Compare the best crypto exchanges in Austria for 2026: MiCA licences, SEPA deposits and withdrawals, fees, coins, futures and each exchange's main catch.
The Austria column is checked live against each exchange's restricted-country list.
The best crypto exchanges in Austria
Bitpanda is our top pick for most people in Austria, especially beginners and long-term investors who want crypto, stocks and ETFs in one app supervised by the Austrian regulator. Beyond that, what matters most is whether an exchange holds a MiCA licence, how easily you can move euros in and out by SEPA, what each trade costs, and whether you need futures or only spot buying.
A MiCA licence means an EU regulator supervises the company holding your money and the regulation’s investor protections apply to you. A licence issued in any EU country is valid in Austria, so a Dutch, Irish or Luxembourg licence counts the same as an Austrian one. Every exchange below holds one except Phemex, and its section explains that trade-off.
If you want crypto, stocks and ETFs in one app supervised at home, Bitpanda is the simplest choice in Austria. Its MiCA licence comes straight from the FMA through Bitpanda GmbH, so your account sits under the Austrian regulator. You can pay in by SEPA or bank transfer, card, Klarna, Skrill, Neteller or iDEAL, and cash out to your bank account or in crypto.
Alongside 575 coins you get 7,758 stocks, 2,638 ETFs and 149 commodities, plus crypto indices that rebalance themselves and savings plans for scheduled buying. EU customers get no futures, only margin of up to 10x on selected assets, so it suits building a portfolio more than active trading.
Buying in the standard app costs 1.49% for makers and takers, well above most rivals here, while the advanced Bitpanda Fusion interface uses volume-based fees from 0.25%, and ID verification comes before your first deposit. Bitpanda was co-founded in 2014 by Christian Trummer and is run from Vienna by CEO Eric Demuth. It doesn't publish proof of reserves, so you can't check for yourself that customer assets are fully backed.
Key points
Bitpanda is licensed under MiCA by the FMA in Austria through Bitpanda GmbH.
You can hold crypto, stocks, ETFs and commodities and fund the account by SEPA, card, Klarna, Skrill or Neteller.
Standard trades cost 1.49% for makers and takers, and there are no futures.
What we like
MiCA licence from the Austrian FMA
Crypto, stocks, ETFs and metals in one account
Many euro deposit options, including SEPA and Klarna
Kraken brings the widest regulated product range for Austrians who want both spot and futures in one account. Its European arm, Payward Europe Solutions Limited, holds a MiCA licence from the Central Bank of Ireland, and futures run through a CySEC-licensed company with leverage capped at 10x. Euros go in by SEPA, card, PayPal, Apple Pay or Google Pay and come back out by SEPA, card or PayPal.
EU customers can trade 679 coins on spot and 177 futures markets, with futures at 0.02% for makers and 0.05% for takers. USDT and eight other stablecoins are off limits in the EEA under MiCA, so you'll trade against euros or permitted stablecoins instead.
Verification is required, and Kraken publishes proof of reserves, which lets you check for yourself that customer holdings are backed. Launched in 2011 and headquartered in San Francisco, USA, it is run by CEO David Ripley, with Jesse Powell as co-founder. The weak spot is standard spot pricing of 0.4% for makers and 0.8% for takers, which makes frequent small trades noticeably dearer than on Bitvavo.
Key points
Kraken's EU business is MiCA-licensed by the Central Bank of Ireland, with futures through a CySEC-licensed company.
You can fund and withdraw euros by SEPA, card or PayPal.
Spot fees are higher than on Bitvavo, and USDT can't be traded in the EEA.
Coinbase's strongest card in Austria is cheap regulated futures: 0.05% for makers and takers across 131 markets, with leverage up to 10x. The crypto side runs through Coinbase Luxembourg S.A. under a MiCA licence from Luxembourg's CSSF, while futures go through a CySEC-licensed company.
You deposit by SEPA, card or PayPal and withdraw by SEPA, bank transfer or SWIFT, with 402 coins available on spot. There's no USDT or other non-MiCA stablecoin, and USDC rewards are switched off, which narrows your choices if you like to park money in stablecoins.
Spot fees start at 0.25% when your order adds liquidity and 0.5% when it fills right away, and identity checks include your tax residency and tax number. Coinbase was co-founded in 2012 by Brian Armstrong, who is still CEO, and works as a remote-first company. More than 6,000 customer accounts were compromised in 2021, which shows your login is the weak point, so set up strong two-factor authentication from day one.
Key points
Coinbase is MiCA-licensed by Luxembourg's CSSF, with futures through a CySEC-licensed company.
Futures cost 0.05% for makers and takers, and you can move euros by SEPA.
USDT isn't available and USDC rewards are off for EU customers.
Low euro trading costs are Bitvavo's main draw: a limit order that waits on the book costs 0.15%, buying at market price costs 0.25%, and nearly every market is priced in euros. It holds a MiCA licence from the Dutch AFM through Bitvavo B.V., which covers you in Austria.
Funding is easy because Bitvavo takes EPS alongside SEPA, card, PayPal, Apple Pay, Bancontact and iDEAL, though card and PayPal deposits carry a fee while SEPA is free. You can buy 427 coins and stake many of them for weekly payouts, but there are no futures or margin, so it's strictly for spot buying.
Withdrawals go out by SEPA or crypto, with a daily cap of €25,000 after the mandatory ID check, which can slow you down if you sell a large position at once. Bitvavo was set up in 2018 in Amsterdam and is led by co-founder and CEO Mark Nuvelstijn; it publishes proof of reserves. Its Earn staking and lending sit outside MiCA's scope, so the licence's protections don't cover what you put there.
Key points
Bitvavo is MiCA-licensed by the Dutch AFM through Bitvavo B.V.
You can deposit free by SEPA or pay with EPS, and withdraw by SEPA.
Spot trading is cheap, but there are no futures and withdrawals are capped daily.
What we like
Low spot fees of 0.15% for makers and 0.25% for takers
Bit2Me is a Spanish exchange with its own MiCA licence from the CNMV, held by Bitcoinforme S.L., so it serves customers in Austria under the same EU rules as the larger names. It lists 192 coins on spot, a smaller menu than Bitvavo or Kraken.
Trading is spot only, with no futures for EU customers, which makes it a place to buy and hold rather than trade with leverage. It also offers a crypto debit card and its own token, B2M, and keeps holdings in cold storage.
You need to verify your identity before trading. Bit2Me launched in 2014 and is based in Elche, Spain; it was founded by Leif Ferreira and Andrei Manuel and is run by co-CEOs Leif Ferreira and Koh Onozawa Martinez. There's no proof of reserves, which leaves you taking the company's word that customer coins are all there.
Key points
Bit2Me is MiCA-licensed by Spain's CNMV through Bitcoinforme S.L.
It offers spot trading in 192 coins and a crypto debit card.
It publishes no proof of reserves, so backing can't be checked independently.
One of the longest-running exchanges, Bitstamp now offers EU customers perpetual futures through a Slovenian MiFID-licensed company, with 20 markets and up to 10x leverage. Its crypto business for Austria runs through Bitstamp Europe S.A. under a MiCA licence from Luxembourg's CSSF.
SEPA deposits are free, and you can also pay by card, PayPal, Apple Pay or Google Pay, while SEPA withdrawals cost €3. Spot covers 118 coins, and USDT, DAI, PYUSD and WBTC can't be traded, so the choice is narrower than on Kraken or Coinbase.
Spot trading costs 0.3% on maker orders and 0.4% on taker orders, falling with volume, and ID checks are mandatory, with a first-level daily withdrawal limit of $50,000. Co-founded in 2011 by Nejc Kodrič, Bitstamp is based in Luxembourg, led by CEO Jean-Baptiste Graftieau and owned by Robinhood since June 2025. It lost about 19,000 BTC from its hot wallet to a phishing attack in 2015 and doesn't publish proof of reserves, which leaves you trusting its audits and licence rather than a check you can run yourself.
Key points
Bitstamp is MiCA-licensed by Luxembourg's CSSF, with EU perpetual futures through a Slovenian MiFID company.
SEPA deposits are free, though SEPA withdrawals carry a small fee.
Its coin list is shorter, and it has no proof of reserves.
Phemex has the biggest menu for active traders here, with 1,027 spot coins, futures on 816 coins, up to 100x leverage, copy trading and free trading bots. It holds no MiCA licence, though, so no EU regulator supervises the company holding your money and MiCA's investor protections don't apply to you in Austria.
Costs are low: spot trades cost 0.1% whichever side you're on, while futures run 0.01% on limit orders and 0.06% on market orders. You can deposit by SEPA, card, Apple Pay, Google Pay or several payment partners, and withdraw by bank transfer or crypto.
New users must pass ID verification, and Phemex publishes proof of reserves. It launched in 2019, is based in Singapore and is run by co-founder and CEO Jack Tao. In January 2025 attackers stole about $85 million from its hot wallets, so a large balance left on the exchange carries real risk; move what you aren't trading to your own wallet.
Key points
Phemex holds no MiCA licence, so no EU regulator oversees it.
It offers low spot and futures fees, SEPA and card deposits, and bank withdrawals.
A large hot wallet hack in January 2025 is its main red flag.
What we like
Low spot and futures fees
Copy trading and free bots
Huge choice of coins and futures
Proof of reserves published
SEPA and card deposits
What holds it back
No MiCA licence
Large hot wallet hack
Very high leverage raises loss risk
How we ranked these exchanges
Our editorial team selected, tested and ranked the best crypto exchanges for traders in Austria. We picked exchanges that accept users in Austria and then ordered them on the whole package rather than a single number. That order is our editorial judgment, while the CWR Score on each card rates that exchange on its own, so a lower-placed exchange can carry a higher score.
EU licensing: whether the exchange holds a MiCA licence and which regulator supervises it.
Euro funding and withdrawals: SEPA, EPS, cards, PayPal and other ways to move euros in and out.
Trading fees: what you pay on spot and, where offered, futures.
What you can trade: coins, futures, stocks, ETFs and earning products.
Security record: past hacks, proof of reserves and account protection.
Is crypto trading legal in Austria?
Yes, buying, holding and trading crypto is legal in Austria. The FMA (Financial Market Authority) is Austria’s authority under MiCA, the EU’s crypto rulebook. Before MiCA, crypto firms registered with the FMA, and that registration has been replaced by MiCA licensing. A MiCA licence from any EU country lets an exchange serve customers in Austria, while exchanges without one are not supervised by an EU regulator.
How is crypto taxed in Austria?
In Austria, crypto bought since March 2021 is taxed at a flat 27.5% when you sell it for euros or spend it, however long you held it, and there is no tax-free allowance. Swapping one crypto for another is not taxed. Coins bought before March 2021 stay under the old rules, which taxed a gain only if you sold within a year of buying.
Lending rewards are taxed when you receive them, while staking rewards and airdrops are taxed only when you sell them. If an Austrian exchange or broker withholds the 27.5% tax, nothing more is due; otherwise you declare the income on form E 1kv with your income tax return. Under the EU’s DAC8 rules, crypto providers record their customers’ transactions from 2026 and report them to tax authorities, with the first reports due in 2027.
This is a general overview, not tax advice. Tax rules change and depend on your situation, so check with the Austrian Tax Office (Finanzamt Österreich) or a tax adviser before you file.
Getting Bitcoin or Ethereum in Austria takes only a few steps once you’ve chosen where to trade.
Pick a MiCA-licensed exchange. The FMA (Financial Market Authority) is Austria’s authority under MiCA, and a MiCA licence from any EU country covers Austria, so Bitvavo’s Dutch licence counts just like Bitpanda’s Austrian one.
Open an account and verify your ID. Every exchange here asks you to confirm your identity before you trade, so have your passport or ID card ready.
Deposit euros by SEPA. A SEPA transfer from your Austrian bank account is usually the cheapest route; Bitvavo and Bitstamp charge nothing for SEPA deposits, and Bitvavo also takes EPS.
Buy on the spot market. Choose Bitcoin, Ethereum or another coin such as Solana or XRP, and use a limit order if you want the lower maker fee.
Keep your coins safe and your records tidy. Turn on two-factor authentication, move larger amounts to your own wallet, and download your trade history for your tax return.
Bottom line
For most people in Austria, Bitpanda is the easiest start: an FMA licence, plenty of euro deposit options and stocks and ETFs next to your crypto, at the price of high trading fees. Bitvavo is the cheaper pick for straightforward spot buying with free SEPA and EPS, while Kraken and Coinbase cover futures under EU rules. Bit2Me and Bitstamp are licensed alternatives with smaller coin lists, and Phemex offers the most tools but no MiCA licence, so only use it if you accept trading without EU supervision.
Questions
Frequently asked
Yes. Buying, holding and trading crypto is legal in Austria. The FMA is Austria's authority under MiCA, and any exchange with a MiCA licence from an EU country can serve you there.
Bitpanda is the simplest for beginners, with an easy app, an FMA licence and crypto, stocks and ETFs in one place. Its fees are high, so Bitvavo is a cheaper alternative if you only want crypto.
Yes. Bitpanda, Kraken, Coinbase, Bitvavo, Bitstamp and Phemex all accept SEPA deposits. Bitvavo and Bitstamp don't charge for them, and Bitvavo also accepts EPS.
Kraken, Coinbase and Bitstamp offer futures to EU customers through separately licensed companies, with leverage capped well below global levels. Phemex also offers futures but holds no MiCA licence. Bitpanda, Bitvavo and Bit2Me are spot only.
No. Phemex holds no MiCA licence, so no EU regulator supervises it and MiCA's investor protections don't apply to your account.
Often, yes. Gains on crypto bought since March 2021 are taxable when you sell it for euros or spend it, and you declare them yourself unless an Austrian exchange or broker has already withheld the tax. The section "How is crypto taxed in Austria?" above explains the rules and links to the official guidance.
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Accepts clients from Austria
