Astervs
Lighter
Funding rates, fees, liquidity and airdrop status compared for perpetual-futures traders.
| Aster | Lighter | |
|---|---|---|
| Type | DEX | DEX |
| Taker fee | 0.04% | 0%✓ |
| Maker fee | 0.01% | 0%✓ |
| Open Interest | $1.09B✓ | $462.9M |
| 24h Volume | $1.97B✓ | $1.75B |
| Avg Funding APR | 23.28% | 6.73% |
| Markets | 50 | 50 |
| Airdrop / token | Listed | Listed |
Aster and Lighter are both perpetual-futures venues tracked on ORBIT. On fees, Lighter is cheaper (0% vs 0.04% taker). On liquidity, Aster is deeper with $1.09B open interest, which means less slippage at size.
For a funding-arbitrage trader the practical answer is rarely “one or the other” — you often use both, going long on whichever venue has the lower funding for a given asset and short on the other. Open the Funding Screener to see where Aster and Lighter diverge right now, then verify the pair in the backtester.
Frequently asked questions
- Is Aster or Lighter cheaper?
- Aster charges 0.04% taker / 0.01% maker; Lighter charges 0% taker / 0% maker. Lighter has the lower taker fee, which matters most for funding arbitrage since entries and exits are taker orders.
- Which has deeper liquidity, Aster or Lighter?
- Aster has $1.09B open interest across 50 markets; Lighter has $462.9M across 50. Aster is deeper, which means lower slippage at size.
- Can I run funding arbitrage between Aster and Lighter?
- Yes — when an asset's funding diverges between the two, go long on the lower-funding venue and short on the higher one. Find live divergences on the ORBIT screener and backtest the exact pair before sizing it.