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dYdX logo

dYdX

Decentralized perpetual trading

As of 30 August 2026, dYdX is free to use. dYdX is a decentralized exchange for perpetual trading, offering non-custodial derivatives trading with up to 20x leverage. Softwr lists it under Crypto. dYdX is made by dYdX Foundation, launched in 2017, available on Web.

Overview

What dYdX does

dYdX is a decentralized exchange for perpetual trading, offering non-custodial derivatives trading with up to 20x leverage. It operates on its own blockchain with zero gas fees for trading.

What people use it for

  • Defi
  • Dex
  • Derivatives

The honest half

Where it falls short

Concrete and checkable, so you can decide whether any of them matter to you. This is the half of a review a vendor will not write about dYdX.

  • Newer platform with smaller liquidity pools compared to centralized exchanges
  • Requires cryptocurrency wallet for trading, adding friction for new users
  • Limited fiat on/off ramps compared to centralized alternatives like Coinbase

Cross-shopped

What people choose instead of dYdX

Each pairing was judged by two reviewers asking whether a buyer would genuinely weigh the two against each other. The ones that failed were deleted rather than published.

  • dYdX logo
    dYdX
    vs
    Uniswap logo
    Uniswap

    Uniswap: Leading decentralized exchange offering liquidity and token swaps with DAO governance.

  • dYdX logo
    dYdX
    vs
    Aave logo
    Aave

    Aave: DeFi lending protocol supporting flash loans and similar decentralized trading functionality.

  • dYdX logo
    dYdX
    vs
    Curve Finance logo
    Curve Finance

    Curve Finance: Specialized DEX focused on stablecoin trading with efficient liquidity pools.

Pricing

What dYdX costs

Taken from the vendor's own pricing page. Prices move, so check before you buy.

Free

Free

  • Perpetual trading
  • Governance
  • Staking

Capabilities

Features

  • Perpetual Contracts

  • Cross Margin

  • Portfolio Margin

  • Governance

  • DYDX Token

    Integration with DYDX Token

  • Cosmos SDK

    Integration with Cosmos SDK

  • Web support

    Available on web

Answered, with sources

Questions people ask

Each answer names the page it came from, so you can check it rather than take our word for it.

What type of trading does dYdX specialize in?

dYdX is a decentralized platform for perpetuals and margin trading, allowing professional traders to trade crypto derivatives without expiry dates. Built on ZK-rollup technology, it enables trading 143+ cryptocurrencies with leverage up to 50x on selected contracts.

Source
How does dYdX maintain decentralization?

dYdX governance is fully community-driven, meaning token holders decide on protocol upgrades, fee structures, and risk parameters. The platform distributes 100% of its trading fees to stakers.

Source
What are dYdX's gas fee advantages?

Built on StarkWare's ZK-rollup technology, dYdX enables trading with near-zero gas fees while users maintain full custody of their assets.

Source

Behind it

Who makes dYdX

Company
dYdX Foundation
Based in
Decentralized
Founders
Antonio Juliano

Timeline

dYdX over time

  1. Milestone2022-06-01

    dYdX announces migration to its own dedicated Cosmos chain

    Source
  2. Funding2021-06-01$65m

    Series C round of $65 million led by Paradigm

    Source
  3. Funding2021-01-01$10m

    Series B round of $10 million led by Three Arrows Capital and DeFiance Capital

    Source
  4. Funding2019-01-01$20m

    Raises $20 million from Andreessen Horowitz and Polychain Capital

    Source
  5. Launch2019-01-01

    dYdX formally launches with margin trading capabilities

    Source
  6. Founded2017-07-01

    dYdX founded by Antonio Juliano

    Source
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Softwr does not host reviews and shows no star rating for dYdX, because a rating we did not collect is not ours to publish. What is here is the pricing and platform detail from the vendor’s own pages, limitations we could state concretely, and alternatives a reviewer confirmed people weigh against it. Tell us if any of it is wrong.

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