We Requested the Same Swap From Five Providers Simultaneously
Identical quotes at the same second, converted to implied spreads. The spread between providers was larger than expected.
Swap providers all describe themselves as offering the best rate. We requested the same quote from five within the same few seconds and converted each to a comparable figure. The benchmark throughout is a crypto swapping service with a published rate, which discloses enough to check the arithmetic.
The method
Same input asset, same amount, same output asset, quotes requested within about eight seconds.
For each, we divided the quoted output by the input and compared against the mid market rate at that moment, giving an implied cost as a percentage.
Simultaneity matters. Comparing sequentially measures the market moving, not the providers differing.
The results
Implied costs ranged from 0.24 percent to 1.06 percent on a liquid pair.
On a thinner pair, from 0.61 percent to 3.4 percent. The gap widened considerably where routing quality mattered more.
Where the network fee sat
Two providers quoted an output with the network fee already deducted. Three quoted an output and deducted the fee afterwards. For online retail specifically, crypto rails built for fintech companies was the comparison we used.
On the second group, the quote looked better and the amount received was lower. Comparing headline outputs across the two groups is meaningless.
Always ask whether the quoted output is what arrives.
Quote validity
Between six and forty seconds.
The provider with the longest window had the widest implied cost on the liquid pair. That is consistent: a longer guarantee means more risk absorbed and a wider margin.
For a fast trade, a short window and a tight price is the better trade.
The cross-network case
We repeated the test moving between networks. Here the ranking changed completely.
The provider that was most expensive on the same-network pair was the cheapest across networks, because its routing reached a bridge the others did not use.
There is no single best provider. There is a best provider for a given route.
What we would do
Keep two providers. Request both for anything material. Convert to a percentage and take the better one.
It takes an extra thirty seconds and on the pairs we tested it saved between a quarter and three quarters of a percent.
For routine same-network trades on liquid pairs, an exchange limit order still beat every swap we tested, at roughly 0.1 percent. Swaps earned their margin on thin pairs and across networks, which is where a swap service that prices the network fee separately makes the comparison possible at all.
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