Common questions about buying Bitcoin in 2026.

As of May 2026, MEXC offers 0% spot trading fees on most major pairs, making it the cheapest exchange for direct Bitcoin purchases by published rate. Binance offers 0.10% standard, reduced to 0.075% with BNB token, and combined with deeper liquidity often produces a lower total cost (fee + spread) than smaller zero-fee venues. The 'cheapest' answer depends on whether you measure published rate or all-in cost.

Two programmes in our index publish a 30,000 ceiling: Bybit ($30,000) and Weex (30,000 USDT). OKX's programme reaches $10,000 and MEXC's $9,000; Binance publishes the smallest at $600. Every ceiling is the top rung of a deposit ladder, so a first deposit reaches a lower rung — the ladder itself is on each exchange's promotion page, which we quote but do not audit.

It depends on the exchange and the size of the transaction. Two rows in our dataset are recorded as optional or tiered, MEXC and Weex, and neither status has been confirmed inside a funded account by this desk. Bybit is not one of them: it has required identity verification across its products since 2023. The other nine require KYC for full functionality, and most exchanges require it for fiat deposits regardless.

A referral code is a marketing identifier that, when entered at registration, grants the new account a fee discount (typically 20-60% at the exchanges we index) and pays the referrer a share of the new user's future trading fees. The discount comes from the exchange's own revenue, not from the user. There is no extra cost. Once registered, the discount applies to every future trade for as long as the exchange keeps the programme open.

Not on a schedule. At every exchange in this index, a referral fee discount activated at registration applies to every future trade for as long as the exchange runs its referral programme; we have not found a published expiry at any of the eleven. Welcome bonuses and deposit credits are different: they carry claim windows and conditions set per campaign on the exchange's promotion page.

Fee schedules are read from each exchange's own official page and re-read at least every 45 days; the build will not publish on older data, and each cycle is dated in the corrections log. Welcome-bonus ceilings, referral percentages and KYC policies are quoted as the exchange publishes them and are not part of that re-read. Each data point carries a 'fees read' date, and sources are linked from each report's references section.

For first-time Bitcoin buyers, we recommend Binance or OKX based on three measurable criteria: (1) deepest spot liquidity (tighter spreads = lower all-in cost), (2) most polished onboarding flow (as of May 2026), (3) largest education hubs. Both grant a fee discount to accounts registered with a referral code, for as long as the programme runs.

Spot fees apply when buying or selling crypto assets outright; futures fees apply when trading derivative contracts. Spot fees are typically 0.10% maker/taker on major exchanges; futures fees are typically 0.02% maker / 0.05% taker. Futures fees are lower because trade volumes are higher and exchanges compete for derivatives flow.