Compare maker and taker fee costs for your crypto trades. See how order type selection impacts total trading fees and break-even requirements.
Every crypto exchange charges different fees for maker orders (limit orders that add liquidity) and taker orders (market orders that remove liquidity). The difference is significant — often 50-80% lower for makers. Over many trades, choosing the right order type can save thousands of dollars.
Maker orders sit on the order book waiting to be filled, providing liquidity to the market. Exchanges reward this with lower fees. Taker orders execute immediately against existing orders, removing liquidity. Exchanges charge more for this convenience.
This calculator compares the total cost of a trade using maker versus taker orders for both entry and exit. It shows the savings from using limit orders and helps you quantify the benefit of patience in order execution.
Crypto traders, long-term holders, and DeFi participants benefit from transparent crypto maker vs taker fee calculations when planning entries, exits, or portfolio rebalances. Revisit this calculator whenever market conditions shift to keep your strategy grounded in accurate data.
The maker-taker fee difference is one of the easiest and most reliable ways to improve trading profitability. If you can switch from taker to maker orders even 70% of the time, you can reduce your annual fee burden by 40-60%. This calculator quantifies exactly how much you save. Real-time recalculation lets you model different market scenarios quickly, so you can act with confidence rather than relying on rough mental estimates.
Taker-Taker Cost = Size × Taker Rate × 2 Maker-Maker Cost = Size × Maker Rate × 2 Maker-Taker Cost = Size × (Maker Rate + Taker Rate) Savings = Taker Cost − Maker Cost Annual Savings = Savings per Trade × Trades per Year
Result: Maker-Maker: $10 | Taker-Taker: $25 | Savings: $15/trade
On a $25,000 round-trip trade: All-taker cost = $25,000 × 0.05% × 2 = $25. All-maker cost = $25,000 × 0.02% × 2 = $10. Using maker orders saves $15 per trade (60% reduction). At 5 trades per day, that's $75/day or $27,375/year in savings.
Exchanges incentivize maker orders because liquidity attracts trading activity. More liquidity means tighter spreads, better fills, and more volume — which generates more fee revenue for the exchange. Makers provide a public good (liquidity) and are rewarded with lower fees or even rebates. Understanding this dynamic helps you appreciate why maker fees will always be lower.
A trader doing $50,000 in daily volume at taker rates (0.05%) pays $25/day or $9,125/year in fees. Switching to all-maker orders at 0.02% reduces this to $10/day or $3,650/year — saving $5,475. For higher-volume traders, the savings scale proportionally and can reach tens of thousands annually.
To increase your maker fill rate: place orders 1-2 ticks inside the best bid/ask, use post-only order modes, be patient with entry timing, and accept that some orders won't fill. A fill rate of 60-80% on maker orders is realistic. The 20-40% of orders that don't fill can be retried or converted to taker orders only when the setup requires immediate execution.
A maker order (typically a limit order) is placed at a price that doesn't immediately match with existing orders, so it sits on the order book adding liquidity. A taker order (typically a market order) immediately matches with an existing order, removing liquidity. The distinction is about whether you add or remove liquidity.
Yes. If you place a limit buy order at or above the current ask price, it executes immediately against the ask — making it a taker order despite being a limit order. Only limit orders placed at prices that don't immediately match are true maker orders.
On most exchanges, taker fees are 2-3x higher than maker fees. Typical rates: maker 0.01-0.02%, taker 0.04-0.06%. Some exchanges offer 0% or even negative maker fees for high-volume traders, while taker fees rarely go below 0.02%.
No. Taker orders are necessary when you need immediate execution — emergency exits, stop-losses, or capturing fast-moving opportunities. The extra fee is the price of guaranteed execution. Use taker orders strategically, not by default.
Higher VIP tiers (based on 30-day trading volume) reduce both maker and taker fees. Typically, maker fees drop more dramatically. The highest tiers on major exchanges offer maker fees of 0.00-0.01% and taker fees of 0.02-0.03%.
Post-only orders guarantee your order will only be placed as a maker order. If it would otherwise match immediately (becoming a taker), it's rejected instead. This ensures you always get the lower maker fee rate. Most exchanges support this order type.