Two checks — cost and trust
Kraken vs KuCoin.
Top score today:Kraken88— updated 2026-10-04
Lowest: KuCoin 74/100, updated 2026-10-04 — 2 exchanges scored.
Cheaper right now:Kraken5.44 USDT— 1,000 USDT buy, measured 2026-10-04 14:48 UTC
KuCoin 8.77 USDT — 3.33 USDT more for the same buy.
Moments and sizes change the answer — the live comparison recomputes for your exact trade.
Kraken
- Published fee (maker / taker)
- 0.25% / 0.40%
- Reliability Score
- 88 / 100
- Measured cost · 1,000 USDT BTC buy
- 5.44 USDT
- You get
- 0.01168482 BTC
- Of which hidden spread
- 0.16 USDT
- BTC withdrawal
- 1.28 USDT (0.000015 BTC)
live orderbook · 110s old at measurement · via USDT
Open Kraken ↗neutral link
KuCoin
- Published fee (maker / taker)
- 0.10% / 0.10%
- Reliability Score
- 74 / 100
- Measured cost · 1,000 USDT BTC buy
- 8.77 USDT
- You get
- 0.01164562 BTC
- Of which hidden spread
- 0.11 USDT
- BTC withdrawal
- 7.66 USDT (0.00009 BTC)
live orderbook · 51s old at measurement · via USDT
Open KuCoin ↗neutral link
Sources & method
- Cost = live public orderbook walked for the exact 1,000 USDT order + published base-tier fee + published withdrawal fee; ranked by what you receive.
- Reliability Score: sourced and dated, never part of the cost ranking; affiliate links never influence either.
- Cost method → · Score method → · Kraken record → · KuCoin record →
Questions, answered
Is Kraken or KuCoin cheaper for buying Bitcoin?
At 2026-10-04 14:48 UTC, a 1,000 USDT Bitcoin buy cost 5.44 USDT all-in on Kraken versus 8.77 USDT on KuCoin — fee plus measured spread.
Is Kraken or KuCoin safer?
No safety verdicts — on Skontro's sourced Reliability Score, Kraken 88/100 (updated 2026-10-04) and KuCoin 74/100 (updated 2026-10-04) — Kraken scores higher.
More comparisons
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Not investment advice. Skontro is not a CASP under MiCAR. Reliability Scores are information, not recommendations: every negative datapoint is dated and sourced, the methodology is public, and no exchange can pay to change a score.