Uphold vs Coinbase: Which Is Better? Review

Uphold, and Coinbase supports users in the United States and are among the most popular platforms in the United States. Both are available in over 100 countries around the world.

On Coinbase, you can exclusively trade cryptocurrencies while you can trade national currencies, stocks, cryptos, and commodities on Uphold. Both are targeting different kinds of traders and investors.

I had my first contact with Bitcoin in 2013. I have been using different exchange platforms for many years now. In this review, I compare the platforms Uphold and Coinbase, which I have already used for many years.

Maybe you heard of both crypto platforms, and now you wonder which one would be a better place to put your money. We have you covered and did a deep dive and review of both exchanges.

We compare

• the companies behind
• features
• offered assets
• security features
• fees
• ease of use
• availability
• and their mobile applications

Are you ready? Then let's dive in!

At a Glance

At a Glance

What is Uphold?

Uphold was launched in 2015 in the United States. It is more an e-currency wallet (like Paypal) than a cryptocurrency exchange. You also buy and sell cryptocurrencies, stocks, and commodities like silver and gold. The offer highly depends on the region you are in.

Uphold Inc.'s CEO, JP Theriot, is a crypto entrepreneur with a solid financial background.

Before he founded Uphold, he was vice chairman and co-founder of the universal protocol alliance for five years. He led the operation and helped millions of people get onto cryptocurrencies. ‍

Today (11 Feb 2022), the total transaction volume is around $28 Billion.

Uphold has partnered up with UTRUST, Ledger, Brave Software, BitGive etc.

They also acquired JNK Securities, Scytale, Bitnet.

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What is Coinbase?

Coinbase was founded in 2012 in the United States.

Coinbase has around 73 million users in over 100 different countries. Coinbase is an exchange for cryptocurrencies. You can buy and trade bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies with fiat USD EUR etc., with a Coinbase visa credit card or from your bank account. Coinbase is one of the most popular places to buy and sell.

Brian Armstrong has been the CEO of Coinbase and President of the company since its founding in 2012.

Armstrong was on Forbes's "World's 100 Most Powerful People." and is on Forbe's "Billionaires under 30." Before, he was the founder of YCombinato

Coinbase parntnered with with Civic, Ripple, Bittrex.

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Coinbase vs Uphold: Assets and trading volume

Uphold vs Coinbase: Features

Staking Cryptocurrencies

Both Platforms allow users to stake their digital assets. Staking is the process that Proof of Stake (PoS) cryptocurrencies offer to validate transactions. For taking part in this process users receive a staking reward.

Crypto backed loans money

Coinbase offers users to borrow up to $1.000.000 at an 8% APR. There is no credit check required to do so. You need to have Bitcoin as collateral in your account and can borrow up to 40% of the value of your Bitcoin holding.

Uphold partnered with SALT to provide crypto-backed loans. You can put your Bitcoin, XRP, Litecon, and other Cryptos as collateral for up to one year and borrow money against it. There are no credit checks done.

Buying and Trading Cryptocurrency

Coinbase has a Pro version of their exchange that is attractive for advanced crypto investors. They offer a membership tier with a more attractive fee structure and a professional crypto trading user interface. ‍ The Uphold trading interface is quite simple and suitable for beginners. ‍ For Uphold, there are no fees for the users to buy digital currency. Coinbase charges a fee for credit card transactions. ‍ Both accept ACH transfers from a bank account. With an ACH transfer, you can only buy Bitcoin at Coinbase.

Trading different Assets

Uphold is more a multi-asset wallet than a cryptocurrency exchange. You can trade many different Fiat Currencies, Cryptocurrencies, precious metals, and even stocks.

From the application, you can send and receive money in any form incl. Cryptocurrencies.

Coinbase is strictly a crypto exchange.

Uphold's Autopilot

With Uphold, you can schedule regular transactions. This makes it possible to buy or sell Bitcoin, for example, weekly and profit from the Dollar Cost Average Investing strategy. This feature is good if you want to invest but do not really want or can read charts, just put some money aside systematically. Following this technique helps to reduce the risks of price volatility in the cryptomarket.

Upholds BRAVE browser integration

You can get your BAT Token rewards directly to your Uphold account if you connect your accounts.

Crypto Debit Cards

Coinbase and Uphold are offering Crypto Debit Cards for their users.

Uphold offers a physical Mastercard that is accepted in 50 Million shops worldwide. On every USD you spend, you get 1% cashback, and on every crypto purchase, you will get 2 %.

The Coinbase card comes with no annual fee or signup fee. You can get up to 4% cashback using this card. At the moment, there is only a waiting list open to receive the card. You can only get the card if you are based in the U.S., except for Hawaii.

Uphold vs Coinbase: Cryptos and other assets

Uphold supports four precious metals (gold, silver, platinum, and palladium) and two carbon credit tokens, Universal Carbon (UPCO2) and Bitcoin Zero (BTC0). Some Uphold users can purchase equities in about 50 companies, like Amazon, Meta, Microsoft, and Apple. You also can buy 27 national currencies and 76 cryptocurrencies. ‍ When you use Coinbase, you can buy bitcoin from your account balance or straight from it with bank transfer, debit card, or PayPal.Today, Coinbase offers 157 different cryptocurrencies and 441 trading pairs. ‍ If you want to trade cryptocurrencies, only Coinbase Pro is the better choice; if you're going to diversify your portfolio, Uphold is better.

Uphold vs. Coinbase: Security

Crypto exchanges and banks are under attack every day. Uphold, and Coinbase both have solid security measures in place.

Coinbase and Uphold implement know your customer laws (KYC) and account verification. It exceeds the strict U.S. and international laws regarding that. You do not need to complete your KYC verification process on Uphold if you want to deposit or trade money, only when you withdraw your funds.

Coinbase and Uphold offer 2-Factor-Authentication (2F) as a security feature. Nothing special; this should be part of the minimum security measures of every serious financial service.

Coinbase got its trading license from the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) and is audited by Deloitte.

Uphold is licensed by the Tennessee Department of Financial Institutions and uses FinCEN for the audit.

Coinsbase holds 98% of crypto funds in cold storage, while Uphold holds 90 % offline. Coinbase keeps drive and paper backups in secure vaults around the world. Uphold is transparent with its reserves.

There is a bug bounty program at Coinbase to maintain an insurance policy against theft or fraud. Uphold has an insurance policy against security breaches for currencies held on the exchange.

Coinbase vs Uphold security measures

Uphold vs. Coinbase: Fees

Fees are the enemy of every trader; let's have a closer look at them.

The Coinbase fees are straightforward and transparent.

If you get serious with trading, Coinbase Pro is the better option for you. Coinbase Pro is the premium version with a maximum 0.50 percent spread and offers more sophisticated trading tools to its users. ‍ Uphold is not as transparent with their fees and is "hiding" them in the asset price and the spreads. Uphold charges network fees, which are charged when you withdraw to external crypto wallets.

Coinbase vs Uphold: Transaction Fees, Trading commissions comparison

Uphold vs. Coinbase: Ease of Use

Coinbase is the top choice for U.S.-based cryptocurrency newbies looking to buy, sell and trade cryptocurrencies. It is super easy to use, even if you only have a basic knowledge of computers and cryptos.

Coinbase offers a powerful and easy-to-use mobile application for the Coinbase Hotwallet and the Coinbase Pro trading application.

Coinbase also offers a visa debit card that can be used where Visa is accepted. The balance of your USDC is used for the payments.

The Uphold wallet also has a very beginner-friendly application. Due to the possibility of trading different digital assets, it can be more complicated for beginners to trade. The mobile application is fully functional and easy to use.

Both exchanges offer customer service through email or Twitter.

Uphold vs. Coinbase: Mobile Trading

Coinbase Home. Image credit: Coinbase.com

Both platforms offer excellent mobile apps with similar functions to desktop computers.

Coinbase offers two separate apps for the trading platform and the specialized digital wallet. Uphold offers one mobile app.

Uphold Appliation. Image Credit: Uphold.com

Uphold vs Coinbase: Access /Availability

There are geographical and other restrictions for the use of both platforms.

Coinbase supports a more significant number of countries around the world.

Uphold has options to join a wide range of countries worldwide.

Uphold and Coinbase is available to U.S.-based and international users. There is one exception in the U.S. Hawaii is excluded from both platforms.

There are also other restrictions besides the geographical ones, Coinbase for example, restricted the purchase of Ripple (XRP) for U.S. users to the ongoing litigations.

Due to U.S. law Uphold is not offering their services in the following countries and regions: Anguilla, Antarctica, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Barbados, Belarus, Bouvet Island, Cambodia, Central African Republic, Chad, Cuba, Eritrea, Fiji, French Southern Territories, Guinea, Heard and McDonald Islands, Iran, Lebanon, Liberia, Mali, Mauritius, Montenegro, North Korea, Palau, Samoa, Sudan, Syria, S. Minor Outlying Islands, Vanuatu.

There is also a temporary list of countries where Uphold can not offer their services. Please check the Uphold site if the service is available in your country.

Coinbase is available in over 100 counties. You can see the complete list here.

Final Verdict

Uphold, and Coinbase is great for investors just starting. Coinbase is a crypto platform offering a pro version with advanced trading tools for more advanced crypto-traders.

If you are into cryptocurrency trading, Coinbase has been the better choice for most users in the United States. You can switch to Coinbase Pro if you are a more active trader and enjoy the lower trading fees and spread.

Uphold is catching up with their offer and adding more and more coins. The Uphold wallet is the better choice if you like to diversify and hold different foreign currencies, commodities, and stocks.

I am using both platforms.

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Frequently Asked Questions

What Are Uphold and Coinbase?

Coinbase is a cryptocurrency exchange that lets users buy, sell, trade cryptocurrencies. Those digital assets include Bitcoin, Ethereum, Dogecoin, and others. At Coinbase, trades are limited to cryptocurrency. Uphold is a multicurrency wallet or digital money platform that allows you to do financial investments like buying cryptocurrencies, stocks, commodities, and other fiat currencies.

How Do Uphold and Coinbase Work?

You need to create an account first and then verify your provided information with both. Once verified, you can fund your account and start buying cryptocurrencies and other digital assets in Uphold.

Who Should Use Uphold vs. Coinbase?

Coinbase, especially Coinbase Pro, is suitable for more active traders of cryptocurrencies. Uphold, and the standard Coinbase platform is ideal for new investors and traders who are just starting.

Uphold is also great for diversification if you want to invest in other digital assets than cryptos.

Resources

https://status.uphold.com/

https://uphold.com/en/transparency

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