How Finder rates crypto trading platforms

Cryptocurrency Trading Platform Awards methodology

To help navigate the complicated world of crypto, we’ve launched an extensive review of cryptocurrency exchanges available in India and around the world. The goal is to recognise and award products that have a global footprint and excel across each of the following categories: Beginners, Value, Altcoin Trading and Advanced Features.

These awards are then used to inform our “Top Pick” selections across many of our cryptocurrency guides.

How do we choose our award winners?

Set up by Finder’s data scientists and cryptocurrency experts, platforms are scored on a set of criteria. The criteria are weighted differently for each category. The platform that scored highest across 4 categories was named the winner.

In the event of a tie, standardised fee data was used with the lowest fees dictating the winner.

What features do we compare?

Awards are based on a comprehensive list of 55 individual criteria that broadly fall into one of the following 6 areas: value for money, coins available, beginner-friendly, advanced features and trading, customer support and security.

Each individual criterion received a weighting, which varied depending on the category. Each category has a unique combination of weightings.

For instance, criteria that related to fees were up-weighted for the “Value” category, while criteria related to derivatives products received a weighting of zero for that category.

The weighting of each category is outlined below.

The “Best Global Cryptocurrency Exchange” award was given to the platform that had the highest average score across each of the 4 categories.

Each category score was evenly weighted to contribute 25% of the overall score. To account for global spread, Finder also considered the total number of markets in which the products were supported to arrive at an overall score.

Criteria and weightings were chosen by an expert panel of Finder crew including data analysts and editorial staff. They took into account user experience, industry standards and regulatory requirements to help inform their decisions.

Does Finder compare all cryptocurrency exchanges?

This awards program is submission-based, meaning only brands that submitted their product data were included in the analysis.

A total of 219 cryptocurrency exchanges and brokers globally were invited to participate in the awards and provide data. They were selected based on appearing in the list of the top 50 platforms by trading volume on CoinGecko as well as the top 50 by average liquidity on CoinMarketCap.

All brands contacted for Finder’s local awards program in the US, UK, Canada, Singapore, and New Zealand were also asked to participate, provided they met the eligibility criteria around market coverage.

Because it takes a long time to source and properly analyse exchange fees and features, and it’s important that we don’t share misinformation, we’re not able to cover 100% of the market.

Award eligibility

Platforms were given multiple weeks to respond to our invitation and provide data. Any that did not reply were approached a second time. Platforms that did not respond, or chose to decline, were excluded from the awards. Only platforms that provided data were included in the awards.

Brands were required to have their trading platform supported in at least 2 markets across 4 broad geographic regions: Americas, Africa, Asia, and Europe. Brands were asked to provide data for 2 countries in each region and if they did not operate there, they were given a reserve list of markets to choose from.

Given this is a global award, Finder did not require brands to be registered with any local regulator.

The Finder editorial team's ratings

Cryptocurrency exchange platforms are not created equal. To help you identify where an exchange shines – or falls flat – Finder's editors objectively assess each platform across a spectrum of performance metrics.

Finder considers 7 key factors in our ratings to get an overall score:

• Supported cryptocurrencies
• Fees and costs
• Transferring money or crypto assets
• Customer service
• Ease of use
• Staking and earning
• Trustworthiness and security

Our ratings are designed to help you assess a cryptocurrency exchange's strengths and weaknesses. The best way to inform your decision is to read Finder's full platform review for an in-depth breakdown of its features.

Our ratings

Finder rates crypto platforms using a system of 1 to 5 stars.

• How Finder rates supported cryptocurrencies

  One of the most important aspects to consider when choosing a cryptocurrency exchange is its supported crypto coins and tokens. Exchanges with wider selections of cryptocurrencies are given higher ratings than those with only a few offerings. However, special consideration is given to exchanges that have fewer offerings but are strong in their support for them.

• How Finder rates fees and costs

  Finder rates fees and costs for crypto exchanges based on two factors: their deposit and withdrawal fees for both fiat and crypto assets, and their trading fees. Exchanges with high deposit and withdrawal fees for both crypto and fiat are given lower ratings than those that have lower fees or even cover fees for users. Exchanges with high trading fees or big price spreads on trades are penalised while those with low percentage fees and tiers are rated higher.

• How Finder rates transferring fiat and crypto assets

  Another important factor when choosing a cryptocurrency exchange are the speeds and fees for transferring fiat and crypto assets to it. Exchanges with quick withdrawal and deposit speeds combined with low or no fees are given higher ratings. Those with long wait times, the inability to withdraw certain assets altogether and deposit fees for crypto are given lower ratings.

• How Finder rates customer service

  The number of newcomers to crypto means that it is imperative that exchanges have good customer service. Finder evaluates a platform's customer service based on a few factors. The types of customer services available (live chat, email support tickets, call centre), timeliness of response and the helpfulness of the support are all factored in.

• How Finder rates ease of use

  User experience on crypto exchanges is critical. Finder rates exchanges on their ease of use across a number of components. User interface (UI), onboarding experience, Know Your Customer (KYC) processes, trading interface and overall feel of the exchange are all considered.

• How Finder rates staking and earning

  The ability to put crypto assets to work earning interest is one of the biggest draws of the sector. Finder rates the staking and earning of crypto exchanges based on whether they have it at all. Then, the options they have available, the rates and the term periods are all combined to create an overall staking and earning rating.

• How Finder rates trustworthiness and security

  The prevalence of scams and hacks in the cryptocurrency sector means picking an exchange that is trustworthy and secure. Finder assesses the exchange's history of hacks (if any), their responses to those incidents, whether they have undergone security audits and their insurance funds to generate a rating.

• Overall rating

  To generate Finder's overall rating for a crypto exchange, each category is added together and then averaged out. Some extra weight is given to the fees and security sections as they contribute to overall profitability when using a platform. The average or rating is rounded to the closest star, meaning if 4.6 it will be 5-star, 4.4 is 4-star.

How do we choose our “Top Picks”?

Our top picks are displayed at the top of many of our cryptocurrency guides and feature 3-5 “Best for X” categories.

The exchanges are awarded titles using the methodology above and from time to time may also include some “Promoted Picks”, which have been chosen from among our commercial partners based on factors that include special features or offers and the commission we receive.