Perpetual vs. Quarterly Futures: Key Differences for Crypto Traders

Perpetual futures accounted for over $58.5 trillion in trading activity across major centralized exchanges in 2024. Their widespread adoption is largely attributed to the absence of expiration dates, allowing for continuous trading and greater strategic flexibility. In contrast, quarterly futures attract traders who prefer defined settlement periods and aim to capitalize on specific funding conditions associated with contract expiries.

Whether you are an active short-term trader seeking flexibility or a position trader focused on long-term market trends, understanding the distinctions between perpetual and quarterly futures is critical to optimizing your trading strategy. In this guide, we examine the mechanics of each instrument, assess their respective advantages and limitations, and provide insights to help you determine which product best aligns with your objectives in the crypto derivatives market.

What Are Crypto Futures Contracts?

Crypto futures contracts are agreements to buy or sell a specific cryptocurrency at a predetermined price on a future date. These contracts enable traders to go long or short, use leverage, and hedge against market volatility. Two of the most common types are perpetual futures and quarterly futures.

What Are Perpetual Futures?

Perpetual futures, also known as perpetual swaps, are a unique type of futures contract with no expiration date. This allows traders to hold a position indefinitely, provided they maintain sufficient margin.

Key Features:

• No expiration or settlement date

• Funding fees are paid between long and short positions to keep the contract price aligned with the spot market

• Highly liquid and popular among active traders

• High leverage support (up to 100x on platforms like Flipster)

• Ideal for short-term speculation and frequent trading

Perpetual futures dominate crypto derivatives markets due to their flexibility and the ability to react quickly to price movements without being limited by contract expiry.

What Are Quarterly Futures?

Quarterly futures are traditional futures contracts that expire at the end of each financial quarter—March, June, September, and December. Once the expiration date is reached, the contract is settled, and a new contract cycle begins.

Key Features:

• Fixed expiration and settlement dates

• No funding fees, making them suitable for long-term positions

• Useful for hedging long-term exposure

• Often used by institutions and professional traders

• Price may deviate from the spot market until the contract nears expiry

Quarterly futures are better suited for traders who prefer structured, time-bound positions and want to avoid the impact of funding rates.

Perpetual Futures vs. Quarterly Futures: Side-by-Side Comparison

When Should You Use Perpetual vs. Quarterly Futures?

Choosing between perpetual and quarterly futures depends on your trading goals, risk appetite, and time horizon.

Use Perpetual Futures if:

• You actively trade and want the flexibility to enter and exit positions at any time

• You’re pursuing short-term price movements or scalping strategies

• You prefer liquid markets with minimal slippage

• You want to take advantage of leverage with dynamic risk management

Use Quarterly Futures if:

• You’re hedging long-term positions in spot markets

• You want to avoid paying funding fees

• You prefer fixed timeframes for position planning

• You use seasonal or quarterly macroeconomic strategies

Why Perpetual Futures over Quarterly Futures

Perpetual futures' popularity stems from the flexibility they offer—especially on high-volatility assets like Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Solana.

Platforms like Flipster have capitalized on this trend by offering a trader-centric environment with ultra-low fees, deep liquidity, and up to 100x leverage on select pairs. This makes Flipster an ideal exchange for perpetual contract trading, whether you're a beginner or a seasoned professional.

Trade Perpetual Futures With Confidence on Flipster

Flipster offers a powerful suite of features that make trading perpetual futures fast, efficient, and rewarding:

• One of the lowest trading fees in the market

• Earn While Trading feature that pays USDT rewards on idle balances and the value of open positions

• Ultra-tight spreads and slippage

• Over 350+ trading pairs across major and emerging cryptocurrencies

• Up to 100x leverage on select contracts

• Whale Alerts to track high-volume trades

Sign up on Flipster today and start trading perpetual futures with top-tier tools, real-time insights, and unmatched capital efficiency.

Disclaimer: This material is for information purposes only and does not constitute financial advice. Flipster makes no recommendations or guarantees in respect of any digital asset, product, or service. Trading digital assets and digital asset derivatives comes with a significant risk of loss due to its high price volatility, and is not suitable for all investors. Please refer to our Terms.