How 1inch and CoW Swap differ on routing, chains and what they’re best at.
| 1inch | CoW Swap | |
|---|---|---|
| Category | DEX aggregator | DEX aggregator |
| Type | Router + Intent | Batch auction |
| How it works | Pathfinder splits your trade across dozens of DEXes for the best price; Fusion mode turns it into a gasless intent filled by resolvers via a Dutch auction, with built-in MEV protection. | Batches all orders into a ~30s auction; solvers compete to find the settlement that maximizes total surplus, with uniform clearing prices and Coincidence-of-Wants that eliminate sandwich MEV. |
| Chains | 12+ (EVM + Solana) | Ethereum, Gnosis, Arbitrum, Base |
| Highlight | $700B+ lifetime volume | ~22% of ETH aggregator volume |
| Best for | The all-round multichain default | Large trades + MEV protection |
Pick 1inch for the all-round multichain default; pick CoW Swap for large trades + mev protection.