DEX volumes hit yearly low as Q1 activity slows

DEX activity declined in the first quarter of 2026, returning to the lowest levels in a year. The downturn followed a general cautious market behavior, limiting DEX speculation on tokens. 

Overall DEX activity slowed down in Q1, with a significant outflow of volumes on Ethereum. The general weakness of crypto markets in Q1 led to lowered speculation on tokens.

The slowdown was partially offset by HIP-3 activity and the newly added commodity markets. However, the new market did not yet fully compensate for the outflow in token trading. The altcoin market is also shifting, with lowered hopes of new DEX launches. The lack of ‘star tokens’ on DEXs is undercutting activity compared to periods of hype and bullish expectations. 

All main chains see an outflow of DEX trading

For the past week, DEX activity reached $41.07B, similar to the end of March in 2025, with $41.6B. The past year erased most of the bullish gains and increased activity, though it still fell to a strong baseline. 

Solana has an $11.42B share of the volume, still leading other networks for the past 30 months. One of the main reasons is that PumpSwap is still highly active, and Pump.fun continues to generate new tokens. 

DEXs also took a smaller share of centralized trading, down to 14.1%, from a peak of over 21% in the summer of 2025. 

DEX activity is a sign of crypto-native usage and the liveliness of the ecosystem. DEXs are also used to swap between stablecoins. The shift in activity signals a different pattern of crypto usage and swaps. 

Which are the top DEXs in 2026? 

Traffic is still accumulating at individual DEXs, especially multi-chain platforms. PancakeSwap is still the most active DEX, with 9.9% of all activity. 

DEX tokens are still relatively robust, with a total market value of $18B. HYPE leads the pace, though Hyperliquid has a different trading profile compared to a general DEX. Other top assets include UNI, ASTER, PUMP, JUP, and CAKE, though only three have broken above a $1B valuation. The slowdown of incentives and farming seasons has also led to an outflow of DEX users and lower interest in those tokens. 

One of the sources of Solana activity is the HumidiFi dark pool DEX, which is not always reflected in general trading. HumidiFi has a market share of 7.8%. As a result of the invisible trading, some of the larger sandwich attacks on Solana have also slowed down. 

The effect of trading memes on Solana has also resulted in much fewer sandwich attacks. As of 2026, the biggest share of sandwich attacks is against trades under $1, showing bots were even interested in intercepting small-scale meme trading. 

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