Poloniex vs Binance: Can the Smaller Exchange Win Big on Fees?

ByNick Mitchell Updated on

What happens when Poloniex, a tiny trading platform based in Seychelles, comes up against Binance, the world’s biggest and arguably best cryptocurrency exchange?

With daily trading volumes less than 1% the size of Binance’s, can Poloniex offer much in this fight? It will be interesting to see if trading with the little guy can offer you some advantages…

Fees

Poloniex Fee Structure

At 0.125% for both the maker fee and the taker fee, Poloniex is incredibly competitive with their trading fees, which are well below the industry average; however, they are still not as low as Binance’s. Poloniex Plus members can unlock 0% maker fees and minimal taker fees.

poloniex fee schedule
  • TRON (TRX) holders can get a 25% discount on trading fees when paying in TRX
  • Cryptocurrency withdrawal fees are low
  • Withdrawal limits depend on verification levels

The Costs of Using Binance

As the world’s biggest and most powerful exchange, you’d expect Binance fees to be low and their opportunities to be plentiful, which is exactly the case. We can’t think of another exchange with such a complicated yet opportunity-laden fee structure than Binance, which has 10 VIP trading levels, and two great methods for reducing costs.

binance trading fee schedule
  • The maker fee and taker fee are both 0.1% for beginners, but this charge can be reduced by 25% through purchasing and holding Binance Coin (BNB), their native token
  • There is also the opportunity to refer friends to Binance and enjoy a slice of their trading fees, as well as a 20% trading fee discount yourself
  • Withdrawal fees on Binance are different for each cryptocurrency
  • Withdrawal limits vary based on the account level

Winner: Binance is cheaper and offers more opportunities for discounts.

Sign up and KYC Experience

Poloniex Sign Up Process

Unlike Binance, please note that Poloniex no longer serves US users. 

poloniex sign up experience
poloniex dashboard
Find this button to start the ID verification process
  1. Visit Poloniex.com and click ‘Sign Up’ in the top-right hand corner. Our referral code is: SJCVZUJS
  2. Provide an email address and password.
  3. Accept the terms and conditions and continue.
  4. Go to your email inbox and open the email from [email protected]. You’ll need to click a big dark cyan-colored button inside that says ‘Verify My Email.’
  5. Type your email address and password and then hit ‘click to verify.’ You can log in when the verification light turns green.
  6. Your account is now made, and you can begin to make crypto deposits, trade crypto, and withdraw cash without KYC checks. However, we will walk you through the verification process below so that you can make purchases.
  7. Look to the right side of your dashboard, where you’ll find a column with two options. The first option is to Enable 2FA, and the other is to increase your limits and features on Poloniex. Click the ‘Get Started’ call to action.
  8. KYC (Know Your Customer) checks now begin, asking for your country or region, name, date of birth, address, and phone number.
  9. Next, you’ll start the ID verification process. Provide a photo of your ID, the country of issue, and the type of ID being submitted (passport, identity card, driver’s license).
  10. Finally, provide a clear photo of your face using your webcam. Want to make things faster? Hold a piece of paper with ‘Poloniex’ and today’s date written on it.
  11. Confirmation can take anything from a few minutes to a few days, so all you have left to do is wait.

Opening A Binance Account

Binance create an account screenshot
  1. United States users can go to Binance.US; all other accepted international users can visit Binance.com. Find the button to get started.
  2. Type in an email address and password to use for future logins.
  3. Accept the terms and conditions and continue.
  4. Head to your email client, find an email from Binance containing a six-digit verification code, and then copy this code over to your Binance tab.
  5. Your account is now open, but it will require identity verification to make fiat deposits, withdrawals, or purchases.
  6. On the navigation bar at the top, you will see ‘Wallet,’ ‘Orders,’ and next to that is a circle with a person shape inside, which you should hover over to find the ‘Identification’ option.
  7. On the next page, where it says ‘Identity verification,’ click the ‘Verify’ button.
  8. You’ll now have to provide Binance with the following:
    1. Nationality
    2. Name
    3. Residential Address
    4. Date of birth
    5. A photo of the front and back of your ID card
    6. A selfie holding your ID card
    7. Facial verification (webcam or mobile)
  9. Confirmation usually comes through on the same day, in as little as 15 minutes.

Winner: Poloniex is one of the few platforms that allow their account holders to withdraw fiat currency and trade restriction-free without KYC, which makes it very popular for those who value their anonymity and privacy.

Ease of Use & Feel of Website/App

Using Poloniex

Here are some of the top features for ease of use and user experience:

  • KYC-free trading and withdrawals
  • A native DEX (decentralized exchange)
  • Margin trading is enabled
  • Very low trading charges
  • A neat and clean trading interface
  • Appealing products and services for beginners and experienced users
  • Customer support is available via ticket system, social media, or trollbox
poloniex mobile app

Many choose to use Poloniex because with an email address and password, they can suddenly withdraw $10,000 per day, access unlimited trading and deposits, and essentially act with anonymity. This is one of the reasons Poloniex no longer serves United States customers.

Is Binance As Good As People Say?

  • The world’s highest liquidity, trade volume, and stability
  • Excellent intuitive designs and customer experiences
  • A top-quality app that removes much of the confusion of trading
  • Binance moved to Malta to avoid regulations in China, allowing them to flourish
  • The entire platform is available in 17 languages
  • Live chat customer support is available in 8 languages
  • More than 1,000 market pairings
  • A commission-free P2P/C2C exchange
  • Excellent community rewards and incentives
Binance homepage screenshot

Winner: Binance has the biggest user base thanks to its excellent work in this category.

Deposit Methods

Poloniex: No Fiat Currencies

On Poloniex, cryptocurrency is the only deposit method available, as they have opted against allowing clients to deposit fiat currencies into their wallets.

See the ‘Instant Buy Options’ section to learn more.

Making Deposits On Binance

Binance has three decent options for depositing fiat currency into their system:

  1. Domestic Wire (in the United States only)
  2. Bank transfers, debit cards, and credit cards can all be used at a 3.5% charge, thanks to the partnership with Simplex
  3. Paxos wire transfers allow users to instantly purchase PAX using their debit or credit card, with no fees, no delay, and no limits. PAX is pegged to the US dollar.

Binance members can make free cryptocurrency deposits.

Winner: Of course, Binance wins again.

Instant Buy Options (Buying with credit or debit card)

Purchasing Through Poloniex

Potential Poloniex users will be glad to know that they can purchase these currencies through their web browser or the mobile app:

Make instant purchases in the mobile app too

Like many crypto exchanges in 2021, Poloniex forged a partnership with Simplex* to help smoothen out the purchasing of coins. Debit and credit card transactions are charged the greater of 3.5% or $10. While other payment methods are targeted at just a small handful of fiat currencies, this service permits 35 different foreign money types to make purchases up to $50,000 per month.

*Simplex sets the prices and provides the broker liquidity, not Poloniex.

Buying Via Binance

Debit cards and credit cards can both be used on Binance, also through the Simplex service, allowing the purchase of the following coins, tokens, and cryptocurrencies.

Binance instant buy

Winner: It’s a tie.

Trading Experience

Trading On Poloniex

  • A likable and friendly crypto trading interface
  • The colors and layout make the information easily digestible
  • Great API options for developers
  • Margin trading enabled
  • Comprehensive mobile app
  • The choice to pay TRON trading fees at a discount
poloniex trading interface

Binance Trading Experience

  • Excellent logical designs and user experiences
  • The biggest trading volume and liquidity, offering the most choice at the fastest speeds
  • A very low maker fee and taker fee
  • Margin trading enabled
  • P2P exchange
  • The possibility for DeFi staking
  • Their own Binance DEX (decentralized exchange)
  • A replica Binance service for Americans with fewer cryptocurrencies but the same quality service and customer support features
Binance trading screen screenshot

Winner: The trading processes on both crypto exchange sites and apps are superb.

Reputation & Security

Poloniex: Siphoned

On Christmas Day and Boxing Day 2020, Poloniex made the news for the wrong reasons when their site was used to siphon $4m of stolen funds. This sent shockwaves through the crypto industry, and suddenly the race was on to stop more altcoins from being cashed in. The hack’s victim was EXMO, a Russian cryptocurrency exchange whose losses exceeded $10.5m in Bitcoin, Ripple, Ethereum, and more. Poloniex, by dropping their guard and letting the hackers get away with almost half of those stolen funds, saw their reputation badly damaged.

Binance: Hacked

Binance may dominate among cryptocurrency exchanges for many things, but they do not have the desirable zero-hack past that others can boast. In 2019, hackers escaped with 7,000 BTC, now worth over $350m. Binance users were refunded, and their security protocols are more advanced than ever. 

Winner: On current form, Binance wins.

Poloniex vs Binance: Who is the Winner?

This crypto exchange comparison of Binance vs Poloniex showed us something exciting. No matter how big and powerful a cryptocurrency exchange, there will always be a competitor with a unique selling point, in this case, Poloniex and their KYC-free withdrawal limits. For Poloniex, cryptocurrency should be democratic and anonymous, and that earns our respect. However, Binance wins this exchange comparison.

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