If you are an Australian looking to buy Bitcoin, Ethereum, or any of the hundreds of altcoins now available to local investors, you have likely encountered both CoinSpot and Kraken. Both platforms are registered with AUSTRAC, accept AUD deposits via PayID, and have been operating for over a decade. However, the similarities end there. This guide breaks down exactly how these two platforms compare on fees, security, features, and overall value for Australian traders in 2026, and explains why, after thorough research, we believe Kraken edges ahead as the superior choice for most investors.
The Quick Verdict
CoinSpot is a solid, beginner-friendly platform built exclusively for Australians. It is simple, local, and offers 24/7 live chat with real humans based in Melbourne. However, when it comes to trading fees, advanced features, global liquidity, and long-term value for money, Kraken consistently outperforms CoinSpot across nearly every metric that matters to serious investors. Here is why.
CoinSpot vs Kraken: At a Glance
Here is how the two platforms stack up on the metrics that matter most to Australian investors.
Fees: Where Kraken Saves You Real Money
This is where the biggest gap lies between the two platforms, and where Kraken truly shines for cost-conscious Australians. CoinSpot charges a 1 per cent fee on all instant buy, sell, and swap transactions. That is the default experience for the vast majority of users. While CoinSpot does offer market orders at 0.1 per cent, these are limited to a handful of major coins and often suffer from thin liquidity, meaning your orders may not fill at the price you expect. On top of the 1 per cent trading fee, CoinSpot's spreads can add another 1-2 per cent to each trade, which many users do not realise until they check their transaction history.
Kraken Pro, on the other hand, offers maker fees starting at just 0.16 per cent and taker fees from 0.26 per cent, and these drop even further as your trading volume increases. For traders doing over $50,000 in monthly volume, maker fees fall to 0.14 per cent and taker fees to 0.24 per cent. High-volume traders can eventually reach 0 per cent maker fees. The difference is staggering: on a $10,000 trade, you would pay $100 on CoinSpot's instant buy versus just $16 to $26 on Kraken Pro. Over a year of regular trading, the savings add up to thousands of dollars.
Both platforms offer free AUD deposits via PayID and Osko, so there is no difference there. However, Kraken also offers a subscription service called Kraken+ that gives members zero trading fees on up to $10,000 USD equivalent in monthly volume, a genuinely unique offering for casual investors who want to eliminate fees entirely on smaller purchases.
Security and Track Record
Security is paramount when choosing a crypto exchange, and this is another area where Kraken holds a significant advantage. Kraken has operated for over 14 years globally without a single major security breach. That is an extraordinary track record in an industry plagued by exchange hacks, collapses, and rug pulls. The platform conducts regular, independently verified Proof-of-Reserves audits with cryptographic verification, allowing users to confirm that their assets are fully backed at all times. Kraken holds $42.8 billion in assets under management globally, a testament to institutional-grade trust.
CoinSpot also holds strong security credentials. It was the first Australian exchange to earn ISO 27001 certification and stores the majority of assets in cold wallets. CoinSpot's core exchange infrastructure has never been compromised, although in late 2023 a $2 million exploit of two specific private wallets associated with CoinSpot was investigated. Security analysts assessed this as a likely compromised private key or targeted phishing incident rather than a systemic breach of the platform's hot or cold wallet systems, and customer funds in custody were unaffected. Even so, Kraken has never experienced any comparable incident in its 14-year history and offers advanced security features like Global Settings Lock, Master Key protection, and hardware key (YubiKey) support that go beyond what CoinSpot provides.
Regulation and Compliance in Australia
Both CoinSpot and Kraken are registered with AUSTRAC as Digital Currency Exchange providers, which is the baseline regulatory requirement for operating a crypto exchange in Australia. CoinSpot operates directly as an Australian company based in Melbourne and is a member of the Digital Economy Council of Australia (DECA). It was also the first Australian exchange to complete an external statutory financial audit and is a voluntary member of the Australian Financial Complaints Authority (AFCA).
Kraken operates in Australia through Bit Trade Pty Ltd, which was actually Australia's first successful crypto exchange before being acquired by Kraken in 2020. In the interest of full transparency, Bit Trade was fined $8 million AUD by the Federal Court in December 2024 after ASIC found it had offered a margin extension product without a required Target Market Determination. It is important to note that this ruling concerned only Bit Trade's margin trading product and has zero impact on regular spot trading, AUD cash deposits, or the security of customer funds on the core exchange. Kraken has since addressed the compliance issue and has been vocal about the need for clearer crypto-specific legislation in Australia, a position many in the industry support.
Features, Assets, and Trading Tools
CoinSpot lists over 530 cryptocurrencies and offers some appealing features for beginners, including crypto bundles (pre-set baskets of coins you can buy in a single transaction), an NFT marketplace, SMSF support, and a CoinSpot Mastercard for spending crypto directly. The platform integrates with popular Australian tax reporting tools like Koinly and CryptoTaxCalculator, making end-of-financial-year reporting straightforward.
However, Kraken surpasses CoinSpot in several critical areas. Kraken offers over 450 cryptocurrencies with deep AUD trading pairs, and crucially, it provides significantly better liquidity across all of them. This means tighter spreads, faster order fills, and better prices on your spot trades. Kraken Pro features TradingView-powered charts with professional-grade technical analysis tools, customisable layouts, depth charts, and advanced spot order types including limit, stop-loss, take-profit, and conditional orders. The Kraken App offers a clean, streamlined buy/sell experience for newcomers, while the Kraken Pro web platform and dedicated Pro app give you everything you need for active spot trading, all tied to the same secure account with single sign-on across devices.
Kraken has also recently won major Australian industry awards. In 2026, Kraken took home 'Overall Crypto Trading Platform of the Year' from Finder for the third consecutive year and secured multiple wins at the WeMoney Cryptocurrency Awards, recognition driven by both expert analysis and real user feedback from over 1.4 million Australian investors.
User Experience: Beginner vs Advanced
This is where CoinSpot genuinely excels. If you have never bought crypto before and want the simplest possible experience, CoinSpot's interface is hard to beat. Everything is designed for the Australian market, the app is polished and responsive, and the 24/7 Melbourne-based live chat support is genuinely excellent. CoinSpot ranked number one in real-world customer support tests among Australian exchanges.
That said, Kraken has worked hard to close this gap. The standard Kraken app offers a clean, guided experience with quick buy/sell buttons and educational content for each asset, while Kraken Pro caters to advanced traders. Importantly, both interfaces connect to the same secure infrastructure. Your account, balances, and security settings are identical regardless of which one you use. For the slight learning curve involved in switching to Kraken Pro, you are rewarded with dramatically lower fees and far more powerful trading tools.
AUD Deposits, Withdrawals, and Local Banking
Both platforms integrate seamlessly with Australia's PayID and Osko systems, meaning AUD deposits are instant and free from all major banks including Commonwealth, ANZ, Westpac, and NAB. CoinSpot also accepts POLi, BPAY (0.9 per cent fee), and cash deposits at participating newsagents (2.5 per cent fee). Kraken's minimum deposit is just $5 AUD via PayID, making it accessible to absolutely everyone. AUD withdrawals are free on both platforms.
Who Should Choose Which?
Choose CoinSpot if you are a complete beginner who values simplicity above all else, you want 24/7 Australian-based live chat support, or you specifically need features like the CoinSpot Mastercard or NFT marketplace. CoinSpot is a legitimate, safe platform and there is nothing wrong with starting here.
Choose Kraken if you care about keeping more of your money (and you should), you want access to professional trading tools, you value the strongest possible security track record, or you plan to grow as an investor. Kraken's lower fees alone could save you hundreds or thousands of dollars per year, and its award-winning platform, unmatched security record, and deep global liquidity make it the clear winner for the vast majority of Australian crypto investors. You can sign up for a free Kraken account and be trading within minutes.
Final Verdict: Kraken Is the Smarter Choice for Most Aussies
CoinSpot deserves credit for building a platform that has made crypto accessible to millions of Australians since 2013. But accessibility and simplicity come at a steep price, literally. With instant buy fees of 1 per cent plus hidden spreads that can push your real costs to 2-3 per cent per trade, CoinSpot is one of the most expensive ways to buy crypto in Australia.
Kraken offers a complete package that is hard to beat: dramatically lower spot trading fees (0.16 per cent maker on Pro), over 14 years without a security breach, quarterly Proof-of-Reserves audits, deep AUD liquidity, award-winning web and mobile apps, and consecutive wins at Australia's most prestigious crypto awards. The platform has earned the trust of 13 million users globally and holds $42.8 billion in assets under custody.
For Australian investors who want to take their crypto journey seriously, whether you are investing $500 or $500,000, Kraken is the platform we recommend.
Important Information for Australian Consumers: Kraken's services in Australia are issued by Bit Trade Pty Ltd (BTPL), a wholly owned subsidiary of Payward, Inc. (Kraken). Before acquiring or using any product or service offered by BTPL, you should read and consider the relevant Product Disclosure Statement (PDS) and Target Market Determination (TMD), which set out the product's key features, fees, risks, and the class of consumers for whom the product has been designed. You should consider the PDS and TMD, together with your own financial situation, objectives, and needs, before deciding whether any BTPL product is appropriate for you. Some products referenced in this article, including margin trading, futures, and staking, are higher-risk and may not be suitable for all investors. Cryptocurrency is volatile and you may lose some or all of your capital. This article is general information only and does not constitute financial product advice or a recommendation to acquire any specific product. It has not been prepared having regard to your personal circumstances. This article contains affiliate links; we may earn a commission if you sign up through them, at no additional cost to you.
