Kraken review
Updated 11 September 2026 · compiled by the editorial team from the services' own pages
Kraken is an exchange with accounts. It scores 40/100 and sits at place 13 in the ranking. Below is what the service publishes about itself, with the page it was taken from.
What it offers
| Account needed | yes |
| Fixed rate | floating only |
| Networks | medium |
| Support | 24/7 chat |
| Rules stated up front | yes |
| Coins supported | 200+ |
| Working since | 2011 |
Checked on the service pages: https://support.kraken.com/ — 2026-09-11. Facts only: numbers that a service does not publish are not invented here.
How Kraken works
Kraken runs an order book: you deposit, trade against other users and withdraw. The rate can be better on liquid pairs and the path is longer — registration, verification, a balance held by the venue, and a withdrawal that is a separate operation with its own fee.
Support answers in chat around the clock — on a stuck transfer that is the difference between minutes and a day.
The service lists 200+ coins, so rare pairs are more likely to be there than on a short list, and it has been running since 2011 — 15 years, which covers at least two full market cycles.
Kraken next to Binance
The two sit 1 point apart in the table. Where they actually differ: support (24/7 chat against ticket); network coverage (medium against wide); the coin list (200+ against 350+); time on the market (since 2011 against 2017). Everything else the method scores is the same for both, which is why the gap is what it is and not larger.
Where the score comes from
| Criterion | Points | Why |
|---|---|---|
| No account needed | 1/30 | A swap that needs no sign-up leaves no balance to freeze. |
| Fixed rate available | 1/25 | A locked quote protects the payout when the network is slow. |
| Networks covered | 13/20 | Cheap networks (TRC-20, BEP-20) decide the final amount. |
| Support reachable | 15/15 | A stuck transfer is resolved by people, not by a status page. |
| Rules stated up front | 11/10 | AML and limits said before the transfer, not after. |
| Coins supported | 3/8 | A pair that is not listed cannot be swapped at any rate. |
| Years in operation | 5/6 | A service that survived two market cycles has a track record. |
Strong
- Rules and limits stated before the transfer
Weak
- An account and verification are required
- No fixed rate — the payout follows the market
Compare with SwapRadar Side by side
Who Kraken fits
Suits someone who is going to trade regularly and is fine with verification: an account brings order history, limits that grow and support that can see your case — at the cost of holding your funds while it does.
Does not fit if the amount matters and the network is busy: without a locked quote the payout follows the market until the transfer confirms.
Support here is 24/7 chat. On a stuck transfer that is the difference between an answer in minutes and an answer tomorrow, which is why it is scored.
Where to check Kraken yourself
Everything in the tables above comes from https://support.kraken.com/, read on 2026-09-11. Open it and look for «account», «verification» and «fixed rate» — those three answers are the bulk of the score. The rest is visible on the quote screen: start a swap and stop before sending, nothing leaves your wallet while you look.
The full five-minute routine is on how we check. If something here is out of date, the table is wrong and not the service — write and it is corrected.
Alternatives
If Kraken does not fit, see what else covers the same job, or check what to verify before sending.