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Kraken vs Gemini 2026: Fees, Safety & Features

Kraken offers lower trading fees (0.16-0.26%) and more advanced trading features, while Gemini provides a simpler interface with better regulatory oversight and stronger consumer protections through its NY Trust Company charter.

Kraken

Kraken

Advanced cryptocurrency exchange with low fees, margin trading, and 550+ trading pairs.

Active traders, altcoin enthusiasts, and professionals seeking advanced features and lowest fees

Score71%
VS
G

Gemini

Beginner-friendly cryptocurrency exchange with NY Trust Company charter and strong regulatory oversight.

Beginner investors, long-term holders, and those prioritizing regulatory safety and peace of mind

Score71%

Quick Answer

AI Summary

Kraken offers lower trading fees (0.16-0.26%) and more advanced trading features, while Gemini provides a simpler interface with better regulatory oversight and stronger consumer protections through its NY Trust Company charter.

Our Verdict

AI-assisted

Choose Kraken if you're an active trader seeking lower fees, margin trading capabilities, and exposure to more altcoins. Choose Gemini if you prioritize regulatory safety, a clean beginner interface, and strong consumer protection guarantees from its NY Trust Company charter.

Community feedback

Was this verdict helpful?

Kraken
8.2/10
Gemini
6.8/10
G
Kraken

Choose Kraken if

Best pick

Active traders, altcoin enthusiasts, and professionals seeking advanced features and lowest fees

G

Choose Gemini if

Beginner investors, long-term holders, and those prioritizing regulatory safety and peace of mind

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Key Differences at a Glance

  • Trading Fees (Maker/Taker):Kraken wins(0.16% / 0.26% vs 0.50% / 0.60%)
  • Available Trading Pairs:Kraken wins(550+ vs 200+)
  • Regulatory Charter:Gemini wins(NY Trust Company (strongest US charter) vs Money Services Business (MSB))
See all 7 differences

Key Facts & Figures

85 numeric metrics compared

MetricKrakenGeminiRatio
Maker Fee(%)0.16%
Taker Fee(%)0.26%
Monthly Active Users(millions)~2.5 millionGemini
Quarterly Trading Volume (2025)(billions USD)$120B
Supported Cryptocurrencies(count)200+
Daily Trading Volume(USD Billions)Kraken
Available Trading Pairs(count)Kraken
Maker Fee(percentage)Kraken
Taker Fee(percentage)Kraken
Security Audit Frequency(per year)Kraken
Staking Assets Supported(count)Kraken
Mobile App Rating(out of 5)Kraken
Maker Trading Fee(%)0.16%0.50%
Taker Trading Fee(%)0.26%0.60%
Supported Cryptocurrencies(assets)85+95+
Staking Assets Available(count)20+8
Maximum Staking APY(%)Up to 12%Up to 5%
Taker Trading Fee(%)0.26%0.60%
Cryptocurrencies Supported(coins)190
Maximum Staking APY(%)12%
Visa Card Cashback(%)0% (not offered)
Account Minimum Deposit(USD)No minimum
Maker Trading Fee(%)0.16%0.50%
Available Trading Pairs(pairs)90+120+
US State Money Transmitter Licenses(states)22 states50 states (all)
Mobile App Rating (iOS)(stars out of 5)4.3/54.6/5
Maximum Margin Leverage(x)5x leverageLimited/unavailable
Year Founded20112014
Maker/Taker Trading Fees(%)0.16%-0.26%
Mobile App Rating (iOS)(stars)4.2/5
Customer Support Response Time(hours)2-4 hours
Minimum Deposit(USD)$10
Active Users(millions)8+ million
Average Staking APY(%)3-7%
Withdrawal Fee (Bitcoin)(USD)$0.00-$1.00
Daily Trading Volume(USD trillions)$850M
Maker Fee (Standard Tier)(percentage)0.16%
Taker Fee (Standard Tier)(percentage)0.26%
Customer Support Response Time(hours)4-6
iOS App Rating(stars out of 5)4.6/5 (85K reviews)
Supported Fiat Currencies(currencies)12+
Maximum Leverage (Futures)(multiplier)50x
Maker Trading Fee(%)0.16%
Taker Trading Fee(%)0.26%
Average Staking Reward(%)4-8% APY
Countries & Territories Supported(count)60+
Security Incidents (5-Year History)(breaches)0 major incidents
Fiat Currency Support(currencies)5 major (USD, EUR, GBP, CAD, JPY)
Mobile App Rating(stars out of 5)4.6/5
Minimum Deposit Required(USD)$0
Available Cryptocurrencies(assets)190+100+
Trading Pairs(pairs)550+200+
Account Insurance Coverage(USD)Up to $250,000 (optional Crypto Custody)$250,000 per account
Staking Rewards Available(assets)20+ cryptocurrenciesEarn program with up to 8% APY
Monthly Active Users(millions)GeminiGemini
Developer Preference Rating(%)GeminiGemini
Company Valuation(billions USD)Gemini (Google)Gemini (Google)
Daily Active Users(millions)GeminiGemini
Year-over-Year User Growth(percent)GeminiGemini
Monthly Active Users(millions)1.5 billion+ (all Google products)1.5 billion+ (all Google products)
Starting Price (Monthly)(USD)Free (Gemini Free or Premium $20)Free (Gemini Free or Premium $20)
Context Window Size(tokens)1 million tokens (Gemini 2.0)1 million tokens (Gemini 2.0)
Supported Programming Languages(languages)40+ languages with debugging40+ languages with debugging
Uptime SLA (Enterprise)(percent)99.5% (Google Cloud SLA)99.5% (Google Cloud SLA)
Context Window (Tokens)(tokens)1,000,0001,000,000
Input Cost per Million Tokens(USD)$7.50$7.50
Output Cost per Million Tokens(USD)$30.00$30.00
Average Response Latency(ms)320320
Multimodal Format Support(formats)5 (text, image, audio, video, docs)5 (text, image, audio, video, docs)
Third-Party Integrations Available(count)1,500+1,500+
Code Generation Benchmark Score(out of 100)89.789.7
Reasoning Capability Rating(score (1-10))8.08.0
Context Window Size(tokens)1,000,0001,000,000
Complex Reasoning Accuracy (AIME Benchmark)(percentage)~62%~62%
Monthly Subscription Cost (Premium)(USD)$20/month (Google One Premium)$20/month (Google One Premium)
Code Generation Quality (HumanEval Benchmark)(percentage)~92%~92%
AIME Math Benchmark Score(%)80%+80%+
Estimated Training Cost(USD millions)$50M+$50M+
API Pricing (per 1M tokens, input)(USD)$0.0075-$0.075$0.0075-$0.075
Code Generation - Codeforces Problems Solved(problems)~60+ (estimated)~60+ (estimated)
Minimum Subscription Cost (Annual)(USD)$0 (Free tier available)$0 (Free tier available)
Supported Input Formats(types)Text, images, audio, videoText, images, audio, video
Coding Performance (HumanEval Benchmark)(%)92.3%92.3%
Mathematical Reasoning (MATH-500)(%)90%90%
Premium Subscription Cost (Monthly)(USD)$20 (Gemini Advanced)$20 (Gemini Advanced)

Sourced from publicly available data ·

Key Differences

7 attributes compared head-to-head

Kraken
4Kraken
Kraken leads1 tie
G
2Gemini
  • Trading Fees (Maker/Taker)

    Kraken

    0.16% / 0.26%(winner)

    Gemini

    0.50% / 0.60%

  • Available Trading Pairs

    Kraken

    550+(winner)

    Gemini

    200+

  • Regulatory Charter

    Kraken

    Money Services Business (MSB)

    Gemini

    NY Trust Company (strongest US charter)(winner)

  • Minimum Account Balance

    Kraken

    $0 (no minimum)

    Gemini

    $0 (no minimum)

  • Advanced Trading Tools

    Kraken

    Margin trading, futures, staking available(winner)

    Gemini

    Spot trading only, no margin or futures

  • User Interface Complexity

    Kraken

    Advanced/intermediate level

    Gemini

    Beginner-friendly, simplified(winner)

  • Supported Cryptocurrencies

    Kraken

    190+ assets(winner)

    Gemini

    100+ assets

Full Comparison

Kraken
GGemini
Maker Fee(%)
0.16%
Taker Fee(%)
0.26%
Maker Fee(percentage)
Kraken
Taker Fee(percentage)
Kraken
Monthly Active Users(millions)
~2.5 million
Gemini
Daily Active Users(millions)
Gemini
Quarterly Trading Volume (2025)(billions USD)
$120B
Supported Cryptocurrencies(count)
200+
Ease of Use
Advanced/technical
Advanced Trading Features
Professional-grade
Security Focus
Enterprise-grade institutional
Security Audit Frequency(per year)
Kraken
USD Balance Insurance (FDIC)
Not specified
Up to $250,000
Security Incidents (5-Year History)(breaches)
0 major incidents
Daily Trading Volume(USD Billions)
Kraken
Available Trading Pairs(count)
Kraken
Cryptocurrencies Supported(coins)
190
Available Cryptocurrencies(assets)
190+
100+
Trading Pairs(pairs)
550+
200+
US Regulatory Status
Kraken (FinCEN MSB registered)
US Regulatory Licenses
FinCEN MSB + 7 state licenses
Regulatory License
Consumer AI Product
Staking Assets Supported(count)
Kraken
Supported Cryptocurrencies(assets)
85+
95+
Staking Rewards Available(assets)
20+ cryptocurrencies
Earn program with up to 8% APY
Real-Time Web Search
Free
Multimodal Capabilities
Advanced (image, video, text)
Show 7 more attributes
Supported Assets
Text, Images, Video, Code
Image Generation
Yes — Imagen 4
Mobile App
Polished; merges with Google app on Android
Multimodal Input Support
Text, images, video, audio
Real-time Web Access
Yes (Gemini Advanced)
Native Image Generation
Imagen 3 integrated
Enterprise API Availability
Full commercial with SLA
Mobile App Rating(out of 5)
Kraken
Mobile App Rating (iOS)(stars out of 5)
4.3/5
4.6/5
Mobile App Rating (iOS)(stars)
4.2/5
iOS App Rating(stars out of 5)
4.6/5 (85K reviews)
Mobile App Rating(stars out of 5)
4.6/5
Maker Trading Fee(%)
0.16%
0.50%
Taker Trading Fee(%)
0.26%
0.60%
NY BitLicense Status
Pending approval
Approved
Staking Assets Available(count)
20+
8
Maximum Staking APY(%)
Up to 12%
Up to 5%
Average Staking Reward(%)
4-8% APY
Margin Trading Available
Yes
No
Taker Trading Fee(%)
0.26%
0.60%
Maker Trading Fee(%)
0.16%
0.50%
Maker Fee (Standard Tier)(percentage)
0.16%
Taker Fee (Standard Tier)(percentage)
0.26%
Maker Trading Fee(%)
0.16%
Show 2 more attributes
Taker Trading Fee(%)
0.26%
Minimum Deposit Required(USD)
$0
Maximum Staking APY(%)
12%
Visa Card Cashback(%)
0% (not offered)
Account Minimum Deposit(USD)
No minimum
Minimum Deposit(USD)
$10
Supported Fiat Currencies(currencies)
12+
Countries & Territories Supported(count)
60+
Fiat Currency Support(currencies)
5 major (USD, EUR, GBP, CAD, JPY)
Show 3 more attributes
Mobile App Availability
iOS, Android (native Gemini app)
Free Tier Availability(boolean)
Yes (with limitations)
Open Source Model Weights
No, closed source
Available Trading Pairs(pairs)
90+
120+
US State Money Transmitter Licenses(states)
22 states
50 states (all)
NY BitLicense Status
Not licensed
Fully licensed
Maximum Margin Leverage(x)
5x leverage
Limited/unavailable
Margin Trading Available
Yes (up to 5x leverage)
No
Year Founded
2011
2014
Maker/Taker Trading Fees(%)
0.16%-0.26%
Withdrawal Fee (Bitcoin)(USD)
$0.00-$1.00
Customer Support Response Time(hours)
2-4 hours
Active Users(millions)
8+ million
Average Staking APY(%)
3-7%
Daily Trading Volume(USD trillions)
$850M
Customer Support Response Time(hours)
4-6
Maximum Leverage (Futures)(multiplier)
50x
Regulatory Charter Type
Money Services Business (MSB)
NY Trust Company
Account Insurance Coverage(USD)
Up to $250,000 (optional Crypto Custody)
$250,000 per account
Free Tier Quality
Gemini 1.5 Pro (strong)
Monthly Active Users(millions)
Gemini
Developer Preference Rating(%)
Gemini
Coding Task Excellence(benchmark)
Good
Reasoning Quality(benchmark)
Strong
Ecosystem Integration
Google Search, Workspace, Maps
Google Workspace Integration
10
Developer API Availability
Full access via Vertex AI and AI Studio
Workplace Integration
Google Workspace, Drive, Gmail, Search
Company Valuation(billions USD)
Gemini (Google)
Content Writing Refinement
Good but formulaic
Quarterly Trading Volume(USD Billions)
Gemini
Year-over-Year User Growth(percent)
Gemini
Primary Function
Conversational AI & LLM
Cost to Users
Free (premium paid options)
Starting Price (Monthly)(USD)
Free (Gemini Free or Premium $20)
Input Cost per Million Tokens(USD)
$7.50
Output Cost per Million Tokens(USD)
$30.00
Free tier
3.5 Flash (generous limits)
Show 7 more attributes
Paid entry plan
Google AI Pro $19.99/mo
Power-user tier
Ultra $100–$200/mo
Team plan
Workspace Business (varies)
API input (per 1M tokens)
3.5 Flash: ~$0.10
Monthly Subscription Cost (Premium)(USD)
$20/month (Google One Premium)
Minimum Subscription Cost (Annual)(USD)
$0 (Free tier available)
Premium Subscription Cost (Monthly)(USD)
$20 (Gemini Advanced)
Monthly Active Users(millions)
1.5 billion+ (all Google products)
Context Window Size(tokens)
1 million tokens (Gemini 2.0)
Average Response Latency(ms)
320
Code Generation Benchmark Score(out of 100)
89.7
Complex Reasoning Accuracy (AIME Benchmark)(percentage)
~62%
Code Generation Quality (HumanEval Benchmark)(percentage)
~92%
Show 4 more attributes
AIME Math Benchmark Score(%)
80%+
Code Generation - Codeforces Problems Solved(problems)
~60+ (estimated)
Coding Performance (HumanEval Benchmark)(%)
92.3%
Mathematical Reasoning (MATH-500)(%)
90%
Supported Programming Languages(languages)
40+ languages with debugging
Enterprise Deployment Options
Cloud-based primarily
Document Processing Types
PDF, Images, Web content, Video
Uptime SLA (Enterprise)(percent)
99.5% (Google Cloud SLA)
Context Window (Tokens)(tokens)
1,000,000
Multimodal Format Support(formats)
5 (text, image, audio, video, docs)
Reasoning Capability Rating(score (1-10))
8.0
Real-Time Information
April 2024 knowledge cutoff
Supported Input Formats(types)
Text, images, audio, video
Show 1 more attribute
Real-time Information Access
No (April 2024 cutoff)
Monthly Active Users(millions)
100
Third-Party Integrations Available(count)
1,500+
Headline model
Gemini 3.1 Pro, 3.5 Flash
Coding (SWE-bench Verified)
Competitive (3.1 Pro)
Web grounding / citations
Native Search grounding
Multilingual quality
Broadest (Google translation lineage)
Structured output / JSON mode
Controlled generation + JSON schemas
Show 1 more attribute
Training data cut-off
~2025 (Search compensates)
Context Window(tokens)
1M tokens (3.1 Pro)
Image input
Yes
Voice mode
Yes (rolling out)
Agentic capability
Agentic in Workspace
Plugin Ecosystem(available plugins)
Google integrations
Prompt caching (API)
Implicit + explicit context caching
Fine-tuning (API)
Gemini 3.5 Flash
On-prem / self-host
Cloud-only (Vertex AI)
API rate limits (Tier 1)
~360 RPM / 4M TPM (3.1 Pro)
Context Window Size(tokens)
1,000,000
Content Moderation Strictness(level)
Strict - refuses harmful/controversial
Estimated Training Cost(USD millions)
$50M+
API Pricing (per 1M tokens, input)(USD)
$0.0075-$0.075
Code Generation Performance(benchmark)
Optimized with native debugging tools
Training Data Recency
20 months (April 2024)
Video Processing Capability
Yes
Content Moderation Level
Standard

Pros & Cons

10 pros·4 cons across both

Kraken
G
Kraken

Kraken

+5-2

Pros

  • Lowest maker fees at 0.16% and taker fees at 0.26% vs competitors
  • 550+ trading pairs including emerging altcoins and DeFi tokens
  • Margin trading with up to 5x leverage for qualified users
  • Futures trading available (perpetual and dated contracts)
  • Built-in staking rewards on 20+ cryptocurrencies

Cons

  • Complex interface requires learning curve for beginners
  • No NY Trust Company charter; regulated as Money Services Business instead
G

Gemini

+5-2

Pros

  • NY Trust Company charter provides highest regulatory protection in the US
  • Simple, intuitive interface designed for cryptocurrency beginners
  • Flat-rate 0% maker fees for most users (promotional period)
  • Gemini Earn offers up to 8% APY on stablecoin deposits
  • Insurance coverage up to $250,000 per user account

Cons

  • 0.50% to 0.60% trading fees are 3x higher than Kraken's standard rates
  • Only 100+ cryptocurrencies available vs Kraken's 190+ assets; no altcoin exposure

Frequently Asked Questions

5 questions

  1. Gemini is safer for most users because it holds a NY Trust Company charter, the strongest regulatory classification available in the US for cryptocurrency exchanges. This means Gemini's crypto assets are held in segregated, regulated custodial accounts. Kraken is regulated as a Money Services Business (MSB) in multiple US states, which is lower tier. Both carry $250,000 insurance coverage, but Gemini's charter provides additional legal protections under NY banking law.

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