The most secure wallet without downloading blockchain

[Loque]

Question is so simple to say but not so easy to be cleared by a noob like me.
I have to setup my first BTC wallet.
I can't store 243 GB of blockchain.
So which is actually the most secure wallet that works without forcing me to download the blockchain?

[Rath_]

So which is actually the most secure wallet that works without forcing me to download the blockchain?

If you want to have a working Bitcoin wallet out-of-the-box then consider downloading Electrum from the official website and veryfing it. Repeat these steps every time a new update is released. Electrum is a light client which offers a lot useful features such as bumping a transaction with a higher fee and coin control. You will be given 12 words which will be needed for the wallet recovery in the future. Don't lose them, don't share them with anyone and don't write them down on your computer.

[Loque]

It is a local wallet? So it can't be controlled by companies or possibilities to froze funds until KYC approvation?

[BitMaxz]

If you are looking for secured wallet these wallets below are recommended.

Hardware wallets(Best wallet by rankings)
#1 Ledger nano = Official website from here https://www.ledger.com/
#2 Trezor = Official website from here https://trezor.io/
#3 keepkey = Website where you can buy this wallet here https://shapeshift.io/keepkey/
#4 Bitbox = You can buy this wallet from here https://shiftcrypto.ch/

Desktop wallet:

- Wasabi wallet
- Electrum wallet

Take note about Electrum make sure to download the wallet directly from electrum.org domain.

Mobile wallet

- Mycelium
- Electrum
- Coinomi
- Bread wallet

For most secured wallet go for hard wallet you don't need to download the whole blockchain.

It is a local wallet? So it can't be controlled by companies or possibilities to froze funds until KYC approvation?

Electrum has no KYC and it is not controlled by companies no one can froze or freeze your wallet except you who know about the seed phrase and private keys.

[Loque]

How with Electrum is possible to use every feature without downloading the blockchain?
Is it stored on "a" server? If the server go offline I can't use my wallet?
I think this is the final doubt cause you guys make great this community thanks to your detailed replies.

[bitmover]

It is a local wallet? So it can't be controlled by companies or possibilities to froze funds until KYC approvation?

This will only happen if you keep funds on an Exchange, such as Coinbase (or its custodial Wallet).

Custodial wallets aren't really a wallet, it is an exchange that keep your funds. They can enforce KYC or anything else, as they are the true owners of your bitcoins, as they hodl the private keys.


You will be safe with the wallets suggested by BitMaxz. Just note down the Seed (12-24 words), because that seed contains your private keys.

How with Electrum is possible to use every feature without downloading the blockchain?

Because it is a light weight wallet (SPV). It doesn`t download all transactions in history, just the ones related to your funds.

SPV wallets check balances using explorers such as blockchain.com. Just paste your public address there (used to receive funds) and you can see all its past transactions.

Is it stored on "a" server? If the server go offline I can't use my wallet?

AFAIK, there is no risky of this to happen. If Electrum ever stop working, you can just import your SEED (that words i said) into any other wallet and you will have your bitcoins.

[Rath_]

How with Electrum is possible to use every feature without downloading the blockchain?

Electrum connects to external servers which are only used for looking up the transaction history and broadcasting transactions.

Is it stored on "a" server? If the server go offline I can't use my wallet?

No, you wallet file is stored locally and no one should be able to access it. There are many servers, so you should be always able to connect to one of them. If you couldn't for some reason then you can always sign a transaction locally and broadcast it manually.

[Loque]

I love you guys.
I opt for Electrum.
In the future I'll consider buy an hardware solution.

Thank you for your availability!

[BitMaxz]

I love you guys.
I opt for Electrum.

Don't forget to download it directly to the real URL or domain which is https://electrum.org/ because there are many fake websites promoting fake Electrum wallet.

I would like you to be aware of fake electrum websites from this thread ⚠⚠️⚠~Beware on active phishing Electrum websites~⚠⚠️⚠ (Collection list updated)

And also guide on How to verify Electrum (for Windows, Linux and Mac)

Why not try Wasabi it is another best option with coinjoin. it is just like the same as Electrum but it only support segwit wallet..

[Loque]

Just verified using this guide reached from the official site.
Thank you!   

[Loque]

Which wallet I should chose?

https://i.postimg.cc/wxhwbKyq/screenshot-41.png

[jnano]

If your only limitation is blockchain storage, but no problem with downloading, you can also consider Bitcoin Core in "prune" mode.
You can choose how much storage to use. It's available in the GUI settings, or the configuration file.

[nc50lc]

Which wallet I should chose?

The first one: Standard wallet.
Then, when prompted to select address type, I recommend you to select "Standard" (starts with "1") for the best compatibility.

You can also make a Nested SegWit (starts with "3") wallet using an externally generated BIP39 SEED if you prefer SegWit that is compatible with "shitty" services that still doesn't support Native SegWit (starts with "bc1") addresses.

[bob123]

Then, when prompted to select address type, I recommend you to select "Standard" (starts with "1") for the best compatibility.

You don't gain any advantages using legacy type addresses, only disadvantages.

For maximum compatibility and lower fees one should choose nested segwit (P2WPKH nested in P2SH).
Each service recognizes these addresses, and besides lower fees transaction malleability is fixed. While this might not be a big issue for an average user, there is not a single good reason to choose legacy over nested segwit.

[Lauda]

Mobile wallet
- Mycelium
- Electrum
- Coinomi
- Bread wallet
- Samurai

FTFY. It is better not to recommend anything than to recommend insecure garbage (especially Coinomi).

[bitmover]

Some people in this forum hate coinomi because it is not open source, and because its mobile desktop version had a bug that could share seed with Google docs (something like that)

However, it is a convenient wallet, in the mobile version. There is no multicurrency wallet which is open source. Also, the Google bug with the seed never affected the mobile version.

So, imo, you can use the mobile version to hold small amounts of money, especially if you need a multicurrency wallet.

For large amounts, ledger nano and trezor are the best choices, no doubt

[Rath_]

Some people in this forum hate coinomi because it is not open source, and because its mobile version had a bug that could share seed with Google docs (something like that)

However, it is a convenient wallet, in the mobile version. There is no multicurrency wallet which is open source. Also, the Google bug with the seed never affected the mobile version.

These sentences are contradictory. Unless OP mentions that he needs a multicurrency wallet, we should recommend the best option for Bitcoin only since we are in the Bitcoin Technical Support board.

[Lucius]

Loque, now when you install Electrum and verify signature before that it is sure to say that you have offical wallet and you can start to use it. I hope you write down your seed (12 words), this is most important thing to do, in case you need to restore your wallet. It is also important to protect your wallet with strong password, to prevent any unauthorized use.

My advice is also that you pay extra attention to safety of your PC, install good antivirus / antimalware software, and always click Preview button before sending transaction to review all transaction details, especially the address to which you send coins (clipboard malware).

[Loque]

I'm still undecided if choose Segwit or Legacy. 

@Lucius thanks.

[Rath_]

I'm still undecided if choose Segwit or Legacy.  

It depends on what you are going to do with your wallet. If you intend to hold your coins for a longer period of time then go with SegWit. Transactions made from native SegWit addresses let you save some money. However, there are still many services which don't recognize such addresses and can't send coins to them. You will be able to spend from them to any address, though. Once you select SegWit in Electrum, all of your addresses will start from bc1 instead of 1. Take a look at this discussion.