| FEATURE | DRIFT | EDGEX |
|---|---|---|
| Type | DEX | DEX |
| Taker Fee | 0.06% | 0.045% |
| Maker Fee | -0.0025% | 0.04% |
| Max Leverage | 20x | 100x |
| Perp Pairs | 4 | 182 |
| Spot Trading | No | Yes |
| KYC Required | No | No |
| Rating | 2.5 | 4.2 |
Drift vs edgeX: key differences
Drift is still in recovery after a security incident. Read the status notice in the Drift review before depositing.
Opening and closing a $10,000 position with market orders costs $9.00 on edgeX and $12.00 on Drift at base-tier taker fees, a difference of $3.00 per round trip.
For limit orders, Drift pays makers a 0.0025% rebate, while edgeX charges makers 0.04%.
edgeX allows up to 100x leverage against 20x on Drift. The headline figure usually applies to a few markets only, so check the limit on the pair you trade.
edgeX lists 182 perpetual markets, Drift lists 4.
edgeX also has spot trading; Drift is perpetuals only.
Neither exchange requires KYC: both are used by connecting a wallet.
Margin is posted in USDT, SOL, wBTC, wETH on Drift and in USDC on edgeX.
Figures as of 2026-10-04, from each exchange's documentation, CoinGecko and DeFiLlama.
Costs, liquidity and safety in detail
| Drift | edgeX | |
|---|---|---|
| Taker round trip on $10,000 | $12.00 | $9.00 |
| Maker round trip on $10,000 | $0.50 rebate | $8.00 |
| Best-tier taker fee | 0.02% | 0.02% |
| BTC max leverage | 20x | 100x |
| Margin modes | cross-margin | cross, isolated |
| 24h volume | — | $293M |
| TVL | $343M | $61M |
| Custody | non-custodial | non-custodial |
| Collateral | USDT, SOL, wBTC, wETH | USDC |
| Deposit networks | Solana | Ethereum, Arbitrum, Base +5 more |
| Minimum order | — | — |
| Order types | 11 | 12 |
| Options | No | No |
| Mobile app | Yes | Yes |
| Testnet or demo | No | Yes |
| Vaults or copy trading | No | No |
| Insurance fund | Yes | Yes |
| Audited | Yes | Yes |
| Restricted jurisdictions | — | 10 |
| Founded | 2021 | 2023 |
Choose Drift if
- You have read its recovery status first: users affected by the earlier incident have not been made whole.
- You place limit orders: makers earn a 0.0025% rebate.
- You want to post margin in more than one asset.
Choose edgeX if
- You mostly use market orders: 0.045% taker fee against 0.06% on Drift.
- You want higher leverage: up to 100x against 20x.
- You trade smaller or newer markets: 182 perpetual pairs against 4.
- You want spot and perpetuals in one account.
- You want a sign-up discount: 12% off fees through a referral link.
Drift
PROS
- + Trading is open again: the public beta has been available to all users since September 21, 2026, with BTC, ETH and SOL perpetuals at up to 20x leverage and HYPE at up to 10x
- + Makers receive a 0.0025% rebate on post-only orders at every volume tier, and the taker fee falls from 0.06% to 0.02% above 200 million dollars in 30-day volume
- + One cross-margin account accepts USDT, SOL, wBTC and wETH as collateral, and deposits earn lending interest while they back positions
CONS
- − About 286 million dollars was stolen on April 1, 2026 through compromised administrator keys, and verified user losses are about 295.4 million dollars
- − Affected users have recovered about 1 percent so far: each DFX recovery token redeemed for about 0.0104 USDT from a 3.11 million USDT pool in early October 2026
- − The relaunched exchange lists four perpetual markets, down from more than 40 before the exploit, and spot order book trading was removed
edgeX
PROS
- + 182 perpetual markets in one USDC-margined account, including 98 stock and ETF perpetuals, commodities (gold, silver, crude oil, natural gas) and FX pairs such as USD/JPY and EUR/USD
- + Up to 100x leverage on BTC and ETH and 75x on SOL, with cross and isolated margin modes
- + No KYC required: connect an EVM wallet or sign in by email, and referred users get a 12% trading fee discount
CONS
- − Base perpetual fees of 0.040% maker and 0.045% taker are higher than the 0.012% maker and 0.038% taker edgeX charged on V1, and VIP 1 requires 10 million dollars in 14-day volume
- − USDC is the only margin asset, with no multi-collateral support
- − Restricted in the US, Canada, Cuba, Iran, North Korea, Syria, Myanmar and Crimea, Donetsk and Luhansk, and the terms prohibit using a VPN to bypass the block
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Drift or edgeX better?
edgeX has a higher rating (4.2 vs 2.5). edgeX offers lower fees (0.045% vs 0.06%). Choose Drift for its features, and edgeX for lower fees.
What are the fees on Drift vs edgeX?
Drift charges 0.06% taker / -0.0025% maker. edgeX charges 0.045% taker / 0.04% maker for perpetuals.
Which has higher leverage, Drift or edgeX?
Drift offers up to 20x, and edgeX offers up to 100x. Maximum leverage applies to selected markets and falls as position size grows on both exchanges.
Do Drift and edgeX require KYC?
Drift does not require KYC. edgeX does not require KYC. Both restrict some jurisdictions (Drift publishes no list we could verify; edgeX lists 10), so check the terms of service for your country before depositing.
Is Drift or edgeX safer?
Drift has been audited and runs an insurance fund, and custody is non-custodial. edgeX has been audited and runs an insurance fund, and custody is non-custodial. Neither audits nor insurance funds remove smart contract risk, so size deposits accordingly.