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

Trying to choose between dYdX and Htx 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

Htx

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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

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.

Htx is ideal if:

A wide trading toolkit for all levels – HTX serves both beginner and advanced users with spot, margin, futures, copy-trading, automated bots, and staking features, offering real flexibility for growth.
Consistently deep liquidity and broad token access – With over 700 cryptocurrencies and hundreds of trading pairs—including fiat support and various passive income options—it’s great if you want choice and market depth.
Security and transparency at its core – Offering live cold storage, proof-of-reserve commitments, 2FA, withdrawal controls, and regulatory alignment across key regions ensures a secure trading environment you can trust.

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.

Htx isn’t ideal if:

Limited regional access – HTX is unavailable in key markets like the United States, Canada, UK, China, and others, restricting access for traders in many major territories.
Not beginner-friendly – The platform’s advanced interface and rich feature set can overwhelm newcomers who prefer a more intuitive, streamlined onboarding experience.
Customer support delays – Some users report slow response times and limited fiat withdrawal options, which can impact trading during urgent situations.

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.

HTX uses a tiered “Prime” structure where both maker and taker fees start around 0.20 % at the entry tier and progressively fall to near zero (maker) and a few hundredths of a percent (taker) at the top tiers; holding the native HT token offers an extra discount on spot taker fees via applied HT deduction.

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 contracts (USDT- or coin-margined) begin with maker fees around 0.02 % and takers around 0.05–0.06 %, improving with higher-tier status—even offering negative maker fees at top levels—while funding isn’t a direct HTX charge but rather settled among traders according to position and the prevailing funding rate.

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.

HTX reports tight spreads on major pairs like BTC/USDT and ETH/USDT; spreads tend to remain narrow thanks to deep liquidity, though exact percentages aren’t published—indicative of competitive conditions.

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.

Fiat can be deposited or withdrawn via common methods (like bank transfers or cards) with fees and processing times varying by method and region; details are available in the platform’s fiat interface, but HTX tends to streamline these operations for ease of use.

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 on HTX incur network (mining) fees specific to each blockchain (e.g. BTC, ETH, TRX), dynamically reflecting network conditions rather than fixed, flat charges.

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.

Beyond trading and network fees, there may be supplemental costs such as currency conversion margins when using non-supported fiat, possible inactivity penalties, or optional express–KYC surcharges, depending on region or promotion—users should review account settings for those.

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.

If you purchase €500 worth of BTC, your total outlay would include a spot taker fee (e.g. ~0.20 %), plus the implied buy-side spread, and on-chain withdrawal would add the relevant network fee—so the net BTC received would reflect those combined, though precise numbers depend on market and network conditions at execution.

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.

HTX lists over 700 digital assets (some sources suggest over 1,000, though officially it’s 700+) and supports hundreds of trading pairs; the top 20 by volume typically include heavily traded pairs like BTC/USDT, ETH/USDT, XRP/USDT, and other high-liquidity altcoin-USDT combinations, reflecting mainstream market interest.

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.

HTX delivers a robust suite

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.

HTX maintains high liquidity with daily volumes in the multi-billion-dollar range (for example, around $5.4 billion in one snapshot), offering strong order-book depth in BTC and ETH pairs—meaning large trades face minimal slippage—though depth metrics fluctuate with market behavior.

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.

Traders can access advanced tools such as limit orders, stop-limit, OCO orders, along with real-time alerts, sophisticated charting (including TradingView-style analysis), and full API/WebSocket support—ideal for both hands-on and automated strategies.

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.

Derivatives, such as futures and options, are not available in certain jurisdictions—examples include the UK (retail users), Spain, Taiwan, China, and others—so availability varies significantly by country and regulation.

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.

HTX embraces innovation with mechanisms like Launchpool (dual rewards for staking HTX tokens) and both flexible and fixed-term staking options, enabling creative earning paths for users engaging with new tokens or tapping liquidity.

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.

HTX originated in China in 2013 but is now legally based in the Republic of Seychelles, with additional offices or operations in locations like Hong Kong, South Korea, Japan, and previously the U.S., reflecting its international setup reshaped by evolving regulatory environments.

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.

HTX holds multiple regulatory approvals including a Virtual Asset Service Provider registration in Lithuania, a DLT license in Gibraltar, a VARA license in Dubai, a SIBA investment business license in the BVI, AUSTRAC registration in Australia, and permission for payment and remittance services in parts of South America—demonstrating ongoing efforts toward regional legal compliance.

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.

HTX uses its own custody infrastructure and has implemented a Merkle-Tree–based Proof of Reserves system that publicly verifies 1

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.

HTX maintains a Security Reserve Mechanism that sets aside a substantial BTC reserve—reportedly around 20,000 BTC—to help compensate users in the unlikely case of a breach, providing an added layer of protection against potential losses.

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.

While HTX hasn’t had major publicized hacks recently, its history includes structural changes like being removed from the Seychelles crypto exchange register and a prior license revocation in Thailand—illustrating some regulatory and administrative challenges in its past.

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.

HTX emphasizes robust account security through features like two-factor authentication (2FA), address whitelisting, anti-phishing tools, structured sub-accounts, and granular API permissions—allowing fine-tuned control and protecting users from unauthorized access.

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.

HTX publishes regular (monthly) Proof of Reserves reports and claims that users can verify their own assets via Merkle-root tools; however, it does not appear to offer public wallet addresses, comprehensive monthly financial statements, or formal service-level guarantees like an SLA.

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.

HTX accepts fiat deposits via bank transfers (e.g., SEPA), cards (Visa/MasterCard), e-wallets (Advcash), PIX, UPI, etc., with minimum amounts generally starting around €10 or equivalent depending on currency, and processing times ranging from a few minutes to a business day, depending on method 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.

HTX offers account usage without KYC but limits certain actions like withdrawals; completing basic and advanced KYC quickly unlocks substantially higher daily limits (even up to multiple BTC), with level-up requiring ID documents and, for higher tiers, a live face check or investment capability assessment.

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.

HTX provides customer assistance via 24/7 live chat, email support, and an extensive FAQ/knowledge base; response times vary but live chat ensures faster handling while the help center offers self-serve guidance across common topics. (No specific data found; this is based on typical platform structure.)

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 is primarily in English but also supports local language interfaces depending on region; fiat amounts and fees display in currency local to the user (e.g., €/USD), with regulatory prompts and guidance tailored to supported jurisdictions. (Platform behavior inferred from multilingual support practices.)

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.

HTX’s mobile app is regularly updated and generally delivers stable performance. Although specific crash-rate metrics aren’t disclosed publicly, user reviews suggest it remains reliable, with frequent updates ensuring bug fixes and feature enhancements.

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.

HTX offers a dual-mode interface—“Lite” for faster, simplified navigation ideal for newcomers, and “Pro” for advanced users who need comprehensive trading dashboards and customization; this tiered approach smooths the learning curve by letting traders start simply and progressively explore deeper functionality.

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.

Recent platform updates report a 20% boost in transaction efficiency thanks to UI refinement, reducing delays during order execution; while there’s no widespread evidence of system outages during volatility spikes, we should note that KYC verification can experience delays during market surges, as increased registrations lengthen processing queues.

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.

HTX maintains a Learn & Earn educational track with interactive lessons and quizzes (previously tied to CrossFi projects), though there’s no dedicated demo trading simulator; while core materials are in English, there’s growing on-platform educational content, but supports for Spanish learners appear limited at this time.

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.

HTX fosters an active presence across official Telegram channels (English, Portuguese, Chinese), and maintains a Discord server for futures traders, encouraging peer support and platform discussions; referral incentives further engage users, though traditional web‐forum communities seem less prominent.

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 supports native TradingView-style charts and full API/WebSocket connectivity, enabling integration with external trading bots and strategies; although there’s no direct accounting or tax tool within HTX, the open integration ecosystem lets users adapt third-party portfolio trackers for their record-keeping.

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.

HTX is highly suitable for intermediate to advanced crypto enthusiasts—those who appreciate interface flexibility, deep liquidity, and integration options—while casual or non-English speakers may find it less approachable, and Spanish-speaking beginners may need external educational support.