Overview
The safety-first choice for anyone who wants a serious, regulated exchange.
Kraken launched in 2011 and today serves crypto-native users looking for a exchange that feels built for them. At time of writing, the highlight offer is $20 in BTC on first $100 trade.
Key data
- Overall score
- 9.0 / 10
- Founded
- 2011
- Maker / Taker fees
- 0.25% / 0.4%
- Coins supported
- 240+
- Fiat methods
- Wire, SEPA, Interac, ACH
- Available in Canada
- Yes
- KYC required
- Yes
- Proof of Reserves
- Yes
Pros & cons
- Strong security track record
- Proof of reserves
- Regulated across regions
- Standard fees higher than Pro tier
- US staking restrictions
Reviews & sources
- CoinGecko trust scoreLiquidity, API uptime and reserve data.
- CER.live security rankIndependent cybersecurity and penetration audits.
- Reddit discussionUnfiltered community threads and complaints, sorted by top.
- Google news & reviewsLatest press coverage and independent reviews.
Aggregator scores drift daily. Numbers on this page reflect our last manual check on Jun 1, 2026. Follow the links above to see today's rating.
How we tested
Our rating for Kraken combines four signals, each weighted per category and published in full on the methodology page:
- 40% hands-on testing by our team
- 25% aggregator consensus (Trustpilot, category sites)
- 20% price, fee and feature depth
- 15% incident history and transparency
We re-verify every exchange at least once per quarter. If a provider suspends operations, changes ownership, or fails an audit, we push a same-week update and note it in the changelog.
Fees
Kraken charges 0.25% maker and 0.4% taker fees at the entry tier. Volume-based discounts typically apply above certain monthly thresholds. Deposits via Wire, SEPA, Interac, ACH are supported.