Introduction to Perpetual DEXs and Centralized Exchanges
The average centralized cryptocurrency exchange has been operating for 8 years. The average Perp DEX? Just 2.5 years.
Yet according to new data from RankFi.com, these upstart decentralized platforms are already beating their established competitors on the metric that matters most to traders: fees.
A comprehensive analysis of 34 major centralized exchanges (CEXs) and 19 perpetual DEX platforms reveals that perp DEXs now charge 17-30% lower futures trading fees than CEXs, with some platforms offering zero-fee or even negative-fee trading models impossible on traditional exchanges.
Key Findings of the Analysis
- •Perp DEXs are now fee-competitive with centralized exchanges for the first time, offering 17-30% lower futures trading costs.
- •The average perp DEX is barely 2.5 years old, yet has achieved parity for various features with CEXs that have operated for 8+ years.
- •79% of perp DEXs launched since 2021, signaling rapid market growth.
- •The average CEX lists 706 cryptocurrencies and 228 futures markets; the average perp DEX offers 89 futures markets.
- •Spot trading fees on CEXs cluster tightly around 0.10%, indicating limited room for price-based competition.
Centralized Exchange Landscape
Supported Cryptocurrencies and Derivatives
The average centralized exchange lists 706 cryptocurrencies (median: 400), with leading platforms offering up to 3,800 assets while smaller exchanges list as few as 80.
For derivatives, CEXs offer an average of 228 futures markets (median: 190), with top platforms providing over 700 derivative products. Maximum leverage averages 155x, though two exchanges offer extreme 500x leverage for sophisticated traders.
CEX Fee Structures
Spot Trading: Centralized exchanges charge an average maker fee of 0.139% and taker fee of 0.178%, with median rates of 0.10% for both. This tight clustering around the 0.10% median indicates strong industry standardization.
Futures Trading: Derivatives trading offers significantly lower costs. Maker fees average just 0.0319% (median: 0.02%) and taker fees average 0.0719% (median: 0.06%). This represents an approximately 78% discount compared to spot trading fees, reflecting the high-volume, competitive nature of derivatives markets and exchanges' strategic focus on capturing leverage trading activity.
The narrow spread between mean and median values across all fee categories suggests a highly competitive and mature market where platforms compete primarily on liquidity, user experience, and product offerings rather than pricing alone.
Perpetual DEXs vs. Centralized Exchanges
Perp DEXs are now fee-competitive with centralized exchanges for the first time ever. Analysis of 19 perpetual decentralized exchanges reveals a market that is younger, more specialized, and significantly cheaper than centralized counterparts.
Product Offerings on Perp DEXs
Perp DEXs offer an average of 89 futures markets (median: 70), ranging from just 3 to 320 assets. This represents only 39% of what centralized exchanges offer, reflecting that DEXs prioritize the most liquid and popular trading pairs rather than comprehensive asset coverage.
Maximum leverage on perp DEXs averages 119x, nearly matching centralized exchanges. Remarkably, two leading DEX platforms offer 500x leverage, identical to the highest CEX offerings, demonstrating that decentralized platforms have achieved competitive parity on this critical metric despite being significantly younger.
Fee Advantages Driving Adoption
Perp DEXs deliver substantial cost savings that are reshaping trader preferences:
- •Maker fees: Average 0.0264% (median: 0.02%) compared to CEX's 0.0319%—a 17% reduction.
- •Taker fees: Average 0.0502% (median: 0.05%) versus CEX's 0.0719%—a 30% savings.
These fee advantages compound significantly for high-volume traders, potentially saving thousands of dollars annually compared to centralized platforms.
Zero-Fee and Negative-Fee Innovation
Three perp DEXs offer zero-fee trading on both maker and taker sides, completely eliminating transaction costs. Even more remarkably, one platform provides negative maker fees at -0.01%, effectively paying traders to provide liquidity—a business model that doesn't exist in centralized exchanges due to operational overhead and regulatory constraints.
This innovation demonstrates DeFi's experimental edge and willingness to subsidize liquidity provision in ways traditional finance cannot replicate.
Market Maturity and Growth Trajectory
The age disparity between CEXs and perp DEXs tells a compelling story about crypto market evolution.
The average centralized exchange has been operating for 8.03 years, with two platforms launching as early as 2011 (14 years ago). In contrast, the average perp DEX has operated for just 2.47 years (median: 2 years)—making CEXs more than three times older than their decentralized competitors.
An overwhelming 79% of perp DEXs launched in 2021 or later, with six platforms (32% of the total) entering the market in 2024-2025 alone. The oldest perp DEX, dYdX, launched in 2017 and has been operating for 8 years—still younger than the average CEX.
This rapid proliferation signals accelerating innovation in decentralized derivatives and growing trader comfort with non-custodial trading solutions.
Competitive Implications
The data reveals several critical competitive dynamics:
Fee Pressure on CEXs
With DEXs undercutting futures fees by 17-30%, centralized exchanges face mounting pressure to reduce costs or differentiate on other factors like customer service, fiat on-ramps, and regulatory compliance.
Leverage Parity Achieved
DEXs matching 500x leverage offerings eliminates a key CEX advantage, particularly important for professional traders who previously required centralized platforms for maximum capital efficiency.
Innovation Leadership in DeFi
Zero-fee and negative-fee models showcase decentralized platforms' ability to experiment with novel business models, using token incentives and protocol revenues to subsidize trading activity.
Conclusion
Despite being less than one-third the age of centralized exchanges, perpetual DEXs have achieved fee structures 17-30% cheaper than established platforms, leverage options matching the highest CEX offerings, and innovative business models that centralized platforms cannot replicate.
The rapid growth—with 79% of perp DEX platforms launching in just the past five years—signals an accelerating shift toward decentralized derivatives trading. As regulatory frameworks mature and user experience improves, the fee advantages and innovative models pioneered by perp DEXs may drive further market share migration from centralized platforms.
For traders, the choice increasingly comes down to priorities: CEXs offer broader asset selection, fiat integration, and regulatory clarity, while perp DEXs provide superior fee structures, non-custodial security, and cutting-edge trading innovations.
Methodology
This analysis examined 34 centralized cryptocurrency exchanges representing the major CEX landscape, with data available at https://rankfi.com/crypto-exchanges/. The perp DEX analysis covered 19 platforms representing the major perpetual DEX landscape, with data available at https://rankfi.com/perpetual-dexs/.
Metrics analyzed include number of listed cryptocurrencies, futures trading pairs, maximum leverage, spot and futures trading fees (maker and taker), and founding year for each platform. Statistical analysis included median, minimum, and maximum calculations across all metrics.
About RankFi
RankFi.com is a data-driven crypto exchange comparison platform founded in 2020. The site tracks fees, spreads, security metrics, leverage, asset availability, and dozens of other factors to help users find the right platform—and avoid hidden costs that reduce long-term returns.