Have you, or would you ever use a Bitcoin ATM?

[southerngentuk]

No, I have never seen or experienced a Bitcoin ATM with my own eyes. My country currently does not accept bitcoin as a legal currency, although I see quite a few people who know about it and use it as a form of daily payment. The government is still advising people on traditional media not to use cryptocurrencies because of the dangers. That's why it doesn't appear in my country. Although I see a lot of countries have this form, I have not experienced it, so I don't know how, but maybe this is a good form that solves many payment problems.

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[Sebas.tian]

I think, it will be difficult for me to use Bitcoin ATM in my country, because Bitcoin is not legalize in my country and there is no way government will allow such a machine to exist now in the country. Based on the information I had from those citizens their government made it legal tender, they are enjoying the benefits that attached to it because the network work is more faster and safe compared to fiat ATM machine that is giving fiat ATM users stress before the transaction will be successful. Since our government is working towards it, to ensure the citizens have access to Bitcoin in the country show that very soon there will be Bitcoin ATM machine everywhere in the country so that Bitcoin users can have access to their Bitcoin through ATM easily.

[nullama]

I have never seen a Bitcoin ATM machine before. Bitcoin is not accepted at all in the country I live in. For which no bitcoin or crypto is transacted in my country. Bitcoin is not officially legal in my country which is why there are no Bitcoin ATM machines either. But currently Bitcoin ATM machines are being used in different parts of the world. It's very easy and cool to trade Bitcoin in different ways through ATM machines although I've never done it.  But I have a dream that one day I will use Bitcoin ATM and fulfill my feelings.

Bitcoin ATMs usually have a large fee, so think of them as convenience stores. It's much cheaper to exchange your Bitcoin at a local exchange where you would pay a lot less in fess, but again, that would require having a local bank account, which might not be possible if you are just visiting a place for a few days.

[Haunebu]

BTC ATMs are pretty much useless currently primarily thanks to the crazy high fees associated with BTC transactions. You would need to pay upwards of 10% or higher as fees which is completely messed up.

Purchasing from p2p platforms is way, way better in comparison since the fees are extremely low and there are a plethora of domestic and international payment methods available.

I advise avoiding such ATMs completely unless you need BTC urgently for various reasons.

[BenCodie]

I've seen them pop up all around me, in small convenience stores and even restaurants. I was wondering if it's a good option to buy a gift for someone else, or are the fees too high and it's not worth it? Also I'm not sure how it works but figuring they give you a private key, and how safe is that?

It isn't safe, it's cost-inefficient and if you have an alternative (which everyone does) then use the alternative.

The alternative?
P2P markets like AgoraDesk, which allows you to trade Bitcoin to-and-from for cash, gift cards  and more. The fee is 50-80℅ lower than Bitcoin ATMs, so it's a no brainer to try P2P marketplaces before using an ATM.

In terms of safety, P2P is a lot safer than how ATMs go about their operation.

It is also inconvenient since I have to go out of the safety of my house just to convert my Bitcoin to fiat or vice versa when I can just transact online using either centralized or decentralized exchanges.  Besides micro payment processing apps have cryptocurrency features where we can exchange and convert fiat and crypto accordingly.

I am always worried about being scammed on sites like that. The ATM gives you bitcoin when you put in money. What if someone says they didn't get your payment? But you already mailed out the money?

There is a reputation system and an automated escrow system on AgoraDesk to counteract scamming. If you only deal with reputable traders, you will never be scammed.

If you are mailing out money, the buyer/seller will have their coins locked until they receive the cash. If they claim they don't receive it, the team can intervene and review the case. Again, this very rarely happens if you deal with reputable traders because their whole business can stop with one bad review or issue. There's no point in scamming when you can make 3-10% per trade for as long as there is demand.

[Luzin]

Never to date. Even I can only see history, that in my country there were once 3 crypto atms. When I have identified crypto it is no longer operational. So currently my country has no crypto ATMs operating. There is no operator in my country yet. Although currently my country declares Crypto legal as a commodity asset. But I am happy that the development of the number of crypto ATMs in the world has increased drastically. That proves that they are growing steadily in some large countries and it is likely that they will continue to grow.

[Victorik]

I have never seen a Bitcoin atm before, neither do I even know how it works. But it will be fun to see it and actually use it, but I doubt if that will be possible any time soon in my country. But hopefully, someday, I get to buy something using BTC atm.

[Cryptomultiplier]

I've seen Bitcoin ATMs only in videos from friends that are living in foreign countries, not in person but I would love to give it a try someday, I think the transaction fee will be the same just as when you are sending Bitcoin from your crypto wallet, unless there are some extra charges that I don't know about.

The Bitcoin transaction fee presently is looking good enough and you can get away with a cheaper feel depending on the time of operation because for example I sent Bitcoin to exchange yesterday using $0.80 and today it's $0.56 so you see that it's always lower and higher too.

It is unlikely that all countries will have Bitcoin ATMs as Bitcoin is not yet legalized globally, something that may never happen in the future, maybe we will have a Satoshi island or nation where Bitcoin is the sole currency someday, that will be good for tourism where crypto lovers and adopters will love to visit, how crazy is this?

Bitcoin ATMs are actually quite handy when traveling abroad.

You can get local fiat from your "international wallet" aka Bitcoin. It's a great solution for the time being while most countries still not have Bitcoin as legal tender.

I would if I happen to stumble upon such during my travels. Bitcoin ATM machines should be available in El Salvador being that they are top BTC users and has it as a legal tender.

The technology would have to have currency conversion mechanism incase I want to change my available local fiat to BTC for withdrawal.
The noteriety of such would be known is more countries get to adopt it as legal tender.

[letteredhub]

I haven't seen a bitcoin ATM or how it looks like but am sure it would not be of a big difference compared to the conventional giat ATM we're using except that the features could be different so. It would actually be helpful for bitcoin users to have a bitcoin ATM close to their location for convenient transactions away from fiat usage. One of the challenge why the ATMs are not see everywhere is because for now bitcoin hasn't gained so much acceptance among people today but with time just like it was with the internet at first, everyone will definitely come to accept it usage.

[DapanasFruit]

I worked hard for my small hoard of Bitcoin and I got no short-term plan of using them just to buy anything that I know I can use my usual cash or card in doing so. I know that this can be the HOLD mindset but in my country getting some Bitcoin is not as easy as getting into the grocery and then pay for anything your eyes laid into. Now, in case there can be a time when I would have millions of dollars worth of Bitcoin in my card then maybe I would be using the available TM to withdraw some cash. Generally, mainstream population is not yet so addicted to the idea of BTC ATM but having one near can be so convenient.

[tread93]

I've seen them pop up all around me, in small convenience stores and even restaurants. I was wondering if it's a good option to buy a gift for someone else, or are the fees too high and it's not worth it? Also I'm not sure how it works but figuring they give you a private key, and how safe is that?

Honestly Bitcoin ATMs are great for people who like the convenience of it, but I wouldn't recommend for purchasing a gift for someone, just buy BTC elsewhere and have them set up their own wallet before you give it to them, and explain it to them and how to use it especially if they are new to Bitcoin. Not quite related to the question but just for anyone else here who might think Bitcoin ATMs help with anonymity.... you can't really argue the case for anonymity because transactions over 10k get reported but even if they aren't over 10k they still have KYC in place which requires them to know who you are, they will have a picture of your ID in most cases and a phone number. The high fees really aren't attractive at all, I wouldn't ever personally use a Bitcoin ATM to buy/sell crypto because the high fees are awful.

[Rikafip]

BTC ATMs are pretty much useless currently primarily thanks to the crazy high fees associated with BTC transactions. You would need to pay upwards of 10% or higher as fees which is completely messed up.

As someone who used bitcoin ATMs for years, I agree that fees are generally not very competitive, but I woulnd't call them completely useless because every once in a while you might get into situation that you need money ASAP and I that's how I use them atm, as a last resort sort of thing.

Regarding fees, they can be lower than that as the one I (very ocassionaly) use has 6% fee. Few years ago it used to be 4.5% but after owner increased it to 6%, I started looking for other ways to buy/sell bitcoin.

[bitLeap]

I have never done that because there are still a few in the country I live in even though it already exists but seeing from some of the news currently in my country in Indonesia there are only 3 bitcoin ATMs of which 1 ATM is in Jakarta (the current capital) and The other 2 are in Bali which is indeed famous for foreign tourists visiting and traveling there.
Indeed it is still tempting to try at least once because I want to experience using something like that but indeed with a considerable distance from my area it is still not possible for me to try a bitcoin ATM but with this it is possible if you look at the current public interest in my country is quite good with bitcoin so there will likely be additions and my hope is that it will spread to several other cities in my country.

[BigBos]

BTC ATMs are pretty much useless currently primarily thanks to the crazy high fees associated with BTC transactions. You would need to pay upwards of 10% or higher as fees which is completely messed up.

As someone who used bitcoin ATMs for years, I agree that fees are generally not very competitive, but I woulnd't call them completely useless because every once in a while you might get into situation that you need money ASAP and I that's how I use them atm, as a last resort sort of thing.

Regarding fees, they can be lower than that as the one I (very ocassionaly) use has 6% fee. Few years ago it used to be 4.5% but after owner increased it to 6%, I started looking for other ways to buy/sell bitcoin.

Yes, saying useless is also not right, although maybe the costs we have to spend are so high. But when one day we need it, it will be very useful. Maybe now say it's useless because we don't feel we need it so much yet because we can still use something else.
On the other hand, for me personally who hold bitcoin for the long term and don't want to spend it on something that I think is not important, I would avoid using it. Yes, it's better for me to use the money in my trouser pocket than having to spend bitcoins to buy something.
and anyway where I live, I have not found it.

[Wimex]

There is no bitcoin ATM available in my location. Going through the internet came to know about an ATM located around 2k miles away from my location. When studied about the transaction costs I found it to be 7% to 20% depending on the brand which has installed the ATM kiosk. This is a much higher fee against the cryptocurrency exchange cost on a transaction. Even if more ATMs were installed on third world countries, it is a must to concentrate on low transaction fee to make users use it.

     It may be that in the places where bitcoin ATMs currently exist, they maintain a high rate due to the low demand they are having, since people prefer to opt for another means to carry out transactions of this type, and above all for the security that they have provided them and that of course the costs for carrying out these operations do not cause notable losses. But I guess as many more countries get involved in this currency and more and more of these withdrawal options are implemented, it will become more crowded and therefore could lower those fees. The truth is that I have not used that type of ATM where I live, what is more, I can say that there are none in my country as such, so I doubt that I will be able to see one for a long time, I would like to be able to experience how they work, but it would be mere curiosity , I still prefer the P2P operation.

[JayJuanGee]

Not much of a use for Bitcoin rather than investing, as cannot be used or traded easily for fiat currency.

Me, too. I use Bitcoin is mostly for investment, never try to buy any goods or services with Bitcoin. Moreover, using Bitcoin or any crypto coins for payment tools is forbidden in my country. So, we have no chance to use Bitcoin for any purposes, except as a digital asset.

Once you have bitcoin, then no one can stop you from using it for peer to peer transactions, and they may or may not be able to verify that you had used it in such a peer to peer transaction.

Of course, if you live in a country (jurisdiction) in which it is illegal to transact in bitcoin, then you need to account for the various possible risks of getting caught in such an activity that is legally prohibited...

It seems to me that one of the concerns that a lot of normies have is that there may well be limits in which many or most if not all would not want someone to tell them whether they can engage in such activity or not - which includes the ability to communicate with others (of your own choosing) and also being able to transact value with others of your own choosing with modes of transaction that are of your own choosing...
so whether or not those kinds of laws are just or enforceable could surely be subject to pretty rigorous debate - and the answer would not be clear about whether certain kinds of your interactions should be controlled (even if it could be controlled).  Bitcoin does seems to scare people who would like to be able to control your behaviors in some of the kinds of ways that seem to be overreaching, even if some of those same people may well claim that they are "doing it for your own good" or "doing it for some kind of a socially acceptable/justifiable reason."

[Agbe]

I have not seen any one around me so I don't even know the shape of them. It will be nice and safe to use ATM machine for easy purchase. Bitcoin ATM will be very effective in a country that has adopted Bitcoin as a legal tender which all the shops use the machine both the wholesale and retail stores. But not in a country that has not accepted Bitcoin for transaction. I will love to use the machine if I have the opportunity.

[mvdheuvel1983]

Bitcoin ATMs are a lot of fun to use. These days, I seldom ever see them maybe because of a change in location. El Salvador, perhaps, but in some of the cities I've been to, I have yet to come across one that is actually in use. I feel that buying through a DEX or CEX is more convenient than using a Bitcoin ATM. I used cash to test out a Bitcoin ATM in California a few years ago. I began by choosing a price $20 for the Bitcoin I wanted to buy and entering a phone number for identification. To complete the verification process, an SMS code was issued, which was then input. A brand-new Bitcoin wallet was made with a private and public key, with the transaction using the public key. The $20 worth of Bitcoin was bought after scanning the Bitcoin address's QR code, and a receipt was printed. Later, I moved the bitcoin to a wallet with higher security.

[JayJuanGee]

Regarding my own experiences in using a bitcoin ATM, I have ONLY done it once (or at least a few times at one location) -, even though I frequently look out for Bitcoin ATMs in order that I can verify if they are actually working and maybe to try to figure out what the fees might be.

I remember many times when I was in Los Angeles between 2015 or 2016 and 2019, I would interact with other bitcoiners and they would tell me about their ATM experiences, and surely the fees varied, and even their comments about the uptime varied, but I never did visit one of those machines myself. 

When I was traveling in Mexico in early 2021, I purposefully was searching for ways that I might be able to sell some bitcoin and to get some local cash.. so I spent a lot of time trying to find Bitcoin ATM machines that were open.. and there were some issues, at that time because the pandemic was going on.

I recall looking for Bitcoin ATMs in various locations, but it seems to me that only one of the 5-6 machines that I actually found was working for withdrawals (selling BTC).  I found some machines that were completely shut down, and some that were shut down only for withdrawals but were available for buying BTC.

The one machine that I was able to withdraw was at a Cafe called The Bitcoin Embassy in Mexico City.  They required that the bitcoin gets sent from a compatible wallet (which they told me was Coinomi), so I had to come back after I had loaded a Coinomi wallet, and then they had a max per transaction and a max per day, so I had to do 2 transactions each day that I went there in order to reach the daily max.. , and the only verification that I did was to provide a phone number (which I am not sure if there is a need that the phone number is a KYC phone number).   I recall that the fees were pretty reasonable.. something like 2 or 3%.. so I was not complaining abut the fees.  Each time, I did have to wait for 3 confirmations before they would release the fiat to me (Mexican Peso), which was something like an hour wait each time..

Ultimately, it seems to me that there is going to be a decent amount of variance in terms of fees and in terms of availability of these kinds of BTC ATM options, and it also seems that if there are desires to make the machines competitive, then they do need to attract customers, and if there are more machines, then their fees would likely go down.. or if there might be other ways that people are just skipping the use of machines and then just interacting directly peer to peer.. but a tourist might not have those kinds of possibilities, and even a local person might be limited in the number of folks who might be willing to transact with him/her to buy or sell BTC.  It's good to have options - but through the years, the kinds of options that might be available are likely continuously changing and they will also vary based on geography (being in a city or rural, or whether you know people in the area or have ways of meeting people, like if there were bitcoin meetups.. which is also not very common in most smaller cities - even if some bigger cities might have bitcoin meetups - but that is not even guaranteed - even the governmental/regulatory atmosphere might be hostile to bitcoin).

[Hispo]

There is no Bitcoin ATM here in my city as far as I am informed and if there were some, I am almost sure I would not use them. It is rather a very poor decision, keeping in mind the poor administration of justice in this country.

I would rather people around me and all strangers to continue to be ignorant on the fact I hold some satoshis... actually, people interested in Bitcoin here hold on it to safely save their money from both inflation and crooks.