Koinly Review 2026: An Accountant’s Honest Take After 1,000+ Koinly Accounts

Short answer: Koinly is a legitimate, well-established crypto tax platform (founded in 2018, more than a million users), and it is our team’s workhorse for a reason. It gives you fewer automations than some rivals, which sounds like a downside but in practice means a cleaner, more trustworthy starting point: it rarely applies a confident wrong label, and its filters, bulk editing, and balance tools are the best we have used for finding and fixing errors fast. It is also the platform most crypto accountants know inside out, so if you plan to hand your file to a pro, Koinly is one of the smartest choices you can make. It is not the most beginner friendly option, its spam filtering is lighter than Awaken’s or Summ’s, and its Solana support on high transaction accounts has been weak. Below is what we have learned reconciling more than 1,000 client accounts on Koinly.

Disclosure: Crypto Tax Made Easy is a recommended partner of Koinly, and also of Awaken and Summ. We may earn a referral fee if you sign up through us. We are an accounting firm first, and our reputation depends on these reviews being honest, so this one spends as much time on where Koinly falls short as on where it shines. We have reconciled 6.7M+ transactions for our clients, including more than 1,000 accounts run on Koinly specifically.

Is Koinly crypto tax software legit?

Yes. Koinly is one of the oldest and most widely used crypto tax platforms in the market, not a thin affiliate front or a fly by night tool. Here are the facts behind it:

• Founder and team. Koinly was founded in 2018 by Robin Singh, who still runs it as CEO. It grew out of UK roots into a globally distributed company, and you can see its corporate profile on Crunchbase. This is an accountable, founder led company with years of track record, not an anonymous calculator.
• Scale. Koinly publicly reports serving more than a million users across 20+ countries, with one of the widest integration libraries in the category. On our side, we have personally reconciled more than 1,000 client accounts on Koinly, so this review is not a drive by opinion based on a free trial.
• Breadth of coverage. Koinly connects to 800+ exchanges, wallets, and blockchains. In our day to day work that breadth is a genuine advantage, not just a marketing number: when a client shows up with an unusual exchange or chain, Koinly is the tool most likely to already have an integration for it.

So the legitimacy question is settled. The more useful question is whether it is the right tool for your wallets, and whether you should be the one driving it. Koinly is the platform we trust most for a huge range of situations, and the wrong starting point for a few. That is what the rest of this review is about.

Who we are to review Koinly

This Koinly review comes from a crypto tax accounting firm, not an affiliate blog ranking ten tools it has never opened. Our team reconciles on chain history for a living. We have run Koinly across more than 1,000 client accounts, alongside Awaken and Summ (formerly Crypto Tax Calculator), which means we see exactly where each tool’s design saves hours and where it quietly creates errors that someone has to catch before a return gets filed.

That hands on perspective is the whole point of this review. Anyone can paste Koinly’s feature list. We can tell you which transactions it gets right out of the box, which settings silently skew your numbers, and which positions our team still has to fix by hand.

Where Koinly genuinely wins

Koinly is the platform we reach for across the widest range of client work. Here is where that preference is earned.

The best tool we have for finding and fixing balance errors. This is Koinly’s quiet superpower. When a wallet balance does not match reality, Koinly gives you more ways to chase it down than any other platform we use. The Holdings dashboard shows both the balance Koinly calculated inside the software and the balance the API actually reported for each wallet, so a mismatch jumps out immediately. The asset ledger and cost analysis tools on the transactions page let you investigate from the transaction view, and the balance reports in the wallet view give you another independent check. Balance errors are where a lot of phantom gains hide, and Koinly makes them the easiest to catch.

Filters, bulk editing, and speed. Koinly’s filters are powerful and precise, and the ability to bulk edit through a spreadsheet is an accountant’s dream. For the technically inclined, you can even run a Google Apps Script against your data in Google Sheets. Combined with how fast it is to manually add missing data and re label existing transactions, this is one of the biggest reasons we love working in Koinly. On a large account, good filters and fast bulk edits are the difference between an afternoon and a lost week.

Fewer automations, but almost no false positives. Koinly leans less on aggressive auto labeling than some rivals. That sounds like a weakness, and it does mean a more raw starting point, but it comes with a major upside: Koinly almost never applies a confidently wrong label. When it is not sure, it leaves the transaction unlabeled so you know to look at it, rather than burying a mistake inside a pile of transactions that look “reviewed.” A raw but honest starting point is easier for a professional to trust than a polished but misleading one.

Integrations a mile wide. With 800+ integrations, Koinly almost always has a connector for whatever exchange, wallet, or chain a client throws at us. The honest caveat is that the breadth is sometimes an inch deep, so a connector existing is not the same as it pulling perfect data (more on that below). But for sheer coverage, nothing beats it.

The platform accountants actually know. Because Koinly has been around since 2018 and is so widely used, the majority of crypto tax professionals, including our team, have deep experience in it. If you intend to bring in a pro at any point, choosing Koinly means your accountant can step straight into a tool they already know cold, instead of learning your software from scratch.

Where Koinly still needs manual cleanup

This is the part an affiliate review will never tell you. After we import a client into Koinly, here is what our team routinely has to fix by hand.

It is a raw starting point. Because Koinly automates less, it expects more on chain investigation and manual editing from whoever is driving it. In practice, for our clients we fix nearly everything beyond the obvious buy and sell trades on major exchanges. Anything touching DeFi, NFTs, or cross chain swapping gets a human review. That is great for us as professional users, but it is a lot to ask of someone doing their own taxes for the first time.

Missing data, especially on high transaction accounts. Koinly has historically struggled with very high transaction accounts, applying rate limits on import that cause missing data, and those gaps compound as the account grows. Identifying and re importing missing data is one of the most common fixes we make.

Solana support has lagged. On Solana, and especially on high transaction Solana accounts, Koinly’s coverage has not been great, and we frequently find missing Solana data. We are hopeful Koinly sorts this out, but for now a Solana heavy portfolio is exactly the situation where we would consider Awaken instead.

Light spam filtering. Koinly does apply some global spam rules, but in practice its filtering is much lighter than what Summ and Awaken do automatically. Plenty of airdropped junk and scam tokens still flow into your account, so you have to wade through them, and depending on your plan you can end up paying for transaction volume that is pure spam. Summ and Awaken strip far more of that out for you before you ever see it.

Less beginner friendly. Koinly is a fantastic platform for power users, but it can be less approachable than other tools. When you first sign up to do your own crypto tax, it is not always obvious where to start, which is part of why so many DIY users hit a wall and end up sending the file to us.

The Koinly settings that quietly inflate (or deflate) your tax bill

These are the quirks a DIY user almost never catches, and any one of them can silently make your numbers wrong. They are not bugs. They are default behaviours that only an experienced eye flags.

• Every withdrawal is treated as a disposal. By default, Koinly treats an outgoing transaction as a sale and calculates a capital gain or loss on it. If that “withdrawal” was actually a transfer to your own wallet, it should not be a taxable event at all, and you can end up reporting gains you never realised.
• Every incoming transaction is treated as a purchase. Likewise, an incoming transaction is assumed to be a buy. That matters for the next point.
• Unlabeled staking rewards and airdrops can massively underreport your income. If you do not correctly label staking rewards or airdrops as income, you can dramatically understate what you owe and walk straight into a penalty. This is one of the most expensive DIY mistakes we see.
• Koinly won’t automatically track DeFi loans. If you send a token into a DeFi protocol as collateral, Koinly won’t track that loan relationship on its own. Unless those transactions are tagged correctly, the practical sting is that you can lose the long term holding discount you were counting on, because the software treats the token as gone rather than still effectively yours.

If you read those four and were not already aware of all of them, that is the single best argument for either learning the tool properly or handing it to someone who lives in it.

A real Koinly cleanup: $5M in “gains” that were actually $982K

Here is a verified example from our own client work that shows why the software output is a starting point, not a tax return.

A client came to us with a Koinly account showing roughly $5M in capital gains. After our reconciliation process worked through the DeFi errors and OTC data mismatches, the real number turned out to be $982K. That is more than $4M in phantom capital gains avoided. The breakdown:

• DeFi and NFT treatment: mislabeled DeFi and NFT transactions had incorrectly bloated the gains by around $2M.
• OTC import fix: a CSV timestamp error had caused tokens to import with a zero cost basis, which inflated gains further.
• Audit confidence: once reconciled, the client had a defensible, data backed filing position instead of a number they could not explain.

To be clear, this is not a knock on Koinly. The software did what it was told with the data it was given. It is a knock on the idea that the first report a tool spits out is the number you file. The errors here, phantom gains from missing cost basis and mislabeled DeFi, are exactly the things our DeFi tax guide walks through, and exactly the things software cannot fully resolve on its own.

How Koinly handles different countries

Koinly is one of the most genuinely global tools in the category, which is a big part of why we use it so heavily. From our hands on experience:

• United Kingdom. Koinly’s UK tax engine is the one we trust most of any tool, full stop. If you file a UK Self Assessment, Koinly’s handling of the share pooling and same day and 30 day rules is its home turf.
• United States. For US filers, Koinly is the best tool we have found for analyzing cost basis issues, which is often the hardest part of getting a US return right. As exchanges roll out the new 1099-DA forms, being able to dig into cost basis cleanly matters more than ever.
• Australia. Koinly works for Australian filers, but you may need to customise the tax settings to match current ATO guidance rather than assuming the defaults are right. If your situation is ATO specific and CGT heavy, this is worth doing carefully or getting checked.

The short version: Koinly’s multi jurisdiction logic is a real strength, the UK engine especially, but “global” does not mean “set and forget,” and the local rules still deserve a second look.

Where Koinly fits best

We partner with Koinly, Awaken, and Summ, and we genuinely use all three, because the right tool depends on the wallets in front of us. Koinly’s sweet spot is broad:

• High volume exchange trading, where its filters, bulk editing, and balance tools shine.
• UK and Canadian filers, thanks to its strong multi jurisdiction tax logic.
• Anyone who plans to work with a crypto tax professional, because most accountants, ours included, know Koinly deeply. Handing a pro a Koinly file means they can get straight to work in a tool they already master.

That last point is the one we would underline. Koinly rewards expertise. In skilled hands it is arguably the most powerful reconciliation environment available. In a beginner’s hands on a complex DeFi portfolio, it can be a steep climb.

Koinly alternatives: when another tool might fit better

Choosing an alternative is not about Koinly being worse, it is about matching the tool to the job. From our reconciliation work:

• Solana or DeFi heavy portfolios: Awaken has the strongest Solana, Base, and HyperEVM automations we have used, and stronger spam filtering. If most of your activity lives on those chains, start there.
• Australian or complex CGT situations: Summ was built in Australia around the ATO rules, and is a natural default if that is your situation.

We go deeper on each of these in their own reviews. For the full picture, our best crypto tax software roundup ranks every tool by the situation it actually fits, and our best crypto tax software for DeFi breakdown covers which tool wins on-chain.

How much does Koinly cost?

Koinly is free to import and review your data, and you only pay when you want to generate and download a tax report. Pricing is charged per tax year and scales with how many transactions you have. Prices localise to your country, so confirm the figures for where you file. As of this review:

Plan	Price per tax year	Transactions	Best for
Free	$0	Up to 10,000	Importing and previewing your gains, no report download
Newbie	$49	Up to 100	Getting started, light activity
Hodler	$99	Up to 1,000	Taking it easy, moderate activity
Trader	$199 (up to $299 for 10,000)	3,000+	Active and high volume traders

The free plan lets you import everything and preview your capital gains, you just can’t download the actual report until you pay. The Trader plan then steps up in price with your transaction count, reaching $299 at 10,000 transactions. Pricing changes, so confirm the current tiers on Koinly’s site before you buy. One thing worth flagging: because Koinly’s spam filtering is light, plenty of airdropped junk still counts toward your transaction total, so spam alone can quietly push you into a higher tier. The smarter way to think about cost is the sticker price plus the hours you will spend cleaning up the file, which is exactly why matching the tool to your situation matters.

Our verdict: is Koinly worth it?

For most people, yes. Koinly is the platform we reach for across the widest range of client work, and it is hard to beat once you know how to drive it. Use Koinly if you are a high volume exchange trader, if you file in the UK or Canada, or, above all, if you plan to work with a crypto tax professional, since almost every crypto accountant knows it cold. Its balance tools, filters, and bulk editing make it the best environment we have for finding and fixing the errors that matter.

Be honest with yourself about two things. First, Koinly is a raw, powerful tool that rewards expertise, so if you are a beginner with a complex DeFi or Solana heavy portfolio, expect a learning curve, and consider Awaken or Summ for those specific cases. Second, the report Koinly produces is a starting point, not a finished return. The defaults that treat every transfer as a sale, and the unlabeled staking, airdrops, and DeFi loans, can move your tax bill by a lot, in either direction, if no one catches them.

When to stop DIY and hand it to a pro

Our crypto tax software vs accountant comparison helps you decide how much of the work you want to handle yourself and when to bring in help.

Software is a tool, not a tax return. Koinly will get you a long way if you are willing to learn it, and our DIY crypto tax course is built to teach you exactly how to drive Koinly properly and avoid the silent mistakes above. But if you hit any of these, the smart move is to get help rather than file something you cannot stand behind:

• Your report shows gains that look far too high (often phantom gains from missing cost basis, like the $5M that was really $982K above).
• You have DeFi positions, NFTs, cross chain bridges, or perps that the software clearly did not label correctly.
• You have a high transaction account with missing data you cannot track down.
• You have two or more unfiled years, or a tax office notice.
• The numbers do not reconcile and you cannot explain why.

That is the work we do every day, in Koinly and the tools beside it. If you would rather hand the whole thing to an accountant who already knows where these tools break, get a quote.

Frequently asked questions about Koinly

Is Koinly crypto tax software legit?

Yes. Koinly is a legitimate, well established crypto tax platform founded in 2018, with more than a million users worldwide. We have used it across more than 1,000 client accounts as a crypto tax accounting firm. It imports your exchange and on chain activity, calculates capital gains and income, and produces filing ready reports.

Is Koinly worth it?

For most people, yes, and especially if you trade on exchanges at volume, file in the UK or Canada, or plan to work with a crypto tax professional. Its filters, bulk editing, and balance tools are the best we use for finding and fixing errors. The caveats are that it has a learning curve, lighter spam filtering than its rivals, and weaker Solana support on large accounts, so a beginner with a complex DeFi or Solana heavy portfolio may find another tool easier.

Is Koinly better than Awaken?

It depends on your wallets. For Solana, Base, and HyperEVM activity, Awaken’s automations and spam filtering are stronger, and we would reach for it first. For high volume exchange trading, UK or Canadian filing, balance error investigation, and working alongside an accountant, Koinly is our preference. We partner with both and use both.

What is the best Koinly alternative?

It depends on the job. For Solana or DeFi heavy portfolios, Awaken is the strongest engine we use. For Australian filers or complex CGT situations, Summ was built around the ATO rules. Koinly remains the best all round, multi jurisdiction choice for most other cases, particularly if a professional will touch the file.

Does Koinly handle DeFi and Solana?

Koinly can import DeFi and Solana activity, but both need a careful review. DeFi, NFTs, and cross chain swaps almost always require manual cleanup, and Koinly’s Solana support, especially on high transaction accounts, has lagged, so we often find missing Solana data. For heavily Solana based portfolios we frequently prefer Awaken.

How much does Koinly cost?

Koinly is free to import and preview your data, and charges per tax year only when you generate a report. Plans scale with transaction count: Free at $0, Newbie at $49, Hodler at $99, and Trader at $199 (rising to $299 for 10,000 transactions). Prices localise by country and change over time, so confirm the current tiers on Koinly’s website before purchasing.

Can I just use Koinly instead of an accountant?

If your activity is mostly straightforward buying and selling on major exchanges, Koinly on its own can absolutely get the job done, and our DIY course teaches you how. But the report it produces is a starting point. If you have DeFi, NFTs, cross chain activity, missing cost basis, high transaction counts, or unfiled years, the numbers often need a professional review before filing, which is exactly the work we do.

About the author

Matt Walrath

Founder of Crypto Tax Made Easy. Matt has worked in crypto tax since 2017, leading reconciliation work across DeFi, cost basis cleanup, exchange tax forms, and tax software reviews. CTME has reconciled 6.7M+ transactions for 1,410+ investors, and Matt has appeared with Binance and spoken at the Australia Crypto Convention.

Disclaimer: The information provided by Crypto Tax Made Easy is for general informational purposes only and does not constitute professional, financial, accounting, or tax advice. Consult a qualified professional about your specific situation.