How these botsactually differ
CryptoBud is a crypto trading bot for iPhone and the web. You start with paper trading. Fake money, real prices, on a private cloud box that is yours. Before you sign in, you see which coins it would trade for your budget. You can talk to the same bot from Grok, ChatGPT, or Claude.
We scored Stoic AI, 3Commas, Pionex, Cryptohopper, and Bitsgap against that, using their own pages.
| Compared | Stoic | 3Commas | Pionex | Hopper | Bitsgap | CryptoBud |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Paper trading first | StoicNo No paper trading up front. Setup is account + API keys. | 3CommasPartial Paid demo with perfect fills, on 3Commas servers. | PionexPartial Futures demo. Spot grid wants a deposit. | HopperPartial One simulator with the paid hopper — next to live. | BitsgapPartial Demo mode, $100k virtual. Simulated order book. | CryptoBudYes Paper trading is the default. No API keys. |
| Preview before keys | StoicNo Pick Meta, Long Only, or Yield — their history, not your coins. | 3CommasPartial You build the bot, then maybe backtest. | PionexPartial Copy an AI or influencer grid, then confirm. | HopperPartial Marketplace, copy trading, or you design the hopper. | BitsgapPartial Pick GRID, DCA, COMBO — you set the bot. | CryptoBudYes See the current coins it would trade, before Sign in with Apple. |
| Keys on your box | StoicNo Keys stored with Stoic. You whitelist their IPs. | 3CommasNo Sign Center holds keys. Whitelist their IPs. | PionexNo No API keys — because they are the exchange. | HopperNo Keys on Cryptohopper. Whitelist their IPs. | BitsgapNo Encrypted keys on Bitsgap servers. | CryptoBudYes Private cloud box. Keys stay on that machine. |
| Practice matches live | StoicNo They backtest internally. You go live. | 3CommasPartial Backtest ≠ paper ≠ live — they say so. | PionexPartial 7 / 30 / 180 day backtest panel, then live on Pionex. | HopperPartial Paper hopper, then toggle live and paste keys. | BitsgapPartial Demo and backtest, then live via API. | CryptoBudYes Same bot from paper trading to live. |
| Talk from Claude and others | StoicNo No MCP. You connect keys. They pick the strategy. | 3CommasNo REST API and Telegram. No first-party MCP. | PionexPartial Official MCP trades on Pionex. Keys live on your laptop. | HopperPartial Official MCP is market data, not the hopper. | BitsgapNo AI Assistant in the dashboard. No MCP. | CryptoBudYes MCP on your box. Same bot as the iPhone and web apps. |
Yes — The normal way the product works. Partial — Close, but a different product. Demo, backtest, or a related tool. No — The opposite, or they do not ship it at all.
- Yes
The normal way the product works.
- Partial
Close, but a different product. Demo, backtest, or a related tool.
- No
The opposite, or they do not ship it at all.
How we compare
We read their homepages, FAQs, help centers, App Store listings, and spend a fair amount of time using the products. These are product facts you can check yourself. We skip who will make you more money. Last check: August 25, 2026.
Paper trading first
You can run the real crypto trading bot with fake money and real prices, no exchange API keys. That is the default.
Preview before keys
Before you sign in, you see which coins the bot would trade for your budget. You pick a style.
Keys on your box
The bot runs on a cloud computer that is yours. Your Binance API keys live on that machine. Binance only accepts that IP.
Talk from Claude and others
You connect Cursor, Claude Code, or Codex to the same always-on bot. MCP runs on your box. Same relay password as the iPhone and web apps.
What we skip
- Advertised returns. Stoic publishes past strategy results. We did not audit those numbers. We will not argue about yearly return percentages.
- How many exchanges. 3Commas, Cryptohopper, and Bitsgap sell a dashboard across many exchanges. CryptoBud is a Binance Spot trading bot. Listing more venues is their product.
- Funds that hold your coins. If you send them coins and wait, that is a different product. We do not write that comparison.
See all comparisons
CryptoBudvsStoic AI
Closest iPhone auto-trader. Needs exchange keys before it trades.
Read moreCryptoBudvs3Commas
You build the bots. They store your API keys on their cloud.
Read moreCryptoBudvsPionex
Simple because they are the exchange. Your coins move onto Pionex.
Read moreCryptoBudvsCryptohopper
Cloud hopper with a marketplace. Simulator sits next to the live bot. They hold the keys.
Read moreCryptoBudvsBitsgap
Multi-exchange GRID and DCA. Demo first, then their cloud holds the keys.
Read more
Sources
Every competitor claim on this page points here. We quote their help centers, FAQs, and App Store listings — not something we made up.
- 1.Stoic AI — FAQOpens in a new tab
- 2.Stoic AI — homepageOpens in a new tab
- 3.Stoic AI — create a Binance API keyOpens in a new tab
- 4.Stoic AI — Binance trading botOpens in a new tab
- 5.Stoic AI — App StoreOpens in a new tab
- 6.Stoic AI — PricingOpens in a new tab
- 7.3Commas Help — Demo accountOpens in a new tab
- 8.3Commas Help — Enable Demo accountOpens in a new tab
- 9.3Commas — homepageOpens in a new tab
- 10.3Commas — BacktestingOpens in a new tab
- 11.3Commas — SecurityOpens in a new tab
- 12.3Commas — APIOpens in a new tab
- 13.3Commas Help — Telegram bot commandsOpens in a new tab
- 14.3Commas Help — AI AssistantOpens in a new tab
- 15.3Commas — App StoreOpens in a new tab
- 16.GitHub — community 3Commas MCPOpens in a new tab
- 17.3Commas — PricingOpens in a new tab
- 18.3Commas Help — Available subscription plansOpens in a new tab
- 19.Coin Bureau — copy grid bots on Pionex (2026)Opens in a new tab
- 20.Pionex Help — Grid Trading BotOpens in a new tab
- 21.Pionex — 15 bot questionsOpens in a new tab
- 22.Pionex — best grid trading bot platformsOpens in a new tab
- 23.Pionex — MCP quickstartOpens in a new tab
- 24.Pionex — AI Kit (GitHub)Opens in a new tab
- 25.Pionex — App StoreOpens in a new tab
- 26.Pionex — fees for starting a botOpens in a new tab
- 27.Pionex — trading feesOpens in a new tab
- 28.Cryptohopper — paper tradingOpens in a new tab
- 29.Cryptohopper Docs — paper tradingOpens in a new tab
- 30.Cryptohopper — homepageOpens in a new tab
- 31.Cryptohopper — MarketplaceOpens in a new tab
- 32.Cryptohopper Help — IP whitelistingOpens in a new tab
- 33.Cryptohopper — MCPOpens in a new tab
- 34.Cryptohopper Docs — what is MCPOpens in a new tab
- 35.Cryptohopper — App StoreOpens in a new tab
- 36.Cryptohopper — PricingOpens in a new tab
- 37.Bitsgap — Demo tradingOpens in a new tab
- 38.Bitsgap Help — Demo ModeOpens in a new tab
- 39.Bitsgap — homepageOpens in a new tab
- 40.Bitsgap — PricingOpens in a new tab
- 41.Bitsgap — AI AssistantOpens in a new tab
- 42.Bitsgap Help — Getting started with AI AssistantOpens in a new tab
- 43.Bitsgap — App StoreOpens in a new tab
Paper trading first — live when you say so
