Lighter review
Trading is free by default on Lighter, and the venue anchors its state root on Ethereum with a documented escape hatch. The catch is that free matching is slower, and the paid Premium tier exists above it.
app.lighter.xyz
Perpetual futures are leveraged: a small move against you can liquidate your position. Only trade what you can afford to lose.
- Trading fees
- 0% maker · 0% takerStandard accounts, the default, pay no maker or taker fee on perps or spot, at the cost of slower matching (300ms taker latency). Premium accounts are opt-in and get faster matching: 0.0040% maker and 0.0280% taker with no LIT staked, reduced by staking LIT.
- New-user perk
- One week of Premium for free: the fees paid during that week are rebatedvia a referral link (not offered here yet)
- Max leverage
- up to 50×210 perp markets
- Identity check
- No KYC
- Custody
- Non-custodial: Ethereum contracts hold the state root, escape hatch available
- Settles on
- Lighter Core (ZK rollup anchored on Ethereum) · USDC
- Where it runs
- Web
- 30-day volume
- $52,570.0MDefiLlama protocol page, 28/09/2026. Reported 24h volume ($1.21B) is about 48% above the normalized figure ($821M), so a meaningful share of activity is not counted as organic.
Who it’s for
Pick it if
Fees are your main cost and you accept slightly slower fills to keep them at zero.
Skip it if
You need the fastest possible fills, or you trade from a mobile app.
Strengths / Limits
Strengths
- $52.6B of perp volume over 30 days with no maker or taker fee on the default account.
- Proofs and state are posted to Ethereum, and a priority queue on Ethereum guarantees exits even if the sequencer stops.
- 210 active perp markets, including RWA and pre-IPO markets, counted on the public order book API.
- Referral kickbacks of 10% to 30% of gross fees, and a week of Premium fees rebated for the referee.
Limits
- The 0% fee applies to the default account, which trades at 300ms taker latency; fast matching is a paid tier.
- Reported volume is about 48% above normalized volume, so the headline figure overstates organic activity.
- No mobile app, and the docs only list the web interface for unified trading accounts.
What it offers
- Order bookYes
- Cross marginYes
- Spot tradingYes
- Vaults / copy vaultsYes
- Copy tradingNot documented
- Stocks, gold or forexYes
- Points programYes
- APIYes
- Mobile appNot documented
- Telegram botNo
“Not documented” means we found no official page, not that the feature is missing.
How to start safely
- Open the official app
Type app.lighter.xyz yourself or use a bookmark: phishing copies of perp exchanges are common.
- Deposit a small amount first
Send a test deposit of the collateral the exchange accepts, on the chain it documents, before moving more.
- Set leverage and a stop before the order
Pick isolated margin for a new trade, keep leverage low, and place the stop-loss with the order, not after.
- Watch funding and liquidation price
Funding is paid regularly while a position is open, and the liquidation price moves closer as leverage rises.
Security record
No incident found in our sources. That is not a guarantee.
Official domains: lighter.xyz
Sources
Checked on 27 Sept 2026. Facts change quickly: re-check prices and fees in the app.
Lighter0% maker · 0% taker · app.lighter.xyz
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