Coinbase vs Coinbase Pro – Compare features, fees and security

When it comes to selecting a crypto exchange, different people value different features, such as low fees, which indicates how much of your potential earnings end up in your pocket instead of being lost in the process. In this article, we are going to make a comparison between Coinbase and Coinbase Pro and touch on all of their important features, so you can decide which one is the right pick for you.

Brief history and interface

Coinbase and Coinbase Pro are two different exchanges that belong to the same company. Coinbase was introduced first and, when it launched, its purpose was to attract as many potential traders as possible, a fact that makes complete sense.

Coinbase has a very simple interface and is a beginner friendly exchange which is easy to use and navigate. The newcomer can easily understand how it works and make their first transaction without feeling overwhelmed or stressed about how or what they should do next.

Coinbase Pro was formerly known as GDAX and it belonged to the same company as Coinbase. It was later renamed to Coinbase Pro and the main difference between the two is the audience they were meant to service. Coinbase is a beginner friendly exchange while Coinbase Pro is meant for experienced traders and provides the traditional interface of an exchange, which includes more complex charts like candlesticks and more complex order types.

Coinbase Pro is suitable for people who are looking for advanced analytics and more visual representations of how the markets are moving as well as people who trade larger volumes per day.   

General features and order types

Both of the exchanges come with their own mobile apps which essentially follow the structure of their websites. The Coinbase mobile app is more intuitive and friendly while the Coinbase Pro mobile app is a bit more stiff and focused on advanced traders.

It is worth mentioning that the Coinbase mobile app has a social media touch on it since it offers a news feed which shares news on crypto. It also offers some video tutorials to help you learn how it works. Normally, it offers some small amounts of crypto in compensation for watching those video tutorials but many users report that feature is “glitchy” and they got nothing in return. None of those features are available in Coinbase Pro.  

Having more choices is always better for advanced traders and that’s why Coinbase Pro offers more order types than Coinbase. As an addition to the general buy, sell and trade crypto for crypto orders, it offers a stop loss order and a limit order, which are not available in Coinbase. Coinbase only supports a buy, sell and trade order.

By the way, Coinbase supports around 105 cryptocurrencies while Coinbase Pro offers more variety and supports around 250 cryptocurrencies.

Both exchanges offer the same deposit and withdrawal options which include bank transfers, credit and debit cards, cryptocurrencies and Paypal.

Fee structure

When it comes down to fees, Coinbase has a complicated fee structure and they will charge you a fee for almost any move you make, including transactions, deposits and withdrawals. The fees applied are divided into two categories; one of them being a flat fee and the other one being a spread fee. It would be useful, if not necessary, to visit their official website and study the fees a bit because the percentage you are going to be charged will heavily depend on your country of residence, the amount you are trading and the payment method you are using.

Generally, Coinbase Pro is much cheaper than Coinbase and their fee structure is much simpler in any way you approach it. In Coinbase Pro, the only fee a user pays is a maker or taker fee and the amount of percentage you are charged depends on the trading volume you have registered in the exchange in the last thirty days. The more you trade and reach certain amounts of trading volume, the less fees you pay. In any case, the higher fee you pay as a maker or a taker starts from 0.50% on the transaction and gradually drops as your trading volume increases.  

Security and interchangeable accounts

Both of the exchanges are equipped with the same settings. They follow the same authentication process and are protected with the same encryption.

Whether you choose to trade in Coinbase or Coinbase Pro, it is mandatory to create an account with Coinbase first. From there, you can upgrade to Coinbase Pro. That means that you are going to be using the same e-mail address for both exchanges. There is some interchangeability between the two exchanges and you can use the same bank account for both of them or transfer funds back and forth between them. 

To make it even clearer, if you have an account with Coinbase, it means you also have an account with Coinbase Pro which is just waiting for you to configure its settings.

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