| FEATURE | LIGHTER | EXTENDED |
|---|---|---|
| Type | DEX | DEX |
| Taker Fee | 0% | 0.025% |
| Maker Fee | 0% | 0% |
| Max Leverage | 50x | 100x |
| Perp Pairs | 211 | 326 |
| Spot Trading | Yes | Yes |
| KYC Required | No | No |
| Rating | 4.2 | 4.1 |
Lighter vs Extended: key differences
Opening and closing a $10,000 position with market orders costs $0 on Lighter and $5.00 on Extended at base-tier taker fees, a difference of $5.00 per round trip.
Extended allows up to 100x leverage against 50x on Lighter. The headline figure usually applies to a few markets only, so check the limit on the pair you trade.
Extended lists 326 perpetual markets, Lighter lists 211.
Lighter is the more liquid venue, with $511M in 24-hour volume against $181M on Extended (about 2.8 times more). Deeper books mean less slippage on large orders.
Neither exchange requires KYC: both are used by connecting a wallet.
Margin is posted in USDC, ETH, XAUT on Lighter and in USDC, USDT, wBTC, ETH +1 more on Extended.
Figures as of 2026-10-04, from each exchange's documentation, CoinGecko and DeFiLlama.
Costs, liquidity and safety in detail
| Lighter | Extended | |
|---|---|---|
| Taker round trip on $10,000 | $0 | $5.00 |
| Maker round trip on $10,000 | $0 | $0 |
| Best-tier taker fee | 0.0196% | 0.025% |
| BTC max leverage | 50x | 50x |
| Margin modes | cross, isolated | cross, isolated |
| 24h volume | $511M | $181M |
| TVL | $768M | $122M |
| Custody | non-custodial | non-custodial |
| Collateral | USDC, ETH, XAUT | USDC, USDT, wBTC, ETH +1 more |
| Deposit networks | Ethereum, Arbitrum One, Base +3 more | Starknet, Ethereum, Arbitrum +5 more |
| Minimum order | $10 | $10 |
| Order types | 9 | 7 |
| Options | No | No |
| Mobile app | Yes | No |
| Testnet or demo | No | Yes |
| Vaults or copy trading | No | No |
| Insurance fund | Yes | Yes |
| Audited | Yes | Yes |
| Restricted jurisdictions | 11 | 13 |
| Founded | 2022 | 2024 |
Choose Lighter if
- You mostly use market orders: 0% taker fee against 0.025% on Extended.
- You trade size and need liquidity: $511M in 24-hour volume against $181M.
- You trade from a phone: Lighter has a mobile app.
Choose Extended if
- You want higher leverage: up to 100x against 50x.
- You trade smaller or newer markets: 326 perpetual pairs against 211.
- You want a sign-up discount: 10% off fees through a referral link.
Lighter
PROS
- + Zero maker and taker fees for standard accounts on perpetual and spot markets; premium accounts pay 0.004% maker and 0.028% taker, falling to 0.0028% and 0.0196% with 500,000 LIT staked (30% discount)
- + Every order match, liquidation, and settlement is proven with ZK circuits on Lighter's own Ethereum rollup, and nine audit reports for the contracts and circuits are published in the docs
- + 211 active perpetual markets and 10 spot pairs (October 2026), with up to 50x leverage on BTC, ETH, EURUSD, GBPUSD, USDJPY, SPY, and US500
CONS
- − Restricted in the US, Canada, the UK, China, North Korea, Russia, Ukraine, Cuba, Iran, Venezuela, and Syria under the Terms of Service dated December 29, 2025, a list that includes the UK and Canada
- − Standard accounts trade free but with 300ms taker and cancel latency; the 140ms taker latency requires a premium account that pays 0.028% taker
- − Margin collateral beyond USDC is limited to ETH and XAUT at a 70% loan-to-value ratio, with per-user caps of 2,000 ETH and 500 XAUT
Extended
PROS
- + 326 active perpetual markets: 195 crypto and 131 real-world asset markets, including 112 equities plus gold, oil, FX and stock indices
- + 0% maker fee and 0.025% taker fee on crypto markets, 0.010% taker fee on RWA markets, and maker rebates up to 0.010% for a 30-day market share of 5% or more
- + Multi-asset collateral: USDC counts at 100% of its value toward margin, USDT at 95%, and wBTC, ETH and XVS vault shares at 90%
CONS
- − Restricted in the United States, United Kingdom, Canada, Russia, Hong Kong, Seychelles and sanctioned countries (Cuba, Iran, North Korea, Syria); the Terms of Use forbid using a VPN to bypass this
- − BTC and ETH leverage is capped at 50x, and the 100x maximum applies only to the EUR/USD market
- − TVL of about 122 million dollars and 24-hour volume of about 181 million dollars are well below the largest perp DEXes, which means less depth for large orders
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Lighter or Extended better?
Lighter has a higher rating (4.2 vs 4.1). Lighter offers lower fees (0% vs 0.025%). Choose Lighter for lower fees, and Extended for higher leverage.
What are the fees on Lighter vs Extended?
Lighter charges 0% taker / 0% maker. Extended charges 0.025% taker / 0% maker for perpetuals.
Which has higher leverage, Lighter or Extended?
Lighter offers up to 50x, and Extended offers up to 100x (50x on BTC). Maximum leverage applies to selected markets and falls as position size grows on both exchanges.
Do Lighter and Extended require KYC?
Lighter does not require KYC. Extended does not require KYC. Both restrict some jurisdictions (Lighter lists 11; Extended lists 13), so check the terms of service for your country before depositing.
Is Lighter or Extended safer?
Lighter has been audited and runs an insurance fund, and custody is non-custodial. Extended 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.
Which has more trading volume, Lighter or Extended?
Lighter recorded $511M in 24-hour volume and Extended recorded $181M, as of 2026-10-04. Lighter lists 211 perpetual markets and Extended lists 326.