← Back to comparisons

Swap execution comparison

Orkid vs Rainbow

TL;DR: The colorful, retail-friendly Ethereum wallet with in-wallet swaps powered by 0x. Orkid charges a flat 9 bps fee with gasless execution, MEV protection, and surplus returned to you. Orkid charges 9 bps vs Rainbow at 87.5 bps — nearly 10x cheaper. On a $10,000 swap, $9 vs $87.50. Orkid also offers gasless swaps (Rainbow requires gas), MEV detection (Rainbow has none), and surplus return (Rainbow keeps it). You can keep Rainbow as your wallet and use Orkid for swaps.

Launch Orkid Swap → See Rainbow alternatives →
// QUICK FIT CHECK

Choose Orkid if

you want transparent 9 bps fees, gasless swaps, MEV protection, and surplus returned to you on Base, Ethereum, or Unichain.

Choose Rainbow if

Retail users who prioritize a beautiful wallet experience and are willing to pay premium swap fees.

Decision table

At a glance

Comparison table for Orkid and Rainbow
Category OrkidRainbow
Fee model 9 bps (0.09%) flat~87.5 bps (0.875%) on top of the 0x protocol fee. Total cost can exceed 100 bps.
Gas Gasless via Permit2User pays gas on every swap. No gasless option.
MEV protection Patent-backed MEV detectionNone. Swaps are broadcast to the public mempool.
Surplus return Returned to userNo. Rainbow and 0x keep positive slippage.
Chains Base, Ethereum, UnichainEthereum, Base, Arbitrum, Optimism, Polygon.
Custody Non-custodialNon-custodial
Best for Cost-conscious users who want transparent 9 bps, gasless, MEV-protected swaps with surplus returned.Retail users who prioritize a beautiful wallet experience and are willing to pay premium swap fees.
Not ideal for Users who need chains Orkid does not support yet (non-EVM, Solana, etc.).Cost-conscious users who want low fees, MEV protection, gasless swaps, and surplus return.

Where Rainbow leads

Established platform

Rainbow has its own strengths. Here is where it performs well:

  • Excellent mobile UX with a fun, approachable design
  • Strong NFT features including browsing, sending, and gallery views
  • Non-custodial — users control their own keys
  • Built on 0x infrastructure, inheriting 0x routing quality
  • Available on iOS, Android, and browser extension

Where Orkid leads

Transparent execution and surplus return

Orkid is built around a simple promise: 9 bps flat, gasless, MEV-protected, surplus returned. No hidden fees, no auction spreads, no gas tokens required.

  • 9 bps flat fee — transparent and competitive. On a $10,000 swap, that is $9.
  • Gasless via Permit2 — sign a message, Orkid handles the transaction. No ETH needed for gas.
  • Patent-backed MEV detection engine — protects against sandwich attacks and front-running.
  • Surplus returned to you — if the route produces positive slippage, you get it back.
  • Routes across 11+ DEX venues and RFQ sources on Base, Ethereum, and Unichain.

Best fit

Who should choose Rainbow

  • Retail users who prioritize a beautiful wallet experience and are willing to pay premium swap fees.

Best fit

Who should choose Orkid

  • Anyone swapping on Base, Ethereum, or Unichain who wants the lowest transparent fee with gasless execution and MEV protection.
  • Users tired of opaque fees, auction spreads, and paying gas on top of swap fees.
  • Traders who want surplus returned to them, not kept by the protocol.
// SWITCHING PATH

Migration view

Switching from Rainbow

Keep Rainbow as your wallet. Connect the same wallet to Orkid and swap through Orkid instead. Same wallet, same NFTs, same security — dramatically lower fees.

Next step

Try Orkid for your next swap

See the difference transparent pricing makes. Swap on Orkid with 9 bps flat, gasless execution, and MEV protection.

Launch Orkid Swap → See Rainbow alternatives → Explore Swap pillar → All pillars →
LLM Resource Index llms.txt