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Gemini Exchange Review: Legal and Easy to Use

Review Updated
Matt Frankel, CFP®
Author: Matt Frankel, CFP®
Matt Frankel, CFP®
Matt Frankel, CFP®
Writer, Analyst

Matt is a Certified Financial Planner™ and investment advisor based in Columbia, South Carolina. He writes personal finance and investment advice for Motley Fool Money and its parent company The Motley Fool, with more than 4,500 published articles and a 2017 SABEW Best in Business award. Matt writes a weekly investment column for the Motley Fool ("Ask a Fool") that is syndicated in USA Today, and his work with Motley Fool Money has also been syndicated to MSN and Yahoo! Finance. He has been regularly featured on Fox Business and many other major outlets. He’s a graduate of the University of South Carolina and Nova Southeastern University, and holds a graduate certificate in financial planning from Florida State University.

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Eric McWhinnie
Fact Checked: Eric McWhinnie
Eric McWhinnie
Eric McWhinnie

Eric McWhinnie has been writing and editing digital content since 2010. He specializes in personal finance and investing. He also holds a bachelor’s degree in Finance.

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Many or all of the products here are from our partners that compensate us. It’s how we make money. But our editorial integrity ensures that our product ratings are not influenced by compensation. Terms may apply to offers listed on this page.
This content is accurate as of March 12, 2023

We do our best to keep on top of all the latest developments. However, please be aware that the fast-paced nature of the cryptocurrency world means there may be shifts in fees, specific services, and the numbers of available cryptos. Check out our list of the best cryptocurrency apps and exchanges for the most up-to-date information on the platforms we recommend.

Gemini is the rare crypto exchange that's equally suitable for beginners and advanced crypto investors. It offers a broad lineup of cryptocurrencies, a spectacular library of educational content, and plenty of other valuable features. Read our full Gemini Exchange review for all the info you need to decide if it's right for you, as well as the answer to the question, "How safe is Gemini Exchange?"

Ratings Methodology

Our Rating:

Rating image, 4.50 out of 5 stars.
4.50/5 Circle with letter I in it. Our ratings are based on a 5 star scale. 5 stars equals Best. 4 stars equals Excellent. 3 stars equals Good. 2 stars equals Fair. 1 star equals Poor. We want your money to work harder for you. Which is why our ratings are biased toward offers that deliver versatility while cutting out-of-pocket costs.
 = Best
= Excellent
= Good
= Fair
= Poor

Bottom Line

Competitive fees, a fantastic trading platform, and high interest rates on cryptocurrencies explain why Gemini is among the best exchanges we've come across.

Fees:

$0.99-$2.99 orders under $200, 1.49% for orders over $200 (default), 0% - 0.40% (Gemini ActiveTrader)

Account Minimum:

$0

Open Account for Gemini Exchange

Alternatives to consider

Offer


Rating
Rating image, 4.00 out of 5 stars.
4.00/5 Circle with letter I in it. Our ratings are based on a 5 star scale. 5 stars equals Best. 4 stars equals Excellent. 3 stars equals Good. 2 stars equals Fair. 1 star equals Poor. We want your money to work harder for you. Which is why our ratings are biased toward offers that deliver versatility while cutting out-of-pocket costs.
 = Best
= Excellent
= Good
= Fair
= Poor
Rating image, 4.00 out of 5 stars.
4.00/5 Circle with letter I in it. Our ratings are based on a 5 star scale. 5 stars equals Best. 4 stars equals Excellent. 3 stars equals Good. 2 stars equals Fair. 1 star equals Poor. We want your money to work harder for you. Which is why our ratings are biased toward offers that deliver versatility while cutting out-of-pocket costs.
 = Best
= Excellent
= Good
= Fair
= Poor
Commissions
$10 purchase minimum, other fees charged on a per-service basis. 0.0% - 0.40% maker-taker fees on Kraken Pro
0% commission, variable spread
Next Steps
Open Account for Kraken
Read Full Review
Open Account for Uphold
Read Full Review

Full Gemini crypto exchange review

This cryptocurrency exchange is a good fit for: Investors of all skill levels who want a full-featured cryptocurrency platform.

No crypto exchange is perfect for everyone, so here are the Gemini pros and cons to help you make the best decision for you.

Pros

  • Beginner-friendly crypto trading
  • Wide cryptocurrency selection
  • Highly-rated mobile app
  • Available in all U.S. states

Cons

  • Expensive fees on default platform
  • Missing some popular cryptocurrencies

Top perks

Advanced trading platform

Gemini's default trading platform is easy to use and provides more than enough for most investors to buy and sell cryptocurrency. The exchange also offers Gemini ActiveTrader, a high-performance crypto trading platform designed for experienced investors.

Gemini ActiveTrader includes the ability to place multiple order types, such as market or limit orders, advanced charting tools, deep order book visibility, and more. It also has lower trading fees, so even if you're not interested in the features, we still recommend using it to place trades.

LEARN MORE: What Is Crypto Lending?

Educational resources

The Gemini Cryptopedia may be the most impressive collection of cryptocurrency educational content any exchange has to offer. It has hundreds of well-written articles on everything from the history of Bitcoin to how non-fungible tokens (NFTs) work.

Mobile app

The Gemini crypto app reviews are excellent. If you want to buy and sell digital currency from your smartphone or tablet, Gemini has a user-friendly mobile app. It's available on the Apple App Store and Google Play, and it has high ratings on both.

Gemini Credit Card

The Gemini Credit Card™ lets you earn crypto rewards on your purchases. It doesn't charge an annual fee or a foreign transaction fee, and it earns up to 3% back in the cryptocurrency of your choice. You can also switch to a different cryptocurrency at any time. In addition, the card offers 4% back on gas and EV charging, up to $200 in spend per month.

It's worth mentioning that like other crypto credit cards, the Gemini Credit Card™ doesn't quite have enough benefits to compete with traditional rewards cards. But if you're really interested in crypto rewards, this credit card is one of the better options.

RELATED: Check out Motley Fool Money's picks for the Best Credit Cards.

Available in all U.S. states

Several cryptocurrency exchanges aren't able to offer their services in every U.S. state, especially those that pay interest on crypto deposits. Gemini's commitment to compliance means it can operate throughout the country.

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What could be improved

Expensive fees on default platform

The biggest drawback with Gemini is its fee structure, at least for those who don't use its ActiveTrader interface to purchase cryptocurrencies. On the web exchange and mobile app, fees range from $0.99 to $2.99 for orders of up to $200. Orders over $200 have a 1.49% fee.

That's quite a bit more expensive than many crypto exchanges, as there are several that charge trading fees of 0.5% or less. Gemini does offer competitive fees with Gemini ActiveTrader which range from 0.03% to 0.40% for orders that are filled immediately. However, it's disappointing that investors who use its default platform get charged more.

Gemini Exchange lets you buy and sell dozens of cryptocurrencies as well as five "stablecoins," such as Tether (USDT) and its own Gemini Dollar (GUSD). Just to name a few, you can invest in Bitcoin (BTC), Ethereum (ETH), Filecoin (FIL), Zcash (ZEC), Bitcoin Cash (BCH), Litecoin (LTC), Dogecoin (DOGE), and Polkadot (DOT). However, there are also some big ones that are not available. A few of the more notable examples include:

Those are all cryptocurrencies that are currently in the top 25 by market cap. If you're interested in investing in any of them, you'll need to look elsewhere.

How Gemini works

Gemini is a crypto exchange that's available as a web platform and mobile app. You can use it to buy, sell, and store cryptocurrencies.

The exchange accepts fiat money deposits by ACH transfer from a bank account, wire transfer, and debit card payment. Withdrawals can be made by ACH transfer and wire transfer. You can also deposit and withdraw cryptocurrency funds.

In addition to its main Gemini Exchange platform, Gemini provides several other products for crypto investors. These include:

  • Gemini ActiveTrader: An advanced crypto trading platform
  • Gemini Wallet: A safe, secure wallet infrastructure
  • Gemini Credit Card™: A crypto rewards credit card
  • Gemini Clearing: A service to facilitate off-exchange crypto trades

Gemini also owns Nifty Gateway NFT Marketplace. While many NFT marketplaces allow anyone to mint NFTs, Nifty Gateway NFT Marketplace is a curated digital art platform, so it's much more selective.

RELATED: See Motley Fool Money's List of the Best NFT Marketplaces.

Fees overview

Gemini has different trading fees depending on which of its platforms you use. The default Gemini Exchange, which is the platform used by the exchange's web platform and mobile app, is significantly more expensive than Gemini ActiveTrader.

Gemini Exchange fees

On the web platform and mobile app, Gemini charges a convenience fee and a transaction fee on crypto trading. The convenience fee is a markup of 0.5% over a cryptocurrency's quoted price. For example, if Bitcoin has a prevailing market price of $10,000, Gemini would charge $10,050.

The transaction fee is based on the order amount as follows:

ORDER AMOUNT TRANSACTION FEE
Up to $10 $0.99
$10.01–$25 $1.49
$25.01–$50 $1.99
$50.01–$200 $2.99
Over $200 1.49%
Data source: Gemini.

Gemini ActiveTrader fees

Gemini ActiveTrader uses a maker-taker fee model. Liquidity-making orders, meaning those that aren't filled immediately, are charged the maker fee. Liquidity-taking orders, meaning those that are filled immediately by an existing order on the order book, are charged the taker fee.

Gemini trading fees are based on your 30-day trading volume. Here's the full Gemini ActiveTrade fee table:

30-DAY TRADING VOLUME IN U.S. DOLLARS TAKER FEE MAKER FEE
Under $10,000 0.40% 0.20%
$10,000 to $50,000 0.30% 0.10%
$50,000 to $100,000 0.25% 0.10%
$100,000 to $1,000,000 0.20% 0.08%
$1,000,000 to $5,000,000 0.15% 0.05%
$5,000,000 to $10,000,000 0.10% 0.03%
$10,000,000 to $50,000,000 0.08% 0.02%
$50,000,000 to $100,000,000 0.05% 0.00%
$100,000,000 to $500,000,000 0.04% 0.00%
$500,000,000 or more 0.03% 0.00%
Data source: Gemini.

Gemini transfer fees

U.S. dollar deposits and withdrawals made by ACH transfer or wire transfer are free on Gemini. Deposits can also be made by PayPal, but there is a 2.5% fee if you choose to deposit money into your account this way.

Cryptocurrency deposits to your digital wallet are also free. Cryptocurrency withdrawals have either a flat fee or a dynamic fee depending on the cryptocurrency. Ethereum and ERC20 tokens (crypto tokens built on the Ethereum blockchain) have dynamic fees based on the network fees at the time for that blockchain. Other cryptocurrencies have a flat fee. Gemini Dollar (GUSD), the exchange's stablecoin, is the exception and has no withdrawal fee.

Cryptocurrency selection

Gemini users have over 70 cryptocurrencies available for trading. Its wide selection is one of its strong points, as it offers more digital assets than many popular crypto exchanges. You'll be able to invest in many of the market leaders, including Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Solana (SOL). If you're looking for smaller cryptocurrencies that haven't gotten as much attention yet, Gemini has plenty of those, as well.

There are a few big cryptocurrencies that Gemini doesn't offer, with Cardano being one of the most notable omissions. However, it still does a good job of providing a variety of cryptocurrency options.

RELATED: See Motley Fool Money's Guide to Cryptocurrency Availability on the Top Exchanges.

Is your cryptocurrency safe with Gemini?

Is Gemini crypto safe? Gemini sets a high standard for security, making it a safe place to trade and store cryptocurrency.

It stores the majority of digital assets offline in cold crypto storage, which means on servers that aren't connected to the internet and are difficult to hack. For the portion of assets kept in hot storage (online storage), Gemini maintains digital asset insurance. This policy insures against the theft of digital assets from a direct security breach or hack of Gemini's systems or theft by a Gemini employee.

Keep in mind that Gemini's insurance doesn't cover losses resulting from unauthorized access to a user's account. For example, if a hacker managed to get into your account and steal funds, insurance wouldn't cover the loss, so it's still important to maintain the security of your own passwords and other authentication tools.

That's why it's important to keep your account safe. Fortunately, Gemini offers multiple security features to help with that. It requires that you set up two-factor authentication (2FA) and it allows you to create a list of approved withdrawal addresses.

U.S. dollars in your Gemini account are also protected. These cash deposits have the same FDIC insurance that many banks and credit unions offer, covering up to $250,000 per eligible account.

In a nutshell, the answer to the question of "Is Gemini exchange safe?" is yes.

Gemini is right for you if:

  • You want a user-friendly platform with a great mobile app to buy, store, and sell cryptocurrencies.
  • You want to earn interest on your cryptocurrency holdings.

FAQs

  • The Gemini cryptocurrency platform is legal in the United States, and is available for use in all 50 states as well as more than 70 foreign countries.

  • Gemini offers a list of more than 70 different cryptocurrencies available for trading on its platform. This includes native assets such as Bitcoin and Ethereum, stablecoins like Tether, and dozens of supported tokens.