DLMM Bin Distribution: Spot vs Curve vs Bid-Ask
Bin distribution is how you spread liquidity across the bins inside your DLMM range, and Meteora gives you three shapes for it. Spot spreads it evenly, Curve packs it in the middle near the current price, and Bid-Ask pushes it to the edges. The shape you pick decides where your fees come from, how impermanent loss hits you, and how often you have to rebalance.
Table of Contents
The short version
On a DLMM you set a range and then choose how liquidity spreads across the bins inside it. Spot spreads it evenly, Curve packs it at the center near price, and Bid-Ask pushes it to the edges. Spot is the low-maintenance default for range-bound tokens. Curve earns the most fees when price stays put. Bid-Ask suits volatility and single-sided entries. The shape sets where your fees come from and how impermanent loss reaches you.
What bin distribution means
A DLMM splits your price range into discrete bins, each covering a small fixed price step. Setting a range decides which prices your capital covers. Bin distribution decides how much capital sits in each of those bins. Two LPs can hold the same range and the same dollars and still earn very differently, because one stacked the center and the other loaded the edges.
Why it matters: fees are paid by the bin that trades. When a swap passes through a bin, the liquidity in that bin earns the fee. So the shape of your distribution is really a bet on which bins will see volume. Put liquidity where price trades and you earn; put it where price never goes and it sits idle.
New to bins and ranges? Start with What is a DLMM? and DLMM Strategies, which cover range width and pool choice. This article goes deep on the distribution itself.
Spot: even across the range
Spot spreads liquidity evenly across every bin in your range. Each bin holds the same amount, so no single price is favored. It is the neutral choice, and it wins when a token chops sideways in a band: two-way flow hits bins across the whole range, and every bin earns its share.
Spot asks the least of you. Because liquidity is not crowded at one point, a move does not immediately drag price into a thin patch, so the position degrades gently rather than falling off a cliff. Use Spot when you have no strong view on direction and want steady fees with light maintenance.
Curve: packed at the middle
Curve concentrates liquidity in the middle of your range, near the current price, and thins it toward the edges. Because most trading happens close to spot, Curve captures the most fees per dollar while price stays near the center. It is the shape for stable-ish pairs and for a token consolidating in a tight zone.
The cost is sensitivity. Pack your liquidity at the center and a sharp move drags price into the thin edge fast, where little of your capital is working and impermanent loss bites. Curve earns well and demands attention: it is the shape most likely to need a rebalance after a real move.
Bid-Ask: pushed to the edges
Bid-Ask is the mirror of Curve. It pushes liquidity to the two edges of the range and leaves the middle thin. This shape wins for volatile tokens that swing between two levels, because the swings carry price into your loaded edges where the fees are waiting.
It is also the natural choice for a single-sided entry. Set the range above the price and load the top edge to sell into strength; set it below and load the bottom to buy into weakness. You post liquidity where you expect price to go, not where it is now, and you earn fees as price passes through. Think of it as resting orders that also collect a fee.
Spot vs Curve vs Bid-Ask, side by side
| Spot | Curve | Bid-Ask | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Liquidity shape | Even across all bins | Concentrated at the center | Pushed to the two edges |
| Best use case | Range-bound, no strong view | Price staying near a level | Volatility or single-sided entry |
| Fee capture | Steady from two-way flow | Highest when price stays put | Best when price swings to edges |
| Impermanent-loss shape | Spread evenly across the range | Hits fast on a sharp move | Concentrated at the chosen edges |
| Rebalance burden | Low | High | Medium, higher if two-sided |
| Single-sided fit | Weak | Weak | Strong |
Read the table as a set of tradeoffs, not a ranking. Spot trades peak fees for low maintenance. Curve trades maintenance for peak fees while price holds. Bid-Ask trades center coverage for strong edges and clean single-sided entries.
How to choose your distribution
Start with a plain question: what do you expect this token to do? Sideways in a band points to Spot. Sitting near a level points to Curve. Swinging hard, or a planned entry at a target, points to Bid-Ask. The shape is a statement of your view, so pick the one that matches it and be honest when the view is "I do not know," which is Spot.
The distribution controls where your fees come from, but it does not change whether the pool pays. That comes from real volume against the liquidity near price. A perfect Curve in a dead pool earns nothing. Check fee density first, then shape your bins.
One more link worth drawing: on a DLMM the fee itself is dynamic, a base fee plus a variable fee that rises with volatility. That is separate from the fixed tiers a CLMM charges, covered in CLMM fees explained. Distribution decides which bins earn; the dynamic fee decides how much each swap pays.
CLOBr aggregates every pool's bins into one depth chart, so you can see where liquidity is already crowded before you place a shape. The LP cheat sheet ranks pools by fees per dollar near price.
To read that depth as support and resistance, see How to Read Liquidity Charts.
Frequently Asked Questions
What are the three DLMM liquidity shapes?
Spot, Curve, and Bid-Ask. Spot spreads liquidity evenly across every bin in your range. Curve concentrates it in the middle, near the current price, and tapers toward the edges. Bid-Ask does the opposite, pushing liquidity to the two edges of the range and leaving the middle thin.
Which DLMM shape earns the most fees?
It depends on where price trades. Curve earns the most when price sits still, because most volume trades near spot and Curve stacks liquidity there. Bid-Ask earns more when price swings between the edges of the range. Spot lands in between and asks the least of your attention. No shape wins everywhere; match it to how the token moves.
Which DLMM shape has the most impermanent loss?
Any concentrated shape takes on impermanent loss when price moves. Curve feels a sharp move fastest, because its liquidity is packed at the center, so a move drags price into thin bins and converts the position quickly. Spot spreads the exposure evenly across the range. Bid-Ask front-loads it at the edges you chose to enter or exit.
What shape is best for a single-sided DLMM entry?
Bid-Ask. A single-sided entry sets the range entirely above or below the current price, to sell into strength or buy into weakness as price runs to your levels. Bid-Ask posts liquidity at those edges, so you accumulate or distribute exactly where you planned while collecting fees on the way.
How do I pick a bin distribution?
Match it to your view of the token. Spot for range-bound trading with no strong direction. Curve for price staying near a level. Bid-Ask for volatility or a planned single-sided entry. Then confirm the pool actually pays by checking fee density, the fees earned per dollar of liquidity near price, rather than headline total value locked.
See Bin Liquidity Before You Shape It
CLOBr shows where liquidity already sits across Meteora DLMM bins and ranks pools by fees per dollar, so you can place Spot, Curve, or Bid-Ask where it earns.
Explore DLMM pools