Coinbase Review

If you are a crypto enthusiast and looking for a reliable exchange where you can buy cryptocurrencies with your fiat money (USD, EUR, etc.), I think this Coinbase review might pique your interest.

With more than 100M users, there are a few other exchanges as trusted as Coinbase. I’ll cover all the basics of this platform, including what it is, how it works, as well as its advantages and disadvantages, so you'll understand why so many people choose this platform rather than other recommended exchanges.

So, let’s get started to find out whether it's the right exchange for you!

What is Coinbase?

Let's start this Coinbase review by understanding what kind of platform it is.

Coinbase is a digital currency broker exchange that was founded in San Francisco, California, in 2012. Since then, over $723 billion in crypto has been traded on the platform, and it holds over $275 billion​ in assets. Even just looking at these numbers, it wouldn't be wrong to say that it is considered one of the biggest crypto exchanges in the world!

On Coinbase, you can buy and trade more than 290 cryptocurrencies, including popular ones like Bitcoin and Ethereum. It's somewhat different from traditional cryptocurrency exchanges because it not only offers crypto-to-crypto transactions but also allows you to buy crypto with over 60 fiat currencies.

Coinbase can be used in many countries, including the US, to do transactions like sending, receiving, or storing funds. As of 2025, the platform is available in over 100 countries! However, features may vary due to local restrictions, so be sure to check if it applies to your region as well before you attempt to sign up.

Coinbase offers a range of products designed for different user needs, each with unique features and capabilities. All can be used independently of one another.

Table: Coinbase products and their main use cases

In this sense, Coinbase is highly beginner-friendly for those who are new to the crypto world, while also catering to seasoned traders with advanced features such as stop-limit orders, futures markets, perpetual contracts, and more.

Moreover, Coinbase offers a wallet feature, a crypto debit card, and NFT support. You can even track the price movements of over 18,000 assets, even if they aren't available for trading. So, it's fair to say that Coinbase functions as a complete crypto ecosystem rather than just an exchange.

Coinbase Review: PROS

Now that you’re familiar with what the platform has to offer, let’s highlight the bright spots of it in this Coinbase review.

Robust Security

There are a lot of exchanges on the market that aren’t as trustworthy as they claim to be, which is one of the reasons I am writing this Coinbase review — to show you how legitimate Coinbase is, among other things.

So, is Coinbase legit? Well, the truth is, Coinbase is as legit as it gets.

It was among the first four exchanges to have a license in NY under the pilot BitLicense program, and it has over 46 licenses to operate in just the US alone, and is licensed to legally operate in the other countries that make up its list. This ensures its practices are legal and that it handles your money with integrity.

Like many other centralized exchanges, Coinbase also adheres to a strict KYC (Know Your Customer) process and stays as compliant as possible with regulations. Meaning that Coinbase cannot be used anonymously. Due to the KYC rules, users must submit a government-issued piece of ID and, in some cases, address verification in order to use the platform's features.

When it comes to security, it is one of the most reliable exchanges with over a decade of experience in the industry. It implements several security measures to keep users' accounts safe from malicious activity.

That makes the platform very legitimate to use for honest users, and anyone looking to do anything shady or scammy won’t be able to get away with it on this exchange.

Moreover, Coinbase is fully reserved and doesn’t lend out your crypto like traditional banking systems, meaning your assets are truly yours and can be withdrawn anytime. On top of that, it keeps assets insured, so you can’t technically lose any of your money by hacking and theft!

The platform also places a strong emphasis on transparency, providing quarterly financial statements and audit results directly on the official Coinbase website.

Not only that, it has a help center where you can find answers to almost every question you may have. You cannot find the solution? No worries, Coinbase has you covered with its 24/7 customer support, and believe me, it's not a common practice among other exchanges.

As you can probably see, security is yet another positive aspect of this Coinbase review.

Easy-to-Use Interface

If you're new to crypto, figuring out how to start trading isn't always easy, especially if the platform isn’t user-friendly. Luckily, Coinbase has a really easy-to-use interface that makes it a great tool for those just beginning in the crypto industry.

Thanks to its clean design, which makes the platform straightforward to navigate, Coinbase is often used as an entry point into the crypto market. All the tools you need are right at your fingertips, even on the Advanced platform, so you can complete complex trading options easily.

Various Trusted Cryptos

Through Coinbase, you can purchase over 290 cryptocurrencies, including popular ones like Bitcoin, Litecoin, Ether, and Bitcoin Cash. In fact, these are the first four digital currencies offered by Coinbase. Also, the Advanced platform offers over 550 markets for those who want to differentiate their strategies.

You may think that it's not that much, and you're right. This is mainly because Coinbase only offers coins that are guaranteed currencies or commodities, and it does not open up to tokens that could potentially be securities or equities. It is very rare that they add new coins.

This is another reason why Coinbase is considered a trusted and secure platform.

Moreover, as I mentioned earlier in the first part of my Coinbase review, you can check the price movements of thousands of different cryptocurrencies. This can greatly enhance your understanding and ability to anticipate price movements, as it helps you develop pattern recognition skills^[1], even without performing technical analysis.

Fiat Currency Support

Unlike traditional cryptocurrency exchanges, Coinbase supports over 60 fiat currencies — including major ones like EUR, GBP, and USD —for purchasing more than 290 digital currencies it offers.

On top of that, Coinbase also offers a good variety of payment methods to help their customers get their fiat money onto the platform to buy crypto. These include bank transfers, debit/credit cards, PayPal, and even SEPA transfers for European citizens.

If you're new to crypto or simply someone who doesn't want to be involved with intricate transactions, Coinbase's easy buy & sell feature makes the process even more convenient. You simply click buy, choose the preferred crypto and payment method, and that's it! The process is so smooth, and it's yet another positive aspect this Coinbase review takes into account!

Crypto Debit Card

If you’re looking to spend crypto with your Coinbase Wallet, you can easily do so with the Coinbase Card — previously known as the Shift Card, allowing verified Coinbase users to spend their crypto directly. The card is available not only in the US but also in select EU countries and the UK.

It works as simply as any other Visa. When you transact with the card, the equivalent value of Bitcoin (or other supported crypto) will be debited from your online wallet.

On top of that, Coinbase Card offers optional crypto rewards. Users can choose from several different rewards within the platform, and the best part is — they don’t expire, giving you the flexibility to accumulate and use them whenever you like.

Upgrade to Coinbase Advanced for Free

If you're a frequent crypto buyer or seller and want to take your trading to the next level, you can easily switch to Coinbase Advanced, the platform’s built-in professional trading interface. Unlike the old Coinbase Pro (formerly GDAX), Coinbase Advanced is now fully integrated into the main Coinbase platform, so switching between standard and advanced views is seamless — just one click.

Through Coinbase Advanced, you can trade between cryptos. In fact, you will be able to find a bigger selection of cryptos to trade between compared to the basic version. It gives you access to over 550 spot trading pairs as well as derivatives, all with very low fees — in some cases, even zero.

The platform is powered by TradingView, allowing you to view detailed candlestick charts and customize your trading dashboard to match your preferences.

📚 Related Reading: TradingView Review

Coinbase Wallet

By now, you probably have an idea of the answer to the question, “Is Coinbase a wallet?” — but let’s take a closer look together.

Coinbase is primarily an exchange, but it does have a Wallet feature, yes. It's a self-custody wallet that doesn’t necessarily require you to use the Coinbase exchange. However, using both together is incredibly convenient, since they integrate seamlessly within the platform.

It gives you control of your keys and supports a wide range of assets — including Bitcoin, Ethereum, Solana, Dogecoin, and all Ethereum-compatible networks. That means you can store thousands of cryptocurrencies and even NFTs all in one place.

Even though Coinbase is one of the safest web wallets you can use, it's still not recommended to keep your assets on exchanges or in hot wallets. That’s why I definitely advise you to move your crypto from Coinbase once you’ve bought it, as exchange wallets are the least safe type of wallet.

That said, Coinbase Wallet is still quite secure because nearly 99% of user funds are stored in offline cold storage, which is completely inaccessible to hackers. Only 1% of assets on the platform are available online in the hot wallet system, and these assets are insured in the event of any losses. That way, if your money were to ever be stolen from Coinbase, you would get it back.

Pretty cool, right?

📚 Read Next: Coinbase Wallet Review

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Coinbase Review: CONS

So far in this Coinbase review, I’ve covered a lot of positive stuff about Coinbase. It’s important you know that there are also a few downsides for some people, though.

Account Limits

While Coinbase allows you to exchange fiat for cryptocurrency, it limits how much you can spend and how often you can do it.

According to their website support forum, this is “for security, regulatory compliance and fraud prevention”. The limits are based on several factors that include the payment method you used, how old your account is, your purchase history, and more. These limits are calculated automatically.

Fortunately, there are a few ways you can increase your account limits, like verifying your income with an official document.

Keep in mind that the limits are different for each account that you link to your Coinbase Wallet. For example, your purchase limit for your credit card will be different and separate from the purchase limit for your linked bank account.

Lack of Anonymity

Although it is one of the features that make Coinbase safe to use, for some, the lack of anonymity can be a problem. First, Coinbase is obligated to report its users’ information to the governing bodies that regulate it. This means that what you hold in crypto assets will officially be on record, and you will be expected to pay whatever crypto taxes your country’s laws require.

The purpose of cryptocurrency, for some, is that it is designed to be a decentralized and anonymous way of transacting wealth. However, Coinbase is a centralized platform, which defeats that opinion.

The other problem with this is that Coinbase also tracks and monitors how users spend their coins. Thus, it can also freeze your Coinbase Wallet if they discover you are doing questionable transactions, such as paying or receiving payment for adult services, gambling, selling illegal goods, or anything else that seems shady.

If Coinbase were decentralized, this would not be the case. They wouldn’t be able to freeze your account as they wouldn’t have control over it.

📚 Related Reading: Best No-KYC Exchanges

Coinbase Fees

Just like many other exchanges, Coinbase fees also depend on the maker-taker fee model. However, since the platform is built from essentially different products, it may seem a little confusing at first glance. So, I'll break it down into pieces in this part of my Coinbase review to make it clearer.

Coinbase transacts in many different currencies and offers a range of payment methods. Because of this, the service charges relatively high fees when compared to other exchanges.

Coinbase implements a tiered program, meaning you can lower the fees you pay by increasing your trading volume, which can help you to grow more cost-effective strategies.^[2] The tiers are calculated based on your 30-day trading volume in USD and exclude transactions of StablePairs, which are trading pairs that include a stablecoin to minimize price volatility.

Table: Coinbase exchange trading fees for maker and taker

That said, if you're trading StablePairs on Coinbase, you're in for some unique benefits. Makers enjoy zero trading fees, which is a rare perk in most markets. Taker fees, on the other hand, are still tiered based on your 30-day trading volume but are generally lower than standard rates, ranging from 0.10% to 0.45%.

When it comes to fiat deposits and withdrawals, most methods are free, but some may incur a fee of up to $25, depending on the chosen payment method. Here's a quick breakdown:

Table: Coinbase fiat deposit and withdrawal fees

As I mentioned earlier, if you subscribe to Coinbase One, you can benefit from zero trading fees, covering up to $10,000 in monthly volume, or even unlimited amounts if you upgrade to Coinbase Premium. This subscription also offers extras like 25% back on Advanced Trade spot fees, better staking rewards, and priority customer support.

The pricing of Coinbase One varies by region, so it's best to check your Coinbase account for the most accurate information, but it’s typically $29.99/month or $299.99/year, with free trials of 7 or 30 days depending on your location.

How to Sign Up on Coinbase?

Now that you've learned all about the platform in this Coinbase review, it's time to sign up and start your trading journey.

Who Should Use Coinbase?

Now that we’re nearing the end of this Coinbase review, it’s clear that the platform is versatile and built for more than just casual users. So, let’s take a look at who Coinbase is best suited for.

• Beginners

Coinbase is an excellent platform for beginner investors!

Its easy-to-learn interface will help you to learn the ropes of using online exchanges. Through it, you can easily transfer over to Coinbase Advanced to trade and transact with even more currencies than what is offered on Coinbase.

• Anyone Looking to Buy with Fiat

Coinbase is a broker exchange that allows you to buy crypto with your fiat currency, as mentioned throughout this Coinbase review. This makes it an excellent entry point into the crypto sector. In fact, a large portion of the capital that flows into the crypto industry has come through Coinbase from its users.

• Businesses and Investors

For small-scale businesses and individual investors looking to put their cash into crypto, Coinbase is an excellent choice. Even larger businesses and high-volume investors can benefit from the platform’s tiered fee structure, making it a strong option for managing bigger investments efficiently.

Conclusions

If you have made it this far into my Coinbase review, congratulations — you now know whether or not Coinbase is suitable for you! You know its pros, its cons, and what it is best used for.

The truth is, Coinbase is one of the best broker exchanges currently available on the net. It is highly trusted, well-insured, and really easy to learn and use for the beginning corner. And with tools like Coinbase Advanced, Coinbase Wallet, and the Coinbase Card, it also attracts more experienced users, too.

Despite its few downsides, it is by far the simplest way to buy into crypto. And remember, if you're holding your crypto long-term, it's always a good idea to move it off the exchange and into a hardware wallet for added security.

The content published on this website is not aimed to give any kind of financial, investment, trading, or any other form of advice. BitDegree.org does not endorse or suggest you to buy, sell or hold any kind of cryptocurrency. Before making financial investment decisions, do consult your financial advisor.

Scientific References

1. A. W. Lo, D. V. Repin: ‘The Psychophysiology of Real-Time Financial Risk Processing’;

2. N. Bundi, C.-L. Wei, K. Khashanah: ‘Optimal Trade Execution in Cryptocurrency Markets’.