There are five practical ways to acquire TON in 2026: a centralised spot exchange, a P2P marketplace, a fiat on-ramp, an in-wallet purchase widget, or a swap from another stablecoin you already hold. Each route trades cost against convenience and KYC friction. This guide walks through them and shows when each one wins.
Route 1. Spot exchange — cheapest at scale
This is the default for anything above roughly $500. Three exchanges keep TON/USDT liquid through 2026:
- OKX — deep TON/USDT order book, 0.1% taker fee on spot.
- Bybit — also TON/USDT, 0.1% spot, plus perp contracts if you want them.
- MEXC — comparable liquidity, 0.1% taker.
Because TON/USD pairs are rare, the standard sequence is:
- Register and complete KYC.
- Fund USDT — via card on-ramp, bank transfer, or the exchange’s own P2P module.
- Swap USDT → TON on spot at market.
- Withdraw TON to a self-custody wallet (network fee ~0.05 TON).
!KYC and geography
Exchange policies move every quarter. Some jurisdictions get added to the restricted list with little notice. Before depositing, confirm that withdrawals to your wallet of choice are unblocked from your country of residence — not just deposits.
Route 2. P2P marketplace — flexible, slower
If your country isn’t well-served by direct fiat on-ramps, or you want to avoid centralised KYC, peer-to-peer marketplaces let you trade fiat for USDT (or sometimes TON directly) with another individual under exchange-held escrow:
- Bybit P2P — supports many fiat currencies, escrow handled by the exchange.
- OKX P2P — same model, occasionally tighter spreads.
- HTX P2P — smaller volumes, longer settlement windows.
- Crypto Bot inside Telegram — fiat ↔ TON directly, no separate exchange account. Walks through the workflow in its own review.
P2P spreads typically add 1–3% on top of spot. Verify the counterparty’s history (completion rate, dispute history) and never release escrow until your bank shows the incoming fiat as cleared, not just pending.
Route 3. Fiat on-ramp providers
Built-in third-party providers integrated into wallets — typically MoonPay, Mercuryo, Transak or Ramp Network. The flow is one screen:
- Open Tonkeeper, MyTonWallet or the Telegram Wallet.
- Tap “Buy TON”.
- Choose card or bank transfer, enter amount.
- Pass the provider’s lightweight KYC (selfie + ID for amounts above the regional threshold).
- TON lands on your wallet address.
Fees sit at 1.5–4% all-in. Cards are usually the most expensive route; SEPA / ACH transfers shave a percentage point. This is the right tool for one-shot purchases up to a few hundred dollars — above that, the percentage burn beats the convenience.
Route 4. In-wallet swap from a stablecoin
If you already hold USDT or USDC somewhere (another chain, a CEX, a different wallet), often the cheapest path is to bridge or move the stable to TON-mainnet and swap on a DEX:
- STON.fi or DeDust — the dominant AMM venues, 0.3% pool fee + minor price impact.
- swap.coffee — aggregates across both, often shaving a few basis points.
Best fee profile of any route once you account for already being on TON, but it adds a step if your stable lives on Ethereum or BSC — you’ll need a bridge (guide here).
Open Tonkeeper
The mature self-custody wallet for TON — Ledger support, in-app fiat on-ramp, TON Connect for dApps. Free, non-custodial.
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Route 5. Cross-platform — USDT bridge then swap
For larger movements ($5k+) where you already hold stables on another chain:
- Bridge USDT from Ethereum / BSC / Tron to TON via a cross-chain bridge (Symbiosis, Orbiter, the Tether-native USDT-on-TON bridge for direct USDT-to-USDT).
- Swap on STON.fi or DeDust.
Bridge fees are flat (a few dollars regardless of size), so this route’s percentage cost drops sharply with the amount. Sub-$1k makes it unattractive; $10k+ makes it the most efficient route.
Comparison
| Route | Fee range | Best for | KYC | Speed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Spot exchange | ~0.1% spot + ramp | $500+ purchases | Yes | Minutes |
| P2P marketplace | 1–3% spread | KYC-light, mid-size | Optional | Hours |
| Fiat on-ramp | 1.5–4% | First small buy | Light | Seconds |
| In-wallet DEX swap | 0.3–0.6% | Already on TON | No | Seconds |
| Bridge + swap | Flat + 0.3% | $5k+ from other chain | No | Minutes |
What to do after you’ve bought
- Move to self-custody. Custodial holdings on an exchange or in the Telegram Wallet are convenient for trading; they are not for long-term storage. Pick a TON wallet that fits — Tonkeeper for mature mobile UX, MyTonWallet for a browser extension, Tonhub for an open-source mobile alternative.
- Verify the address before you send. Copy/paste, then check the first six and last four characters by eye. Always do a small test transfer first.
- Back up the seed phrase offline. 24 words on paper or steel, two copies, two physical locations. Never a photo, never a cloud note.
- Decide why you bought. Holding TON is not the same problem as trading TON. If you bought to use the network — wallets, dApps, NFTs — you’re done. If you bought as an investment, set yourself an exit plan now (price targets, time horizons) so the decision later isn’t emotional.
If your reason was “to figure out what TON is in the first place”, the What is TON walkthrough is the next stop.
