Glossary
Maker and taker fees
The two trading fees an exchange charges: a lower maker fee for orders that add liquidity to the book, a higher taker fee for orders that remove it.
Every exchange quotes two trading fees. A maker fee is charged on an order that rests on the order book until someone else fills it — a limit order to buy below the current price, for instance. A taker fee is charged on an order that fills immediately against a resting order — a market order, or a limit order priced across the spread. Exchanges want resting orders because they make the book deeper, so the maker fee is almost always the lower of the two.
The gap between the two numbers varies more than people expect. Binance charges 0.10% for both at the entry tier; Kraken Pro charges 0.40% maker and 0.80% taker; MEXC charges nothing at all to makers and 0.05% to takers. For a retail trader who always uses market orders, only the taker column matters. For anyone willing to place a limit order and wait, the maker column is the real price of the exchange.
Both numbers fall as your 30-day volume rises, and on most offshore venues they fall further if you hold the exchange token or pay fees in it. Our fee tables always show the entry tier, because that is the rate you pay on day one, and the fee calculator uses the taker rate after the standard, easily obtainable discount.
Where this shows up
Frequently asked questions
Which fee do I pay on a market order?
The taker fee. A market order fills immediately against orders already on the book, which removes liquidity, and that is what the taker fee is for.
Can I always get the maker fee by using a limit order?
Only if the limit order rests before it fills. A limit order priced at or across the current best price fills immediately and is charged as a taker.
Related terms and pages
Related terms
- Spread
The gap between the best price a buyer will pay and the best price a seller will accept. You cross it on every trade, and it is a cost even when the fee is zero.
- Slippage
The difference between the price you expected and the price your order actually filled at, caused by the order eating through the book.
- Limit order vs market order
A market order fills now at whatever price the book offers; a limit order fills only at your price or better, or not at all.
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