Variational vs dYdX
Same lines, side by side: fees, leverage, markets, KYC, custody and referral perks, from official pages and DefiLlama.
| Line | Variational | dYdX |
|---|---|---|
| 30-day volume | #P04 · $50,872.0MEdge | #P12 · $1,037.0M |
| Trading fees | 0% trading feesOmni charges no trading fee: the venue keeps the market-making spread instead. Deposits and withdrawals cost a flat $0.10 in USDC, and a forced liquidation is executed 0.5% away from the bid or ask.Edge | 0.050% taker · 0.010% makerSeven tiers on 30-day trailing volume across all markets: 5.0/1.0 bps below $1M, 4.5/1.0 above $1M, 4.0/0.5 above $5M, 3.5/0 above $25M, 3.0/0 above $50M, 2.5/-0.7 above $100M and 2.5/-1.1 above $200M, so the largest makers are paid. Staking DYDX adds a further discount on net positive fees; maker rebates are excluded from that discount. |
| New-user perk | 1 point for every 10 points earned | Referred users start at fee tier 3 instead of tier 1, worth up to $550 of fee savings |
| Max leverage | Not documented | up to 50×Edge |
| Perp markets | 500Edge | 78 |
| Identity check | No KYC | No KYC |
| Custody | Non-custodial, EVM wallet, gasless deposits | Non-custodial, wallet signature |
| Settles on | Arbitrum (Variational settlement pools) | dYdX Chain (Cosmos app-chain) |
| Collateral | USDC | USDC |
| Where it runs | Web | Web |
| Chains | EVMArbitrum | EVM · NobleEthereum, NobleEdge |
| Documented features | 4 of 10 | 4 of 10 |
| Order book | No | Yes |
| Cross margin | Yes | Yes |
| Spot trading | No | Not documented |
| Vaults / copy vaults | Yes | Yes |
| Copy trading | Not documented | Not documented |
| Stocks, gold or forex | Yes | No |
| Points program | Yes | No |
| API | Not documented | Yes |
| Mobile app | Not documented | Not documented |
| Telegram bot | No | Not documented |
Which one should you pick?
Pick Variational if
You want one cross-margined account for crypto, equities, commodities and forex with no visible trading fee.
A zero-fee venue built on RFQ rather than an order book: the platform earns the spread it quotes, so your real cost is the price you accept, not a line on a fee schedule.
omni.variational.io
Pick dYdX if
You publish content about perps: the 30% to 50% taker-fee share with instant USDC payouts is the best economics here.
The most generous affiliate programme of the series, and the clearest case of a venue that lost the volume war: 78 active markets and $1.04B of 30-day volume, against $204B for Hyperliquid. The order book, the fee ladder and the payout mechanics are fully documented.
dydx.trade
