Cryptocurrency exchange USDT fees: A complete 2024-2025 comparison

MEXC offers the industry's lowest trading fees at 0% maker and 0.05% taker, while Gate.io provides completely free USDT withdrawals on TRC20. Among the 10 major exchanges analyzed, fee structures vary dramatically—trading costs can differ by 6x and withdrawal fees by 40x depending on which platform and network you choose. This guide breaks down every fee category across Binance, Coinbase, Kraken, OKX, Bybit, KuCoin, Bitget, Gate.io, MEXC, and HTX to help optimize your trading costs.

Spot trading fees reveal stark differences between platforms

Base-tier trading fees represent the most significant cost for active traders, and the variance across exchanges is substantial. MEXC stands alone with 0% maker fees and just 0.05% taker fees—unmatched in the industry. OKX follows as the second-most competitive at 0.08%/0.10%, OKX while Binance, Bybit, KuCoin, and Bitget cluster at the 0.10%/0.10% standard.

Exchange	Base Maker	Base Taker	Lowest VIP Maker	Lowest VIP Taker
MEXC	0.00%	0.05%	0.00%	Lower
OKX	0.08%	0.10%	-0.005% (VIP 8)	0.015%
Binance	0.10%	0.10%	0.011% (VIP 9)	0.023%
Bybit	0.10%	0.10%	0.005% (Pro 4)	0.02%
KuCoin	0.10%	0.10%	-0.005% (LV12)	0.02%
Bitget	0.10%	0.10%	~0.02% (VIP 7)	~0.06%
Kraken	0.16%	0.26%	0.00% ($10M+)	0.10%
Gate.io	0.20%	0.20%	~0.10%	~0.10%
HTX	0.20%	0.20%	0.0126% (Prime 11)	0.0218%
Coinbase	0.40%	0.60%	0.00% (Top Tier)	0.05%

Coinbase's base fees are 4-8x higher than most competitors, though their Coinbase Advanced platform and stablepair trading (USDT-USDC at 0%/0.10%) partially offset this—note that stablepair pricing ends May 1, 2025. Coinbase

Native token discounts can slash fees by up to 50%

Holding exchange-specific tokens unlocks significant fee reductions across most platforms:

MEXC (MX): 50% discount when holding ≥500 MX— MEXCthe highest discount available
Binance (BNB): 25% discount on spot fees, Learn Crypto BitDegree 10% on futures Binance
HTX (HT): 25% discount HTX plus 10% additional on futures; 35% at 100,000 HT HTX
KuCoin (KCS): 20% discount when paying fees with KCS
Bitget (BGB): 20% discount on spot and margin trading
OKX (OKB): 10-40% discount based on OKB holdings tier
Kraken, Coinbase, Bybit: No native token discount programs

For a trader doing $100,000 monthly volume at base rates, annual savings from token discounts range from $240 (20% discount) to $600 (50% discount).

Withdrawal fees by network show TRC20 and L2 chains as cheapest options

Withdrawal costs vary dramatically by network. Gate.io offers completely free USDT withdrawals on TRC20 Medium as a permanent subsidy, while MEXC charges just 0.1 USDT. Most exchanges cluster around 1 USDT for TRC20, but Kraken is notably expensive at 4 USDT. TradingFinder