Original research · the True-Cost Index
What a trade really costs.
measured by Skontro · same engine as every public comparison
5,748 measurements across 6 exchanges on dollar books, hourly, October 2026 — what a $1,000 buy really costs.
This monthCheapest measured exchange: Kraken (avg $4.14 per $1,000) · most expensive: Coinbase (avg $12.25).
This weekCheapest measured exchange: Kraken (avg $4.20 per $1,000) · most expensive: Coinbase (avg $12.28).
01 · This week — USD books
The weekly find, in dollars.
Skontro's dollar series · rolling week
Cheapest measured — full basket
Kraken
$4.20 all-in
Most expensive measured — full basket
Coinbase
$12.28 all-in · 2.9× the cheapest
“Full basket” = every asset measured this week; the week-over-week note below uses only the basket both weeks share.
This week’s notes (3)
The widest measured exchange gap this week was on BTC: a $1,000 buy averaged $1.09 all-in at OKX vs $12.03 at Coinbase — 11.0× apart over 62 paired hourly measurements.
Time of day showed up in the measurements this week: the average hidden spread was $1.45 in the 08–12 UTC window vs $0.89 in 04–08 — 63.8% apart for the same $1,000 buy.
Week over week, OKX's measured average all-in cost per $1,000 buy moved from $2.76 to $3.18 (+15.2%, 3834 vs 1422 measurements, same 25-asset basket both weeks).
Window: 2026-09-27 → 2026-10-04 · 16,720 measurements · estimated exchanges excluded · Method: /true-cost/methodology
01 · This week — USDT books
The weekly find, in USDT.
Skontro's dollar series · USDT books, never blended with USD
Cheapest measured — full basket
MEXC
0.99 USDT all-in
Most expensive measured — full basket
Coinbase
13.43 USDT all-in · 13.6× the cheapest
“Full basket” = every asset measured this week; the week-over-week note below uses only the basket both weeks share.
“0% fee” check: MEXC advertises a near-zero taker fee — measured all-in this week 0.99 USDT, 0.49 USDT hidden spread.
This week’s notes (3)
The widest measured exchange gap this week was on NEAR: a 1,000 USDT buy averaged 0.40 USDT all-in at Bitget vs 14.11 USDT at Coinbase — 35.2× apart over 152 paired hourly measurements.
Time of day showed up in the measurements this week: the average hidden spread was 0.78 USDT in the 20–24 UTC window vs 0.52 USDT in 12–16 — 51.5% apart for the same 1,000 USDT buy.
Week over week, MEXC's measured average all-in cost per 1,000 USDT buy moved from 1.22 USDT to 0.99 USDT (-19.1%, 3999 vs 3812 measurements, same 24-asset basket both weeks).
Window: 2026-09-27 → 2026-10-04 · 28,498 measurements · estimated exchanges excluded · Method: /true-cost/methodology
01 · This week — EUR, the founding service
The weekly find, founding EUR series.
Skontro's founding EUR series · longest continuous record
Cheapest measured — full basket
OKX
€2.34 all-in
Most expensive measured — full basket
Coinbase
€13.12 all-in · 5.6× the cheapest
“Full basket” = every asset measured this week; the week-over-week note below uses only the basket both weeks share.
“0% fee” check: MEXC advertises a near-zero taker fee — measured all-in this week €2.80, €2.30 hidden spread.
This week’s notes (2)
The widest measured exchange gap this week was on BTC: a €1,000 buy averaged €1.31 all-in at Binance vs €12.42 at Coinbase — 9.5× apart over 160 paired hourly measurements.
Week over week, Crypto.com's measured average all-in cost per €1,000 buy moved from €7.46 to €9.23 (+23.7%, 1006 vs 958 measurements, same 25-asset basket both weeks).
Window: 2026-09-27 → 2026-10-04 · 31,880 measurements · estimated exchanges excluded · Method: /true-cost/methodology
Cite: Skontro Weekly Find 2026-W40, 16,720 hourly order-book measurements. skontro.com/research/finds/2026-W40
02 · Monthly index
The dollar edition — month to date · USD books
What a $1,000 buy cost across 6 exchanges, October 2026 (month to date) — fee plus hidden spread.
| Exchange | Measurements | Avg fee | Avg hidden spread | Avg all-in | Cheapest | Dearest |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Binance | 300 | $1.00 | $0.30 | $1.30 | 20.7% | 0.0% |
| Kraken | 1371 | $4.00 | $0.14 | $4.14 | 49.6% | 0.1% |
| Bitstamp | 1271 | $3.95 | $0.35 | $4.30 | 29.4% | 5.3% |
| Crypto.com | 1314 | $5.00 | $0.87 | $5.87 | 0.1% | 6.1% |
| Coinbase | 1311 | $12.00 | $0.25 | $12.25 | 0.0% | 85.9% |
| Bybitthin order book · not assessed | 120 | $1.00 | $12.95 | $13.95 | — | — |
2026-10-01 → 2026-10-03 · 5,748 measurements · Method: /true-cost/methodology
The “0% fee” check
No exchange in the set advertised a (near-)zero taker fee this period.
Sources & method
Skontro's dollar series. Each exchange is priced separately on every measured asset, then averaged into one number. 5,748 measurements in 1,495 asset-hour rounds (1,434 rankable), observed 2026-10-01 → 2026-10-03 · 93.4% of scheduled asset-hour rounds so far (period still running).
Basket v2: the 25-asset series (from 2026-08-01). Not assessed = a thin order book or an exchange no longer compared; shown for the record, never ranked. 28 implausible rows (fills more than 0.5% below the reference) never entered the index. Ranking is by net amount received; affiliate relationships never move a number. How “hidden spread” is measured: /true-cost/methodology. Corrections → hello@skontro.com, applied and dated visibly.
The dollar edition — month to date · USDT books
What a 1,000 USDT buy cost across 9 exchanges, October 2026 (month to date) — fee plus hidden spread.
| Exchange | Measurements | Avg fee | Avg hidden spread | Avg all-in | Cheapest | Dearest |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MEXC | 1433 | 0.50 USDT | 0.40 USDT | 0.90 USDT | 77.2% | 0.0% |
| Bitget | 1430 | 1.00 USDT | 0.35 USDT | 1.35 USDT | 13.4% | 1.3% |
| Binance | 1433 | 1.00 USDT | 0.36 USDT | 1.36 USDT | 1.2% | 1.5% |
| OKX | 1376 | 1.00 USDT | 0.40 USDT | 1.40 USDT | 3.3% | 0.2% |
| Bybit | 1376 | 1.00 USDT | 0.47 USDT | 1.47 USDT | 2.9% | 0.8% |
| KuCoin | 1434 | 1.00 USDT | 0.48 USDT | 1.48 USDT | 2.1% | 4.7% |
| Kraken | 539 | 4.00 USDT | 0.29 USDT | 4.29 USDT | 0.0% | 4.2% |
| Crypto.com | 1255 | 5.00 USDT | 1.18 USDT | 6.18 USDT | 0.0% | 35.4% |
| Coinbase | 777 | 12.00 USDT | 1.16 USDT | 13.16 USDT | 0.0% | 51.9% |
2026-10-01 → 2026-10-03 · 11,053 measurements · Method: /true-cost/methodology
The “0% fee” check
- MEXC advertises a near-zero taker fee — measured all-in 0.90 USDT per 1,000 USDT, 0.40 USDT hidden spread.
Sources & method
Skontro's dollar series. Each exchange is priced separately on every measured asset, then averaged into one number. 11,053 measurements in 1,436 asset-hour rounds (1,436 rankable), observed 2026-10-01 → 2026-10-03 · 89.7% of scheduled asset-hour rounds so far (period still running).
Basket v2: the 25-asset series (from 2026-08-01). 47 implausible rows (fills more than 0.5% below the reference) never entered the index. Ranking is by net amount received; affiliate relationships never move a number. How “hidden spread” is measured: /true-cost/methodology. Corrections → hello@skontro.com, applied and dated visibly.
The founding EUR series — continuing service, longest continuous record
What a €1,000 buy cost across 12 exchanges, September 2026 — fee plus hidden spread.
| Exchange | Measurements | Avg fee | Avg hidden spread | Avg all-in | Cheapest | Dearest |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| OKX | 17872 | €0.96 | €1.30 | €2.26 | 45.7% | 1.3% |
| MEXC | 7157 | €0.50 | €2.09 | €2.59 | 0.4% | 0.5% |
| Bitget | 6454 | €1.00 | €1.83 | €2.83 | 0.7% | 0.0% |
| KuCoin | 2872 | €1.00 | €1.85 | €2.85 | 0.6% | 0.0% |
| Bitvavo | 17062 | €2.50 | €0.66 | €3.16 | 7.5% | 0.2% |
| Binance | 14968 | €1.00 | €2.24 | €3.24 | 42.0% | 4.0% |
| Kraken | 17257 | €4.00 | €0.59 | €4.59 | 0.2% | 6.5% |
| Bitstamp | 15432 | €4.00 | €2.74 | €6.74 | 0.1% | 15.8% |
| Crypto.com | 4303 | €5.00 | €2.98 | €7.98 | 0.0% | 1.3% |
| Coinbase | 12801 | €12.00 | €1.11 | €13.11 | 0.0% | 59.6% |
| Bitpanda * | 16540 | €0.00 | €14.48 | €14.48 | 0.0% | 0.0% |
| Bybitthin order book · not assessed | 6237 | €0.99 | €25.41 | €26.40 | — | — |
2026-09-01 → 2026-09-30 · 139,015 measurements · Method: /true-cost/methodology
The “0% fee” check
- MEXC advertises a near-zero taker fee — measured all-in €2.59 per €1,000, €2.09 hidden spread.
Sources & method
Skontro's founding EUR series — the longest continuous record, running on as a continuing service beside the dollar edition. Each exchange is priced separately on every measured asset, then averaged into one number. 139,015 measurements in 17,925 asset-hour rounds (17,890 rankable), observed 2026-09-01 → 2026-09-30 · 99.6% of scheduled asset-hour rounds.
Basket v2: the 25-asset series (from 2026-08-01). * = estimated, not measured: a list-price exchange with no public order book; excluded from the cheapest/dearest rounds. Not assessed = a thin order book or an exchange no longer compared; shown for the record, never ranked. 561 implausible rows (fills more than 0.5% below the reference) never entered the index. 1576 thin-book rows (spread above 20% of the order size) are left out of the averages since September. Ranking is by net amount received; affiliate relationships never move a number. How “hidden spread” is measured: /true-cost/methodology. Corrections → hello@skontro.com, applied and dated visibly.
Cite: Skontro True-Cost Index, October 2026 — measured 2026-10-01 to 2026-10-03, 5,748 hourly order-book measurements, $1,000 buy. skontro.com/research/2026/10
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