GMX fees explained

The position fee is the most predictable trading cost on GMX. On v2 it applies when a position is opened, closed, increased or partially decreased. Most markets charge 0.04% of notional when a trade reduces the absolute difference between long and short open interest, and 0.06% when it increases that difference. A full open-and-close round trip therefore has two separate position-fee events.

The applicable rate is determined by the market balance at each execution. A trade can pay 0.04% on entry and 0.06% on exit, or the reverse, because open interest may change while the position is held. TradFi markets can use different on-hours and off-hours schedules, so traders should check the live confirmation panel rather than treating one rate as universal.

Position fees are charged against collateral at execution. They are a one-time cost for each operation, not a time-based charge. Keeping them separate from borrowing and funding makes the full cost easier to estimate before entering.

Under the current GMX fee model, only the side with larger open interest pays the borrow fee. If longs are larger, longs pay; if shorts are larger, shorts pay. The rate accrues over time, is applied to position size and changes with pool utilization. The trade interface shows the current rate as a percentage per hour.

Funding can be a cost or a credit. A signed adaptive rate responds to long/short imbalance: a positive rate means longs pay shorts, while a negative rate means shorts pay longs. The rate adjusts gradually and can lag a sudden reversal in which side is larger. Receiving traders claim positive funding from the Trade page.

A referral code does not change borrowing or funding. The 10% reduction applies only to eligible opening and closing position fees. Holding costs therefore need to be checked independently, especially for a position kept open over several days.

GMX supports direct spot swaps through protocol liquidity pools. Standard swaps currently charge 0.05% when the swap improves pool balance and 0.07% when it worsens balance; stablecoin and atomic swaps use different schedules. These are swap rates, not position open/close rates.

Price impact is separate from the swap fee. A swap that improves pool balance can receive positive price impact, which improves the amount received. A swap that worsens balance can receive negative price impact. The interface includes estimated fees and impact in expected output, while allowed slippage adds protection against price movement during execution.

GMX's current referral program has three tiers. Tier 1 gives the trader 5%, while Tier 2 and Tier 3 give 10%. Code PRO was verified as Tier 2 on July 26, 2026, so it maps to the current maximum trader rate. Code status and program terms can change.

Opening a GMX referral link stores the code in the browser. GMX writes a registered, valid code to the referral contract when the trader creates the first order. There is no separate trader claim process: eligible fee discounts are deducted automatically at execution. The 10% reduction applies to both open and close position fees while the code remains eligible.

GMX can later assign a protocol-owned discount code after documented volume or graduation thresholds. The applicable 5% or 10% trader discount is preserved, but affiliate rewards to the previous referrer stop. The savings calculator models only the eligible position-fee reduction.

The following uses the 0.06% standard position fee for a trade that worsens long/short open-interest balance. It is illustrative: an execution that improves balance would use 0.04%, and some TradFi markets use different rates. Position size: $10 000 notional.

Applying code PRO reduces each position fee charge by 10%, saving $1.20 on this round trip. At higher notional sizes the saving scales proportionally: a $50 000 position saves roughly $6.00 per round trip in position fees; a $100 000 position saves roughly $12.00. This example excludes borrow fees and funding fees, which depend on hold duration and the prevailing rates in the market at the time.

Traders coming from centralized perpetual platforms often look for a maker/taker comparison. GMX does not use an order book, so it does not apply maker and taker rates. Its position fee instead depends on whether the operation improves or worsens long/short open-interest balance.

The useful comparison is a centralized venue's maker/taker fee and funding against GMX's position fee, possible borrowing charge, funding, network execution and net price impact. Neither model is always cheaper. The result depends on trade direction, duration, size and current market balance.

One structural distinction is oracle-based pricing. GMX receives minPrice and maxPrice values from Chainlink Data Streams and uses the relevant side for each order direction. Oracle movement between submission and keeper execution can still create slippage, and net price impact is a separate adjustment.