Swap Cost Notes

What the conversion actually took

A running log of conversion costs. Each entry says what was measured, on which venue and on what date. Nothing here is averaged across venues, because that average would not be payable anywhere.

most recent entry

Building a Repeatable Method for Comparing Swap Costs

The whole method in one page: what to record, when to record it, and which conclusions the data can support.

October 26, 2026 · exchange · 2 min

entry log

no.dateentrytopic
019Oct 22, 2026Failed Swaps: What You Pay for a Transaction That RevertsA conversion that does not complete is not free. What is charged, by whom, and which failures are recoverable.swap
018Oct 20, 2026What a Zero-Fee Swap Charges InsteadNo venue converts for free. If the fee line says zero, the cost is in the rate, and it can be measured.exchange
017Oct 16, 2026Weekend Spreads Against Weekday Spreads, Pair by PairCaptures across four weekends on three pairs. The widening is consistent in direction and uneven in size.exchange
016Oct 13, 2026Gas Estimates Versus Gas Paid: A ReconciliationThe estimate shown before a transaction and the amount actually deducted are different numbers. How different, and why.swap
015Oct 9, 2026Hidden Conversion Steps Inside a Single SwapOne button can contain three conversions. Each crosses a spread, and the receipt shows one number.swap
014Oct 7, 2026Tracking One Pair for Thirty Days: What the Spread DidA month of daily captures on a single pair, and the three patterns that survived the noise.exchange
013Oct 4, 2026Minimum Sizes Where the Fixed Fee Stops MatteringBelow a certain amount, flat costs make a conversion pointless. The threshold is one division and worth knowing for your own…exchange
012Oct 1, 2026Stablecoin to Stablecoin: The Swap People Assume Is FreeBoth sides are worth a dollar, so the conversion should be costless. Measurements say otherwise, and the reason is instructive.stablecoin payments
011Sep 28, 2026Bridge Fees Compared Against Simply Selling and RebuyingMoving an asset between chains has two routes. The cheaper one depends on amount, and the crossover is calculable.swap
010Sep 24, 2026How Long a Quote Holds, and What Happens When It ExpiresQuote windows run from a few seconds to a minute. What the venue does at the end of that window is the part worth knowing.exchange
009Sep 21, 2026Aggregators Versus Direct Venues on Identical PairsAn aggregator searches several venues and adds its own margin. Measurements of when the search is worth the margin.swap
008Sep 19, 2026Round-Trip Cost: Converting Back Is Not FreeEvery conversion has a return leg, and the return leg costs the same as the outbound one. What that does to short holding periods.swap
007Sep 15, 2026The Cost of Swapping During a Volatile HourSpreads widen exactly when people most want to transact. Measurements of how much, and what the delay would have cost instead.swap
006Sep 14, 2026Why Splitting a Large Swap Sometimes Costs MoreSplitting reduces slippage and multiplies flat costs. Where the two effects cross depends on depth, not on preference.otc
005Sep 9, 2026Same Swap, Five Venues: What the Difference Looks LikeOne pair, one size, five places, measured within the same ten minutes. The spread between best and worst was larger than any fee.exchange
004Sep 8, 2026Network Fee or Spread: Which Dominates at Which SizeOne is flat and one is proportional. The crossover point decides which one to optimise, and it is lower than most people assume.swap
003Sep 4, 2026Slippage on Thin Pairs, Measured Rather Than EstimatedHow much a given order size moves the price, and why the book depth matters more than the fee schedule.exchange
002Aug 31, 2026Quoted Rate Versus Executed Rate: A Month of ObservationsThirty paired measurements of what was promised and what arrived, and what the gap depended on.exchange
001Aug 29, 2026Measuring the True Cost of a $1,000 SwapA method for finding what a conversion actually took, rather than what the confirmation screen reported.swap