Uniswap Tutorial: Complete Beginner's Guide

Uniswap is currently the world's largest decentralized exchange (DEX), allowing you to swap various crypto tokens without registration or KYC. This tutorial will guide you from zero to confidently using Uniswap.

What is Uniswap?

Uniswap is an automated market maker (AMM) protocol built on Ethereum that uses smart contracts to automatically execute token swaps, eliminating the need for traditional order book trading.

Uniswap V4: The Latest Version (Released January 2025)

Uniswap V4 was officially released in January 2025, bringing revolutionary updates:

V4 Core Features:

• Hooks System: Modular plugin architecture that allows developers to create custom logic and functionality. Over 150 different hooks have been developed, enabling advanced features like dynamic fees, time-weighted average price (TWAP) oracles, limit orders, auto-compounding, and more
• Extreme Gas Efficiency: Uses a Singleton architecture where all assets are managed by a single PoolManager contract, reducing the cost of creating new pools by up to 99.99%
• Improved Flash Loans: Native support for more flexible flash loan functionality
• Multi-Network Support: In addition to Ethereum mainnet, V4 supports Polygon, Arbitrum, OP Mainnet, Base, BNB Chain, Blast, World Chain, Avalanche, Zora, and more

Advantages of Uniswap

• No Registration Required: Just connect your wallet to start
• No KYC: Protects your privacy
• 24/7 Operation: Trade anytime
• Self-Custody: Your assets stay in your wallet
• Variety: Trade thousands of different tokens

Disadvantages of Uniswap

• Gas Fees: Ethereum network fees can be high
• Slippage Risk: Large trades may have price deviation
• Fake Token Risk: You must verify token contract addresses yourself

Preparation Before Using Uniswap

1. Prepare a Crypto Wallet

To use Uniswap, you need an Ethereum-compatible wallet:

Recommended Wallets:

• MetaMask: The most popular browser extension wallet
• Coinbase Wallet: Self-custody wallet from Coinbase
• Trust Wallet: Multi-chain mobile wallet
• Rainbow: User-friendly Ethereum wallet

2. Prepare ETH for Gas Fees

Every transaction on Ethereum requires gas fees. Keep at least 0.01-0.05 ETH in your wallet for transaction fees.

3. Prepare Tokens to Swap

You need tokens you want to sell. If you don't have any, buy ETH or other tokens from an exchange and transfer them to your wallet.

Step 1: Connect Your Wallet to Uniswap

1. Visit the Official Website
   • Open your browser and go to app.uniswap.org

1. Click Connect Wallet

   • Click the "Connect" button in the top right corner
   • Select your wallet type

2. Confirm Connection

   • Your wallet will show a confirmation popup
   • Verify the site is app.uniswap.org
   • Click "Connect"

3. Connection Successful

   • You'll see your wallet address displayed
   • Your balance appears in the top right corner

Step 2: Select Tokens to Swap

Set the Token You're Selling (You pay)

1. Click the token selector at the top
2. Select the token you want to sell (e.g., ETH)
3. Enter the amount you want to sell

Set the Token You're Buying (You receive)

1. Click the token selector at the bottom
2. Search for the token you want to buy
3. Important: Verify the contract address is correct

How to Verify Token Authenticity

1. Go to CoinGecko
2. Search for the token you want to buy
3. Click "Contract" to copy the contract address
4. Paste the contract address in Uniswap's search
5. Confirm the token information matches

Step 3: Check Transaction Details

Before confirming a trade, Uniswap shows important information:

Exchange Rate

Shows how many tokens you'll receive for each token you sell.

Slippage

The difference between expected and executed price.

Adjusting Slippage Settings:

1. Click the gear icon in the top right
2. Enter your desired percentage in "Slippage Tolerance"
3. Close the settings window

Price Impact

How much your trade affects the price.

• Green (< 1%): Minimal impact, safe to trade
• Yellow (1-3%): Some impact, review before proceeding
• Red (> 3%): Significant impact, consider splitting your trade

Estimated Gas Fees

Network fees for the transaction, priced in ETH.

Step 4: Execute the Trade

Approve Token (Required for First Trade)

If this is your first time trading a token on Uniswap, you need to "approve" it first:

1. Click the "Approve" button
2. Your wallet will show an approval request
3. Choose approval amount (recommend "Exact amount" or set a limit)
4. Confirm the approval transaction
5. Wait for approval to complete (requires gas fee)

Confirm the Swap

1. Click the "Swap" button
2. Review the transaction summary
3. Confirm price and amounts are correct
4. Click "Confirm Swap"
5. Confirm the transaction in your wallet
6. Wait for completion

Check Transaction Status

• After submitting, you'll see "Transaction Submitted"
• Click "View on Explorer" to see details on Etherscan
• Usually completes within 1-5 minutes (depending on network conditions)

Advanced Features

Limit Orders

Uniswap supports limit orders (powered by V4's Hooks system):

1. Switch to the "Limit" tab
2. Set your target price
3. Enter the amount
4. Set order expiration
5. Submit the limit order

Multi-Chain Trading

Uniswap V4 supports multiple blockchain networks:

• Ethereum: Main network, best liquidity
• Arbitrum: Layer 2, lower gas fees
• Optimism (OP Mainnet): Layer 2, fast transactions
• Polygon: Very low gas fees
• Base: Coinbase's L2
• BNB Chain: Binance Smart Chain
• Blast: High-yield L2
• World Chain: Worldcoin ecosystem chain
• Avalanche: High-performance blockchain
• Zora: NFT-focused network

How to Switch Networks

1. Click the network selector at the top of the page
2. Select the network you want to use
3. Your wallet will prompt to switch networks
4. Confirm the switch

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: My transaction keeps showing "Pending" - what should I do?

This might be due to low gas fees. Solutions:

1. Find the pending transaction in your wallet
2. Select "Speed up" or "Cancel"
3. Pay higher gas fees to override the original transaction

Q: What does "Insufficient Liquidity" mean?

This means the trading pair doesn't have enough liquidity. Solutions:

• Reduce the trade amount
• Choose a different trading route (e.g., swap to an intermediate token first)
• Wait for liquidity to increase

Q: Why did I receive fewer tokens than expected?

Possible reasons:

• Price slippage
• Token's built-in transfer tax
• Price moved during transaction execution

Q: How long do approvals last?

Approvals don't expire, but you can revoke them anytime. Regularly use Revoke.cash to review and revoke unnecessary approvals.

Security Reminders

1. Verify the Official URL: Only use app.uniswap.org
2. Verify Contract Addresses: Always confirm before buying tokens
3. Test with Small Amounts: Do a small test trade before large transactions
4. Don't Click Suspicious Links: Airdrops and DMs are often scams
5. Regularly Revoke Approvals: Use Revoke.cash to clean up old approvals
6. Protect Your Seed Phrase: Never enter it on any website

Summary

Uniswap is an important gateway to the DeFi world, providing truly decentralized trading. While there's a learning curve, once mastered you can:

• Freely trade any token
• Operate without centralized exchanges
• Trade newly listed tokens immediately
• Maintain trading privacy

Remember, security always comes first. Start small, and increase your trading amounts once you're comfortable with the process. Good luck on your DeFi journey!

---

Get Started

Ready to participate? First buy cryptocurrency on an exchange:

Sign Up20% fee discount Sign Up20% fee discount

---

Want to learn more about DeFi? Continue reading:

• Liquidity Mining Tutorial
• Aave Lending Tutorial
• Staking Beginner's Guide