> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://uncoded.ch/docs/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# MEXC — Setup and Operation

> Wide altcoin coverage at the speculative end. Lists newer/lower-cap tokens earlier than majors. Variable liquidity — use deliberately.

<Info>
  **MEXC is a wide-coverage altcoin venue with variable liquidity.** Lists newer and lower-cap tokens earlier than the major venues. Strong for symbol coverage; weaker for predictable execution. Use as a complement to a major venue, never as a sole venue.
</Info>

## When MEXC makes sense

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="Symbol coverage at the speculative end" icon="boxes-stacked">
    MEXC lists earlier and broader than majors. If a token isn't on Binance/Bybit/KuCoin, MEXC often has it.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Specific symbol you've validated" icon="check-double">
    Use MEXC for specific symbols where you've verified liquidity is sufficient for your trade size — not as a general broad-coverage venue.
  </Card>

  <Card title="As a tertiary venue" icon="layer-group">
    Operators running 3+ venues sometimes add MEXC for that specific altcoin coverage that majors don't have.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Maker-favorable fee structure" icon="coins">
    Maker fees on MEXC are competitive. Trade-off: liquidity is variable, so maker orders may sit unfilled longer.
  </Card>
</CardGroup>

## When NOT to use MEXC

<Warning>
  * ❌ **As your only venue** — variable liquidity makes MEXC unsuitable as primary.
  * ❌ **As a starter venue** — first-month operators should use Binance/Coinbase.
  * ❌ **For US residents** — MEXC restricted in the US.
  * ❌ **For long-tail altcoins without liquidity validation** — many MEXC pairs are too thin for unCoded's modes.
  * ❌ **For large per-order sizes on thin pairs** — slippage can be substantial.
</Warning>

## Account creation

<Steps>
  <Step title="Sign up at MEXC">
    Standard signup flow.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Verify email">
    Required for all features.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Complete KYC">
    KYC at the level required for spot trading.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Enable 2FA">
    Authenticator app preferred.
  </Step>
</Steps>

## API key creation

<Steps>
  <Step title="Navigate to API Management">
    Account → API Management.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Click 'Create API'">
    Standard creation flow.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Configure permissions">
    * ✅ **Read** — enable.
    * ✅ **Spot Trading** — enable.
    * ❌ **Withdrawal** — leave unchecked. NEVER enable.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Set IP allowlist">
    Paste your VPS's static IP.

    Wait `30–60` seconds for propagation.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Save key and secret">
    Save both to your password manager immediately.
  </Step>
</Steps>

## Connecting unCoded to MEXC

<Steps>
  <Step title="Open the unCoded Dashboard">
    Log in with admin credentials.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Add MEXC as an exchange">
    "Exchanges" → "Add Exchange" → "MEXC."
  </Step>

  <Step title="Paste credentials and test">
    Paste API key + secret. Toggle "Enabled" on. Test connection.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Watch logs carefully">
    MEXC's variable liquidity can produce unusual fill behavior. Watch the Logs panel for the first hour.
  </Step>
</Steps>

## MEXC-specific quirks

<AccordionGroup>
  <Accordion title="Variable liquidity on long-tail symbols" icon="droplet">
    MEXC's symbol breadth comes with caveat: liquidity varies dramatically across symbols.

    **Operator implication**: validate per-symbol liquidity before configuring. A symbol with `$50,000` daily volume cannot absorb `$1,000` orders without slippage.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Symbol naming unhyphenated" icon="font">
    MEXC uses unhyphenated symbol naming: `BTCUSDT`, `ETHUSDT`. Same as Binance/Bybit format.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Higher default fees than Binance" icon="coins">
    MEXC's default taker fee is `~0.20%` — higher than Binance's `0.10%` (or `0.075%` with BNB discount).

    **Trade-off**: pay more in fees for the symbol coverage. Make sure your strategy can absorb the fee delta.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Withdrawal restrictions on some assets" icon="ban">
    MEXC occasionally pauses withdrawals on specific assets. Not relevant if you correctly disabled withdrawal permission on your API key.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Less battle-tested integration" icon="flask">
    MEXC's integration in unCoded is solid but not as deeply hand-tuned as Binance's. Expect occasional edge cases.

    **Operator implication**: start with smaller capital. Watch logs more carefully.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Sub-account support" icon="layer-group">
    Limited sub-account support compared to Binance/Bybit. For strategy isolation, prefer venues with mature sub-account features.
  </Accordion>
</AccordionGroup>

## Troubleshooting MEXC-specific

<AccordionGroup>
  <Accordion title="Authentication fails" icon="circle-exclamation">
    Standard troubleshooting:

    1. Verify IP allowlist matches VPS IP.
    2. Confirm Spot Trading permission enabled.
    3. Re-paste credentials carefully (no whitespace).
    4. Wait `30–60` seconds for allowlist propagation.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Orders failing with slippage" icon="weight-scale">
    On thin MEXC pairs, large orders walk the order book. Reduce per-order size or switch to a deeper-liquidity pair.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Symbol not found" icon="font">
    Use unhyphenated format (`BTCUSDT`). Verify symbol is listed on MEXC — symbol availability changes over time.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Rate limit hit" icon="gauge">
    Standard cooldown-and-retry. Persistent hits = reduce active pair count.
  </Accordion>
</AccordionGroup>

## Best practices for MEXC operators

<Tip>
  * ✅ **Validate per-symbol liquidity** before configuring. Check daily volume, order book depth.
  * ✅ **Use as complement to a major venue**, not sole venue.
  * ✅ **Smaller per-order sizes** on thin pairs to reduce slippage.
  * ✅ **API permissions: Read + Spot Trading only** — never Withdrawal.
  * ✅ **IP allowlist your API key**.
  * ✅ **Watch logs more carefully than on majors** — variable liquidity surfaces edge cases.
  * ✅ **Higher fee margin requirements** — `0.20%` taker requires strategies with sufficient profit to absorb.
  * ✅ **Quarterly rotation** — same cadence as other venues.
</Tip>

## What's next

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="API Key Security" icon="shield" href="/exchanges/api-key-security">
    Universal principles applicable to MEXC.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Binance Setup" icon="building-columns" href="/exchanges/binance">
    The recommended primary venue.
  </Card>

  <Card title="KuCoin Setup" icon="building-columns" href="/exchanges/kucoin">
    Similar altcoin-coverage focus with deeper liquidity.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Other venues" icon="ellipsis" href="/exchanges/other-venues">
    The remaining production-ready venues.
  </Card>

  <Card title="TradingBot" icon="robot" href="/modules/tradingbot">
    The execution engine.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Troubleshooting" icon="wrench" href="/troubleshooting/common-issues">
    Common issues.
  </Card>
</CardGroup>