[General] Bitcoin Wallets - Which, what, why?

[Charles-Tim]

If it is bitcoin wallet, you can go for cold storage wallet on an airgapped device https://electrum.readthedocs.io/en/latest/coldstorage.html

If you have two devices or three devices, you can go for a multisig wallet:

https://electrum.readthedocs.io/en/latest/multisig.html
https://bitcoinelectrum.com/creating-a-multisig-wallet/

If you need a bitcoin-only hardware wallet, go for Passport: https://foundationdevices.com/passport/

To increase your security, you can setup multisig on a software wallet and hardware wallet if you want. You can get more hardware wallet to setup multisig if you want.

Another recommended wallet that you can use for airgapped or multisig is Sparrow.

[1714622753]

1714622753

[SFR10]

and the best practices for keeping my investments safe?

It's already in the opening post: Best Practices

I've heard about hardware wallets and software wallets, but i'm not sure which one is right for me.

Considering that you mentioned "Bitcoin and cryptocurrencies", a hardware wallet that supports all of those cryptocurrencies would be the ideal choice ^{[make sure to go with a hardware wallet that is "open-source", has "reproducible builds" and "secure element"]}.

[nc50lc]

Hey everyone, I'm relatively new to the  Bitcoin and cryptocurrencies, and I have a few questions. Can someone help clarify the process of setting up a secure Bitcoin wallet and the best practices for keeping my investments safe? I've heard about hardware wallets and software wallets, but i'm not sure which one is right for me. Any advice or recommendations would be greatly appreciated!

Although I'm not a fan, hardware wallet is the most suggested for a beginners for safety and convenience.
That's because the target of hackers are safely stored inside that device; software wallets on the other hand, store it in your device/PC.

The process is simple:
After acquiring a reputable hardware wallet from a legit source, follow their setup manual.
It's basically two steps; create a new 24-word seed phrase, write it on your backup sheet and keep that safe since
it'll be the only backup required to spend all of your wallet's funds, with or without the hardware wallet.
Connect it to their desktop client that handles the addresses and transactions. (steps included in the manual or official online guides)

Take note that if you've setup a "passphrase" (BIP39 passphrase / seed extension), it'll be also required to restore your funds, your seed phrase wont be enough to restore it.
(you'll see the message when setting it up)

Alternatively, the safer route but quite hard to setup for beginners, "Cold-Storage":
If you can handle device security pretty good, you can opt-in to using software wallets but in cold-storage setup which uses an "Air-Gap" machine and an online machine.
The former containing your private keys (which is what needed to spend funds) and the latter for getting balances and creating transactions.
Here's a example cold-storage setup tutorial for Electrum: https://electrum.readthedocs.io/en/latest/coldstorage.html
This is the safest if everything is setup accordingly.

[fevefiw942]

Can someone explain the basics of how to get started with Bitcoin for newcomers? What are the key steps, and what advice would you give to someone just entering the world of cryptocurrency investment?

[JayJuanGee]

Can someone explain the basics of how to get started with Bitcoin for newcomers? What are the key steps, and what advice would you give to someone just entering the world of cryptocurrency investment?

Learn what is bitcoin might be the first thing, and to not make the error of using vague and meaningless language, such as crypto or cryptocurrency, when you need to start with bitcoin first and learn about bitcoin so that maybe you don't use language that does not mean much of anything and/or is likely going to end up dragging you into believing that you need to invest into shitcoins at a time that you had not even learned about what is bitcoin.

[AprilioMP]

Can someone explain the basics of how to get started with Bitcoin for newcomers? What are the key steps, and what advice would you give to someone just entering the world of cryptocurrency investment?

Download a wallet or buy a wallet to store Bitcoin.
The downloaded wallet is called a software wallet. Wallets purchased to store Bitcoin are called physically touchable hardware wallets.

Once you get a wallet, create an address to be able to send and receive Bitcoin. The address that comes from the wallet, has a key called a seed phrase.
Save the seed phrase in a safe place and make sure it is not connected to the internet.
Learn how to use the wallet (software and hardware).
The wallet used to store Bitcoin, I recommend an open source one and some other important things.
CMIIW

Crypto abounds. Bitcoin is only one.
Investing in Bitcoin, you must have Bitcoin. How to get Bitcoin, buy and mining.
Discover the differences between Bitcoin and crypto in general.

[dkbit98]

Hi, can you help me with installing btc wallet?

Help how, and what wallet you want to install?
It's like installing any other program on your computer, you dont have to be science expert for bitcoin wallets.

[Husna QA]

Hi, can you help me with installing btc wallet?

There are many BTC wallet applications (for example, https://bitcoin.org/en/choose-your-wallet). Because you didn't specifically mention which BTC wallet you want to install, maybe you could try installing one of the BTC Wallets, which is quite popular and only requires a few resources and a fairly fast synchronization process, namely Electrum (https://electrum.org/#download). You can read the documentation about Electrum here: https://electrum.readthedocs.io/ or https://bitcoinelectrum.com/.

I once made a thread about Electrum, including how to install Electrum on MacOS and Windows OS. You can see it here: ELECTRUM - BITCOIN WALLET (Indonesian; Please use a translation machine to understand it in your language). Meanwhile, for Linux, you can follow the vv181 guide: Re: Electrum on debian 12.

[OmegaStarScream]

Hi, can you help me with installing btc wallet?

Not sure why you deleted your post, Husna has already provided you with the links you need to install Electrum (see the post above). If you have another wallet in mind, tell us its name so we can give you the steps to follow.

[Husna QA]

Hi, can you help me with installing btc wallet?

Not sure why you deleted your post, Husna has already provided you with the links you need to install Electrum (see the post above). If you have another wallet in mind, tell us its name so we can give you the steps to follow.

I tried looking at his post history via https://ninjastic.space/search?author=Blizzardbtc&board=39. It seems that Blizzardbtc has also made similar posts several times, but for some reason, he deleted them.

Here is one of them:



https://ninjastic.space/post/63047876


@Blizzardbtc, both the Seed phrase, wallet file and Private key can all be used to restore the wallet on Electrum. Here are some things that might provide additional information for you about restoring your wallet on Electrum:

- Seed phrase allows you to access all addresses in the wallet.
- Wallet file: in certain conditions, you also need to know the password if the wallet was previously encrypted using a password.
- Private key: you will only get one address from the private key.

[Husna QA]

Wish is the best wallet to have???
Just asking for people's suggestions.... Thank you...

I still recommend Electrum (https://electrum.org/#download) for a Bitcoin wallet. If you want to run a full node, you can try Bitcoin Core (https://bitcoincore.org/en/download/), it requires quite an extra hard drive space and a reasonably stable internet connection. You can check several other wallet options that might be more suitable for your needs here: https://bitcoin.org/en/choose-your-wallet.

I suggest you try it to experience how to use the wallet. So it's not just a matter of asking which wallet is the best because each person's preferences for their chosen wallet may be different.

[AprilioMP]

Wish is the best wallet to have???
Just asking for people's suggestions.... Thank you...

I still recommend Electrum (https://electrum.org/#download) for a Bitcoin wallet. If you want to run a full node, you can try Bitcoin Core (https://bitcoincore.org/en/download/), it requires quite an extra hard drive space and a reasonably stable internet connection. You can check several other wallet options that might be more suitable for your needs here: https://bitcoin.org/en/choose-your-wallet.

I suggest you try it to experience how to use the wallet. So it's not just a matter of asking which wallet is the best because each person's preferences for their chosen wallet may be different.

I will recommend your suggestions and recommendations again to users who ask.

For you @Cryptoberly, I really don't like it when people ask about something and someone comes to answer well to be a solution to the problem, suddenly that person deletes their post.

Husna QA has provided very accurate answers, so don't delete the question posts you have made because the answers given by Husna QA can also be useful for other users when visiting this thread.

[WeThePe0ple]

I did not invest before because I was afraid of not being tech savvy enough to manage a wallet. I don't trust Ledger, for example. I think they will eventually cave in to government pressure when they go after our wallets. And I strongly believe that they have our seed phrases.
A guy in my class at uni manages at least 10 BTC, or more. He's secretive about it. He travels to Switzerland and Dubai with other (foreign) whales, for tax reasons. They have complicated strategies to avoid heavy taxation in my homecountry.

I'd like to take investment advice from him but he keeps a distance. I can't get near the group because they want to stay under the radar and probably don't like a rookie like me. I don't know anyone in person who manages a significant amount of BTC so I don't have a person of trust to turn to, for emergencies.
I think we are not going to see lower lows ever again, and I can only afford to buy 0.5 BTC at this point.

This will require a 20k bank transfer which will automatically flag me to the authorities. They will know I'm into crypto and I think it is a matter of time before I have to declare the holdings on my tax sheet.

I need the best possible advice for a wallet that can withstand all pressure of governments, tax agents and hackers.
Banks are terrified of BTC and they will use legislation to make every BTC holder seen as a terrorist by society. As if BTC holders are the new unvaccinated. I wonder if they can ever push me to the point that I have to surrender and hand over my BTC wallet. Before it gets to that point, I consider sending my wallet to my mother in law who lives outside of the European Union.

[Cricktor]

I did not invest before because I was afraid of not being tech savvy enough to manage a wallet. I don't trust Ledger, for example.

I wouldn't trust Ledger either, but mainly because they exposed their customer's personal data, lyed about the seed can't be pulled out of the hardware and their firmware is closed-source and thus opaque.

But there are excellent alternatives besides Ledger hardware crap: Foundation Devices Passport, Trezor Safe 3, BitBox02 to name my personal favorites. You have good choices, no need for Ledger crap.

A guy in my class at uni manages at least 10 BTC, or more. He's secretive about it.

Apparently not secretive enough or how do you know that he manages at least 10BTC? Did he brag about it or is it just your own wild guess?

Simply don't talk about how much crypto you have or you want to invest in. No need to disclose such sensitive and potentially dangerous details. Why risk getting in trouble because of that?

This will require a 20k bank transfer which will automatically flag me to the authorities. They will know I'm into crypto and I think it is a matter of time before I have to declare the holdings on my tax sheet.

You don't need to invest such a sum in one transaction if that raises flags at your bank(s). Don't rely on advise of others because others rarely act only in your interest but rather in most cases for their own benefit. You should understand the investments and their risks you are about to make.

Don't try to evade proper taxation of your crypto investments, it's usually not worth the trouble. You might be lucky, but if not, you're gonna be in deepest shit pretty quick (of course depending on in which country you live, but usually everywhere tax evasion isn't a small and neglectable misdemeanor).


For the amount you plan to invest I would strongly suggest to protect your wallet secrets with a hardware wallet. Proper usage of a hardware wallet, learn the basics first, shields your stash from a potentially insecure computer environment. Don't do your daily internet shit on the same device that you use to communicate with your (hardware) wallet. Try to separate crypto stuff from your daily internet stuff.

Don't become reckless, there's usually no "get rich quick" for all of us.

[RaraAvis]

I am newbie and obviously need some help...
Came to this platform to find some answers.
Read questions and answers for newbies in this thread and got even more lost.

I would like to start trading on dYdX and I have a hard time choosing the right crypto wallet for this platform. Reading their help articles and overview suggests MetaMask but it has very poor reviews plus I read somewhere in this thread that it isn't good.

May I ask you what wallet you would recommend to choose to trade on dYdX?

[Cricktor]

...

Your question appears offtopic in this thread as the decentralized exchange (DEX) dYdX is based on the Ethereum blockchain, respective tokens and derivatives on it. I don't see an immediate and obvious connection to Bitcoin here and Bitcoin wallets in particular.

When you're new, I suggest to take the time and read, read, read and learn. I can't and won't assess your knowledge about trading in DeFi space, but it's crucial to fully understand the products and risks with what you're trading with.

[PomskyFluff]

Hi everyone, hope you're all having a great festive break.

I've created a couple of wallets using https://www.bitaddress.org by doing the following steps:

* Saved https://www.bitaddress.org/ as a html file and saved it to a freshly formatted USB stick
* I have a PC with freshly installed version of Windows 10 - the PC has no Internet connection.
* Opened the html file on the non-Internet PC and created the wallets.
* Closed html file and deleted it from the USB stick.
* Wallets saved on the USB stick and removed from PC
* The laptop will never connect to the Internet.

I have switched the PC off now and have no plans to use it. Would you class my paper wallets as being safe to use in this situation?

[Husna QA]

Hi everyone, hope you're all having a great festive break.

I've created a couple of wallets using https://www.bitaddress.org by doing the following steps:

* Saved https://www.bitaddress.org/ as a html file and saved it to a freshly formatted USB stick
* I have a PC with freshly installed version of Windows 10 - the PC has no Internet connection.
* Opened the html file on the non-Internet PC and created the wallets.
* Closed html file and deleted it from the USB stick.
* Wallets saved on the USB stick and removed from PC
* The laptop will never connect to the Internet.

I have switched the PC off now and have no plans to use it. Would you class my paper wallets as being safe to use in this situation?

It may be safe for now.
However, you should also be careful using a USB stick as a wallet storage. Over time, the components of the USB stick may break down, or the data stored on it may be corrupted.

If it's just to protect your wallet, I don't think it's necessary to sacrifice your PC or laptop so that you don't plan to use it. I think that's too paranoid. You can use Linux OS when you are worried about the security of the Windows 10* you are currently using.

Also, when you make a transaction, you need a device that is online/connected to the internet to broadcast the transaction.

*

Windows is by far the more popular target, and Linux ransomware is relatively uncommon to date; nonetheless, this doesn’t mean that Linux admins can relax.

[FazilCrypto]

Hi all, what about CEX? What do people think?

thanks!

[SFR10]

Hi all, what about CEX? What do people think?

Considering that these custodial services are in full control of users' private keys, using their services as a personal wallet is the worst thing that you can do to your hard-earned cryptocurrencies!
^{- In addition to the above line, these custodial services are constantly being targeted by skilled hackers, and it's worth noting that almost all of them aren't insuring users' funds.}