Banxa scores 11 points above Mercuryo, led by purchase cost, quote honesty, and named licence. Banxa ranks #5 and Mercuryo #7 of 16 published onramps. Every term of the gap is on the ledger below; the inputs are on the audit receipt.
BABanxa68
vs
MEMercuryo57
Scores are out of 100; published scores fall within 41–99 · ranks #5 and #7 of 16
Published gapAfter score rounding and bounds — see the note below6857+11.0
Weight is in points of the 86-point weighted total. Points are score points of the gap between the two.
BanxaScore 68The onramp that publishes its worst case: 1.99% card fee plus a 2-4% typical spread with contractual maxima, riding its own numbered licences in AU, CA, NL (MiCA), UK and 30+ US states - now private under OSL Group since 2026-01-02.Strength: Licence identity — 8/10Watch-out: The honest disclosure cuts both ways: the 'typical 2-4%' Banxa spread carries a contractual maximum of 15% (plus 10% partner-spread max), and the 'locked-in' Final Price is guaranteed only if you send proof of payment 'immediately' - on a 1-3-business-day SEPA/ACH rail the number on the confirm button can lawfully move before settlement.MercuryoScore 57Multi-entity EU-focused widget rail — EEA crypto flow on Criptan Trade S.L.'s CNMV MiCA CASP (contracting via non-regulated Moneychurros S.L.), non-EEA on a Canadian FINTRAC MSB, UK FCA EMI for the e-money leg only — with a published CAPPED fee schedule (card up to 5.5% min EUR 1, SEPA up to 3% min EUR 2, average 3.95%) but an unquantified embedded spread, a partner-set 0-2% Infrastructure Fee, and a global-ToS rate struck at the execution moment.Strength: Licence identity — 6/10Watch-out: Outside the US the confirm-button number is not contractually binding: the global ToS strikes the rate 'at the execution moment', warns the final price 'may differ from the price specified when placing an order', forbids withdrawing a submitted order, embeds an unquantified spread in the displayed price, and lets each partner surface add a 0-2% Infrastructure Fee — so the same EUR 200 purchase costs materially different amounts depending on which widget integration you met.
Quick facts
At a glance
1 of 3 rows read the same for both.
FactBanxaMercuryo
PricingSnapshotBanxa help article "How does Banxa set the price of cryptocurrency?" (https://support.banxa.com/en/support/solutions/articles/44002465167-how-does-banxa-set-the-price-of-cryptocurrency-, "Modified on Thu, 15 May, 2025"), fetched 28 September 2026, HTTP 200. Processing fee: BUY "Cards & Apple Pay" "1.99%", "Other payment methods" "0%". Spread table (buy): Banxa Spread "Typical: 2-4%" "Min: 0%" "Max: 15%"; Partner Spread (Optional) "Typical: 0-1%" "Max: 10%"; Recovery Spread "Typical: €0-1" "Max: €5". Network fee is a separate buy-side line item ("Market price"). Banxa's own worked example: "if you purchase €1,000 of Litecoin using SEPA" with Banxa spread "3%", Affiliate Fee "1%" and Recovery Fee "$1" ("0.1%") gives "Total Spread" "4.1%". The EU entity's identical article (44002625876, "How does EU Internet Ventures B.V (EUIV) set the price of cryptocurrency?") carries the same table. Worked example (our arithmetic, not a Banxa figure): a EUR 200 SEPA purchase at the typical spreads costs roughly 2 to 5 percent plus network fee; by card add the 1.99 percent processing fee, roughly 4 to 7 percent. The spread benchmark ("reputable, independent third-party pricing providers") is not named.Mercuryo help article "How does Mercuryo calculate the price and fees for my transaction?" (article 30404513537565, last edited 15 July 2026; the HTML page returns HTTP 403 to non-browser clients and was read through the help-centre API, HTTP 200, fetched 29 September 2026). Mercuryo fee: "the fee ranges from 0% to 5.5%, with a minimum of €1 for smaller on-ramp/buy transactions"; Buy on-ramp (cards, mobile pay, alternative payment methods) "up to 5.5%, or min of €1"; Buy on-ramp (bank transfers) "up to 3%, or min of €2"; "Our average service fee is 3.95%." Non-EUR purchases: "an extra fee of 0.25% to 1% applies, depending on the chosen fiat currency". Partner Infrastructure Fee: "Typically ranging from 0% to 2%, never exceeding 5%." Spread: "The spread is embedded in the displayed crypto-asset price during checkout", with no percentage and no named benchmark. Network fee separate, not quantified. Worked example (our arithmetic, not a Mercuryo figure): a EUR 200 card purchase carries a Mercuryo fee of up to EUR 11.00 (5.5 percent cap) plus an Infrastructure Fee of typically up to EUR 4.00 and at most EUR 10.00, before spread and network fee; by bank transfer the Mercuryo fee is up to EUR 6.00 (3 percent cap). The global Terms of Service (mercuryo.io/legal/terms-global, Version 4.7.5) still state a flat buy fee of 3.95%, which does not match this capped schedule.
Asset coverageEditorial——
Region fitSnapshotglobaleurope, us, ca
From the published criteria
Which should you pick?
BA
Banxa
68#5 of 16
Leads
Pick it when
Pick Banxa if purchase cost matters most — it scores 6/10 to Mercuryo's 5/10 there (weight 34).
Strength
Licence identity — 8/10
Tradeoff
The honest disclosure cuts both ways: the 'typical 2-4%' Banxa spread carries a contractual maximum of 15% (plus 10% partner-spread max), and the 'locked-in' Final Price is guaranteed only if you send proof of payment 'immediately' - on a 1-3-business-day SEPA/ACH rail the number on the confirm button can lawfully move before settlement.
ME
Mercuryo
57#7 of 16
Pick it when
Mercuryo leads on no published criterion; its edge is measured data (8.3 vs 6.5 points). Pick it if that term is what you are buying.
Strength
Licence identity — 6/10
Tradeoff
Outside the US the confirm-button number is not contractually binding: the global ToS strikes the rate 'at the execution moment', warns the final price 'may differ from the price specified when placing an order', forbids withdrawing a submitted order, embeds an unquantified spread in the displayed price, and lets each partner surface add a 0-2% Infrastructure Fee — so the same EUR 200 purchase costs materially different amounts depending on which widget integration you met.
Self-identify in 10 seconds
Which one is actually for you?
BABanxaLeads
Choose Banxa if purchase cost matters most
Purchase cost: 6/10 against 5/10 for Mercuryo (weight 34)
Quote honesty: 6/10 against 4/10 for Mercuryo (weight 26)
Named licence: 8/10 against 6/10 for Mercuryo (weight 22)
BanxaScore 68The onramp that publishes its worst case: 1.99% card fee plus a 2-4% typical spread with contractual maxima, riding its own numbered licences in AU, CA, NL (MiCA), UK and 30+ US states - now private under OSL Group since 2026-01-02.Strength: Licence identity — 8/10Watch-out: The honest disclosure cuts both ways: the 'typical 2-4%' Banxa spread carries a contractual maximum of 15% (plus 10% partner-spread max), and the 'locked-in' Final Price is guaranteed only if you send proof of payment 'immediately' - on a 1-3-business-day SEPA/ACH rail the number on the confirm button can lawfully move before settlement.
MEMercuryo
Mercuryo leads Banxa on no published criterion
Choose it only if something outside the published criteria decides for you — your country, a funding rail, or custody.
MercuryoScore 57Multi-entity EU-focused widget rail — EEA crypto flow on Criptan Trade S.L.'s CNMV MiCA CASP (contracting via non-regulated Moneychurros S.L.), non-EEA on a Canadian FINTRAC MSB, UK FCA EMI for the e-money leg only — with a published CAPPED fee schedule (card up to 5.5% min EUR 1, SEPA up to 3% min EUR 2, average 3.95%) but an unquantified embedded spread, a partner-set 0-2% Infrastructure Fee, and a global-ToS rate struck at the execution moment.Strength: Licence identity — 6/10Watch-out: Outside the US the confirm-button number is not contractually binding: the global ToS strikes the rate 'at the execution moment', warns the final price 'may differ from the price specified when placing an order', forbids withdrawing a submitted order, embeds an unquantified spread in the displayed price, and lets each partner surface add a 0-2% Infrastructure Fee — so the same EUR 200 purchase costs materially different amounts depending on which widget integration you met.
Criterion by criterion
Scorecard
Published criteria · weight in points of 868 of 8 cells scored. Strength is read from the evidence file; the weight is the published one. Methodology
Purchase cost
by 1 of 10weight 8.2 of 86Banxa leads
Banxa6/10 out of 10
Mercuryo5/10 out of 10
Quote honesty
by 2 of 10weight 6.2 of 86Banxa leads
Banxa6/10 out of 10
Mercuryo4/10 out of 10
Named licence
by 2 of 10weight 5.3 of 86Banxa leads
Banxa8/10 out of 10
Mercuryo6/10 out of 10
KYC and speed
by 2 of 10weight 4.3 of 86Banxa leads
Banxa7/10 out of 10
Mercuryo5/10 out of 10
Score dimensions
weights sum to 86
The published score is five dimensions, each weighted for the category. "Published criteria" is the criteria block above; the other four are the engine's own terms — availability, friction, trust record, measured data. Each bar is one side's points out of that dimension's maximum; the weight beside the name is its points of the 86-point weighted total. The published criteria above can fill 24 of the block’s 30. A weight marked “constant here” belongs to a dimension every ranked product in the category holds at the same value: it still counts in the total, and it orders nothing here.
Availabilityweight 20 of 86
Banxa14/20Mercuryo12/20
Banxa leads
Published criteriaweight 30 of 86
Banxa15.9/30Mercuryo11.9/30
Banxa leads
Frictionweight 10 of 86 · constant here
Banxa2.7/10Mercuryo2.7/10
Tie
Trust recordweight 8 of 86 · constant here
Banxa3.2/8Mercuryo3.2/8
Tie
Measured dataweight 18 of 86
Banxa6.5/18Mercuryo8.3/18
Mercuryo leads
Decision rulePublished order
Choose Banxa unless the term Mercuryo leads on is the one you are buying.
Mercuryo leads on no published criterion; its edge is measured data (8.3 vs 6.5 points). Pick it if that term is what you are buying.
The published order weighs every criterion the same way for everyone. To weigh them your way, run .
From the published order
Next best action
If this isn't your case
Other matchups worth comparing
How you can lose money here, and what the ranking scores
Regulatory failure: no licence where you are, or a forced market exit.
Scored by Whose money-transmission licence is my money riding — and is that entity my counterparty? · 22% (Banxa 8/10, Mercuryo 6/10)
Execution failure: you get a worse price, later, or nothing.
Scored by Is the number on the widget the number that settles? · 26% (Banxa 6/10, Mercuryo 4/10)
Information failure: the number is wrong or bought, or your data leaks.
Scored by How much identity do I surrender before the coins land in my wallet, and how long does that take? · 18% (Banxa 7/10, Mercuryo 5/10)
Not assessed by this ranking: Control failure, Liveness failure, Custody failure, Insolvency failure, Exit failure. A high place says nothing about these; the Methodology tab says what each means.
Also scored, as cost, quality or a summary of several families: What does a €200 purchase actually cost me — by card and by bank, all-in? (34%).
Questions
Frequently asked questions
Banxa scores 11 points above Mercuryo, led by purchase cost, quote honesty, and named licence. Published scores, out of 100: Banxa 68 (rank 5 of 16 onramps), Mercuryo 57 (rank 7 of 16).
Reviewed means both products compared here was read against its sources on or after that date; every ranked category is re-read at least every 45 days. Models research, extract and parse. A deterministic engine ranks. Every quote passes an adversarial refute pass.
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