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One round trip on 2,000 USDT. What do fees cost?Taker + takermarket in, market outopen 1.00close 1.00= 2.00 USDT0.05% + 0.05%Maker + takerlimit in, market outopen 0.40close 1.00= 1.40 USDT0.02% + 0.05%Maker + makerlimit in, limit outopen 0.40close 0.40= 0.80 USDT0.02% + 0.02%
One round trip on 2,000 USDT.What do fees cost?Taker+ takermarket in,market outopen 1.00close 1.00= 2.00 USDT0.05% + 0.05%Maker+ takerlimit in,market outopen 0.40close 1.00= 1.40 USDT0.02% + 0.05%Maker+ makerlimit in,limit outopen 0.40close 0.40= 0.80 USDT0.02% + 0.02%

Wait in the book, pay 0.02%. Take from it, pay 0.05%.

Maker and taker fees

A maker order waits in the book and pays a lower fee. A taker order trades with the book at once and pays more.

Lesson 3 of 75 min3 parts

Updated . Cryptathon rules checked on .

A maker fee is paid by the order that waited in the book, and a taker fee by the order that traded with it at once. On Cryptathon they are 0.02% and 0.05% of the position size, not of your margin. On a 2,000 USDT position that is 0.40 USDT as the maker or 1 USDT as the taker.

By the end, you can

  1. 1Work out the maker and the taker fee on a trade
  2. 2Add up the fees for a full round trip
  3. 3Say why a limit order pays the maker fee, and what fees mean for break-even

1 of 3

Who is the maker and who is the taker?

Every trade has two sides. The order that waited in the book is the maker: it made a price that others can trade at. The order that came in and traded with it is the taker.

On Cryptathon the maker fee is 0.02% and the taker fee is 0.05%. Both are a share of the position size of the trade, not of your margin. So more leverage on the same margin means a bigger fee.

Worked example

One trade, two fees

You open a position with 200 USDT of margin at 10x. What is the fee if your order is the maker, and if it is the taker?

  1. 1
    Find the position sizeFees are charged on this, not on the margin.
    200 × 10 = 2,000 USDT
  2. 2
    Work out the maker feeFor an order that waited in the book.
    2,000 × 0.02% = 0.40 USDT
  3. 3
    Work out the taker feeFor an order that traded at once.
    2,000 × 0.05% = 1 USDT
  4. 4
    Compare themThe taker pays 2.5 times as much.
    1 ÷ 0.40 = 2.5

Answer0.40 USDT as the maker, 1 USDT as the taker.

Fee for one trade on a 2,000 USDT positionMaker0.02%0.40 USDTTaker0.05%1.00 USDT
Fee for one trade on a2,000 USDT positionMaker0.02%0.40 USDTTaker0.05%1.00 USDT
Figure 1 The fee for one trade on a 2,000 USDT position: 0.40 USDT for the maker at 0.02%, 1 USDT for the taker at 0.05%.
Your turn You open a 5,000 USDT position with a market order. What is the fee?
  1. 2.50 USDT

    Right. A market order is the taker: 5,000 × 0.05% = 2.50 USDT.

  2. 1 USDT

    That is the maker fee, 0.02%. A market order takes from the book.

  3. 25 USDT

    Check the rate: 0.05% is 0.0005, not 0.5%.

  4. 0.25 USDT

    That is 0.05% of 500. The fee uses the 5,000 USDT position.

Show the answer

A: 2.50 USDT. A market order is the taker: 5,000 × 0.05% = 2.50 USDT.

2 of 3

What does a round trip cost?

To open a position is one trade, and to close it is another. You pay a fee each time. Together they make a round trip.

The close fee uses the position size at the close price. When the price has moved, the close fee is a little different from the open fee. On Cryptathon fees come from your free balance, on top of the margin.

Worked example

A full round trip

You open a 2,000 USDT BTC long with a limit order. BTC rises 5%, and you close with a market order. What are the fees, and what is your profit after them?

  1. 1
    Fee to openThe limit order waited in the book, so it was the maker.
    2,000 × 0.02% = 0.40 USDT
  2. 2
    Size at the closeThe position is worth 5% more now.
    2,000 + 2,000 × 5% = 2,100 USDT
  3. 3
    Fee to closeThe market order took from the book, so it was the taker.
    2,100 × 0.05% = 1.05 USDT
  4. 4
    Add the two feesPaid from your free balance, on top of the margin.
    0.40 + 1.05 = 1.45 USDT
  5. 5
    Take them from the profitThe profit before fees is 100 USDT.
    2,000 × 5% − 1.45 = 98.55 USDT

Answer1.45 USDT in fees, so your profit after fees is 98.55 USDT.

Openlimit order, the maker2,000 × 0.02%= 0.40 USDTClosemarket order, the taker2,100 × 0.05%= 1.05 USDTBTC +5%Total fees: 0.40 + 1.05 = 1.45 USDTpaid from your free balance
Openlimit order, the maker2,000 × 0.02%= 0.40 USDTBTC +5%Closemarket order, the taker2,100 × 0.05%= 1.05 USDTTotal fees: 0.40 + 1.05= 1.45 USDTpaid from your free balance
Figure 2 One round trip. You open 2,000 USDT as the maker and pay 0.40 USDT. BTC rises 5%, and you close 2,100 USDT as the taker and pay 1.05 USDT.
Your turn You open a 1,000 USDT position and close it at the same price, both with market orders. What are the fees in total?
  1. 0.50 USDT

    That is only the fee to open. The close is a second trade with its own fee.

  2. 1 USDT

    Right. 1,000 × 0.05% = 0.50 USDT each way, and 0.50 × 2 = 1 USDT.

  3. 0.40 USDT

    That is a maker round trip, 0.20 USDT each way. Market orders are takers.

  4. 10 USDT

    Check the rate: 0.05% of 1,000 is 0.50, not 5.

Show the answer

B: 1 USDT. 1,000 × 0.05% = 0.50 USDT each way, and 0.50 × 2 = 1 USDT.

3 of 3

Why is a limit order a maker?

A maker adds an order to the book. A taker removes one. On Cryptathon a limit order waits in the book until it fills or you cancel it, and it never trades at once (post-only). So when a limit order fills, it was always the order that waited, and it pays the maker fee. A market order always takes, so it pays the taker fee.

Take-profit and stop-loss exits work like this on Cryptathon: each exit is a reduce-only stop-market order that fires when the mark price reaches your level. A stop-market order trades like a market order when it fires, so it pays the taker fee.

Fees also set how far the price must move before a trade makes money. That distance is the break-even move.

Worked example

How far must BTC rise to pay the fees?

You open and later close a 2,000 USDT BTC long. About how far must BTC rise to pay the fees, with market orders both ways, and with limit orders both ways?

  1. 1
    Taker fees for the round tripMarket orders both ways.
    2,000 × 0.05% × 2 = 2 USDT
  2. 2
    Put them as a share of the positionThe price must rise about this much to pay them.
    2 ÷ 2,000 = 0.1%
  3. 3
    Maker fees for the round tripLimit orders both ways.
    2,000 × 0.02% × 2 = 0.80 USDT
  4. 4
    Put them as a share of the positionLess than half the taker break-even.
    0.80 ÷ 2,000 = 0.04%

AnswerAbout 0.1% with market orders and about 0.04% with limit orders. The close fee grows a little as the price rises, so treat these as rules of thumb.

BTC rise from your entry0%+0.04%+0.08%+0.12%EntryMaker + maker ≈ +0.04%Maker + taker ≈ +0.07%Taker + taker ≈ +0.10%
BTC rise from your entry0%+0.04%+0.08%+0.12%EntryMaker + maker≈ +0.04%Maker + taker≈ +0.07%Taker + taker≈ +0.10%
Figure 3 How far BTC must rise from your entry to pay the round-trip fees: about 0.04% with two maker orders, 0.07% with a maker open and a taker close, 0.1% with two taker orders.
Your turn Why does a limit buy on Cryptathon always pay the maker fee when it fills?
  1. It never trades at once, so it is always the order that waited

    Right. It waits in the book, and the order that waited is the maker.

  2. Limit orders are smaller

    Size does not choose the fee. The fee depends on which order waited in the book.

  3. The maker fee is for buys and the taker fee is for sells

    Buys and sells can both be makers or takers.

  4. It pays the maker fee only when it fills in one piece

    Each part that fills waited in the book, so each part is a maker fill.

Show the answer

A: It never trades at once, so it is always the order that waited. It waits in the book, and the order that waited is the maker.

Common questions

Do you pay fees on a losing trade?

Yes. The fee is a share of the position size, not of your profit, so a trade pays it whether it wins or loses. Open and close a 1,000 USDT position with market orders and you pay 0.50 USDT each way, 1 USDT in total. If the trade loses 10 USDT, your result is an 11 USDT loss after fees.

How much does leverage add to the fees?

Fees grow with leverage, because the fee uses the position size. With 100 USDT of margin at 1x, the position is 100 USDT and the taker fee is 0.05 USDT each way. At 50x the position is 5,000 USDT and the taker fee is 2.50 USDT each way. A taker round trip then costs 5 USDT, which is 5% of your margin.

Does a liquidation pay a trading fee?

On Cryptathon there is no trading fee on the liquidation close. A liquidation still costs you: a 0.5% liquidation penalty is paid to the insurance fund. Every other close pays the normal trading fee. A close by hand with a market order pays the taker fee, and a take-profit or stop-loss pays the taker fee, because the exit trades as a market order.

Check yourself

Three questions on the whole lesson.

Question 1 of 3 Your stop-loss fires and closes a 3,000 USDT position. What fee does it pay?
  1. 0.60 USDT

    That is the maker fee. The stop-loss waited, but it fires as a stop-market order, which takes from the book.

  2. 1.50 USDT

    Right. It trades like a market order, so it pays the taker fee: 3,000 × 0.05% = 1.50 USDT.

  3. No fee

    A stop-loss close is a normal trade, so it pays a fee like any other order.

  4. 15 USDT

    Check the rate: 0.05% of 3,000 is 1.50, not 15.

Show the answer

B: 1.50 USDT. It trades like a market order, so it pays the taker fee: 3,000 × 0.05% = 1.50 USDT.

Question 2 of 3 Where does the trading fee come from on Cryptathon?
  1. Your free balance, on top of the margin

    Right. The fee is paid from your free balance, not from the margin of the position.

  2. Your margin, so the position gets smaller

    The margin stays as it is. The fee is paid on top of it.

  3. Your profit only, so a losing trade pays no fee

    A trade pays its fee whether it wins or loses.

  4. The other trader pays it

    Both sides pay their own fee: the maker fee or the taker fee.

Show the answer

A: Your free balance, on top of the margin. The fee is paid from your free balance, not from the margin of the position.

Question 3 of 3 You open a 4,000 USDT position with a limit order and close it at the same price with a market order. What are the fees in total?
  1. 1.60 USDT

    That is two maker fees. The close was a market order, which pays the taker fee.

  2. 4 USDT

    That is two taker fees. The open was a limit order, which pays the maker fee.

  3. 2 USDT

    That is only the close fee. Add the 0.80 USDT fee to open.

  4. 2.80 USDT

    Right. 4,000 × 0.02% = 0.80 USDT to open, plus 4,000 × 0.05% = 2 USDT to close.

Show the answer

D: 2.80 USDT. 4,000 × 0.02% = 0.80 USDT to open, plus 4,000 × 0.05% = 2 USDT to close.

What to remember

  1. Who is the maker and who is the taker?The fee is the position size times the rate: 0.02% for the maker, 0.05% for the taker.
  2. What does a round trip cost?A round trip pays two fees, and the close fee uses the size at the close.
  3. Why is a limit order a maker?The order that waited is the maker, and the order that came in is the taker.
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