Poloniex Vs. Bittrex: Which is Better? (Comparison)

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There are multiple ways to make millions, if not billions, in the world of cryptocurrency.

One of those ways is buying altcoins and selling them for profit, if and when the price rises.

You can also make millions by day trading. Now, day trading is definitely not something I like because it causes a lot of anxiety and basically feels like gambling.

Update: The future of Poloniex doesn’t look great anymore. Reddit is full of complaints and I would suggest you should not use Poloniex anymore and rather use any of the listed alternatives which are way more popular.

Poloniex Alternatives: 

I realize that my superpower is in something other than short-term trading. Holding altcoins for the long term and selling them for profit, later on, is what I enjoy doing, and it’s also how I made a ton of money in the past year. I enjoy doing it this way because one of my strengths is an eye for detail, and I can research fast to come up with a pretty solid conclusion.

In case you’re interested, we have a Telegram channel where I share my observations and suggestions on which cryptos I think you should be investing in. You can join our channel here.

In the crypto world, the most popular method of getting altcoins is through an exchange.

Poloniex and Bittrex are two of the most popular digital currency exchanges available today.

2022 update: Binance and KuCoin are now more popular than Poloniex.

After using Changelly to exchange digital tokens during my initial trading days, I discovered Poloniex. I loved it from day one because the conversions were great, the volumes were great, and I could get started just by transferring over some bitcoins.

Later, I also discovered Bittrex, which seemed like a cleaner version of Poloniex.

For the past little while, I have been using both exchanges. Both exchanges have their high points, and both exchanges also fall short on some things.

So which one is better?

Bittrex vs. Poloniex: Which is Better?

The reason this Bittrex vs. Poloniex comparison is important is that a lot of us exchange Bitcoin into various different digital tokens (cryptocurrencies) through these exchanges.

Now, the wisest thing to do is transfer those tokens to a separate wallet, but if you are holding 15+ different cryptos, it’s challenging to set up 15+ separate wallets.

One great thing about both of these exchanges is that you don’t need to set up separate wallets for each token; they both have separate wallets embedded into the exchange.

And both exchanges offer these wallets for free. It’s very convenient. That said, I always advise people to take their tokens off of exchanges as quickly as possible. But if you’re only holding your coins there for a short period of time, this is probably OK.

One of the most important things in the crypto world is security. We need to know that our coins are secure. So we also need to know that the exchanges we deal with are trustworthy, reliable, and safe.

At the same time, we need to have certain features available to us in order to do the things we want to do. This includes having support for the tokens we want to trade in. Without this, we can’t even start trading.

The exchanges that we deal with need to be well-rounded and complete solutions for our trading needs.

So without further ado, let’s get into our Bittrex vs. Poloniex review!

The Team

Poloniex: Loser

There was a time when I had 2.5 BTC on Poloniex. Initially, this didn’t matter much because the total value was less than $1200. Later on, when the price of 1 BTC increased to over $3,000, I started getting worried about the safety of my coins.

This is when I started researching the Poloniex team.

What really surprised me was that even though Poloniex has grown their user base exponentially in the past few years, their customer support and social media support has been at an all-time low. Apart from 1-2 members on Reddit, they don’t have contact details of anyone that you can talk to in case of downtime or some other emergency.

They are incorporated in Delaware (anyone can do that), and they don’t have any kind of public persona. In general, they just don’t seem reliable to me.

In fact, they look like a company that would pull off an exit scam whenever they wanted to. I’m not saying they will, but a brand that doesn’t have a public face doesn’t make me want to trust them with my money.

Bittrex: Winner

Bittrex founding members are on Twitter, and they constantly update us via tweets when any major event is happening.

This kind of open communication and accountability is a major plus when it comes to me trusting them with my money.

I believe this single reason alone is good enough for most people to make a decision as to which exchange to pick. In terms of things I value in an online exchange, trustability is at the top of the list.

You can learn more about the Bittrex team here.

Bittrex team

Features & Interface

Poloniex: Winner

In terms of features, Poloniex is better, but only when you are using some of the advanced features like margin lending and margin trading. Margin lending/trading is when someone lends their balance to someone else and then the borrower pays interest. They offer this feature for 12 coins.

If you’re looking to earn a pretty handsome amount of money, margin lending and trading are two really attractive options. But of course, do your due diligence and always be cautious when doing any kind of trading.

Poloniex also has two-factor authentication, which is pretty standard nowadays, but always a nice touch.

They use a maker-taker fee schedule:

  • Maker fee: 0-0.15%
  • Taker fee: 0.10-0.25%

And their user interface is really nice, simple, and clean. It’s very easy to use and works perfectly.

Due to the margin lending/trading feature, I think Poloniex is a little better than Bittrex in the features department.

Poloniex Exchange interface

Bittrex: Loser (but not by much)

Personally, I really like the interface of Bittrex, and I find it to be more intuitive than Poloniex.

I like the clean white look, and the fact that they show prices in USD is really helpful for me because Bitcoin prices tend to fluctuate wildly.

They also have two-factor authentication, and use something called an “elastic multi-stage wallet strategy” which allows them to store almost 90% of the exchange’s coins offline. So even if the site gets hacked, the coins are still secure.

Bittrex has a flat .25% fee, and charges withdrawal fees according to the specific coin’s network policy.

But unfortunately, unlike Poloniex, they don’t have margin lending/trading, which I feel is a pretty awesome feature to have, and gives Poloniex a slight edge here.

Poloniex

Supporting Tokens

Poloniex/Bittrex: Tie

Both Poloniex and Bittrex have a lot of tokens. As more and more tokens come out, both exchanges grab them up pretty quickly. Sometimes Bittrex grabs them first, and sometimes Poloniex gets them first.

This is one reason why you need to have an account on both exchanges.

In fact, you should get an account on a lot of exchanges because there’s no one exchange that has all the tokens. For example, Bitfinex is the only major exchange to carry IOTA, and some of the Chinese exchanges are the only places to get some of the up and coming Chinese tokens. 

In general, the trading volumes on both Bittrex and Poloniex are massive, and there’s no real way to compare them. They both have all the major coins, and they both are quick to add support for the new ones that look the most promising.

There’s no significant difference here; both Poloniex and Bittrex are two of the best exchanges for getting access to a majority of cryptocurrencies out there today.

Bittrex vs. Poloniex: Who’s the winner?

Bittrex and Poloniex are two of the leading digital currency exchanges in the world. Bittrex came a little late to the game, but it’s been gaining a significant amount of popularity over time. Check out this Google Trends chart:

Bittrex vs. Poloniex

One thing that I feel both exchanges are missing right now is a mobile app. Having a mobile app will help many users like me who are always on the move. Bittrex says it’s working on one, and Poloniex has not mentioned anything about it.

I think overall, simply due to the fact that Bittrex is more open and transparent, I would give them the edge. I feel safer leaving my coins in Bittrex, and I generally feel more comfortable trading on their platform.

That said, Poloniex is a great exchange with a massive amount of trading volume. It’s tough to completely rule them out just because their team is less transparent.

I currently trade on both platforms, and I encourage you to do the same.

So try out both of them and then come back here to let me know your review! Which exchange do you like better? I’ll be waiting for you in the comments!

Note: If you are holding any amount of coins and are planning on holding onto those coins for any length of time, you should definitely put those coins into a wallet. NEVER store your coins on ANY exchange for a long period of time.

Consider getting a wallet like the Ledger Nano X (list of Ledger supported cryptos), or Exodus which supports a lot of different cryptos.

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Further Suggested Readings:

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15 thoughts on “Poloniex Vs. Bittrex: Which is Better? (Comparison)”

  1. Rawnak

    By the term “token” you mean “cryptocurrency” ? Right..? 😕

    Might be a stupid question.. I am new to this crypto world.😅

    1. Sudhir Khatwani

      @Rawnak
      Yeah in reference to this article token and crypto are used synonymously but technically they both are different.

  2. sazzad

    Poloniex seems to be far better if you concider interface and fees. I have used both. The only thing is security that is common for all exchanges. So, I would always recommend everyone to use poloniex to trade with cryptocurrencies. However they do need an App too and may be they will make one in future. Bitfinex does have an app but it doesn’t have USDT and some other major exchanges possible currently.

  3. Trickshook

    I think bitterex is the winner
    right!!!

  4. Anuradha Chawla

    Hello Harsh

    I think both exchanges are some of the best when it comes to trading a wide variety of altcoins. If I had to choose, after doing so much research, I would go with Bittrex. Overall it seems to be the safest and when it comes to trading cryptocurrencies that is my number one priority.

  5. Jesse

    Currently deciding which to use and everywhere poloniex is mentioned its mentioned alongside issues concerning withdrawals. I am wondering if the people who use poloniex without problems have not yet tried to make a withdrawal?

    1. Sudhir Khatwani

      Sometimes it does have issues but overall it handles quite a large volume. Try Bittrex once.

  6. Johnny

    I tried signing up for Poloniex just to try something other than Bittrex (Which I totally love). I couldn’t even get past verifying my account because my webcam isn’t HD (they require HD) and they don’t support file uploading to verify identification. Well, that was short-lived! Back to Bittrex!

    1. Steve Joseph

      Found the same challenge with Poloniex. Doesn’t matter how great an app “might be”, if a user can’t easily create an account then it’s not a great service. If this is the best block chain has to offer in terms of exchanges and ease of use the full potential of block chain has not been realized and the tech is truly in it’s infancy.

      1. Prince

        You couldn’t have said it any better. What kind of a service requires you to submit sensitive materials like Driver’s licence and stuff only for them to deny you access because “your address could not be verified”

  7. Harry

    Hi Harsh,
    Can an Indian citizen also make an account and trade on Poloniex or Bittrex?

  8. Thal Bohl

    You forgot to mention Binance for altcoin exchange. It has low fees (0.10% or 0.05%) and supports many pairs of coins.

  9. pranav

    my most of the investment in polonex exchange what should I do. and it’s difficult for each and every coin transfer to separate wallet

    1. Sudhir Khatwani

      I can’t advise on same as you are already aware of the risks of keeping it on an exchange. It totally depends on your risk appetite, however always good to store on self-hosted wallets.

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