Where to Buy Shiba Inu (SHIB): Cryptocurrency Exchanges and Their Pitfalls

Ryoshi’s canine-themed social experiment has taken the world by storm over the last few years, leading many memecoin enthusiasts to ask: ‘Where to Buy Shiba Inu?’ 

From its humble launch on the Ethereum (ETH) blockchain with just $3k in liquidity to amassing over 1 Million holders, Shiba Inu coin (SHIB) has exploded into the limelight and captured the hearts of crypto traders from every corner of the market. 

Like Bitcoin (BTC) and Dogecoin (DOGE), SHIB has gone from strength to strength to become one of the world’s most popular cryptocurrencies.

In this guide, we’ll recap the top crypto exchanges listing SHIB and compare their fees and features to determine which trading platform is the best place to buy Shiba Inu.

What to Look for When Buying SHIB

Before diving into the list, let’s establish our criteria. What exactly makes one exchange better than its peers when it comes to trading SHIB?

• Low Exchange Fees – While trading fees might seem negligible at first glance, these micro-costs add up over time. High exchange fees can quickly erode your holdings, especially if you’re an active trader. Crypto exchanges with lower fees give you better value when buying SHIB.
• Liquidity and Volume – An exchange with deep liquidity ensures that large orders won’t cause volatility and drastic price fluctuations. On top of that, high trading volume indicates an active trading pair, leading to tighter spreads between buy and sell orders. This means you’re more likely to get your SHIB at your desired price.
• Simplicity – Buying Shiba Inu shouldn’t be a complicated process. The best exchanges have user-friendly interfaces and features that make trading digital currencies a breeze.
• Deposit Options – Flexibility is the name of the game. Converting your hard-earned fiat currency into crypto assets should be seamless. A good exchange will support various payment methods, whether you’re looking to onboard money from a bank account, a credit card, or even deposit funds from your crypto wallet.

Which Crypto Exchange Should I Use to Buy SHIB?

At this point, almost all major crypto exchanges have listed Shiba Inu. That being said, not all exchanges are created equal. Some have dramatically higher trading fees than others, which makes them much less favorable when buying Shiba Inu tokens. 

Without further ado, let’s see which exchange comes out on top!

1. Binance

Binance is undoubtedly the largest cryptocurrency exchange in the blockchain industry. If you’re wondering where to buy Shiba Inu, this black and yellow behemoth is the best place to start.

With a starting spot trading fee of just 0.1%, Binance is one of the industry’s most cost-effective platforms. On top of that, holding a certain amount of Binance’s native token, BNB, can further slash these fees, ensuring traders retain more of their hard-earned SHIB. Shiba Inu prices in Binance trading pairs enjoy tighter spreads than elsewhere.

Binance’s SHIB trading markets boast the deepest liquidity and highest volume. The latest data from CoinMarketCap shows that Binance’s SHIB/USDT spot trading pair witnesses more daily volume than the next 3 crypto exchanges combined.

Wrap these key benefits with a simple, user-friendly UI, and you have a recipe for success. Binance offers a good variety of payment methods and deposit options, making it easy to onboard your funds.

As a bonus, the Binance NFT marketplace aggregates listings from platforms across the non-fungible token space. While this has nothing to do with buying SHIB itself, it presents an opportunity for SHIB Army members to pick up Shiboshi NFTs.

Key Takeaways

• 0.1% Trading Fees
• Deepest liquidity and highest trading volume in the market
• User-friendly interface
• Mobile app

2. KuCoin

Another popular choice in the crypto market amongst Shiba Inu buyers is KuCoin. Kucoin made a name by offering a huge range of low-cap altcoins that larger, more established exchanges wouldn’t list. As you can imagine, Kucoin was one of the first major exchanges to list and support Shiba Inu.

Like Binance, KuCoin trading fees start as low as 0.1% on maker and taker fees. These fees get further reduced by increasing your trading volume or holding the KCS coin. 

KuCoin boasts a vibrant trading community, offering deep liquidity and high volume when trading SHIB. In fact, KuCoin’s spot trading volume for SHIB is second only to Binance itself. The platform ensures that SHIB traders have access to ample liquidity, facilitating smooth trades without significant price fluctuations.

Beginners will find its layout intuitive and easy to navigate, while seasoned traders can use the platform’s advanced tools and analytical charts. 

Finally, KuCoin offers plenty of onboarding methods for users looking to buy crypto for the first time, including credit/debit card payments and bank transfers.

Key Takeaways

• Trading fees from 0.1%
• Decent liquidity and volume, second only to Binance
• Beginner-friendly platform
• Mobile app

3. OKX

Next up, we have OKX. This digital asset exchange has grown rapidly due to its sleek interface and generous fee structure. Edging out Binance and Kucoin, maker fees on the platform start from just 0.08%, making it one of the best places to buy Shiba Inu.

While OKX’s leading fee structure is a definite plus, the exchange has less liquidity and trading volume than you would see on its rivals higher in this list. Users buying large amounts of tokens might not get the best SHIB price available.

Like its competitors, OKX offers a smooth and cohesive user experience. The platform is welcome and caters well to beginners. If you’re looking to buy Shiba Inu, OKX will point you in the right direction without any distractions. 

OKX’s versatility is evident in its wide array of deposit methods. Everything method you’d expect from a top-tier exchange is available, including sending crypto directly from your own personal wallet address.

A bonus is that OKX also lists and supports BONE trading, another altcoin in the Shiba Inu ecosystem.

Key Takeaways

• 0.08% Maker fees, edging out Binance and Kucoin
• Lower liquidity and volume than its rivals
• Simple user experience
• Mobile app

4. Coinbase

Sliding in at number four, Coinbase’s position on this list might surprise you. Often considered the ‘People’s Exchange,’ Coinbase is widely acknowledged as one of the industry’s most popular trading platforms.

At first glance, it’s easy to see why. Coinbase puts the customer experience before everything else. The platform’s user experience and simplicity are far ahead of its rivals, making it the perfect place for beginners to learn the ropes and purchase Shiba Inu. For example, Coinbase provides SHIB trading pairs in fiat currencies, including U.S. dollars, GBP, and EUR.

Coinbase has decent liquidity, though not on the same level as Binance and KuCoin. This means price spreads are wider, and traders may not get the best value on their orders. However, small traders are unlikely to be affected.

Where Coinbase falters is its high fees. Trading fees on the exchange start from 0.6%, dramatically higher than every other exchange. While this might not bother beginners buying SHIB for the first time, these higher fees add up over time.

Key Takeaways

• High trading fees, starting from 0.6% 
• Less liquidity and depth but a wider range of currency options
• Best-in-class user experience
• Mobile app

Honorable Mention – ShibaSwap

If you’re a true SHIB Army diehard, there’s only one place where you should be buying SHIB. Hosted on the Ethereum blockchain, ShibaSwap is the official decentralized exchange of the Shiba Inu ecosystem. It may not have anywhere near the same liquidity, volume, and simplicity as the exchanges listed above, but there are still plenty of reasons to use ShibaSwap.

• KYC-Free Trading – In the crypto space, privacy and anonymity are paramount. Like most DeFi platforms, ShibaSwap provides the luxury of KYC-free trading. This means traders can explore the SHIB market and ecosystem without the cumbersome and potentially invasive identity verification process. 
• Self-Custody – Being the true, verifiable owner of your digital assets is one of the foundational pillars of the cryptocurrency movement. When you trade on a centralized exchange, you don’t control the private keys to your crypto. If the exchange collapses, as we saw with FTX, you could lose everything. Holding funds in self-custody protects you from this threat. 
• Support the Shiba Inu Ecosystem – Trading on Shibaswap is a net positive for the Shiba Inu ecosystem. Fees collected by the platform help fund future developments within the Shiba Inu universe and burn SHIB tokens.

On the Flipside

• Shiba Inu is a meme coin. It’s highly possible that most people buying Shiba Inu aren’t bothered by nuances like trading fees and market liquidity.

Why this Matters

If you’re buying large amounts of SHIB over a long period, paying high trading fees will take a large cut out of your holdings. For example, buying $100,000 worth of SHIB on Coinbase could cost you as much as $600 USD in fees, while Binance would only charge $100.

FAQs