USDE vs DAI
Ethena USDe and Dai, compared on the things that decide whether you get your dollar back. Live data, updated continuously.
30-day peg gap and USDE/DAI spread
Loading price history…
A synthetic dollar built from staked crypto collateral hedged with short perpetual futures. It is not a fiat-backed stablecoin: the peg depends on funding rates, exchange solvency and hedge execution.
Verdict band: Adequate
The original decentralised dollar. Minted against overcollateralised vaults and stability modules, with all collateral verifiable on-chain.
Verdict band: Strong
| Safety scoreComposite of collateral, peg, liquidity, issuer and track record. | ●●●●●5 of 5 | 72 | 80 | DAI |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Collateral qualityWhat actually backs the token, and how liquid that backing is. | ●●●●●5 of 5 | 58 | 84 | DAI |
| Exit liquidityWhether you can leave at size without moving the price. | ●●●●●5 of 5 | $2.24B | $294.41M | USDE |
| Issuer & legal standingRegulatory perimeter, disclosure quality and redemption rights. | ●●●●4 of 5 | 54 | 82 | DAI |
| Peg tightness (live)Absolute distance from $1.00 right now — smaller is better. | ●●●●4 of 5 | −0.029% | +0.005% | DAI |
| Worst recorded depegHow badly the token has broken before, as a stress precedent. | ●●●●4 of 5 | -2.9% | -7.4% | USDE |
| Track recordYears live and behaviour through past stress events. | ●●●●4 of 5 | 51 | 97 | DAI |
| Scale / market capBigger float usually means broader venue support and tighter spreads. | ●●●3 of 5 | $4.91B | $4.79B | USDE |
| Chain reachNumber of networks where the token is natively deployed. | ●●●3 of 5 | 25 chains | 31 chains | DAI |
| Best available yieldUpside — but every extra point above T-bills is paid for with risk. | ●●2 of 5 | 8.67% | 4.81% | USDE |
"Matters" is our weighting of how much each dimension typically drives a real allocation decision. Sort any column to re-rank the tradeoffs by what matters to you.
The short answer
DAI scores higher on safety (80 vs 72), driven mainly by collateral quality and disclosure. USDE has deeper tracked liquidity ($2.24B), which is what determines whether you can exit at size. USDE currently earns up to 8.67% — remember that any rate above the T-bill yield is payment for a risk.
If both are fiat-reserve tokens, note that holding both is not diversification: they share the same short-dated Treasury and banking exposure. Genuine diversification means mixing collateral structures.
Which one fits your goal: USDE or DAI?
Capital preservation over everything else.
For park cash safely, DAI is the better fit over USDE.
- Safety score 80 vs 72, with collateral rated 84/100.
- Current peg deviation 0.005% against -0.029% for USDE.
- DAI has 2 recorded depeg event(s) — read them before sizing up.
Concentrating in one issuer is a single point of failure regardless of score. Split across collateral structures.
Key risks, side by side
USDE
- Depeg history: 1 recorded event(s), worst deviation -2.90%.
- Attestation cadence: monthly.
- Yield venue risk: 8.67% is earned outside the token itself.
DAI
- Collateral volatility: a fast drawdown in backing assets can force liquidations.
- Depeg history: 2 recorded event(s), worst deviation -7.40%.
- Attestation cadence: onchain.
- Yield venue risk: 4.81% is earned outside the token itself.
- Chain concentration: 88% of supply sits on Ethereum.
| Metric | USDE | DAI |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Stablecoin | Stablecoin |
| Issuer | Ethena Labs | Sky (formerly MakerDAO) |
| Jurisdiction | BVI | Decentralised / Cayman foundation |
| Collateral | delta-neutral | crypto-overcollateralized |
| Peg mechanism | crypto-backed | crypto-backed |
| Attestation | monthly | onchain |
| Redemption | gated | direct |
| Price | $0.9997 | $1.0001 |
| Peg deviation | −0.029% | +0.005% |
| Market cap | $4.91B | $4.79B |
| 7d supply change | −0.64% | −0.14% |
| Liquidity | $2.24B | $294.41M |
| Best yield | 8.67% (accountable · Robinhood Chain) | 4.81% (aave-v3 · Polygon) |
| Chains | 25 | 31 |
| Launched | 2024 | 2017 |
| Worst recorded depeg | −2.9% | −7.4% |
Spread, peg gap and switching cost
- Price spread (USDE vs DAI)
- -3.4 bps
- $0.9997 vs $1.0001
- Peg deviation gap
- 0.024 pp
- USDE −0.029% · DAI +0.005%
- Yield spread
- +3.86%
- USDE 8.67% · DAI 4.81%
- Liquidity ratio
- 7.62×
- $2.24B vs $294.41M
A round trip between USDE and DAI costs roughly the market spread plus venue fees. At 3.4 bps of price gap, swapping $1M implies about $340.13 of price impact before fees — usually only worth it if the peg gap or yield spread is durable, not intraday noise.
Historical context
Track record is the part of a stablecoin you cannot model — it has to be observed. Here is how USDE and DAI have actually behaved since launch, including every stress event we have on record.
- DAI
Dai goes live.
- DAI
Single-collateral Dai launches on Ethereum.
- DAI
Black Thursday: liquidation failures leave MakerDAO with bad debt.
- DAI
Collateral mix tilts heavily toward USDC, importing centralised risk.
- DAI
USDC contagion via PSM (worst deviation -7.4%).
- USDE
Ethena USDe goes live.
- USDE
Exchange oracle dislocation (worst deviation -2.9%).
Chain coverage
USDE is live on 25 chains, DAI on 31. 9 chains carry both, so bridging is only unavoidable for the 38 networks where just one of them is deployed.
| Chain | USDE | DAI | Both available |
|---|---|---|---|
| $2.70B | $4.20B | Yes | |
| $542.33M | — | USDE only | |
| $472.71M | $510.4K | Yes | |
| — | $463.21M | DAI only | |
| $392.51M | — | USDE only | |
| $356.05M | — | USDE only | |
| $186.54M | — | USDE only | |
| $78.38M | $31.07M | Yes | |
| $80.37M | — | USDE only | |
| $69.45M | — | USDE only | |
| — | $35.12M | DAI only | |
| $1.93M | $16.85M | Yes | |
| $7.53M | $11.23M | Yes | |
| $25.1K | $13.62M | Yes | |
| $12.80M | — | USDE only | |
| — | $12.01M | DAI only | |
| — | $7.98M | DAI only | |
| $7.73M | — | USDE only | |
| — | $1.89M | DAI only | |
| — | $785.7K | DAI only |
USDE vs DAI: frequently asked questions
Is USDE or DAI safer?
+
On our composite safety score DAI rates 80/100 versus 72/100 for USDE. The score weighs collateral quality (crypto-overcollateralized vs delta-neutral), redemption rights, attestation quality, peg history and liquidity depth. A higher score is not a guarantee: both remain issuer-credit and smart-contract exposures, not insured bank deposits.
What is the difference between USDE and DAI?
+
Ethena USDe is issued by Ethena Labs (BVI), backed by delta-neutral, with redemption terms: gated. Dai is issued by Sky (formerly MakerDAO) (Decentralised / Cayman foundation), backed by crypto-overcollateralized, with redemption terms: direct. Attestation coverage is "monthly" for USDE and "onchain" for DAI.
Which has the bigger market cap, USDE or DAI?
+
USDE is larger at $4.91B in circulating supply, against $4.79B for the other. Over the last 7 days supply moved −0.64% for USDE and −0.14% for DAI.
Are USDE and DAI trading at $1.00 right now?
+
USDE trades at $0.9997 (−0.029% off peg) and DAI at $1.0001 (+0.005% off peg). The gap between the two is about 3.4 basis points, which is the cost you pay when rotating size between them before fees.
Has USDE or DAI ever depegged?
+
USDE: worst recorded deviation −2.9%. DAI: worst recorded deviation −7.4%. Past peg behaviour under stress is the single best available proxy for how a token trades in the next crisis.
Which is better for large institutional size, USDE or DAI?
+
For block size the constraint is exit liquidity and primary redemption, not headline supply. USDE shows deeper on-chain liquidity at $2.24B versus $294.41M. Combine that with the redemption channel — USDE: gated; DAI: direct — and size trades against the primary window rather than the order book where possible.
Can I earn yield on USDE or DAI?
+
USDE currently shows the higher rate at 8.67% via accountable · Robinhood Chain, against 4.81% via aave-v3 · Polygon for DAI. Neither token pays interest by holding it in a wallet: the yield comes from lending, liquidity provision or a wrapped yield-bearing version, each with its own counterparty and contract risk.
Which chains support both USDE and DAI?
+
Both are deployed on 9 shared networks, including Ethereum, Solana, BSC, Avalanche, Arbitrum, OP Mainnet. USDE spans 25 chains in total and DAI spans 31. Bridged supply on a chain is not the same as natively issued supply, and it usually carries the bridge's risk rather than the issuer's.
What does it cost to switch from USDE to DAI?
+
Budget three components: the current price spread of roughly 3.4 bps, swap or venue fees, and slippage against available depth ($2.24B for USDE, $294.41M for DAI). For meaningful size, redeeming with the issuer and minting the other side is often cheaper than a secondary-market swap.
Is USDE or DAI regulated?
+
USDE is issued from BVI with monthly; DAI is issued from Decentralised / Cayman foundation with onchain. Regulatory status varies by your own jurisdiction and by whether the token is offered under a specific stablecoin regime, so treat this as a starting point for diligence, not legal advice.