GMX vs Lighter
A detailed head-to-head comparison of GMX and Lighter — pricing, features, and which one wins for different use cases.
GMX
The leading on-chain perpetuals exchange on Arbitrum and Avalanche with real yield for liquidity providers
GMX is the most battle-tested decentralized perpetuals exchange, having processed over $200 billion in cumulative trading volume since its launch on Arbitrum in 2021. It pioneered the GLP liquidity mo…
Full review →Lighter
Verifiable order-book perp DEX with cryptographic proof of fair execution
Lighter is a decentralized order-book perpetual exchange notable for something no other perp DEX offers at scale: cryptographic proof of fair execution, where every trade, liquidation, and match can b…
Full review →Feature Comparison
| Feature | GMX | Lighter |
|---|---|---|
| Max Leverage | 100x | Up to 50x |
| Settlement Model | On-chain AMM | ZK-rollup order book (verifiable) |
| Oracle Type | Chainlink + fast price feeds | Order book + oracle |
| Funding Rates | ✓ | ✓ |
| Cross Margin | ✗ | ✓ |
| Isolated Margin | ✓ | ✓ |
| Liquidity Provider Yield | ✓ | ✗ |
| Governance Token | ✓ | ✗ |
| Multi Chain | ✓ | ✗ |
| Self Custody | ✓ | ✓ |
GMX Pricing
GMX
Free (fee per trade)
Free
- ✓Up to 100x leverage
- ✓BTC, ETH, and majors
- ✓Real yield for LPs
- ✓Self-custody
- ✓Arbitrum + Avalanche
Lighter Pricing
Lighter
Free (fee per trade)
Free
- ✓Non-custodial perpetuals
- ✓Up to 50x leverage
- ✓On-chain settlement
- ✓Funding-rate markets
- ✓Self-custody trading
Verdict: Which Should You Choose?
GMX is the better pick if you need real yield for lps in eth/avax — not inflationary token emissions. Lighter wins when cryptographic proof of fair execution — unique at scale. Both are production-ready — the right choice depends on your team's workflow and budget.