Contents
"Which network should I pick?" is the question behind most lost USDT. No table can replace the deposit page of the service you are sending to, because exchanges add and remove networks without notice. But a table of what the services themselves say shows which networks are common and the wording every exchange uses when a deposit goes wrong.
This post has two parts: a table containing only what each service's own help or deposit page said on 12 October 2026 — where a page did not say, the cell says "not checked" — and then the skill the table cannot give you: reading a deposit page, with the two traps that cause most of the damage.
Which USDT versions exist in the first place
Before the exchanges, the issuer. Tether's supported-protocols page (checked on 12 October 2026) lists USDT as a TRC-20 token on TRON at TR7NHqjeKQxGTCi8q8ZY4pL8otSzgjLj6t, as an ERC-20 token on Ethereum at 0xdAC17F958D2ee523a2206206994597C13D831ec7, and as a jetton on TON at EQCxE6mUtQJKFnGfaROTKOt1lZbDiiX1kCixRv7Nw2Id_sDs. USDT on BNB Smart Chain is Binance-Peg USDT at 0x55d398326f99059fF775485246999027B3197955, issued by Binance against USDT it holds, not by Tether. All four are labelled "USDT"; none can be moved to another network by a plain send. Details: Tether (USDT).
The compatibility table
Every cell comes from the page named in the "Checked" column, read on 12 October 2026; page addresses are given without the https:// prefix. Services whose help pages could not be loaded that day (Bybit, Binance's global site, Coinbase) are not in the table.
| Service | Checked on 12 October 2026 | USDT networks named on that page | What the page says about network and memo |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kraken (exchange) | support.kraken.com/hc/en-us/articles/360000678446 — list of supported cryptocurrencies | 18 networks, including Ethereum (ERC-20), Tron (TRC-20), Solana, Polygon, The Open Network (TON), Arbitrum One, Optimism, Avalanche C-Chain and Aptos; BNB Smart Chain and Base are not in the list. | No memo or wrong-network wording on the list page. |
| KuCoin (exchange) | kucoin.com/en-au/support/47497300093980 — Crypto Deposits and Withdrawals | Not named; the page says USDT fees are set per chain | "The selected network must match the withdrawal platform's network. Otherwise, your funds may be lost and unrecoverable." Memo: "certain networks require you to include additional information, such as a memo or tag. Make sure you include it to prevent losing your assets." |
| OKX (exchange) | okx.com/en-eu/help/how-do-i-find-my-deposit-address-and-tag-memos — last updated 26 August 2026 | Not named | "Select the crypto you want to deposit, then select the designated deposit network." "You'll see your Deposit address and tag/memo/comment if it's required." A deposit reminder must be acknowledged before the address is shown. |
| Binance.US (exchange, US platform) | support.binance.us/hc/en-us/articles/360046787054 — How to Deposit Crypto | Not named; supported networks appear in a drop-down above the deposit address | "the network selected must match the withdrawal address's network." "If your cryptocurrency type requires a memo, it will display under your deposit address." "We cannot recover unsupported cryptocurrencies, or supported cryptocurrencies sent on unsupported networks." |
| MetaMask (wallet) | support.metamask.io/manage-crypto/tokens/how-to-display-tokens-in-metamask/ | Not named; popular ERC-20 and SPL tokens are detected automatically on EVM and Solana networks | A token that is not detected is added by pasting its contract address; "Basic functionality" must be on for detection. TRON and TON: not checked. |
| Phantom (wallet) | help.phantom.com/hc/en-us/articles/28975264693267 and …/articles/4406393831187 | Solana is named for USDT; others not checked | "Crypto sent to the wrong address or on an unsupported network may not appear in Phantom." "Some networks use the same address, but the sender still needs to select the correct network." A token the app filtered "remains in your wallet onchain". |
| Trust Wallet (wallet) | support.trustwallet.com/en/articles/717151-how-to-add-a-custom-token-to-trust-wallet | Not named | A custom token is added by choosing the network and pasting the contract; "Trust Wallet is non-custodial and does not vet or approve tokens." If a token does not show: confirm "you selected the correct network and entered the right contract address" — the same token exists on several chains with different contracts. |
Three things stand out.
The network lists are long and uneven. Kraken's page names 18 networks for USDT, including TRC-20, ERC-20 and TON — but not BNB Smart Chain. If your USDT is BEP-20 and the page does not list that network, there is no deposit route: change the network first, for example with USDT BEP-20 → USDT TRC-20, and deposit on a network they list.
Every exchange uses the same sentence. "Must match", "may be lost", "cannot recover … sent on unsupported networks". That is the mechanism, not boilerplate: an exchange watches its deposit addresses only on the networks it supports, so a deposit on any other network is invisible to its crediting system, and recovery, if offered, is manual. The cases are in Sent USDT to the wrong network.
Wallets do not accept or reject networks; they display them. USDT that arrived on a network the wallet does not show is still at your address — Phantom's page says exactly this — and appears when you switch network, add the token, or open the address in a wallet that reads that chain.
How to read a deposit page
The deposit page is the one source that is always current for that service. Read it in this order every time, even on an exchange you use daily.
- The coin. USDT, not USDC, not a wrapped or "multi-chain" variant with another symbol.
- The network selector. The networks the exchange watches for USDT today. If yours is not in it, stop: there is no way to deposit from that network.
- The network's label, word for word. Exchanges write the same network in different ways — "TRX", "Tron (TRC20)", "TRC-20"; "BSC", "BNB Smart Chain (BEP20)"; "TON", "The Open Network". Match the meaning against the network chip on the side you are sending from.
- The address and its format. T… and 34 characters is TRON. 0x… and 42 characters is Ethereum, BNB Smart Chain, Polygon, Base or another EVM network — the format alone cannot tell you which. UQ… or EQ… and 48 characters is TON. Base58 of 32–44 characters is Solana.
- A second field. If the page shows a memo, tag or comment next to the address, it is part of the address. Copy both.
- The small print. Minimum deposit, confirmations required, the sentence about unsupported networks.
Then, on the sending side, match the network to step 3, paste the address from step 4, fill the field from step 5, and send a small amount first if the address is new.
Trap 1: the 0x address that could be four networks
Ethereum, BNB Smart Chain, Polygon and Base use the same 0x address format, and one private key gives the same address on all of them. An exchange's deposit pages for USDT on Ethereum and on BNB Smart Chain can show the identical 0x string; nothing in it says which network the exchange is watching.
The trap closes like this. You copy a 0x deposit address from the exchange's Ethereum tab; your wallet is on BNB Smart Chain, where your USDT is. The send succeeds — the address is valid there too — and the USDT lands at the exchange's address on a network it was not watching for you. That is the Binance.US sentence: a supported cryptocurrency sent on an unsupported network.
The defence is step 3: match the network label on the deposit page against the network chip in the sending wallet, every time; the address is not enough. If the networks differ, change the network of the USDT with a swap to one the exchange lists, for example USDT TRC-20 → USDT ERC-20, with the exchange's address as the payout address — after checking the memo rule below and the exchange's position on deposits from a third party's address.
Trap 2: the TON memo
On TON, most exchanges give all customers one deposit address and tell deposits apart by a memo carried as the comment inside the transfer — the "tag/memo/comment" of the OKX, KuCoin and Binance.US pages. Send without it and the USDT reaches the exchange, not your account.
So a TON deposit page has two values to copy and the sending form two fields to fill; on this site the second is called Payment ID. The address, the jetton and the memo are explained in USDT on TON: addresses, memos and the mistakes that lose deposits; memos across coins in Memo, destination tag, payment ID. The route from TRON is USDT TRC-20 → USDT on TON.
Worked example: 400 USDT on BNB Smart Chain, exchange lists only TRC-20 and ERC-20
You hold 400 USDT as BEP-20 in a self-custody wallet. The exchange's USDT deposit page offers TRON and Ethereum, each with its own address, and no BNB Smart Chain option.
- Sending the BEP-20 USDT to the 0x address would succeed on chain and fail at the exchange: supported coin, unsupported network.
- Open USDT BEP-20 → USDT TRC-20, enter 400, paste the exchange's T… deposit address as the receiving address, and read "You get" — the payout's TRON network fee is already taken out; compare it with the exchange's minimum deposit.
- Send 400 USDT on BNB Smart Chain to the one-time 0x deposit address the page shows; the wallet needs a little BNB.
- BNB Smart Chain needs 10 confirmations, about 2–5 minutes with processing. The payout is a TRC-20 transfer to the exchange's T… address, from a payout address rather than from your wallet.
- Keep the status link; its Tronscan hash answers the exchange if it asks where the deposit came from.
If the exchange had offered Ethereum only, the route would be a different one: look in the pairs list for a route that pays out on the network the exchange names. The deposit page decides, not habit.
Checklist
FAQ
Why does the table say "not checked" so often?
Because we only wrote what the named page said on 12 October 2026. Most help articles explain the procedure without naming networks; the list is shown inside the account, on the deposit page, which is where to read it anyway.
Is TRC-20 always the safe choice?
It is the most widely listed USDT network for retail deposits — in Kraken's list with ERC-20 and TON — but a page that offers Ethereum only will not credit a TRC-20 deposit.
The exchange lists BSC for USDT. Is that the same as BNB Smart Chain and BEP-20?
Yes — three names for one network and token standard. The USDT there is Binance-Peg USDT at 0x55d398326f99059fF775485246999027B3197955.
Can I give an exchange's deposit address as the payout address of a swap?
Technically yes: the payout is an ordinary transfer to the address you entered, on the route's network. Check first that the exchange lists that network for USDT and, for TON, that you entered its memo in the Payment ID field. Some exchanges ask customers to confirm deposits from an address they do not recognise, so keep the payout hash.
A wallet shows USDT on a network, but the exchange does not list that network. Which one is wrong?
Neither. The wallet shows where the token is; the exchange shows where it accepts deposits. If the two do not overlap, change the token's network with a swap before depositing.
How often does this table go stale?
The moment any of those pages changes. Treat it as a snapshot from 12 October 2026 and a guide to the wording; the deposit page in front of you is the only current source.