On October 22, 2026, we took eight no-KYC crypto exchanges to the deposit address and sent no funds, then read each service’s own terms. None asked for an ID or an account before showing the address. They differ in what their terms allow afterwards and in what each page loads. Only one gave us a signed document before payment. Below are the best no-KYC crypto exchanges for different needs, with what we saw and the pros and cons of each.
How Did We Check These No-KYC Crypto Exchanges?
We created an unpaid Bitcoin-to-Monero order on each of the eight services on October 22, 2026, and stopped at the deposit address, so no funds moved. (SideShift got BTC to ETH; its entry explains why.)
We used a clean browser profile and a test payout address, entered no email or personal data, and ticked no consent box ourselves. At each step we noted what the form asked for, whether a deposit address or timer appeared, whether the page offered any proof of the order, which rate types existed and which outside hosts it contacted. The same day we read each service’s Terms, AML/KYC and Privacy pages; every clause reference below comes from them.
We sent nothing, so we cannot speak to payout speed, support or how a compliance hold plays out. Terms also change, so the clause references are a snapshot from October 22, 2026.
How Do the Eight No-KYC Exchanges Compare on Their Own Terms?
On their own terms, the eight split on who may ask for ID or hold funds later, and only 0trace states Tor access and issues signed proof of order.
| Service | KYC and holds, per its terms | Account | Tor | Signed proof of order | Liquidity | Data retention |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0trace | Does not perform KYC; never requests AML documentation (Terms) | None | Yes, full flow | PGP-signed Guarantee and Receipt | Own liquidity reserves | Orders deleted 72 hours after close; chat after 24 hours of inactivity; both deletable earlier |
| ChangeNOW | May request ID (ToS §3.4); mandatory KYC for residents of the EU, US, Japan, South Korea, Singapore, Hong Kong, UAE, Australia and Canada (§3.2); may hold transactions (§3.5) | Optional | Not stated | None seen at order creation | Third-party liquidity providers and exchanges | IP, device and transaction logs; kept “as long as necessary” |
| Exolix | AML/KYC Policy §2: may suspend, delay, reject or cancel transactions; §3.1: may request ID, selfie and source of funds | None (affiliate area only) | Not stated | None seen | Aggregator (“50+ CEX platforms”) | IP, device data, wallet addresses, transaction hashes; kept “as is reasonably necessary” |
| FixedFloat | May request ID on AML flags or refund abuse (ToS §6.5, §7.1, §7.9); may freeze (§6.2 to §6.4) | Optional | Not stated | None seen | Not stated | IP, browser, ISP; kept for a “reasonable period” |
| SideShift | No KYC section; may freeze a transaction (ToS §3.11); serious cases need verification before a refund (Risk Management Policy) | None (a session is created automatically) | Not stated | None seen | Not stated | IP, device and usage data, technical logs; kept “as long as reasonably necessary” |
| SimpleSwap | May request ID “at its discretion… on any transaction” (AML §4.2); may freeze (AML §3.4, ToS §8.1) | Optional | Not stated | None seen | Aggregates 20+ CEX and DEX providers | Kept by data type, from 12 months to 10 years (Privacy Policy) |
| StealthEX | May request ID and source of funds at any time (Terms §2.2); flagged assets held until review ends (§4.4) | None (affiliate programme only) | Not stated | None seen | Third-party exchanges and liquidity providers | IP, browser, OS, wallet addresses; KYC records at least 5 years after the relationship ends |
| Trocador | Does not request KYC itself; partner exchanges may (Terms) | Optional | Not stated | None seen (the Trocador Guarantee is a text policy) | Aggregator routing to partner exchanges | Trade details deleted after 14 days or on request; IP address may be kept longer |
“Not stated” means the service’s documents do not address the point. It does not mean the answer is no. “Signed proof” reflects what the order page offered when we created the order.
Which No-KYC Exchanges Are Worth a Look, and for What?
Each of the eight fits a different need, from signed proof (0trace) to comparing partner offers (Trocador); they appear alphabetically, not ranked.
0trace: Best for Verifiable Swaps and Monero Pairs
0trace is best for readers who want a signed record of the terms before they pay, and for crypto-to-XMR swaps on its own Monero node.
We filled in one field, the payout address. The order page then gave us a one-time deposit address, a quarter-hour timer and a Download guarantee button. The Guarantee is a PGP clear-signed document issued before any deposit. gpg reported a good signature from the key with fingerprint C8A0 3EAF 6531 C975 561F 9FDA 1B80 0B98 D27C 5611, which 0trace publishes at 0trace.io/pgp. We changed one digit in the quoted payout, and gpg returned a bad signature; the verify page rejected the document too. We did not get a Receipt, because 0trace issues it only after a payout and we sent no funds.
- Pro: the homepage made every request to 0trace.io and set no cookies.
- Pro: a Tor mirror supports the full flow.
- Con: briefly custodial. Per its trust page, it holds the deposit while it executes the swap and pays out.
- Con: floating rate only. The rate keeps tracking the market until the deposit confirms, and several services below also offer a fixed rate on the pair we checked.
- Con: a young project, launched in March 2026, with no public team.
ChangeNOW: Best for a Long Asset List With a Choice of Fixed or Floating Rates
ChangeNOW is best for swapping a long tail of assets, which it puts at 1,000+, if you live outside the jurisdictions where its terms make KYC mandatory.
The form took only the payout address, and the deposit address appeared with no timer. Two boxes came pre-ticked: agreement to the Terms of Use, Privacy Policy and Risk Disclosure, and an opt-in for news and promotions on the optional email panel. Fixed rate is a toggle; we used the default floating rate. There is no cancel button. Google Analytics requests fired before we touched the cookie banner, which offers only Accept.
- Pro: fixed and floating rates on the pair, no account required, and a wide asset list.
- Con: pre-ticked consent boxes and pre-consent analytics.
Exolix: Best for Aggregated Exchange Liquidity, Including Native XMR
Exolix is best for drawing on many exchanges through one order, with Monero available in both directions.
Its form defaulted to BTC to XMR, and Swap now stayed disabled until we entered the payout address. A deposit address and a countdown timer followed. Consent is a notice under the button, and email notifications are optional. There is no cancel control, so the order expires on its own. Google Tag Manager, Cloudflare Insights and a chat widget loaded before we answered the cookie banner. We chose Deny all, but first-party tracking cookies already set stayed in place.
- Pro: fixed and floating rates, and no account for swaps.
- Pro: the cookie banner offers a real Deny all button.
- Con: Terms §8.1 refers to currency “held by Exolix on your behalf”, so funds sit with Exolix during the swap.
FixedFloat: Best for a One-Page Swap With Fixed or Floating Rates
FixedFloat is best for a quick swap where you want to pick fixed or floating on the homepage form and skip the extras.
We entered the payout address and pressed Exchange now. The order page gave a half-hour countdown and a note that a floating order’s rate is fixed after one network confirmation. Consent is a notice under the button. There is no cancel option; the order expires on the timer. Google Analytics cookies were set before consent, and the banner has one Accept & Close button.
- Pro: both rate types on the homepage form, and its AML procedure says registration is not required.
- Pro: the email prompt is optional and has a “Refuse” button.
- Con: two hacks hit FixedFloat in 2024: one in February that it confirmed (The Block) and one in April (ForkLog).
SideShift: Best for Non-Monero Pairs With No Email and No Tick-Box
SideShift is best for swapping assets other than Monero when you want no email and no consent box in the flow.
Monero was disabled at the time of our check, so we ran BTC to ETH. There was no email field and no checkbox, and the terms are linked only in the footer. The deposit address came with no visible timer; the order expired after about five minutes, and the cancel button stayed greyed out until then. The browser also held a generated session name and key pair, created without a prompt. Pages contacted Sentry, Intercom and public Ethereum RPC nodes. No cookie banner appeared.
- Pro: variable and fixed rates, no account to create.
- Pro: no consent box or email in the flow.
- Con: no Monero at check time.
- Con: ToS §3.4 names the United States among excluded countries.
SimpleSwap: Best for the Widest Asset List, With an Optional Verified-Account Route
SimpleSwap is best for choosing from a very wide asset list, which it puts at 2,800+, with fixed or floating rates and an optional KYC route for a better rate.
The form has a floating and fixed toggle and one address field, with consent by a notice under the button. A “Better rate with KYC” prompt showed a higher XMR amount for a verified account; we ignored it. The deposit address had no timer and no cancel button. About ten third-party hosts loaded, including Google Analytics, Facebook and Zendesk, and analytics and Facebook cookies were set before consent. The banner offers only “Got it”.
- Pro: both rate types, and no email or account asked.
- Pro: the verified-account route is optional; on our order it appeared only as a better-rate offer.
- Con: it routes to third-party providers, so liquidity is not its own.
StealthEX: Best for a Plain Floating-Rate Swap Into or Out of Monero
StealthEX is best for a straightforward floating-rate swap involving Monero, with an optional refund address.
The flow had three screens: form, confirmation, order. The confirmation screen had a pre-ticked checkbox for the Terms of Service, Privacy Policy and KYC/AML Policy. The order page had a deposit address but no timer or cancel button. A fixed rate for BTC to XMR returned “not available” during our check. The pages contacted Google Analytics, DoubleClick, Sentry and Intercom, and analytics and chat cookies were set before consent. The banner offers one OK button.
- Pro: no account for swaps, and its FAQ says KYC applies only in rare cases.
- Pro: Monero works in both directions.
- Con: pre-ticked consent and pre-consent trackers.
Trocador: Best for Comparing Exchanges and Their KYC Ratings in One Place
Trocador is best for comparing offers from many exchanges side by side, each with Trocador’s own A to D KYC rating.
The offers page has Floating and Fixed tabs. The table is sorted by rate, not by rating, and the top floating offer carried a B. We picked Swapuz, rated A. The order gave us three hours on the timer and a deposit address. It asked for no email and had no checkbox, only a notice that you become a counterparty to the chosen exchange. A Delete Transaction dialog appeared; we did not confirm that the order was deleted. The homepage contacted no third-party hosts.
- Pro: choice of partner and a published rating scale for each.
- Pro: both floating and fixed offers on the BTC to XMR pair, and its Terms say Trocador never takes custody of your funds.
- Con: the Terms ask users to represent they are not in the United States or the EEA. Its Guarantee is a text promise claimed by email or Telegram, not a document issued to you.
What Do the Differences Mean for Your Own Swap?
Pick the service by the clause that matters to you: who may ask for ID, who may hold funds, and what you can verify afterwards.
- Read each service’s AML/KYC page next to its Terms; the table above cites the clause for each.
- Look for your country in the Terms. Several services name excluded or mandatory-KYC jurisdictions.
- A no-KYC exchange removes the ID step only. Every transaction stays visible on the public blockchain.
- Use the official domain. 0trace’s official site is 0trace.io, and it is not affiliated with 0-trace.cc.
Check a signed 0trace order at 0trace.io/verify.
