Buy Monero without KYC: every route that still works, with its KYC level

Monero is harder to buy than it used to be. Some seventy venues have delisted it (our note), and from 10 July 2027 regulated providers in the EU may not keep accounts in anonymity-enhancing coins at all (our note). Buying it without handing over documents still works, through routes that are not exchanges in the old sense. Here they are, each with the KYC level this catalogue assigns from evidence, as of 7 November 2026.

Can you still buy Monero without KYC?

Yes. Of the 21 exchanges and DEXs in this catalogue that trade Monero, seven are at KYC level 0: their terms guarantee that documents will never be requested. Four are at level 3, where documents can be demanded in the middle of a swap, with your coins already deposited. The European ban binds service providers, and its preamble leaves out providers of software and of self-hosted wallets that have no access to the funds. That is where most of the level-0 routes are.

The routes, from most to least private

Peer to peer, with escrow. You trade with another person. The software matches you and locks the deposits in an escrow that neither side can empty alone.

• Bisq, level 0. In its own words: "No registration required", and deposits are "held in 2-of-2 multisig wallets". Monero is one of the coins it trades against bitcoin.
• RetoSwap, level 0, a network running Haveno, software built "to exchange Monero for fiat currencies like USD, EUR, and GBP or other cryptocurrencies". If a trade goes wrong there is arbitration, but "arbitrators never have access to your funds".

The catch: if you pay by bank transfer, your trading partner sees the name on your account. Peer to peer hides you from a platform, not from the person on the other side.

Atomic swaps. Bitcoin leaves on one chain and Monero arrives on the other in a single exchange that either completes on both sides or refunds. Nobody holds the coins in between.

• eigenwallet, level 0, previously called UnstoppableSwap. It swaps bitcoin and Monero in both directions with market makers. Version 5.0.1 of 30 October changed the protocol, so both sides need it to start a new swap.
• BasicSwap, level 0: "No account and no deposit with us." It runs on your own computer.

These are the slowest routes and the most private: no account, no custody, nobody in the middle who could ask for anything.

Instant exchanges. You send coins to an address and the service sends Monero back. It is fast, but for those minutes the service holds your money, and its terms decide what happens if a check is triggered.

• Level 0, documents never requested: DEX.fo, ETZ-Swap, PegasusSwap.
• Level 1, no documents in the normal case: AltQuick, ShadowSwap, SilentXMR, xChange.me.
• Level 2, documents possible on a risk flag, a refund or a partner's request: CCE Cash, LucidSwap, SideShift, WizardSwap.
• Level 3, documents can be demanded mid-swap: ChangeNOW, Quickex, SimpleSwap, StealthEX.

Aggregators. Trocador, Baltex, OrangeFren, Intercambio and Swapzone compare quotes across instant exchanges and send your swap to one of them. The exchange that carries out the swap sets the rules, which is why all five sit at level 2 or 3.

Wallet swaps and THORChain. Wallets such as Cake Wallet and Stack Wallet build in swaps through partner exchanges; the partner's rules apply, not the wallet's. Since August 2026 THORChain has swapped native Monero with no exchange in the middle (our note).

What "no KYC" means on a swap site

A banner that says "no KYC" is a promise without terms. The catalogue reads the terms instead and sorts what they allow into levels:

• 0, Guaranteed no KYC. The terms guarantee that documents are never required.
• 1, No KYC. No documents in the normal case; light registration data may be asked.
• 2, Rare KYC. Possible, but outside the normal case: by law, on a refund, on an anti-money-laundering flag, or at a partner's discretion.
• 3, Shotgun KYC. Can be demanded suddenly, mid-operation, with your funds already deposited.

A service can say "no KYC" on its home page and still be level 3. The level comes from the terms and the evidence, which are listed on every service's page.

Can you buy Monero with a card or PayPal without KYC?

Not in a way we can recommend. Card and PayPal payments pass through companies that know who you are, and they can be reversed, so a seller who accepts them carries the risk and asks the buyer for more. In practice, routes without documents start from another coin, or from cash or a bank transfer to a person.

How to check a route before you send anything

1. Read the service's page. The KYC level, and every attribute behind it with its evidence.
2. Check that it works today. The monitor checks every service every hour; an offline status or an editor's notice on the page is a reason to wait.
3. Use the address from the page, or its onion address, not one from an ad or a search result.
4. Send a small amount first.

Sources: Bisq · Haveno — README · eigenwallet — README and release 5.0.1 · BasicSwap · Regulation (EU) 2024/1624, Articles 79 and 90, recital 160 · KYC levels and catalogue counts: this catalogue, 7 November 2026