Uniswap review

Updated September 28, 2026 · HodlCue Editorial Team · Facts checked September 26, 2026

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Our verdict

Uniswap suits buyers who want to hold their own keys and trade a long token list without an exchange account. A dex with maker fees of 0% and taker fees of 0.05% to 1% puts the whole cost on the trade itself, and the overall score is 9.

Key facts

Best for
Self-custody trading across 674 coins, where costs sit on each swap rather than on an account.
Taker fee
0.05% to 1%↗
Coins listed
674↗
Fiat deposit methods
Card, Bank↗
Maker fee
0%↗
Exchange type
Dex↗
Legal entity
Uniswap Labs↗
Founded
2018↗
Support channels
Help-centre↗
Features
Self-custody
Official website
uniswap.org

Facts checked September 26, 2026, 6 sources

Apps and profiles

Get the app
App Store

Pros and cons

Pros

  • Maker fees are 0%, so a swap is charged only through the taker fee of 0.05% to 1%.
  • The coin list of 674 clears the 62 median for the brands compared, which is where the long tail of tokens comes from.
  • The self custody setup keeps assets in the trader's own wallet, so there is no platform balance sitting behind the order.
  • Deposits run by card or bank transfer, card and bank, so an ordinary bank payment is enough to get going.

Cons

  • Support runs on a help centre alone, with no listed live chat or phone line for a trade that stalls.
  • The upper end of the taker fee, 0.05% to 1%, runs past the 0.25% mark most decentralised venues stay under.
  • A plain broker account can undercut a swap: ActivTrades charges 0% in taker fees, a flat figure against the 0.05% to 1% range here.
Uniswap

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Scored 9.1 / 10 by HodlCue.

Who it suits

  • People who already hold a wallet and want to keep control, given the self custody design.
  • Traders who want long-tail tokens rather than a short list of mainstream names, with 674 coins available.
  • Swappers who accept a fee on every trade and do not need a phone number, since help runs on a help centre.

Who should look elsewhere

  • Buyers who prefer a mainstream broker with a long list: Bitpanda lists from 650 coins.
  • Anyone who wants no taker charge at all: ActivTrades charges 0% in taker fees.

Fees

Trading on Uniswap is priced per swap rather than per account. A trade that takes liquidity from a pool pays a taker fee of 0.05% to 1%, and the rate comes from the pool itself, so the same charge applies whether the order is small or large. Adding liquidity is the other side of the book, and maker fees are 0%, so a provider pays nothing to hold a position in the pool. The split between them decides how much of an order goes to the protocol and how much stays with the pool. For readers weighing cost, the taker fee is the number that matters, and it lands on every swap.

What you can hold and do

Coverage is the other side of the pitch. The list runs to 674 coins, and it is a list of tokens that have a pool on the protocol rather than a fixed catalogue set by a company, so it reaches into long-tail names a centralised order book would not carry. A token appears once liquidity is provided for it, which means the count moves with activity instead of staying put. Getting money in runs through the fiat ramp, and deposits are by card or bank transfer, card and bank. From there the balance can be swapped across that same list with no exchange account standing in the middle.

The company behind it

Behind the protocol sits Uniswap Labs, the legal entity, founded in 2018. It works as a dex rather than a custodial exchange, so the company publishes the code and the documentation while the coins sit in the trader's wallet. Support matches that model: help runs through a help centre, so questions about a stuck swap, a token that will not load or a wallet that will not connect come back in writing. That suits readers comfortable with documentation and their own keys, since the written material takes the place a relationship manager would fill at a brokerage. Uniswap Labs is the counterparty behind the interface, not the holder of the coins.

How Uniswap compares

Frequently asked questions

What does a swap cost on Uniswap?+

A trade that takes liquidity pays a taker fee of 0.05% to 1%, and the rate comes from the pool rather than from an account tier. Adding liquidity is the other side of the trade, and maker fees are 0%, so a provider pays nothing to sit in the pool. The swapper pays, the provider does not, and the split between them decides how much of the order goes to the protocol.

Who actually holds the coins?+

Uniswap runs as a dex built around self custody, so assets sit in the wallet the trader controls rather than on a platform balance. The trade-off is that key management belongs to the trader, and the wallet you connect decides where coins end up. The protocol documentation and the help centre stand in for the support desk a brokerage would provide.

How do I get money in?+

Deposits are by card or bank transfer, card and bank. Once the balance sits in the wallet it can be swapped across the coin list with no exchange account in between, which is the practical difference between a dex and a centralised venue. The fiat step is the one part of the process that touches a card or a bank rather than a chain.

How many coins can I trade?+

The listed count is 674, above the 62 median for the brands compared here, and it counts tokens with a pool rather than entries in a fixed list. A token shows up when liquidity is provided for it, so the figure moves with activity and reaches well past the mainstream names.

How does that fee compare with a broker or a bank?+

ActivTrades charges 0% in taker fees, and bunq charges 0.25% to 1.99%, so a broker or a bank account can undercut a swap. Across the exchanges compared, the typical taker fee is 0.2%, which is roughly the kind of charge a swap carries here in exchange for holding the keys yourself.

What happens if a swap goes wrong?+

Help comes from a help centre, so answers arrive in writing rather than by phone or live chat. The Uniswap Labs team publishes the documentation behind the protocol, and the self custody design keeps coins in the trader's wallet while a transaction sits pending or stuck, so the funds are not held on a platform account.

How old is the platform and who runs it?+

The legal entity behind it is Uniswap Labs, founded in 2018. That age matters on a dex, because the fee structure, 0.05% to 1%, and the pool design have had time to settle rather than shift with each protocol update.

Is it suitable for a new crypto buyer?+

It suits buyers already comfortable with a wallet, since the self custody design puts key management on the trader and support runs on a help centre. The route is short for someone who knows the steps: fund by card and bank, then swap at 0.05% to 1% and hold the result in the same wallet.

Sources

Compiled from 6 source pages, checked September 26, 2026. We did not open an account.

Not confirmed yet: Regulators.

Uniswap

Uniswap

Self-custody trading across 674 coins, where costs sit on each swap rather than on an account.

9.1/10See alternatives