As digital currency trading attracts seasoned and new investors, exchanges like Gemini and Coinbase can enable the trading of digital currency easily. Both these are renowned digital currency exchanges that follow the strict U.S regulations and are supported by a huge system of banking. In this following article, let us have a look at the comparison on Coinbase vs Gemini, to understand which exchange is ideal for our use.
Even though both these exchanges are similar, there are differences as well. Gemini offers features that support institutional investors, while Coinbase allows the users to earn crypto while they learn about trading.
Coinbase vs Gemini: A Detailed Comparison
We have reviewed both these exchanges to determine their individual features, costs, Coinbase vs Gemini volumes, payments, etc and after that, we have done this comparison on Coinbase vs Gemini. So without delaying further let us get started.
Features
Both these exchanges are good for beginners as they both have a straightforward interface, along with its mobile application that is user friendly. Along with that, the user will also receive a digital hot wallet with both these exchanges. But both have some unique features.
Coinbase features include:
- The option to earn digital currency while learning about investing through short videos.
- A watchlist option to see price histories or receive notifications when the prices increase or decrease.
- An in-built newsfeed along with regular updates related to the digital currency market.
- The option to deposit funds from altcoin sales directly to PayPal.
Gemini features include:
- With the Gemini earn program, users in all the 50 states are eligible to earn interest above their net balance of several crypto coins at different rates of interest.
- The third party integration feature of Gemini offers a public API key so that the user can connect to other software tools, enabling Gemini a great option for fund managers.
- In the Gemini pay feature, this exchange has teamed up with over 30000 retailers enabling the user to pay for buying using the Gemini account and the stored digital currency.
Supported Currencies
Both Coinbase and Gemini accept fiat currency. Coinbase supports three types: USD, GBP, and EUR, while Gemini supports seven: CAD, USD, AUD, GBP, EUR, SGD, and HKD. However, 18 more altcoins are being offered by Coinbase compared to Gemini. But both the platform offers popular cryptos like:
- Bitcoin (BTC)
- Ethereum (ETH)
- Aave (AAVE)
- Litecoin (LTC)
- Dai (DAI)
- Bitcoin Cash (BCH)
- Chainlink (LINK)
- Uniswap (UNI)
Coinbase and Gemini are constantly adding new digital currency options to their list so that the number of supported coins can differ. Coinbase offers its services to people residing in more than 100 nations. Whereas the traders of Gemini are limited to only 50 countries. Coinbase also provides 41 trading pairs for the residents of the U.S compared to Gemini that offers 33 pairs of trading coins.
Security
These famous exchanges stick to the highest safety measures and also the U.S regulations, making them the most favorite option for investors. Both these platforms are backed by JP Morgan and soon Coinbase will sell its stocks to the general public after it completes the filing for a direct listing. Moreover, all the balances of USD on Coinbase and Gemini are covered by FDIC ( Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation) insurance.
With Coinbase Crypto Exchange and Gemini, the user will receive a 2FA ( 2 Factor Authentication) process through SMS (short message service), or the user can avail the Authy application on Gemini and Google Authenticator application on Coinbase that will serve your purpose. Other than that, Coinbase asserts that it stores 985 of its users’ funds on the cold storage implying that it is safe as it is kept offline. On the other hand, Gemini claims, “the majority of your crypto is held in our offline, air-gapped cold storage system.”
Along with that Gemini offers options for security for institutional traders, like defined user access role permission for trading digital currency or accessing the account. The user can also search for devices that use the account of the user or are logged in to that account.
Gemini insures the wallet of Gemini from any fraudulent actions or security breaches, while Coinbase insures 2 percent of the assets that are stored in the hot wallet.
Fees
When compared to other digital currency exchanges, these two platforms charge higher fees. The user will have to pay the fee based on their payment along with which they will be required to pay a flat fee. However, the user can get lower fees if they use Coinbase Pro. In this case, if we compare between Coinbase vs Gemini vs Binance, Binance is a clear winner.
Among the two platforms, the fee structure of Coinbase is slightly more complex compared to Gemini, but if the user pays by credit card, then the exchange discards the flat fee and charges a 3.99% fee for the credit card transaction.
If the user pays through wire transfer continuously, they can save a good amount on Gemini fee since it charges zero fees on wire transfer, but Coinbase does. The API users of Gemini may also have lesser costs compared to application or web based users.
Fees | Gemini | Coinbase |
Bank account | 1.49% | 1.49% |
Wallet | 1.49% | 1.49% |
Debit/credit cards | 3.49% | 3.99% |
ACH transfer | Free | Free |
Wire transfer | Free for up to 10 per month | $10 deposit, $25 withdrawal |
Crypto conversion | Free | 0.50% to 2% |
Trades | A “rate of 0.50% (or 50 basis points) above the prevailing Gemini market price” | A “spread 0.50%” |
Other fees | Fee of $0.99 to $2.99 based on the amount or 1.49% for trades over $200 | Coinbase fee of $0.99 to $2.99 based on the amount |
Ease Of Use
Both these exchanges offer user friendly interfaces, a simple trading and sign up process, and convenient tools for educating yourselves. The mobile application offers an experience that is similar to web browsers and also gets high user ratings on Apple and Google app stores.
Gemini offers an amazing FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions) knowledge base along with three webinars. However, this platform has recently launched a cryptopedia education platform that has digital currency trading articles based on currencies, investing, trading, securities, and many more.
Similar to Gemini, Coinbase also offers a comprehensive website that is enriched with articles and information on the crypto space. Users can even earn crypto while watching those videos and webinars. If we compare Coinbase vs Binance, then Coinbase would lead.
Verdict: Which One To Choose?
After the comparison on Coinbase vs Gemini, both the exchanges looked similar except for a few. Coinbase offers many fiat currency options whereas the Gemini crypto list has only 3 names. But the fee structure of Gemini is a bit less complex compared to Coinbase. But both of these exchanges are user friendly and ideal for beginners. So all platforms have their pros and cons. It is you who will have to evaluate the one that suits you after reading this comparison. But if there was a comparison on Coinbase vs Gemini vs Kraken, Kraken would have won the game. And if we compare Blockfi vs Coinbase vs Gemini on the basis of digital currency lending, then BlockFi would be leading for sure.