There are dozens of crypto sign-up bonuses available for those willing to register for a new exchange. Often, they require making a small deposit.
In this article, we’ll compare the crypto promotions available from various exchanges, which you can use as a way to build your crypto portfolio or sell quickly for easy cash.
Our Criteria For Determining the Best Crypto Sign-Up Bonus Offers
Free money often seems too good to be true. What might look like a good bonus on a landing page sometimes isn’t such a good deal upon reading the fine print.
To determine the best free crypto promotional offers, we looked at the following factors:
- The amount of the bonus. We compared the amount earned to the minimum deposit required to qualify for the bonus.
- Whether the funds you get can be moved to an external wallet. For many reasons, it’s important to own your digital assets and to have the ability to transfer them to an external crypto wallet.
- The specific cryptocurrency of the bonus offer. While a bonus in the native token of a platform does have value, we prioritized free bitcoin, stablecoin and ethereum offers.
- The required holding period. Often you must hold, or in some cases stake, your assets for a certain period of time. We prioritized offers with shorter holding periods, which allow you to withdraw funds sooner.
The Best Crypto Sign-Up Bonus Offers
Here’s a quick rundown of the best crypto bonuses available right now.
| Platform | Bonus and Criteria to Earn |
| Gemini | $15 in BTC after $100 of trading activity within the first 30 days or up to 25% trading fee revenue share for higher volumes. |
| Coinbase | Win $3 to $200 after making a cryptocurrency purchase on Coinbase. |
| Okcoin | $50 in BTC after making a trade of $100 or more. |
| Crypto.com | Up to $50 in CRO for locking up CRO tokens on the exchange. |
| TradeStation | $50 in BTC after funding an account with $500. |
| M2 | Up to 260 USDT in trading fee coupons |
| Strike | $5 in USD after opening an account and making a $1 deposit. |
| eToro | $10 in cash after purchasing $100 worth of crypto. |
| Lolli | $5 in BTC after making a qualifying purchase. |
| iTrustCapital | $100 for opening a new IRA account and depositing at least $1,000. |
| Choice IRA | $50 in BTC upon opening an IRA (must fund with a minimum of $1). |
Note: Many of these offers are based on referral codes where we both earn the bonus. Others are affiliate links, where The Ways To Wealth has a formal partnership with the exchange and may earn a commission if you sign up.
#1. Gemini
| Bonus: | $15 in BTC after $100 of trading activity within the first 30 days or up to 25% trading fee revenue share for higher volumes. |
| Holding period: | None. |
For new users, Gemini offers two primary reward options.
The first is a flat $15 bonus in BTC, which you can earn after completing $100 of trading activity within your first 30 days.
The second option is more dynamic and is based on your trading volume. Specifically, if you trade between $10,000 and $100,000 within your first 30 days, you qualify for a 15% revenue share on your trading fees. For those who exceed $100,000 in trades, the “Legend” level kicks in, allowing you to earn back 25% of your trading fees.
For more details, refer to our detailed Gemini promo codes page for a complete list of current offers.
#2. Coinbase
| Bonus: | $5 in BTC on your first purchase, and a chance to win $3 to $200 in a Spin The Wheel Promo. |
| Holding period: | None |
Coinbase is a popular cryptocurrency exchange that facilitates the buying, selling, and storing of a variety of digital currencies.
Upon creating your account and making your first cryptocurrency purchase on Coinbase, you get a chance to participate in the Spin The Wheel promo.
In this promo, you could win rewards ranging from $3 to $200 in USD or Bitcoin. However, the distribution of rewards is such that 89% of participants will likely receive a reward between $3 – $5, while the remaining 11% can earn between $6 – $200.
These offers are available to new users in the U.S. (excluding Hawaii) who haven’t previously created a Coinbase account,
#3. Okcoin
| Bonus: | $50 in BTC after making a trade of $100 or more. |
| Holding period: | 180 days. |
Okcoin, which is currently in the process of rebranding to OKX, is a crypto exchange that offers 70 different assets.
The $50 BTC bonus is awarded instantly upon purchasing $100 or more of any crypto asset on the platform. Users must deposit their local currency to the platform.
Note that transfers of existing crypto assets into your Okcoin wallet do not qualify for the promotion. Also, keep in mind that you must hold your assets for 180 days before you’re allowed to withdraw it.
#4. Crypto.com
| Bonus: | Up to $50 in CRO for locking up CRO tokens on the exchange. |
| Holding period: | None |
Crypto.com offers a bonus of up to $50 in CRO (Crypto.com’s native token) when you sign up using a referral code (use code: swge3atdvd) or link and lock up CRO tokens on the exchange.
The bonus amount depends on the amount of CRO you lock up, with the following tiers:
- Lock up 1,000 CRO (approximately $126.30 USD based on the price of $0.1263 per CRO as of May 2, 2024): $10 bonus
- Lock up 5,000 CRO (approximately $631.50 USD based on the price of $0.1263 per CRO as of May 2, 2024): $50 bonus
To qualify for the bonus, you must complete Advanced KYC verification and lock up the required amount of CRO on the Crypto.com Exchange. Once you meet these requirements, the bonus is credited instantly.
#5. TradeStation
| Bonus: | $50 in BTC after funding an account with $500. (Must use promo code FNMZAGAN during the sign-up process.) |
| Holding period: | Bonus is paid in two installments: one after your first full month, and one after your second full month. |
TradeStation — a popular stock brokerage for active investors — now allows you to trade a limited number of cryptocurrencies. Their current sign-up promotion gives you $50 in Bitcoin.
It’s a solid low-fee crypto exchange with a comprehensive suite of tools for traders, and it offers the ability to withdraw your crypto to an external wallet.
This bonus is available to new TradeStation customers who fund their account with at least $500 within 45 days of signing up.
While this is TradeStation’s top Bitcoin bonus, there are also several TradeStation promotional offers that give you discounts on trading fees.
#6. M2
| Bonus: | Up to 260 USDT in trading fee coupons |
| Holding period: | None. |
M2, a newer exchange launched in October 2023 based out of Abu Dhabi, offers a generous bonus for new users.
By completing the following steps, you can earn up to 260 USDT in trading fee coupons:
- Sign up and verify your identity to unlock a 100 USDT trading fee coupon and access to all M2 benefits.
- Deposit at least $50 or equivalent to receive a 60 USDT trading fee coupon.
- Subscribe to an Earn Plan worth at least 50 USDT for a minimum of 15 days to get a 100 USDT trading fee coupon. An Earn Plan is a yield-offering product on the M2 Platform that allows users to deposit their crypto assets for a fixed or flexible duration in exchange for rewards.
#6. Strike
| Bonus: | $5 in USD after opening an account and making a $1 deposit |
| Holding period: | None. |
Strike is available as an iOS and Android app and as a Chrome browser extension.
Once you’ve signed up for the app via a referral link, which doesn’t mention the offer but will show once your signed up, you’ll have to verify your identity, which may include ID submission for U.S. residents (and may take a day or two) and link a bank account.
To earn the $5 bonus, you must make a deposit of at least $1 into your Strike account.
Strike then immediately admits all users into their “Give $5/Get $5” referral program, enabling you to earn $5 for every user registering an account and completing required activities to earn a bonus. You can earn up to $400 a year.
#7. eToro
| Bonus: | $10 in cash credited to your account balance after purchasing $100 worth of crypto. |
| Holding period: | The crypto you purchase must be held for 30 days to qualify for the bonus. |
While eToro is a well-known worldwide brokerage, they’re offering U.S. residents a $10 bonus after purchasing $100 worth of crypto. You can reach the $100 minimum with either a single $100 trade or with multiple trades that total $100 in value.
You’ll get the $10 reward within 30 days after reaching the minimum purchase amount. The crypto you buy must then be held for 30 days before it can be sold or transferred to your private wallet.
Visit eToro to get the bonus.
#8. Lolli
| Bonus: | $5 in BTC after making a qualifying purchase. |
| Holding period: | Reach the minimum withdrawal threshold of $15. |
Loli isn’t a crypto exchange but rather a crypto-back shopping portal. If you’re new to the concept, you can use a site like Loli to earn extra cash-back (in the form of crypto) on your online purchases.
To earn the $5 crypto bonus, open an account and make a qualifying purchase at any participating retailer, which includes Nike, Lowes, eBay and Priceline — as well as 1,000 other top brands.
The signup page does not explicitly mention the $5 bonus, but within the app, it states that both the referrer and referee receive $5 after the first qualifying purchase. This has been verified through testing and approval of the referral link.
Once your account balance reaches $15, you can transfer your bitcoin to an external wallet.
#9. iTrustCapital
| Bonus: | $250 gift card upon opening an IRA (must fund with a minimum of $1,000). |
| Holding period: | 45 days. |
iTrustCapital offers a $250 gift card for opening and funding a new crypto-enabled IRA account when you join through special offer links such as the one below. Read our iTrustCapital Review to learn more about the platform.
To earn the reward:
- Click on a qualified iTrustCapital offer link.
- Open a new IRA account on iTrustCapital’s platform. You must pass KYC and compliance checks.
- Fund your new IRA account with at least $1,000.
#10. Choice IRA
| Bonus: | $25 in BTC upon opening an IRA (must fund with a minimum of $1). |
| Holding period: | Retirement account withdrawal rules apply. |
Choice IRA is a self-directed IRA platform that makes it easy and affordable to hold crypto assets inside of your retirement account. You can learn more about the platform in our in-depth Choice IRA review.
Their current sign-up bonus rewards you with $25 in BTC for opening a self-directed IRA with Choice and depositing at least $1.
Keep in mind that this is a retirement account, which means:
- You must meet the qualifications for utilizing an IRA.
- You must hold the assets in your account (or you’ll pay a penalty).
Related Reading: There’s a lot to like about Choice; however, if you’re considering investing a more significant sum into an IRA, check our rankings of best crypto IRA accounts.
Frequently Asked Questions
No. Know Your Customer (also referred to as KYC) is a method of verifying your identity to protect crypto exchanges from fraud and money laundering, and to help prevent the financing of crime. All crypto exchanges operating within the United States require customers to go through a KYC process before opening an account.
The specific method varies by platform, but when testing out offers, the most common one I experienced was being required to upload a picture of the front and back of a government-issued photo ID.
Just as there are ways to get free money, there are plenty of ways to get free crypto. Sign-up bonuses are among the easiest methods. However, as we detail in our guide on how to get free bitcoin, other ways include Coinbase Learn opportunities, crypto-back credit cards, airdrops and more.
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Best Crypto Sign-Up Bonuses: Final Thoughts
Crypto sign-up bonuses are an ideal low-risk onramp to all things crypto. They allow you to get an immediate return on your money and get a sense of how an exchange works.
Offers do change constantly. We’ll refresh this page once a month. If you see an offer that’s out of date or are aware of a better offer, please leave a comment and let us know.
