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Uniswap V1 Review 2026: The Original Ethereum AMM

Uniswap V1 is the original 2018-era Ethereum automated market maker, now a small legacy deployment with about 3.7 million USD in TVL. It is mainly of historical and technical interest, since newer Uniswap versions have taken over most activity.

Ethereum

By the DappsAtlas editorial team · Updated Nov 5, 2026

DappsAtlas score

5.5/10

Mixed

Visit Uniswap V1

Our verdict on Uniswap V1

5.5/10

Uniswap V1 is best viewed as a legacy protocol: the original Ethereum AMM with about 3.7 million USD in TVL. It suits researchers, developers and users who still hold V1 liquidity and want to understand or exit positions. Its main strength is a simple, non-custodial design that shaped later DEXs. The main caveat is that newer Uniswap versions offer better liquidity and routing, and V1 is Ethereum-only with ETH-paired pools and mainnet gas costs.

Score breakdown

How Uniswap V1 scores

Security: 7.0/10
Ease of use: 6.5/10
Fees: n/a
Features: 4.5/10

Scores run from 0 to 10 and are based only on facts we could verify. Where information was missing we mark the score n/a rather than guess.

What is Uniswap V1?

Uniswap V1 is the first version of Uniswap, a decentralized exchange on Ethereum. It is described as a fully decentralized protocol for automated liquidity provision. Instead of matching buyers and sellers, it lets users trade against pools of tokens held in smart contracts.

Tracking data lists it on Ethereum only, with about 3.7 million USD in total value locked and a 0.2 percent change over the past week. It is associated with the UNI governance token, and two audits are listed. The main Uniswap interface advertises trading on Ethereum, Base, Arbitrum, Polygon, Unichain and other chains, but those refer to later versions, not V1.

In practice V1 is a legacy deployment. It matters as the design that popularized constant-product pools, but current traders will usually find better liquidity elsewhere in the Uniswap family.

How Uniswap V1 works

Uniswap V1 uses a pool of two assets, ETH and a single ERC-20 token, held in a smart contract. The contract sets prices from the ratio of the two reserves, so buying a token raises its price and selling lowers it. No order book or counterparty is needed.

Liquidity providers deposit both assets in equal value and receive pool tokens that track their share. Trading fees are added to the pool, so providers can withdraw slightly more when they exit, minus any impermanent loss caused by price movement.

Because pools in this version pair a token with ETH, swapping one token for another routes through ETH. The contracts are immutable and run on Ethereum, so trades settle on-chain from the user's own wallet.

5 features

Key features

Automated market maker

Trades execute against smart-contract liquidity pools, with no order book or intermediary matching buyers and sellers.

Permissionless liquidity provision

Anyone can deposit assets into a pool and earn a share of trading fees, in return for LP tokens that represent their share.

Non-custodial swaps

The protocol is described as fully decentralized, with trades settled directly from the user's wallet on Ethereum.

Original AMM design

V1 launched the pool model that later Uniswap versions built on, making it a reference point for how AMMs work.

Listed audits

Two audits are listed for the protocol in tracking data, though details are not given in the sources reviewed.

Pros and cons

What we like

Non-custodial: trades settle from your own wallet
Simple, well-understood pool design that influenced much of DeFi
Permissionless: anyone can swap or provide liquidity
Backed by the established Uniswap brand and its UNI token
Two audits are listed in tracking data

Watch out for

Superseded by later Uniswap versions, which offer more efficient liquidity and more routes
Runs on Ethereum only, so every trade pays mainnet gas
Pools are ETH-to-token pairs, so token-to-token swaps need two steps
Liquidity providers are exposed to impermanent loss
TVL of about 3.7 million USD is small, so larger trades can face heavy price impact
The project does not publish fee or audit details on the pages reviewed here

Uniswap V1 fees

The sources reviewed do not publish a fee schedule for Uniswap V1. Users would see the pool fee and price impact in the swap interface before signing a transaction, and the trade also pays Ethereum gas.

Liquidity providers earn a share of fees through pool deposits. Gas on Ethereum mainnet can be significant relative to the size of a small trade, which matters more for a low-liquidity legacy deployment.

Is Uniswap V1 safe?

Uniswap V1 is a set of on-chain smart contracts, so there is no custodian holding user funds, and risk comes from contract logic and the pools themselves. Two audits are listed in tracking data, but the auditors and findings are not stated in the sources reviewed. As an old version, it receives less attention than current deployments.

Users still face typical DEX risks: impermanent loss for liquidity providers, price impact in thin pools, and fake tokens or imitation sites. The project does not publish licensing or regulatory details on the pages reviewed. Check that DeFi use is legal in your jurisdiction.

6 steps

How to get started with Uniswap V1

1
Check that online DeFi trading is permitted where you live and that you are of legal age.
2
Set up a self-custody Ethereum wallet and keep ETH for gas.
3
Open the official Uniswap app and confirm the URL carefully to avoid imitation sites.
4
Check which Uniswap version a pool belongs to, since V1 pools are separate from later versions.
5
Review the quoted price, price impact and gas estimate before approving anything.
6
Start with a small test amount, and withdraw any old V1 liquidity if you no longer want exposure.

Open Uniswap V1

Who Uniswap V1 is for

Uniswap V1 suits developers, students of DeFi and existing liquidity providers who want to study the original AMM design or manage older positions. Most traders looking for deep liquidity, many pairs and lower costs will be better served by current Uniswap versions.

Uniswap V1 FAQs

What is Uniswap V1?

Uniswap V1 is the first version of the Uniswap protocol, a decentralized exchange on Ethereum that uses automated liquidity pools instead of an order book. It is described as a fully decentralized protocol for automated liquidity provision.

Which blockchain does Uniswap V1 run on?

Tracking data lists the protocol on Ethereum only. Later Uniswap versions are marketed through the main interface as supporting other networks such as Base, Arbitrum, Polygon and Unichain, but that does not apply to V1.

How much liquidity does Uniswap V1 have?

Tracking data shows roughly 3.7 million USD in total value locked, with a 0.2 percent change over seven days. That is small next to current Uniswap versions, so large trades can move prices noticeably.

Has Uniswap V1 been audited?

Two audits are listed for the protocol in tracking data. The reviewed sources do not name the auditors or give the findings, so check the project's own documentation before relying on that.

Does Uniswap V1 have a token?

The protocol is linked to the UNI governance token, which is a Uniswap-wide token rather than something specific to V1. Using V1 does not require holding UNI.

Should I still use Uniswap V1?

For most users, newer versions give better pricing and more pairs. V1 is mostly useful for studying how the original constant-product design worked, or for those with funds still in V1 pools who want to withdraw.

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