What is spot market?

The market for buying an asset itself for immediate delivery, as opposed to a contract that tracks its price.

Spot buying leaves you with coins you can withdraw, while derivatives give exposure that can be liquidated. Many exchanges run both, and their availability by country often differs; see on chain off chain.

For most people reading about where to buy crypto, spot is the only market that matters. It is worth naming anyway, because exchanges present spot and derivatives side by side and the difference in what you end up holding is total.

How it works

A spot trade matches a buyer and a seller on the order book and moves the asset itself. Once it settles you own coins, and subject to the venue's withdrawal rules you can move them to your own wallet. There is no expiry, no funding payment, no margin call, and no way for the position to be closed against your wishes.

A derivative does none of that. A perpetual contract tracks the price and settles in cash or stablecoin, pays or charges funding periodically, and can be liquidated if the collateral behind it falls short. You never hold the asset and cannot withdraw it, because there is nothing to withdraw.

The distinction matters for availability as much as for mechanics. Derivatives are licensed separately in most jurisdictions and are restricted or barred for retail users in several, so a venue that lets you trade spot from your country may not let you trade perpetuals from it. RampAtlas tracks spot availability, which is what a buyer actually needs.

Three practical differences follow. Spot has no ongoing cost of carry, only the fees on the way in and out. Spot positions cannot be liquidated. And spot is the only route to self-custody.

Example

Illustrative figures. You put $500 into a spot buy at a 0.40% taker fee, paying $2.00, and end up holding coins worth $498 that you can withdraw. Alternatively you put $500 of collateral behind a perpetual position with 2x leverage, giving $1,000 of exposure. Your gains and losses now move twice as fast, funding is charged or paid periodically, and a price fall of enough magnitude closes the position and takes the collateral. Both start with $500. Only one leaves you with an asset.

Why it matters when you buy

Every ranking on this site is built on spot availability, spot fees, and measured spot liquidity. The fee comparison covers the trading and deposit costs of a spot purchase, the liquidity pages show what a market order actually pays on each venue, and the buy pages show which venues will sell you an asset where you live.

Related terms

• derivatives — the contracts spot is contrasted with
• perpetuals — the most common crypto derivative
• order book — how a spot trade is matched
• leverage — what spot deliberately lacks
• liquidation — the risk spot does not carry
• withdrawal limit — what governs taking coins out

Questions

Can I withdraw coins bought on a derivatives market?

No. A derivative is a contract on the price, so there is no asset to move. Only a spot purchase gives you something you can send to your own wallet.

Do spot and derivatives have the same fees?

No, and they are usually on separate schedules. Derivatives also carry funding payments, which are a recurring cost that spot does not have. See funding rate.

Is spot available everywhere derivatives are?

The reverse is more common. Derivatives face additional licensing requirements in many jurisdictions, so venues frequently offer spot to a wider set of countries. See the jurisdiction pages.