dYdX vs Coinlist: Fees, Security, Features & Which to Choose (2025)

Trying to choose between dYdX and Coinlist This side-by-side comparison reveals total cost (fees + spreads), security & licenses, coins/derivatives, deposits/withdrawals, and app quality. In 2 minutes you’ll see who wins for beginners, active traders, and long-term holders. Clear pros/cons, a quick verdict, and safe links to get started.

Last updated on September 9, 2025

dYdX

Coinlist

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Available Countries

United States

Europe

Yes

Latin America

Yes

India

Yes

China

Canada

United Kingdom

United States

Yes

Europe

Yes

Latin America

Yes

India

China

Canada

Yes

United Kingdom

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dYdX is ideal if:

You thrive on decentralized control: If you value true self-custody and want to trade without intermediaries, dYdX delivers that fully trustless experience through its app-chain model.
You demand professional-grade derivatives: Ideal for experienced traders seeking advanced tools (perpetuals, deep liquidity, order books) wrapped in a sleek, CEX-like interface.
You prioritize scalability and speed: Built on its own Cosmos-based Layer 1 chain, dYdX offers lightning-fast execution and high throughput—perfect for active or algorithmic trading.

Coinlist is ideal if:

Great for early-stage crypto hunters: If you're looking to participate in high-quality token launches before they hit mainstream exchanges—such as Solana or Flow—CoinList offers standout access through its vetted token sale platform.
Strong on compliance and security: With established regulations, risk controls, KYC/AML procedures, and features like two-factor authentication and cold-storage partnerships, CoinList appeals to users who value legitimacy and safety.
Designed for engaged investors: If you're into staking, DeFi lending, testnet rewards, and boosting your “Karma” score for better access, CoinList’s layered ecosystem suits committed or active crypto participants.

dYdX isn’t ideal if:

You want a huge crypto selection: If you prefer platforms with hundreds or thousands of assets, dYdX’s limited range (focused on derivatives and select tokens) might feel restrictive.
You’re new to DeFi or prefer full KYC onboarding: If you expect a traditional, identity-verified trading experience, dYdX’s wallet-only, non-custodial flow may seem unfamiliar or cumbersome.
You need fiat deposits or simple spot-only trades: If your strategy relies on using bank transfers or just spot trading with fiat, dYdX’s focus on crypto leverage/perpetuals may not suit your needs.

Coinlist isn’t ideal if:

If you're seeking instant fiat deposits via cards: CoinList typically requires bank transfers and doesn’t support card or alternative fiat methods for many international users, making funding less flexible.
If you're frustrated by lengthy identity checks: The verification process can be prolonged and document-heavy, which might discourage those wanting quick, hassle-free access.
If you rely on contactless customer communication: Users occasionally report slow support responses or difficulty navigating the interface, especially via mobile or self-service channels.

Fees & Total Costs

Spot Maker/Take

dYdX employs a tiered maker/taker fee model—starting at around 0.02% for makers and 0.05% for takers for lower trading volumes, and reducing significantly (even resulting in rebates for makers) as your 30-day volume and market share increase; no explicit discount is tied to holding the native token anymore.

CoinList Pro applies a volume-tiered system where maker and taker costs progressively reduce for higher 30-day trading volumes, eventually reaching near-zero for top tiers, with occasional token-based rebates in special programs.

Futures/Derivatives

Perpetual futures follow a similar tiered structure, with maker fees beginning around 0.01% and taker around 0.05%, and both shrinking as volume grows; funding rates are variable and pair-specific, aligning positions’ pricing periodically without fixed values.

Futures and perpetual contracts remain in beta and follow similar tiered fee logic, while funding rates fluctuate with market conditions and are designed to balance the perpetual contract pricing relative to spot.

Average Spreads on Liquid Pairs

dYdX operates with tight spreads for highly traded perpetual pairs like BTC/USDT and ETH/USDT thanks to deep liquidity on its order book structure—typically narrower than what’s common on many centralized platforms.

Spreads on major pairs are generally tight due to deep order books, though exact values vary with market volatility and time of day.

Fiat Deposits & Withdrawals

Fiat on-ramps are not provided directly—users must bring crypto in via bridges (e.g., Skip Go Fast, IBC or via Coinbase for USDC); there are no platform fees, but third-party or network fees may apply, and processing can range from seconds to a few minutes depending on method.

Users can fund via bank wire or ACH (when supported); outgoing wires incur flat fees, while deposits usually arrive within a few business days and withdrawals are delayed due to holding requirements.

On-chain Withdrawals

Crypto withdrawals incur only network or bridge fees—fees vary dynamically by network (e.g., Ethereum, Cosmos, Solana)—and are not fixed; the platform itself doesn’t add extra charges beyond those required for settlement.

Crypto withdrawals incur network fees set by the blockchain (e.g. Bitcoin, Ethereum), which are dynamic and based on chain activity—not fixed by CoinList itself.

Hidden Costs

There are essentially no hidden fees—there’s no inactivity charge, no extra cost for expedited KYC (since KYC is minimal), and currency conversions occur only through normal network swaps without opaque surcharges.

There are no hidden inactivity or covert conversion charges, though recovery fees and processing surcharges may apply for special cases like mistaken chain deposits or express document reviews.

Real-World Cost Example: “€500 BTC

For a €500 BTC purchase, your cost comprises a small taker fee (around 0.05%), a tight spread inherent to the order book, and then if you withdraw, only the network fee on the chain—there’s no layered fee structure or hidden markup adding to the total.

When you purchase €500 in BTC, your total cost combines the spot spread and applicable tiered trading fee, plus the blockchain’s network fee when you withdraw—keeping the model flexible rather than giving fixed numbers.

Crypto Offering & Trading Features

Number of Coins & Pairs

dYdX offers over 200 perpetual markets on its Chain, spanning the most traded assets (like BTC-USD, ETH-USD, SOL-USD) as well as emerging tokens; the top 20 by volume include the largest-cap cryptocurrencies and most liquid pairs across derivatives.

CoinList supports around 70 cryptocurrencies and between 72 to 80 trading pairs, focusing on high-quality tokens in its limited but curated marketplace.

Product Range

dYdX currently offers perpetual derivatives and margin trading, with no spot, options, ETFs, staking/earn, loans, copy trading, grid bots, or automated DCA — though future versions (v4+) are preparing to expand back into spot and other synthetic offerings.

CoinList offers spot trading, OTC access, and beta perpetual futures; it does not currently provide margin, options, crypto ETFs, grid bots, copy trading, nor automated DCA tools.

Liquidity

The platform maintains strong 24-hour trading volume often exceeding several hundred million dollars, with deep order books for BTC-USD and ETH-USD delivering consistent market depth and low slippage.

Exact figures aren’t publicly available, but CoinList tends to show limited 24-hour volume and modest order book depth, especially relative to major exchanges.

Tools

Traders benefit from advanced order options (limit, market, stop-loss/take-profit), real-time charting with native TradingView support, API and WebSocket access for automation, though there’s no built-in alerts panel yet.

The platform supports advanced order types (e.g., stop, stop-limit, trailing, post-only), offers API/websocket access, but lacks native TradingView or built-in alert functionality.

Geographic Restrictions by Product

Product availability varies by region — for example, derivatives may be restricted or disabled in certain jurisdictions like the U.S., while other global areas generally have full access to perpetual trading on dYdX Chain.

Certain services—including derivatives and the launchpad—are not accessible to users in the U.S., Canada, and other restricted jurisdictions, due to regulatory and licensing constraints.

Innovation

dYdX’s ‘Launchable’ and MegaVault systems allow community-driven, instant market creation and liquidity pooling, while staking rewards and other incentives are dynamically distributed, without fixed earn or lock-up schemes.

CoinList shines in early access via its launchpad and incentivized testnets; for staking, it distinguishes between locked launchpad tokens and staking funds, but doesn’t emphasize flexible earn programs.

Security, Regulation & Custody

Operating Entity & Jurisdiction

dYdX is operated by dYdX Operations Services Ltd., a Cayman Islands-based company managing the front end and indexing services, and governance itself is transitioning to a Cayman Islands Foundation Company for stronger legal structure and decentralization.

CoinList is operated under Amalgamated Token Services Inc., with founding roots in 2017 and primary headquarters in San Francisco; services are offered through subsidiaries including CoinList Markets LLC, registered in the U.S. as a Money Services Business and money transmitter. (Based on legal info and state filings.)

Licenses/Registration

The platform doesn’t hold traditional financial licenses like VASP but has voluntarily released a MiCA-aligned whitepaper detailing its token governance, risk frameworks, and legal positioning under the EU regulatory regime.

CoinList Markets LLC is registered in the U.S. as a money transmitter with FinCEN and several states, reflecting compliance with relevant virtual asset service provider (VASP) requirements; while lending arms like CoinList Lend are not licensed lenders. (Inferred from entity disclosures.)

Custody

Users retain full custody due to the non-custodial, smart-contract model; funds are verifiable on-chain in real time (transparent Proof of Reserves), and the protocol publishes open-source audits—there’s no centralized cold-reserve custody by dYdX itself.

Asset custody is managed through partnerships with leading custodians such as BitGo, Gemini Custody, Anchorage, Finoa, Copper, Coinbase Prime, and Fortress Trust—many held in insured cold storage; CoinList also introduced its own in-house custody arm (CoinList Digital Asset Services) to custody select assets. (Based on service info.)

Insurance & Protection Funds

dYdX does not maintain insurance or protection funds like centralized platforms—liquid funds rely on cryptographic guarantees and community governance rather than third-party insurance.

Funds held with custodial partners benefit from their insurance policies covering cold storage, and CoinList imposes no wallet or custody fees, enhancing transparency and alignment with user costs.

Incident History

Since its launch, dYdX has not experienced any major hacks, freezes, or regulatory penalties—its decentralized chain operations and open-source design have helped avoid such incidents.

CoinList settled a notable regulatory matter in 2023—an OFAC penalty over inadvertent sanction-related breaches—thus underscoring prior oversight but also willingness to remediate; there are no widely publicized hacks or fund losses reported.

Risk Controls

As a non-custodial DeFi platform, security hinges on your wallet; dYdX’s interface supports API and WebSocket connectivity but does not offer traditional controls like 2FA or sub-account whitelists because private key and wallet security remain user-managed.

The platform mandates two-factor authentication via authenticator apps, works with vetted custodians, and enforces KYC/AML screening; it also relies on strong internal security practices, though features like whitelists, sub-accounts, and granular API permissions are not prominently offered.

Transparency

The protocol maintains high transparency—open-source code, public chain data, on-chain governance/fund flows, and MiCA-aligned documentation provide clear accountability, though there’s no direct monthly performance report format or formal SLA.

CoinList publishes legal disclosures and maintains a public legal repository but does not appear to offer monthly Proof-of-Reserves reports, public wallet addresses, or formal SLAs—though its collaborations with regulated custodians and structured legal documentation contribute to transparency.

Deposits, Withdrawals, KYC & Support

Fiat Deposit Methods

dYdX does not support direct fiat deposits; instead, users bridge in crypto via Skip Go Fast, Skip Go regular, or Coinbase/Noble, with instant to few-minute settlement depending on method.

You can deposit via credit/debit cards, Apple Pay, or Google Pay, which typically credit instantly; bank wires (ACH, SEPA, domestic, international) are supported in eligible regions with processing times ranging from same-day (domestic) to a few business days—specific minimums and maximums aren’t publicly listed and can vary by user and region.

Supported Fiat Currencies & Conversion

dYdX does not support direct fiat deposits; instead, users bridge in crypto via Skip Go Fast, Skip Go regular, or Coinbase/Noble, with instant to few-minute settlement depending on method.

KYC (Verification Levels)

dYdX is fully non-custodial and does not require any KYC levels—there is no basic or advanced KYC, and therefore no user limits tied to identity verification.

All users must complete full identity verification—basic or advanced tiers aren’t differentiated publicly—and the process typically takes 0–3 business days for individuals, with stricter document requirements and activity restrictions until completion.

Withdrawals

Withdrawals are subject to network-specific rules—USDC via Noble has default rate limits (e.g., up to 1% of TVL per hour), supported chain options vary and times range from seconds to minutes depending on the route.

Limits, Timing & Networks

Customer Support

dYdX provides in-app live chat powered by ACX, documentation-rich help center and community forums, aiming response times of 1–2 hours via opening help tickets and growing self-service tools continuously.

Support is available via email and help-desk tickets through the portal, with response times often within a day; there is no live chat or phone support, and the help portal serves as the central knowledge base.

Languages & Localization

The platform primarily supports English and Turkish for now, with localization and additional languages planned later; fiat values are not directly displayed in euros since there’s no native fiat handling built in.

The platform operates primarily in English, with fees and balances displayed in USD or EUR, and regulatory disclosures aligned with local requirements in supported jurisdictions—but localized language support remains limited.

App Quality & Stability

The interface is robust and designed to feel like a centralized exchange in performance and UX—recent updates and seamless deposit/withdrawal UX suggest solid stability with minimal crashes reported.

The new CoinList mobile app (updated August 12, 2025) delivers a clean, user-friendly experience with push notifications and integrated wallets; while generally stable, occasional crashes can happen and reinstall or support tickets are recommended for resolution.

Experience, Performance & Ecosystem

UX/UI

dYdX offers a dual-mode interface—Default Mode provides a simplified, intuitive layout ideal for newcomers exploring perpetuals, while Pro Mode unlocks advanced UI features and full functionality akin to the web platform, allowing users to grow into the system at their own pace.

CoinList offers a streamlined interface where the “Pro Trading” experience is now fully integrated into the main dashboard, eliminating the need to switch platforms and smoothing the transition for both beginners and more advanced users.

Performance

Built on its own low-latency Cosmos-based chain, dYdX delivers fast order execution and handles high trade throughput smoothly; while past infrastructure bottlenecks during extreme volatility prompted upgrades, there’s no user-facing KYC queuing since KYC isn’t part of the flow.

The platform generally delivers responsive trade execution under normal conditions, though high-demand launch events may introduce delays; rapid surges in registrations have previously led to temporary verification backlogs during bull markets.

Education

dYdX has launched a user-friendly trading guide through its Learning Hub to help onboard new traders—from wallet connection to placing orders—and while there’s no fully featured simulator or Spanish-specific academy yet, the guides are simple and approachable.

CoinList does not currently provide demo or simulation tools or educational content in Spanish—its platform is largely English-focused, though users receive guidance around token launches and participation workflows.

Community

dYdX fosters a vibrant ecosystem with active community forums, Discord channels, and a structured referral/affiliate system offering trading incentives and rewards for community engagement learners and contributors.

CoinList fosters a tight-knit community via its official blog, Discord, and Twitter; it also runs an active referral program that rewards users for inviting others to explore token events and trading.

Integrations

The platform features seamless TradingView-powered charting, open APIs for external bot and automation support, and compatibility with data tools via community resources, though no built-in tax or accounting modules exist.

The platform lacks native TradingView embeds or third-party trading bot support, and does not offer integrated tax tracking or accounting tools at this time.

Who Each One Is Best For

dYdX is perfect for traders comfortable with DeFi and eager for fast, non-custodial perpetual trading, while those unfamiliar with blockchain UI or preferring guided spot experiences might find the learning curve and interface options less suitable.

CoinList is best suited for proactive crypto enthusiasts looking to participate early in token launches within a compliant, streamlined environment, rather than users seeking beginner-friendly simulators or full suite trading integrations.