Noob Question

[nabilvirani]

I notice on coinbase, for example, the btc price is currently 385.97.
Then I head over to google and it's $385.33.
No big deal, I can see why they differ.
But then I go to buy some at localbitcoin and notice that people are selling it for $407-620.
Why is that? And is that normal?
Is there anywhere else that's good to buy bitcoin in the world that's closer to the actual price? ie - minimal fees.

[1714169660]

1714169660

[ncsupanda]

Searching for minimal fees is kind of a hit-and-miss. Sometimes it can be inconvenient to purchase a certain way versus another. The reason those prices vary so much is because they offer different things; Coinbase will offer more because they charge fees for being the middleman and for accepting Visa, etc. I have noticed that people on localbitcoin tend to charge more because they will send them to your wallet in person, and overcharge either because the person buying doesn't know much about Bitcoin or for their time that they spend making the transaction, etc.

I personally just instant buy on Coinbase. Put in $20 a week and spend less money on fast food.

Good luck!

[juju]

I notice on coinbase, for example, the btc price is currently 385.97.
Then I head over to google and it's $385.33.
No big deal, I can see why they differ.
But then I go to buy some at localbitcoin and notice that people are selling it for $407-620.
Why is that? And is that normal?
Is there anywhere else that's good to buy bitcoin in the world that's closer to the actual price? ie - minimal fees.

This should probably be posted in the Beginners board: https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?board=39.0

However the reason why the prices vary is all exchanges are independent from each other, their is nothing in the Bitcoin protocol that links it to a USD Value. The price of a Bitcoin is what anyone is willing to accept it for, all of the exchanges have different values but are relatively close usually within 20 dollars at most. Just depends on the orders available on the exchange what the current price will be displayed as.

Also why Localbitcoin is so much more money, because you can truly be anonymous and purchase coins through Localbitcoin. Exchange Cash for Bitcoin without needing to fill out any paperwork etc identity election to companies such as coinbase, circle etc.

[RustyNomad]

The price you see on Google etc..is the current market price without any spread added to it.

The price you see on LocalBitcoin is the market price plus the spread (profit) the seller wants to make.

Have you looked at Circle which launched this week? Bought some coins with my debit card through my account there and paid the market price without any markups for the coins I received. In my opinion one of the best and easiest places to buy bitcoins and from what I've seen also one of the lowest risky ways to obtain bitcoins.

[nabilvirani]

Thank you everyone for your replies.

I was just in the middle of checking circle.com out.

$2.93 more expensive than coinbase at the moment. Not bad at all. I was pretty much looking for anything under 2% of coinbases price.

Thanks again!

[juju]

Thank you everyone for your replies.

I was just in the middle of checking circle.com out.

$2.93 more expensive than coinbase at the moment. Not bad at all. I was pretty much looking for anything under 2% of coinbases price.

Thanks again!

Take a look at BTC-e, typically they have the lowest price from what I have noticed. Its been that way since back in the MtGox days.

[btckold24]

local bitcoins is usually overpriced but sometimes if your lucky someone is trying to build up their trades and you can get it cheaper.

[notlist3d]

Think about setting up a bank account just for bitcoins.  As a general rule coinbase/circle will always be cheaper then localbitcoins.  Localbitcoins allow you get bitcoins without near as much personal information some will pay a premium for this.

[TheFootMan]

Think about setting up a bank account just for bitcoins.  As a general rule coinbase/circle will always be cheaper then localbitcoins.  Localbitcoins allow you get bitcoins without near as much personal information some will pay a premium for this.

^^ This. And also note that there might be risk involved at localbitcoins, some scammers are present and might scam you. So be vigilant.

[Soappa]

The price on localbitcoins is generally higher because you don't need to do time-consuming verification process and provide your personal info before buying your bitcoin. The price is set by the individual bitcoin seller and so it could vary a lot. It is usually 5% - 10% higher than bitstamp.

[MJK]

It's usually always higher on localbitcoins. If you look at preev bitcoins are all around £230 on other exchanges but £300+ on LB.

[nabilvirani]

I feel like I should just start my own exchange !!

Haha.

[ChuckBuck]

Both Coinbase and Circle should be simple, fast, and reliable options to buy Bitcoin.

Either should be fine, and not too far deviated off from the BitStamp exchange's price.

[MyRig]

Premium for immediate purchase is my guess.  Use the exchange to buy/sell BTC, it is safer for you!!   

[Bobblehead Pete]

I notice on coinbase, for example, the btc price is currently 385.97.
Then I head over to google and it's $385.33.
No big deal, I can see why they differ.
But then I go to buy some at localbitcoin and notice that people are selling it for $407-620.
Why is that? And is that normal?
Is there anywhere else that's good to buy bitcoin in the world that's closer to the actual price? ie - minimal fees.

Bitcoin companies also needs to make money sir.

[Tammy Chan]

There is no "actual price" for bitcoin, as different places are providing different services and charging different fees.
Some allow you to buy anonymously, some are more trusted, some accept payments that may be chargeback, some have a lower buy limit, etc.

[DigiTanner]

Different Websites will have different prices based on the market price as well as fees.
If you are interested in learning about alternative currencies other than bitcoin, head over to https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=408268.0 to look at DigiByte

-T

[Led]

Wow. Looks like I need to start selling my bitcoin on localbitcoins.

Another and more important noob question: I remember reading way back when that I needed about 24 or so posts before I would no longer be considered a newbie. Well, I'm still a newbie. How can I stop being a newbie?

[ChuckBuck]

Wow. Looks like I need to start selling my bitcoin on localbitcoins.

Another and more important noob question: I remember reading way back when that I needed about 24 or so posts before I would no longer be considered a newbie. Well, I'm still a newbie. How can I stop being a newbie?

When you get to 30 Activity.  Check this out:

https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=178608.0

[odolvlobo]

I notice on coinbase, for example, the btc price is currently 385.97.
Then I head over to google and it's $385.33.
No big deal, I can see why they differ.
But then I go to buy some at localbitcoin and notice that people are selling it for $407-620.
Why is that? And is that normal?

Just because people are trying to sell bitcoins on LocalBitcoins for much higher prices, doesn't mean that people are buying for those prices. On the other hand, people do pay more on LocalBitcoins because of the convenience (you can get the bitcoins today without having to wire money somewhere). $407 is about a 5% markup. That's pretty normal. Only an ignorant or desperate person would pay $620 (a 60% markup).

Is there anywhere else that's good to buy bitcoin in the world that's closer to the actual price? ie - minimal fees.

There is no "actual price". The Coinbase price is their price. Every exchange will show a different price. The Google price is an aggregation of prices from several sources.