How to decide which payment method to use when buying bitcoin?

[workerhun]

I'm about to invest in some bitcoins, but I'm curious what type of payment method is best to use. I already know that it is possible to buy bitcoins with a various number of deposit methods.

Could you give me the advantages and disadvantages of buying BTC using:

• a bank transfer (SWIFT/SEPA/WIRE)
• a credit card (debit card - visa or mastercard)
• cash
• a PayPal account
• any other payment methods that people like to use?

I'd like to compare each to get an idea of when you may prefer to use one payment method over another and why. Thank you

[Xester]

I'm about to invest in some bitcoins, but I'm curious what type of payment method is best to use. I already know that it is possible to buy bitcoins with a various number of deposit methods.

Could you give me the advantages and disadvantages of buying BTC using:

• a bank transfer (SWIFT/SEPA/WIRE)
• a credit card (debit card - visa or mastercard)
• cash
• a PayPal account
• any other payment methods that people like to use?

I'd like to compare each to get an idea of when you may prefer to use one payment method over another and why. Thank you

For me the best and easiest way is to buy bitcoins is through a bank transfer.  When you use a bank transfer it is easy to trace your transaction since you get hold of your receipt.  If you use a credit card there are only a few exchanges which accepts a credit card and thus I do not recommend it. Paypal on the other hand has a huge fees when you convert paypal funds to bitcoins. But anyway the conditions in my country maybe different from yours and thus I think it is necessary to consult people who are the same area as you.

[BTCLovingDude]

for a bank transfer or credit card you have to use an exchange platform. the befit of that is you are using a relatively safe place to give your personal information and buy bit and also the price will be at normal lever (cheaper than other options) but the disadvantage would be your bank knowing that you are making a deposit into a bitcoin exchange website and buying bitcoin with it. you may be subjected to taxes.

using paypal, you will have a hard time finding someone who is even willing to sell you bitcoin in return for paypal since bitcoin has no charge back but paypal does. and you will end up buying at higher price.

same goes with cash as far as price is concerned. it will cost more, but since cash is cash you will get the most anonymity possible when buying bitcoin.

[mindrust]

Virtual card created from a credit card would get the job done. It is safe, it is fast, it is almost automated, no questions asked (nearly).

Bank wire is fine as long as you don't wire overseas or you send your money to someone you trust.

Cash: Not safe. You can get robbed.

Paypal: Just, stay away.

Forum escrows: Usually work till the escrow decides to be a criminal or gets his acc hacked.

[howtobuybtc]

Good question. I've actually written up a complete guide for choosing the right payment method to get bitcoin: https://howtobuybitcoin.io/#Which_is_the_best_payment_method_to_get_bitcoins . It's very beginner-friendly so do take a look and let me know what your thoughts are.

In short, these are the advantages and inconveniences of each way to buy bitcoin:

• using a bank transfer - the is generally the cheapest way (lowest fees) to purchase large quantities. It can take slightly longer for the deposit to come through on the exchange (2-5 days sometimes). Beginner users tend to avoid this way as it may seem daunting, but I recommend trying it out - it's far easier than you may think.
• using a credit card - this is the preferred way to buy bitcoins for beginners. Fees are far higher than the above method but the advantage is that you can instantly purchase your cryptocurrency.
• using cash - here again fees may be far higher than when purchasing with a bank transfer. The advantage of buying bitcoin with cash is that you can stay anonymous and no ID verification is needed. The main disadvantage is that you may need to actually leave your room and meet someone or go deposit money to finalize the transaction
• using PayPal - this method can be very convenient for small purchases. However there are high commissions and caps on how much you can purchase. So it is definitely not a good idea to try get lots of bitcoin with a paypal account.
• using your skills/labor - you can actually work for bitcoin. Go to /r/Jobs4bitcoins to see what contract are available. There are also other bitcoin freelancing sites. This may be a slower method, but many professionals acquire the bitcoin stock by working for it.

Let me know if that helps!

[iqlimasyadiqa]

I'm about to invest in some bitcoins, but I'm curious what type of payment method is best to use. I already know that it is possible to buy bitcoins with a various number of deposit methods.

Could you give me the advantages and disadvantages of buying BTC using:

• a bank transfer (SWIFT/SEPA/WIRE)
• a credit card (debit card - visa or mastercard)
• cash
• a PayPal account
• any other payment methods that people like to use?

I'd like to compare each to get an idea of when you may prefer to use one payment method over another and why. Thank you

If you only sell bitcoin in your country means you will only focus on local. I would recommend that because it can make us concentrate with the development of bitcoin in our country. I will choose inter-bank transfer, it is a service that is currently safe and also trusted by many people. So that later will many enthusiasts who ask for your services. While other media in my opinion still rely on the internet, so it is no different from bitcoin.

[talkbitcoin]

• using cash - here again fees may be far higher than when purchasing with a bank transfer. The advantage of buying bitcoin with cash is that you can stay anonymous and no ID verification is needed. The main disadvantage is that you may need to actually leave your room and meet someone or go deposit money to finalize the transaction

it is not exactly called "fee" when you use cash, because there is no fee you meet face to face and hand over the cash and receive bitcoin payment in your wallet.
the reason why it costs more is because of the "spread".
when using cash you are paying for privacy and the sellers know this and will ask for a higher price and also buy at a much lower price because the demand will be there and also they have to make profit too.

[workerhun]

I've actually written up a complete guide for choosing the right payment method to get bitcoin: https://howtobuybitcoin.io/#Which_is_the_best_payment_method_to_get_bitcoins . It's very beginner-friendly so do take a look and let me know what your thoughts are.

Perfect thanks, this is excellent! I've bookmarked it for sharing with my colleagues at work (also newbie bitcoiners). They were asking the same questions about how to buy bitcoins and whether to use a bank transfer or their credit card. I think that you're right: as other replies here have mentioned, not many exchanges that I have seen accept credit card purchases. And when they do the fees look very high. I'll probably be using a bank transfer.

Has anyone used Kraken for large purchases (15k usd in my case)? I'm curious to know which places are best for buying BTC using a SEPA transfer.

[Dudeperfect]

I mostly use bank transfer and localbitcoins to buy bitcoins as they provide free automated escrow service and it takes very less time with a proof of transfer. On the other hand, the payment system is not idea. I mean services like paypal allows you to revert the payment even after several weeks so no one usually go with it. I think about convenience, solid proof, security and ease of use while determining the payment method while dealing with bitcoins.

[Velkro]

Could you give me the advantages and disadvantages of buying BTC using:

• a bank transfer (SWIFT/SEPA/WIRE)
• a credit card (debit card - visa or mastercard)
• cash
• a PayPal account
• any other payment methods that people like to use?

I'd like to compare each to get an idea of when you may prefer to use one payment method over another and why. Thank you

a bank transfer (SWIFT/SEPA/WIRE) - most common one, you must wait from hours to week tho, depends on country
a credit card (debit card - visa or mastercard) - this payment can be reversed, so not so many companies want to risk that, and don't allow such transactions
cash - you must meet someone from localbitcoins probably, so you must move from home and setup meeting
a PayPal account - same like credit card
any other payment methods that people like to use? - thats pretty all you listed out there

[ustradebitcoin]

you should add MG and Western union too. because there alot countries paypal is not supported and get a debit card in these countries cost you $12 with some restriction.. so the only alternative is westernunion and MG.

[Barbarian]

I'm about to invest in some bitcoins, but I'm curious what type of payment method is best to use. I already know that it is possible to buy bitcoins with a various number of deposit methods.

Could you give me the advantages and disadvantages of buying BTC using:

• a bank transfer (SWIFT/SEPA/WIRE)
• a credit card (debit card - visa or mastercard)
• cash
• a PayPal account
• any other payment methods that people like to use?

I'd like to compare each to get an idea of when you may prefer to use one payment method over another and why. Thank you

What payment methods functions best will depend on what you want, if you want to avoid leaving a paper trail then you probably would like to buy with cash in a face to face trade but the greatest disadvantage is that you are going to meet with somebody you don’t know and that knows you are carrying cash.

[cleygaux]

Try to choose method which gives the smallest charge In my personal experience via bank account is the most convenient way in buying bitcoins but it depends also on your bank fee..

[sashiva88]

It has been mentioned that bank transfer can go from one day to one week... in case of BC price spikes in the meanwhile will it potentially affect the final BC amount?
thanks in advance...

[deadsilent]

Its better if you use Paypal. But its very rare to find exchange that accepts Paypal funds to bjy bitcoin. So the best way to buy bitcoin is thru bank. If you don't have bank account. Your best option is thru remittance. Or meet ups. You can find people on Localbitcoins.com which you can buy bitcoin with a lot of payment options.

[btcdevil]

My payment method to buy bitcoin is through localbitcoins exchange where i can buy through bank transfer and direct dealing with bitcoin users. Apart from that i use to enroll in lot of new altcoins giveaways that also gives me to earn lot of bitcoins by selling that coins on getting listed on exchange.

[jamespx]

why you are not using paxful.com or localbitcoins.com ? in paxful you would found tons of payment processor for buying bitcoin.Also localbitcoin is a great source for buying bitcoin with a lot of payment processor.

Was thinking of the same things as well. Paxful has Escrow and 24/7 moderators
that can give you safer trading.

[Smarty14392]

I usually usr paytm wallet to purchase bitcoin.
But if you want to purchase bitcoin, you can logon to localbitcoin and check the lowest price to buy bitcoin. The price there varries like the buying price for paytm will be 200000 INR while the same for Bank transfer will be 1800000 INR.
the price you find cheap to buy, purchase it. Usually bank transfer and paypal have low rates for buying. On any other site, it really dosent matter about the method of payment. Bank transfer also has some transfer charges so it creates a mess over there for me, so i prefer no charge wallets like paytm (In my region- INDIA)

[TeamSnapshot]

If you live in a dense city meeting someone in person for cash works well. Depending on your location there might be a bitcoin ATM.
These are usually hassle free transactions when dealing with low amounts.

[btcdevil]

I'd prefer Paypal or Debit/Credit card because it's instant! No hassle! Try paxful.com they offer different payment methods for convenience. It is also safe to buy bitcoins there.

Using paypal is a risky one as paypal dont support bitcoin and when they know that you are trading in bitcoin they will ban your account and if any one charge back you you will be in problem as paypal is famous for chargeback scam