Base taker fees on these perp DEXs run from 0% on Lighter Standard accounts to 0.06% on GMX, before funding and gas. Two of the six, dYdX and Flash Trade, bar US persons in their own terms; the other four do not say so on the pages we checked, which is not the same as confirming US access. Leverage cuts both ways, so read the risk notes before you trade.
Quick answer
Hyperliquid is the best perp DEX for most traders: 0.045% taker and 0.015% maker at the base tier on a fully onchain order book. Lighter is the cheapest, with 0 fees on Standard accounts, and GMX suits traders who want pool-based fills on Arbitrum.
- 01Hyperliquid: Best overall
- 02Lighter: best for zero fees
- 03GMX: Best pool-based perps
- 04Jupiter: Best on Solana
- 05dYdX: best for non-US traders
The 6 best perpetual dexs
Hyperliquid runs perps on its own layer 1 order book. The base tier pays 0.045% taker and 0.015% maker, with lower fees and maker rebates as 14-day volume grows. Funding is paid hourly.
- Chains
- Hyperliquid L1 (HyperCore and HyperEVM)
- Platforms
- Web, API
- Custody
- Non-custodial
- Fees
- Perps base tier: 0.045% taker, 0.015% maker
- Security audits
- Zellic (legacy bridge contract)
Pros
- Base perps fees of 0.045% taker and 0.015% maker
- Onchain order book with hourly funding
- Maker rebates at higher volume tiers
Cons
- Published audit covers the bridge contract, not the whole chain
- Max leverage varies by asset, with order size limits
- Spot volume counts double toward tiers, which makes fee tiers harder to predict
Skip it if you want a full-chain audit: the published Zellic audit covers the bridge contract.
Lighter charges 0 maker and 0 taker fees on Standard accounts. Premium accounts pay 0.004% maker and 0.028% taker, with lower latency. Its docs publish nine audit reports.
- Platforms
- Web, API
- Custody
- Non-custodial
- Fees
- Standard: 0 maker / 0 taker; Premium: 0.004% maker / 0.028% taker
- Security audits
- 9 audit reports for smart contracts and circuits
- Token
- LIT
Pros
- 0 maker and 0 taker fees on Standard accounts
- Premium taker fee of 0.028%, cut by staking LIT
- Nine audit reports published in its docs
Cons
- Standard accounts get 300ms taker latency versus 140ms on Premium
- Audit files on the docs page do not name the auditors
- Fee discounts on Premium need staked LIT
Skip it if you trade latency-sensitive strategies: Standard accounts add 300ms taker latency.
GMX fills trades against liquidity pools at Chainlink oracle prices on Arbitrum, Avalanche and MegaETH, with up to 100x leverage. Position fees are 0.04% or 0.06% of size.
- Chains
- Arbitrum, Avalanche, MegaETH
- Platforms
- Web, API
- Custody
- Non-custodial
- Fees
- 0.04% or 0.06% of position size to open or close
- Chains
- Arbitrum, Avalanche, MegaETH
Pros
- Position fee of 0.04% when a trade reduces open-interest imbalance
- Oracle pricing avoids liquidations on brief spread spikes
- Liquidity providers earn 63% of fees on Arbitrum and Avalanche
Cons
- 0.06% position fee when a trade adds to the imbalance
- Borrowing and funding fees add to holding costs
- Price impact applies on large orders
Skip it if you hold positions for weeks: borrowing and funding fees add up.
Jupiter adds perps up to 250x to its Solana swap aggregator, so one app covers swaps, perps, lending and DCA. Its mobile app is listed in the US App Store.
- Chains
- Solana
- Platforms
- Web, iOS, API
- Custody
- Non-custodial
- Fees
- 0 to 10 bps platform fee by pair; 50 bps on new tokens
- Token
- JUP
Pros
- 0 bps platform fee on pegged pairs like stable to stable
- RFQ market makers compete with on-chain routes
- Perps, lending and DCA in the same app
Cons
- 50 bps fee on tokens less than 24 hours old
- Solana only
- Perps up to 250x leverage carry high liquidation risk
Skip it if you want lower risk: 250x leverage leaves almost no room before liquidation.
dYdX runs perps on its own dYdX Chain. The entry tier pays 5.0 bps taker and 1.0 bps maker, and traders earn rebates as rewards. Its compliance page bars persons in the US and Canada.
- Chains
- dYdX Chain
- Platforms
- Web, API
- Custody
- Non-custodial
- Fees
- Under $1M 30-day volume: 5.0 bps taker, 1.0 bps maker
- US availability
- Not available: US and Canada persons prohibited
Pros
- Taker fee 5.0 bps and maker 1.0 bps at the entry tier
- Traders earn trading rebates as rewards
- Core dYdX Chain repositories are public
Cons
- Not available to persons in the United States or Canada
- Only one audit firm named on its security page
- Fee discounts need high volume or staked DYDX
Skip it if you are in the US or Canada: dYdX terms prohibit you from using it.
Flash Trade is a pool-to-peer perps exchange on Solana with up to 500x leverage and 0.02% open and close fees on majors. Audited by Offside Labs and Halborn.
- Chains
- Solana
- Platforms
- Web, SDK
- Custody
- Non-custodial
- Fees
- 0.02% open/close on majors; 0.1% on meme markets
- US availability
- Not available: US persons prohibited
Pros
- 0.02% open/close fee on SOL, BTC and ETH
- Audits by Offside Labs and Halborn
- 50% of protocol revenue goes to FAF holders
Cons
- US persons are prohibited by the terms of service
- Spread is charged on both entry and exit
- Meme markets cost 0.1% and ORE 0.5% per open or close
Skip it if you are a US person: its terms of service prohibit US users.
Not on this list
Drift: Drift's documentation now describes Velocity, a fork of Drift v2; we could not confirm which front end is current.
Vertex: we could not confirm it is still operating: DefiLlama shows almost no value locked on its markets.
Perpetual DEXs compared
Select a name to jump to its review.
| Name | Best for | US availability | Fees | Chains | Custody |
|---|
| Hyperliquid | Onchain order book perps | Not verified | Perps base tier: 0.045% taker, 0.015% maker | Hyperliquid L1 (HyperCore and HyperEVM) | Non-custodial |
|---|
| Lighter | Fee-free perps trading | Not verified | Standard: 0 maker / 0 taker; Premium: 0.004% maker / 0.028% taker | Not verified | Non-custodial |
|---|
| GMX | Arbitrum and Avalanche traders | Not verified | 0.04% or 0.06% of position size to open or close | Arbitrum, Avalanche, MegaETH | Non-custodial |
|---|
| Jupiter | Solana perps and swaps | Yes | 0 to 10 bps platform fee by pair; 50 bps on new tokens | Solana | Non-custodial |
|---|
| dYdX | Order book perps outside US | Not available: US and Canada persons prohibited | Under $1M 30-day volume: 5.0 bps taker, 1.0 bps maker | dYdX Chain | Non-custodial |
|---|
| Flash Trade | Solana pool perps, non-US | Not available: US persons prohibited | 0.02% open/close on majors; 0.1% on meme markets | Solana | Non-custodial |
|---|
“Not verified” means we could not confirm the value on the project’s own pages.
How we rank perpetual dexs
- 01Trading fees: the base maker and taker fee for a new account, from each exchange's own fee page.
- 02US access: whether the exchange's own terms bar US persons. A bar ranks lower; silence is shown as not verified.
- 03Execution model: onchain order book or liquidity pool with oracle prices.
- 04Audits: named audit firms or published reports on the exchange's own pages.
- 05Chains: where you can deposit and trade.
No project paid to be listed or ranked. Full rules: methodology.
How to choose
Check the terms before you deposit
dYdX bars persons in the US and Canada, and Flash Trade bars US persons. Using a VPN to get around a ban breaks those terms and can get funds frozen at the front end.
Compare taker fees on your real size
On a $10,000 position, a 0.045% taker fee on Hyperliquid costs $4.50 to open; a 0.06% GMX fee costs $6. Funding and borrowing fees come on top while the position is open.
Order book or pool
Hyperliquid, Lighter and dYdX match orders on a book, so limit orders can earn maker rates. GMX and Flash Trade fill against a pool at oracle prices, which avoids spread spikes but charges price impact on large trades.
Size leverage to survive a normal move
At 50x, a 2% move against you wipes out the margin. Most losses on perp DEXs come from liquidation, not fees.
Who should skip all of these
- Beginners who have not traded spot: perps add liquidation risk on top of price risk.
- US persons looking for a regulated venue: dYdX and Flash Trade bar you, and the others do not offer US regulatory protection. A CFTC-regulated exchange is the safer route.
- Long-term holders: funding payments make perps a poor way to hold for months.
Bottom line
Hyperliquid is the default pick for onchain perps, Lighter the cheapest, and GMX the pool-based option on Arbitrum.
If you are in the US, dYdX and Flash Trade are off the table under their own terms; check the others' current terms before depositing.
Educational content, not financial advice. Crypto assets are volatile; do your own research.
FAQ
Can US residents trade on perp DEXs?
±
dYdX's compliance page prohibits persons in the United States and Canada, and Flash Trade's terms prohibit US persons. We did not find a US bar on the pages we checked for Hyperliquid, Lighter, GMX and Jupiter; read each front end's current terms before you trade.
Which perp DEX has the lowest fees?
±
Lighter charges 0 maker and 0 taker fees on Standard accounts. Among paid tiers, Hyperliquid's base is 0.045% taker and 0.015% maker, and dYdX's entry tier is 5.0 bps taker and 1.0 bps maker.
What is a perp DEX?
±
A perpetual futures exchange where you trade leveraged contracts from your own wallet, with no expiry date. Positions stay open as long as margin covers losses and funding.
How much leverage do they offer?
±
GMX goes up to 100x, Jupiter up to 250x and Flash Trade up to 500x. Hyperliquid sets max leverage per asset.
Are my funds safe on a perp DEX?
±
You keep custody until you deposit, but deposited margin sits in smart contracts or a bridge. Check each exchange's audits; Hyperliquid's published audit covers its bridge contract.
What changed in this list
2026-09-26First version: 6 perp DEXs, fees and US terms checked on each exchange's own pages.