Uniswap hook features explained: what every label on a hook page means

12 November 2026

Every hook page on UniHooks has a section called How this hook works. It lists the things the hook does differently from a normal Uniswap pool, each with a short label like "Takes a cut of every trade" or "Simple trades only". Open any label and you see the exact code that does it.

Here is every label you can see there, what it means, and what it means for you as a trader or a token creator. Some popular hooks have hand-written descriptions with their own wording, but they describe the same things.

Fees and cuts

Every Uniswap pool charges a trading fee that goes to the people providing liquidity. These labels mean the hook changes that fee, or takes something on top of it.

• Takes a cut of every trade. On top of the normal pool fee, the hook keeps a share of every trade. It might go to the token creator, the hook developer, or a launch platform. When we can read the exact number you will see it in the label, for example "Takes 1% of every trade".
• Takes a tax on trades. The same idea, written as a tax. Buys and sells can be taxed differently, which shows up as "Takes 2% on buys and 5% on sells". Check this before you buy: a high sell tax means you get less back when you sell. See token taxes explained.
• Sets its own trading fee. Instead of one fixed fee picked when the pool was made, the hook decides the fee on each trade.
• Sets the fee at creation. The hook picks the fee once, when the pool is created, and then it stays put.
• Fee changes over time. The fee moves on a schedule, usually high right after launch and dropping step by step. It makes sniping expensive in the first minutes.
• Fee changes with the market. The fee is worked out from how the price is moving: higher when the price swings fast, lower when things are calm. This mostly helps liquidity providers. See dynamic fees.
• Fee can be changed. Someone, usually the hook developer or the pool creator, can change the fee whenever they like. This is the one to watch: a fee that can go up after you buy is a risk.
• Higher at launch. The fee or tax starts higher right after the pool opens and comes down, so bots that buy first pay the most.

Prices and trading

• Sets its own prices. The hook can fill trades itself at its own price, or change how much you get out, instead of using Uniswap's normal formula. Many good hooks do this (custom curves, launch auctions), but it also means the price you get depends on the hook's code, so check what it does.
• Simple trades only. You have to say how much you are putting in, not how much you want to get out. Most swaps already work this way. Some apps that ask for an exact output amount will fail, which is why you sometimes see "this trade cannot be completed".
• Limit orders. You can place an order at a set price, and it fills when the market gets there.
• Trades on its own. The hook makes trades itself, for example to turn the fees it collected into ETH.
• Buys back the token. The hook uses what it collects to buy the token back from the market, which supports the price.
• Burns tokens. The hook destroys some tokens, or sends them to an address nobody controls, so the supply shrinks over time. See auto-burn.
• Runs an auction. People bid, for example for the right to trade first in a block, or for tokens at launch.

Limits and who can trade

• Limits on trading (also shown as Launch protection). The hook caps things like the biggest buy, the biggest wallet, or how fast you can trade again. It is there to stop bots grabbing the supply at launch. See stopping sniper bots.
• No trading before the start. Every trade is refused until trading opens, usually at a set time.
• Trading can be paused. Someone can stop all trading in the hook's pools and switch it back on later. If you hold the token, that means you might not be able to sell while it is paused.
• Approved addresses only. Some actions, like trading or adding liquidity, are limited to wallets on an approved list.
• Can block traders. The hook can stop specific wallets from trading. Treat this as a warning sign unless the project explains why.
• Needs a signed approval. Some actions only go through with a message signed by an approved wallet, for example a price signed by the hook developer.

Liquidity

Liquidity is the pool of tokens people trade against. Who can add it and take it out matters a lot for whether a pool can be rugged.

• Liquidity is locked. Nobody can take liquidity out of the hook's pools, so the pool can't be drained (a rug pull). One of the best signs to see on a new token. See locking liquidity.
• Locks tokens or liquidity. Some tokens or liquidity are locked for a set time and can't be taken out before then.
• Liquidity can't be added directly. You can't add liquidity to its pools through Uniswap. It only comes in through the hook's own code, often from the launch itself.
• Liquidity can't be removed directly. Liquidity can't be pulled through Uniswap. It only leaves through the hook's own code, if the hook allows it at all.
• Liquidity can't be added or removed directly. Both of the above: all liquidity moves through the hook.
• Rules for adding or removing liquidity. The hook decides who can add or remove liquidity, or when.
• Manages its own liquidity. The hook adds and removes liquidity itself, so it can own part or all of the pool.
• Manages liquidity for its providers. Liquidity providers deposit through the hook and it runs the position for them, keeping track of each person's share.
• Pays extra to liquidity providers. The hook sends extra rewards straight into the pool for the people providing liquidity.

Pools and setup

• Only approved callers create pools (also shown as Only its own launcher can use it). New pools with this hook can only be made by approved contracts, usually the project's own launcher. This stops people setting up fake pools that look official.
• Only the hook creates its pools. Nobody can create a pool with this hook directly. Pools only come from the hook's own code.
• Runs its own checks. The hook checks something when pools are created or traded, but doesn't take a cut or change the fee. Open the label to see what it checks.

Prices from outside, and payouts

• Keeps a price record. The hook records the pool's price over time, so other apps can read a fair average price (an oracle).
• Uses an outside price feed. The hook reads a price from somewhere else and uses it in its rules. The pool is only as reliable as that feed.
• Rewards to claim. The hook keeps track of what people have earned, and they claim it themselves.
• Anyone can trigger payouts. Anyone can call the function that pays out fees or rewards, so nobody has to wait for the hook developer to do it.

Which ones to watch

Most labels just describe how a hook works. A few deserve a closer look before you buy: Fee can be changed, Trading can be paused, Can block traders, and a high number in Takes a tax on trades. The other side is just as useful: Liquidity is locked and Only approved callers create pools are good signs. Each hook page also has a safety check that lists the risks, and our guide on how to tell if a hook is safe goes through it step by step.

Want to see them in action? Open any hook on Explore and expand the labels under How this hook works.