSwap, and tap the Connect button.

PancakeSwap supports some of the best software and hardware wallets, including Best Wallet, Zengo, Binance Wallet, and Ledger.

Is Pancakeswap User-Friendly?

In this segment of our PancakeSwap review, we’ll discuss its UI. PancakeSwap is considered to be one of the most beginner-friendly platforms due to its intuitive interface and extensive help section, which also includes how-to guides and features like social login. For example, you can use your Google, Twitter, Telegram, or Discord account to connect to PancakeSwap.

Thanks to its Pancake Gifts feature, you’ll get to send tokens to your friends using just a QR code or a link. However, you’ll only get to send one gift per code. At the same time, its Zap feature facilitates the process of adding liquidity. For example, you can provide liquidity with only one token from the liquidity pool.

What beginners may find very useful is its swap bot on Telegram. The PancakeSwap swap bot will enable you to trade 3,000+ tokens on the BNB Chain directly from Telegram for a competitive 0.01% fee. You’ll also gain access to its V2, V3, and Stableswap pools and receive real-time transaction alerts.

On the downside, PancakeSwap doesn’t have a dedicated support service. So, if you experience any issues, you’ll have to rely on its FAQs section and official Telegram channel.

Does Pancakeswap Require Kyc?

PancakeSwap is a decentralized exchange, which means that it enables you to trade cryptocurrencies without the need to create an account or undergo KYC verification. Like other popular anonymous crypto exchanges, PancakeSwap allows you to use its trading services without sharing your private data. You’ll just need to connect your wallet. However, this only applies to trading within PancakeSwap. If you want to buy crypto using third-party providers, you’ll have to go through the KYC verification.

Best Pancakeswap Alternatives

Although PancakeSwap is one of the most popular DEXs in the world, it also comes with certain limitations, such as the lack of customer support and direct fiat deposits. This is why we decided to provide a few noteworthy alternatives to PancakeSwap that offer more advanced trading options and a better user experience.

The best alternatives to PancakeSwap include Best DEX, CoinFutures, and MEXC DEX+. In the following segment, we’ll compare all three platforms with PancakeSwap to showcase their strongest points.

Pancakeswap Vs Best DEX

Best DEX is part of the Best Wallet app – a multi-chain non-custodial wallet that supports 1,000+ coins across 60+ blockchains. This hot wallet is packed with a wide range of features, including the integrated DEX, fiat on-ramp tools, and an upcoming tokens page.

Like PancakeSwap, Best DEX enables its users to invest in new projects before they hit the major exchanges. However, unlike PancakeSwap events, the upcoming tokens page is not time-limited. Moreover, you can use both fiat and crypto to buy presale tokens on Best Wallet while participating in CAKE.PAD events require using CAKE tokens only.

Pancakeswap Vs Coinfutures

As its name suggests, Coinfutures is a crypto futures trading platform that will allow you to trade perps with up to 1000x leverage. In comparison, PancakeSwap lets you trade perps with up to 250x leverage (classic mode) and up to 1001x leverage (degen mode).

What makes Coinfutures a more attractive option than PancakeSwap is its support for simulated futures that mimic real market volatility. This means that you’ll get to practice your trading strategies without the risk of real losses. Plus, you’ll be able to cash out your positions at any time.

Pancakeswap Vs MEXC Dex+

MEXC DEX+ is a hybrid platform that combines the liquidity of CEXs with the flexibility of DEXs. This means that you’ll be able to swap more than 10,000 tokens without the need to use a Web3 wallet, which is not the case with PancakeSwap. You can also utilize advanced trading tools, such as smart money tracking, which enables you to track crypto whales in real-time.

At the time of writing, you can trade tokens across Solana, BNB Chain, Base, and TRON, while Ethereum, Arbitrum, Polygon, and Avalanche will be added in the future. MEXC DEX+ aggregates liquidity from multiple DEXs, such as Raydium and Pumpfun, while PancakeSwap aggregates liquidity only from its own pools.

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Marina Avramovikj

Crypto Content Writer

Marina is a content writer with over 5 years of experience in the cryptocurrency space. Her specialty is writing reviews and guides for centralized and decentralized crypto exchanges and crypto wallets, with a focus on security, usability, and user experience. She regularly tests crypto platforms and wallets to provide readers with clear, unbiased, and useful information through practical guides and comparative analyses.

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