How to start trading on Synthetix

1. Create an account

1. Open the Synthetix Exchange at exchange.synthetix.io, click Connect Wallet in the top right and approve the connection. You need an EVM wallet such as Rabby, MetaMask or a WalletConnect-compatible wallet. source ↗
2. No sign-up and no KYC are required: you connect a wallet and create a trading subaccount in the app. Keep the wallet on Ethereum Mainnet; the FAQ fix for a wrong-network error is to switch to it. source ↗
3. The trading account is created together with your first deposit: click Create Account, choose the collateral and amount, confirm the wallet transaction(s), then authenticate the account. source ↗

2. Deposit collateral

1. USDT and WETH are the collateral assets supported in the app today; cbBTC, sUSDe and wstETH are listed as planned. You also need a small amount of ETH for Ethereum Mainnet gas. source ↗
2. To add funds, open the Deposit window (the + next to your balance, or Deposit on the Portfolio page), pick the asset and amount, approve the token on first use and confirm the transaction. The balance updates once the transaction is confirmed on Ethereum. source ↗
3. USDT counts at full value. WETH gets a haircut, so it counts for less than its market value (for example, at a 90% ratio 1 WETH worth 3,000 USDT gives 2,700 USDT of margin). source ↗
4. If your funds are on another chain or an exchange, move them to Ethereum Mainnet first; when withdrawing from an exchange choose the ERC-20 / Ethereum network. source ↗

3. Open your first position

1. Pick a market (for example BTC-USDT) in the Market Selector. In the Order Entry panel a Market order is selected by default; set leverage, choose Buy (Long) or Sell (Short), enter the size, review the confirmation window and submit. source ↗
2. All markets are perpetual futures quoted and settled in USDT on Ethereum Mainnet. source ↗
3. Margin is cross-margin: all positions in a subaccount share one collateral pool. You set leverage per market in the order panel; lower leverage moves the liquidation price further away. source ↗
4. Default trading fees are 0.05% taker and 0.02% maker, charged on the notional value of each fill and lower at higher 14-day volume tiers. A limit order that crosses the spread pays the taker rate. source ↗
5. Maximum leverage varies by market and falls as position size grows; the docs say to check the market detail panel in the app for current limits. source ↗

4. Know how liquidation works

1. Liquidation happens when your Adjusted Account Value falls below the maintenance margin of your open positions. Maintenance margin rate is half the initial margin rate at a market's max leverage. source ↗
2. Liquidations are triggered by the mark price, which is based on external reference prices rather than the last trade. The system first sends market orders to the book; positions over 100,000 USDT are liquidated in 20% steps with a 30-second cooldown. source ↗
3. A liquidation clearance fee is charged on the notional value of the liquidated position: 0.5% for BTC and ETH, 1.0% for SOL, XRP and DOGE, and up to 2.0% for some other markets. source ↗
4. If a liquidated account becomes bankrupt, the loss can be passed to the most profitable, most leveraged positions on the other side through auto-deleveraging (ADL). source ↗

5. Withdraw

1. Open Withdraw from the Account sidebar, the Portfolio page or the Balances tab, enter an amount up to the maximum shown, review any withdrawal fee and confirm in your wallet. Funds arrive once the Ethereum transaction confirms; there is no withdrawal queue. source ↗
2. You can only withdraw available margin. Open positions, USDT debt and LTV limits can reduce the withdrawable amount, even to zero. Each asset is withdrawn separately, and withdrawals cost a per-asset fee plus ETH gas. source ↗

6. Common mistakes

1. Fees, funding and realized PnL always settle in USDT. If you deposit mostly WETH, your USDT balance can go negative and become debt; closing your positions does not repay it automatically. source ↗
2. If USDT debt exceeds the allowed limit, non-USDT collateral is sold automatically (forced auto-exchange) without asking you, at a fee roughly twice the voluntary Swap fee. source ↗
3. WETH collateral does not raise how much USDT you can withdraw unless you Swap it to USDT first. A fall in the WETH price lowers your margin even if your trades have not moved. source ↗
4. Extra sub-accounts need Tier 1 (at least $100,000 trading volume), and collateral in one sub-account does not back positions in another. source ↗

Before you trade

Perpetual futures use leverage: a small price move against you can liquidate your collateral. Start with a small amount and low leverage, and read the venue’s current fee and margin pages, which can change after this guide was checked.