Koinly vs CoinLedger: which crypto tax software to use

First what crypto tax software actually does, then a fair comparison of Koinly and CoinLedger and a walk-through to a finished report. This is not tax advice: check the rules for your own country.

6 min read · Updated: 2026-10-20

Contents

In short
How crypto tax software works
Comparison table
Pros and cons
Who should choose what
How to get your report, step by step
Pitfalls
Questions and answers

In short

Both services pull in your trades from exchanges and wallets, work out your cost basis and capital gains, and produce a tax report. Viewing is free; you pay to download the report.

Koinly is stronger outside the US: it has more ready-made forms for different countries (UK, Sweden, Switzerland, Finland, France, Spain, Canada, Australia and others).
CoinLedger is built around the US first: Form 8949, imports into TurboTax and other US filing software, and reconciliation against Form 1099-DA. It also has ready forms for some other countries.
If your country has no dedicated form in either, both give you a general gains and income report that you or an adviser can move into your local return.
This site has a partner link for both. We compare on facts from the official sites and name the downsides of each.

Software does the maths, but your tax return is still your responsibility. For meaningful amounts, show the report to a tax adviser.

How crypto tax software works

Three stages: import, calculate, report.

1. Import. Your transactions get in three ways:

with an exchange API key: the tool pulls trades, deposits and withdrawals itself;
with a CSV file: you download your history from the exchange and upload it;
with a wallet address: the tool reads the public blockchain history. No keys and no seed phrase are needed for this.

2. Calculate. Every sale, swap or spend of crypto can be a taxable event. To work out the gain, the tool must know what you paid for the coins. If you bought many times, it needs a method: FIFO (first in, first out), LIFO (last in, first out), HIFO (highest cost sold first) or average cost. Your country's law usually picks the method, not you.

3. Report. Gain or loss per trade, income from staking, airdrops and mining, year-end balances. In some countries, a ready tax form.

The real work for you is the review step: transfers between your own wallets must be recognised as moves, not sales. Otherwise your gains come out too high.

Comparison table

Facts from the official sites and help centers as of October 2026. Prices and limits change, so check the current ones on the sites.

	Koinly	CoinLedger
Free	Import up to 10,000 transactions, see gains and the tax summary, no report downloads	Portfolio tracking, gains overview and report preview, no download
How you pay	A plan per tax year, priced by transaction count	A one-time report purchase, priced by transaction count
Import	API, CSV, wallet addresses, xPub for bitcoin	Read-only API, CSV, custom CSV, wallet addresses
Cost basis methods	FIFO, LIFO, HIFO, average cost, wallet-based tracking	FIFO, LIFO, HIFO, Adjusted Cost, per-wallet tracking
US	Form 8949, Schedule D, TurboTax, TaxAct	Form 8949, Schedule D, TurboTax, TaxAct, H&R Block, TaxSlayer
Other countries	UK, Canada, Australia, Sweden, Switzerland, Finland, France, Spain and more	UK, Canada, Australia, New Zealand and more; reports in any currency
Human help	Paid Expert Review add-on	Done For You service, quoted per case
Refunds	Check the terms on the site	14-day money-back guarantee

Pros and cons

Koinly, pros. The widest set of local forms, European ones included. A generous free mode: load your whole history and see the totals before paying. An add-on for people who file in two countries.

Koinly, cons. You pay for each tax year separately, which adds up with several years of history. The free plan cannot download even a sample report. Above 10,000 transactions, calculations on the free plan stop.

CoinLedger, pros. Very convenient in the US: direct import into popular filing software and reconciliation against the 1099-DA that US exchanges send from the 2025 tax year. A built-in tax-loss harvesting tool. A 14-day refund window.

CoinLedger, cons. Fewer ready forms for Europe, and country counts on different pages of its site do not match. The done-for-you service is expensive.

Who should choose what

You are in the US and file with TurboTax or similar: CoinLedger is the smoother fit, though Koinly does this too.
You are in Europe, Canada or Australia: first check whether Koinly has a form for your country. If it does, that saves time.
Neither has your country: either works, you need a general gains report in your currency. Pick the one that read your exchanges better during the free stage.

Best test: load your data into both for free and see which shows fewer errors.

How to get your report, step by step

List every place you held crypto: exchanges, wallets, networks, even closed accounts.
Sign up and set your country, currency and the cost basis method your country uses.
Connect exchanges. Create an API key on the exchange with read-only rights, no trading and no withdrawals. If the exchange has closed, upload a CSV.
Add wallets by public address. Never type your seed phrase or private key anywhere.
Open the issues list: negative balances, missing cost basis, unmatched transfers. Match exchange withdrawals with deposits into your own wallets.
Check income: staking, airdrops, interest. Make sure each is labelled correctly.
Look at the free yearly summary. The numbers should make sense.
When everything adds up, buy a plan and download the report. Try Koinly or CoinLedger.
Keep the full report and transaction history in case the tax office asks.

Pitfalls

Missing transfers. Skip one wallet and a transfer into it looks like a sale, while a sale from it looks like coins with zero cost. Result: inflated gains. Clear every warning before you pay.
Read-only keys only. A tax tool never needs trading rights. Never grant withdrawal rights: a leaked key with withdrawals can drain your account. More on this: how to secure your account.
Phishing. Open the service from a saved bookmark. No real support agent will ask for your seed phrase. See phishing.
Wrong method. FIFO and average cost give different numbers. Your country's law decides which one applies.
Tricky transactions. DeFi, NFTs, bridges and network fees are often classified imperfectly. Check them by hand.
Software is not an adviser. It does not know your reliefs, residency or deadlines. Show the report to a tax adviser, especially for larger amounts. The basics: crypto tax for beginners.

Questions and answers

Can I use Koinly and CoinLedger for free?

Yes, for viewing. Both let you import trades and see your gains for free. Downloading the tax report requires payment.

Is it safe to give a tax tool my exchange API key?

Yes, if the key is read-only. Never enable trading or withdrawal rights: a tax tool does not need them.

Will it work if my country is not listed?

Yes, as a calculator. Both produce a general gains and income report in your currency. A tax adviser can help you move it into your local return.

Which is better for the US, Koinly or CoinLedger?

Both produce Form 8949 and import into TurboTax. CoinLedger has more US filing software integrations and 1099-DA reconciliation, so it is often the smoother choice in the US.