Builder codes let an application attach a fee to the fills it sends on behalf of a user. The fee is set per order, approved by the user, and settled onchain as part of the fee logic.
Not block builders
“Builder” here means a DeFi application or frontend, not a consensus block builder.
Fee caps
| Market | Maximum builder fee |
|---|---|
| Perpetuals | 0.1% (10 bps) |
| Spot | 1% (100 bps) |
The order field f is measured in tenths of a basis point:
f = 10 → 1 bp → 0.01%
f = 30 → 3 bps → 0.03%Builder fees apply only to fees collected in the quote or collateral asset. For spot, the fee applies to the sell side, not the buy side. For perps, it applies to both sides.
User approval
Before an order can include a builder fee, the user approves a maximum fee for that builder:
- The user signs
ApproveBuilderFeewith the main wallet, not an API wallet. - The approval sets the maximum fee the builder may charge.
- The user can revoke the approval at any time.
- Each user can have at most 10 active builder approvals.
Disclose the fee
The builder fee must be visible before the user signs. Hiding it, or charging above the approved maximum, is a violation of user trust and may breach the venue's terms.
Order payload
{
"type": "order",
"orders": [
{
"asset": 0,
"isBuy": true,
"limitPx": "74363.0",
"sz": "0.01",
"reduceOnly": false,
"tif": "Gtc"
}
],
"builder": { "b": "0xBuilderAddress", "f": 10 }
}b is the builder address and f is the fee in tenths of a basis point. The builder must:
- have at least 100 USDC in perps account value,
- use standard account abstraction mode,
- be approved by the user for the requested fee.
Query approvals and fees
| Request | Purpose |
|---|---|
{"type":"maxBuilderFee","user":"0x...","builder":"0x..."} | Maximum fee the user approved |
{"type":"referral","user":"0x..."} | Referral and builder fee totals |
Builder fills are published as compressed LZ4 CSVs:
https://stats-data.hyperliquid.xyz/Mainnet/builder_fills/{builder_address}/{YYYYMMDD}.csv.lz4The builder address must be lowercase, and the URL is case-sensitive.
Claiming fees
Builder fees are claimed through the same reward flow as referrals. Fees accrue in the quote asset and can be claimed once the balance is above the minimum.
Revenue model
Builder revenue is a function of routed volume:
monthly_revenue = monthly_volume × fee_bps / 10,000| Monthly volume | 1 bp | 3 bps | 10 bps |
|---|---|---|---|
| $10M | $1,000 | $3,000 | $10,000 |
| $100M | $10,000 | $30,000 | $100,000 |
| $1B | $100,000 | $300,000 | $1,000,000 |
Use the revenue calculator to model builder and referral income together.
Risks
- Flow concentration: a few large traders can dominate volume and revenue.
- Fee competition: a high builder fee pushes users to other frontends.
- Approval friction: every user must approve the fee before trading.
- Regulatory exposure: a derivatives frontend may trigger licensing, KYC/AML, marketing, and geo-blocking obligations. See compliance.
- Terms: the venue can change builder-code rules. Monitor the changelog.