MetaMask Swap Fees and Risks: A Review of MetaMask Swaps

A MetaMask swap trades one token for another from your own wallet, and as of October 2026 MetaMask's guide lists the MetaMask swap fees as a 0.875% MetaMask fee plus the network fee (gas). Check the token's contract address before you confirm, because a fake token can look like the real one.

What MetaMask Swaps is and who runs it

As of October 2026, MetaMask's terms of use (opens in a new tab) name Consensys Software Inc., doing business as MetaMask, as the operator. The terms say it is a legally separate company from Consensys Incorporated. Swaps is a feature of the MetaMask browser extension and mobile app. MetaMask also offers other features, such as staking, that this review does not cover.

MetaMask is a self-custody wallet, so the swap happens from your wallet and not from an exchange account. MetaMask says (opens in a new tab) it cannot recover or control your funds if you lose your Secret Recovery Phrase or password.

MetaMask describes itself (opens in a new tab) as an "information aggregator" in Swaps. It pulls quotes together and says it does not provide the liquidity or execute the trade. In 2024 the SEC alleged that Consensys acted as a broker through Swaps (see the SEC case).

MetaMask Swaps against the eight checks

As of October 2026, here is what MetaMask or a regulator publishes for each check. "Documented" means a published answer exists. It is not a score. The checks come from our exchanges page, read for a wallet swap feature instead of an exchange account.

MetaMask swap fees

As of October 2026, MetaMask's swaps guide (opens in a new tab) splits the cost of a swap into three lines:

• Quote rate: the exchange rate for the two tokens.
• Network fee: the gas that pays the blockchain to run the swap. This gas goes to the network, not to MetaMask (see how Ethereum gas fees work).
• MetaMask fee: 0.875%.

In a 2021 post on Swaps launching on mobile (opens in a new tab), Consensys wrote that the fee is automatically factored into each quote.

The SEC's complaint, in its 2024 filing (opens in a new tab), described the fee as 0.875% "in most circumstances", so do not assume it is the same on every swap.

Before you confirm, check the network fee and the amount you will receive on the quote. What arrives can be lower than the quote by up to your slippage setting (see slippage). If the quote shows no network fee or no amount you will receive, ask support before you swap.

Swapping across networks (bridging) goes through the same Swap button, and the guide's fee list is the one MetaMask gives for it. It lists no separate bridge fee. The Buy button works differently: MetaMask's Buy FAQ (opens in a new tab) says MetaMask takes 1% of the fiat value you request, included in the provider's "processing fee", and that a provider such as MoonPay or Transak carries out the purchase.

Gasless swaps still cost a network fee

MetaMask's gasless swaps page (opens in a new tab) lists these networks: Ethereum Mainnet, BNB Smart Chain, Linea, Arbitrum, Base and Polygon. It also lists what you need:

• Smart Transactions turned on.
• MetaMask extension 13.4 or later, or mobile 7.62 or higher.
• The "Estimate balance changes" setting on, which is the default.

"Gasless" does not mean free. MetaMask deducts a small amount of the token you are swapping from to cover the network fee. The option appears only if you do not have enough gas, and it is unavailable when the swap is worth less than the gas. On Base, Arbitrum and Polygon, MetaMask upgrades your account to a smart account when you use it. MetaMask's swaps guide gives an older network list, so check the gasless page first.

Example with made-up numbers

These numbers are invented, in units of two made-up tokens, and the price does not move.

• You swap 100 Token A for Token B. The quote rate is 2 Token B for each Token A.
• The MetaMask fee is 0.875% of 100: 0.875 Token A.
• The network fee in a gasless swap, taken from Token A: 1.125 Token A.
• For simplicity, both fees come out of Token A here. That leaves 100 - 0.875 - 1.125 = 98 Token A to swap, which gives 196 Token B.
• You paid 100 Token A for 196 Token B, or about 0.510 Token A per Token B, against 0.500 per Token B at the quote rate.

With a swap of only 5 Token A, the same 1.125 network fee would take almost a quarter of it. The network fee is illustrative, not typical, the sum works the same for any tokens, and your quote may group these amounts differently.

How MetaMask finds a quote

MetaMask says (opens in a new tab) Swaps searches decentralized exchanges and token-swapping protocols for the exchange rate it considers most advantageous. It adds that it runs test transactions and filters out quotes unlikely to go through.

If you use a decentralized exchange (DEX) directly, check its fees before you swap. MetaMask's support articles cover swaps made with the MetaMask Swap button only. For a swap on another platform, contact that platform.

Slippage, price impact and failed swaps

As of October 2026, MetaMask's page on failed swaps (opens in a new tab) says the most likely reason a swap fails is slippage: if the price moves outside the allowed slippage (typically 2-3%), the swap fails. Slippage is the price change you accept between confirming and the swap running. On MetaMask Mobile the Swaps screen shows "Max slippage 2%" at the bottom left, the default, and you tap it to change it. On the extension, use the settings icon.

MetaMask's example (opens in a new tab): at 5% slippage on 100 tokens bought, you will not receive fewer than 95. Raising the limit means the swap still completes even if the price moves more while it is pending.

Price impact is the difference in value between the token you hold and the one you receive. MetaMask shows a price-difference warning before you approve a quote, generally when a token has low liquidity, when the order is large, or both. If you see it, check the amount you would receive on the quote before you continue.

If a MetaMask swap failed, some gas was still spent, and MetaMask says it goes to the network validators and not to MetaMask. Ethereum's docs say the fee is paid whether a transaction succeeds or fails (opens in a new tab). Check your wallet's activity list before you try again, so you do not pay twice. For the gas error, read insufficient funds for gas.

MetaMask's swaps guide (opens in a new tab) says the failure rate is very low, without giving a figure, and its failed-swap page (opens in a new tab) says success is not guaranteed.

Availability by country

As of October 2026, the terms (opens in a new tab) are one global page with country-specific parts, and they say services and supported assets may vary by jurisdiction. Users also state that they are not on sanctions lists and not in a country under a comprehensive US sanctions program. The terms do not name any country as excluded.

United States

The SEC brought a case over MetaMask Staking and Swaps that it later agreed to dismiss (see the SEC case). The terms for US users use Texas law, with disputes decided by binding individual arbitration.

United Kingdom

The terms say UK consumers may have statutory consumer rights, and nothing in the terms is meant to limit them where that would be unlawful. UK users fall under the law of England and Wales, with arbitration seated in London.

EU and EEA

The same consumer-rights wording covers the EU and EEA. The terms do not name the EU, so EU and EEA users fall under Irish law, with arbitration in Dublin, unless they choose the US or UK clause. On 19 October 2026, ESMA's interim register (opens in a new tab) of crypto-asset service providers listed no Consensys or MetaMask company.

MiCA recital 22 says crypto-asset services provided in a fully decentralised manner without any intermediary (opens in a new tab) should not fall within the Regulation's scope. The same recital applies MiCA to services provided or controlled by persons, including when part of them is performed in a decentralised manner. It is not a ruling on MetaMask.

Everywhere else

In a territory the terms do not name, such as Canada or Australia, you may choose the US or UK clause; otherwise the terms use Irish law. Check your own country's financial regulator before you swap, and read the registration check. A swap can be a taxable event in some countries, so read when a swap can be taxable.

Is MetaMask Swap safe? Regulatory and security record

Nothing here proves a swap is safe or unsafe. It lists what the public record shows.

SEC case against Consensys

On 28 June 2024, the SEC charged (opens in a new tab) Consensys Software Inc. in federal court in the Eastern District of New York. It alleged unregistered offers and sales of securities through MetaMask Staking, and that Consensys acted as an unregistered broker through MetaMask Staking and MetaMask Swaps.

For Swaps, the SEC alleged that since at least October 2020 Consensys solicited investors, gave pricing information, purported to provide the "best" quote, routed customer orders, handled customer assets and received transaction-based compensation. These were allegations and were never proven.

On 27 March 2025, the SEC announced (opens in a new tab) a joint stipulation with Consensys to dismiss the case with prejudice. The SEC said the decision rested on its judgment about reforming its approach to crypto, not on any assessment of the merits. The stipulation (opens in a new tab) covers the conduct alleged through the date the stipulation was filed, with no costs or fees to either party. No court ruled on whether Swaps is a broker.

Other incidents

In a November 2023 warning (opens in a new tab), Germany's BaFin said an impostor, "Metamask EU", has no connection with metamask.io, which Consensys Software Inc. operates. It was a warning about an impostor, not about MetaMask.

In searches on 19 October 2026 of regulator sites and incident reports covering the last five years, we found no other enforcement action against Consensys and no reported Swaps exploit, which is not a guarantee. As of October 2026, MetaMask says (opens in a new tab) Swaps users remained unaffected by breaches at some liquidity sources it supports. That is MetaMask's own statement, and its page gives no date.

Risks to understand

• Fake tokens. Read the Stop box in MetaMask swap fees before you confirm a swap.
• Open approvals. As of October 2026, MetaMask Swaps defaults to an "unlimited" token approval (opens in a new tab) to save gas, and you can change the amount before you submit, so approve only the amount you are swapping when the screen lets you. It defaults to non-infinite approvals on layer-2 networks where gas is materially cheaper. Requesting unlimited approvals is also how many malicious sites steal (opens in a new tab) from users, MetaMask warns. Revoking an approval is a transaction, so each costs gas (see what to do about a drained wallet).
• Fake apps. Use only the download sources in the Stop box above.
• Support impersonators. MetaMask says (opens in a new tab) it never discusses support cases on social media, even in direct messages. Official support runs through the chat on its support site. To report scams, read how to spot crypto scams.
• A lost phrase. If your device is lost, stolen or broken, MetaMask support cannot recover the phrase. Write it on paper and keep it offline where only you can reach it, never as a photo, screenshot or cloud note. See what a seed phrase is.

Downsides and alternatives

As of October 2026, from MetaMask's own pages (opens in a new tab):

• You need crypto in the wallet first.
• The MetaMask fee comes on top of the network fee, even in a gasless swap.

A documentation review cannot show how the swap contracts behave or whether a problem exists that no page lists.

Alternatives, by type: buying the coin on a centralized crypto exchange (how to choose a crypto exchange), using a DEX directly, or using another wallet's swap feature. Check the fees of each before you swap.

Before your first swap, read how to verify a token contract address and how to store crypto safely.