Crypto Maker vs Taker Fees Explained: A Simple Guide

If you’ve been trading crypto for a bit, you already know fees can be confusing, even for experienced traders. One of the most misunderstood parts? Maker vs taker fees. In this article, we’ll break it down to the most basic level.

Why’s this important? These fees matter more than people realize. They affect long-term profitability, your trading strategy, and even which exchange you should be using. According to research from the Bank for International Settlements (BIS), execution and spread costs make up a large portion of high-frequency trading expenses.

In some cases, they account for around a third of such costs. Crypto behaves similarly, meaning fees can quietly drain profits faster than price swings if you ignore them.

Same thing with trading. For example, if you trade $50,000 monthly, the difference between a 0.1% fee and a 0.02% fee equals over $480 in savings every month.

In this guide, we break down maker vs taker fees in simple terms, show how exchanges structure their fees, and explain how smart traders reduce them without changing their strategy.

Bottom line: if you don’t understand maker vs taker fees, you’re leaving money on the table.

What Are Maker and Taker Fees?

Think of a crypto exchange like a marketplace. Now;

• A maker is someone who adds liquidity.
• A taker is someone who removes liquidity.

Maker Orders (Limit Orders): Add Liquidity, Pay Less

A maker order is a trade that enters the order book instead of executing instantly. You’re basically saying: “I want to buy/sell at my price and not the market’s price.”

What happens when you do this?

• You add liquidity to the market
• You help stabilize price movement
• You usually pay lower fees
• Some platforms even pay you (rebates) for doing this

For example, you place a limit order to buy BTC at $42,000 when the current price is $42,200. Your order waits. You are a maker. Makers enjoy a couple of benefits for providing liquidity. Binance and OKX public fee tables show maker fees are 35%-90% cheaper than taker fees at the base level.

In my experience trading through bull and bear cycles, makers play the “strategic patience” game. They care more about execution price and fees than speed. This is why many algorithmic trading systems use limit orders to accumulate positions quietly.

Taker Orders (Market Orders): Pay More, Fill Fast

A taker order executes immediately at the current price. You’re saying: “I need this trade right now, just fill it.”

What it means for you

• You remove liquidity
• You pay higher fees
• You get instant execution, which is useful in fast markets

Say, you buy BTC at market price ($42,200) and it executes immediately. In this scenario, you are a taker.

On most exchanges like Kraken, taker fees are 2-5× higher than maker fees for retail users, and rates go even higher during specific periods. For example, during high-volatility events like CPI releases or ETF approvals, taker usage surges because traders fear slippage more than fee costs.

Here’s a clearer explanation for both maker and taker:

After years of trading crypto and even watching institutional desks operate, one pattern is clear: makers care about precision and execution strategy, while takers care about speed and market timing. Most profitable traders deliberately mix both, but they always know when to switch.

Why Exchanges Charge Maker/Taker Fees

Exchanges want deep liquidity so traders get better prices and faster execution. So they reward makers for adding orders to the book and charge takers more because they consume liquidity. Think of it as paying less for helping the market, and paying more when you stress the system by demanding instant liquidity.

Let’s look at maker/taker fees from some of the top crypto exchanges

This model isn’t new. NASDAQ and CME have used maker/taker pricing since the 1990s to deepen liquidity.

Cost Breakdown

Let’s make it a bit more relatable with a clearer example. Let’s say you have $10,000 to trade:

From this, we see that Kraken taker trade costs 4.5× more than OKX maker trade on the same $10,000 order.

Let’s do a breakdown on futures using Binance futures maker and taker rates.

Futures Advantage

Futures fees are generally lower, which is why active traders prefer them. According to recent research, crypto derivatives now represent around 76% of all trading volume, with average daily futures volume hitting $24.6 billion in 2025. This figure is a 16% YoY increase. Data from CC Data August 2025 Exchange Review also reports a growth in crypto derivatives.

This massive activity gives exchanges room to charge less, while still staying profitable, meaning serious traders save more by using futures.

What That Means Over 50 Trades/Month

How Much Can You Save in a Year From Our Example?

Using a cheaper platform can save you a lot on fees, especially if you trade actively. For example, by choosing OKX spot maker instead of Kraken taker:

• $500/month saved
• $6,000/year saved

This is why maker/taker strategy matters. Small percentages compound into real money.

Maker vs Taker: When Each Makes Sense

Here’s a pro tip I’ve learned over cycles: real traders don’t hate taker fees. Instead, they save them for the moments that matter. You use taker orders when execution speed creates alpha. The smart traders don’t use it because they are impatient.

My advice after being in crypto for over 4 years: Use maker orders for 75-90% of your trades. Only switch to taker (market orders) when speed is critical. An example is during news events or breakout plays.

Which Exchanges Offer the Best Maker/Taker Fees?

Most crypto exchanges reward traders who add liquidity, which is why maker fees are often lower.

Best low-fee platforms overall:

• Binance: lowest retail spot and futures fees. It also offers strong VIP rebates
• Bybit: provides extremely competitive futures trading rates
• OKX: Offers low spot fees alongside token-based discounts (OKB)
• Kraken (US/Europe): charges higher spot fees, but is the strongest regulated option

If you’re trading futures or you’re a high-volume user, Binance and Bybit tend to deliver the best long-term fee savings. These two platforms are among the lowest fee crypto exchanges in 2025.
If safety is a concern to you, we’ve compiled a list of the safest crypto exchanges to use in 2025. There, you find different platforms alongside their safety measures.

How to Reduce Taker Fees and Trade Cheaper

Although taker fees cost more, we sometimes can’t avoid them when we need fast execution. Fortunately, there are smart ways to reduce taker fees and trade cheaply.

Read more: Hidden Crypto Exchange Fees You Probably Missed

Wrapping It Up

If you want to protect profits:

• Choose exchanges with strong maker/taker structures
• Use limit orders often
• Take advantage of VIP tiers and token discounts
• Only pay taker fees when the market is moving fast

Want to compare which exchanges currently offer the best maker/taker structure? See our 2025 comparison chart.