Jan 16, 2021 Mycelium is an open-source and mobile-only Bitcoin wallet. Mycelium currently only supports Bitcoin, ETH, ERC-20 tokens, and FIO token. In some ways, Mycelium is quite similar to the Electrum. Exodus is a light wallet as you don’t need to download the entire blockchain to the computer. The best part about Exodus is that you can store multiple currencies apart from BCH ABC, making it one of the best bitcoin cash ABC wallets. Click here to download Exodus wallet #5 BTC.com. A Bitcoin Cash SPV Wallet Control your own private keys. Easily back up your wallet with a mnemonic seed phrase. Enjoy high security without downloading the blockchain or running a full node.
Desktop wallets are a great option for anyone sending frequent Bitcoin payments from their computer.
In this post we will cover some of the best bitcoin desktop wallets and help you decide which is right for you.
Heads Up!
Large amounts of bitcoins should not be stored on your computer! If you want the most secure Bitcoin wallet then you will need to use a hardware wallet like the Ledger Nano X or TREZOR T.
You should always do research before downloading or installing any Bitcoin wallet.
Wasabi wallet is a desktop (as well as mobile) wallet designed around maintaining privacy through advanced features such as coinjoin and tor routing.
Supported Platforms: MacOS, Linux, Windows
- Full Segwit suport
- Coinjoin functionality
- All traffic routed throug Tor
- Connect to full node
- Works with Ledger, Trezor and Coldcard hardware wallets
- Advanced features make this not a beginner wallet
Blockstream Green is one of the most unqique and secure desktop wallets on the market. It uses a 2-of-2 style backup so if you ever lose your backup, you can use any two factor authentication to recover it. It's also super simple to set up and requires no registration other than an email address. You can even store your Liquid assets on Blockstream green now.
Supported Platforms: MacOS, Linux, Windows, iOS, Android, F-droid
- Easy to set up
- Excellent fee estimation
- Two-Factor multi-sig
- Multilingual
- Great support
- Some features are advanced for beginners
- Using two-factor recovery can be confusing
- Only Android version works with hardware wallets right now
Ledger Live is a little bit different than all the other desktop wallets on this list. That's because you actually need a Ledger hardware wallet for it to work. This makes it by far the most secure desktop wallet on this list, but it also means that using it isn't exactly 'free'.
Supported Platforms: Windows, MacOS, iOS, Android, Linux
- Most secure
- Great UI
- Easy to use
- All crypto in one dashboard
- Compatible with Ledger Hardware Wallets
- Must buy a Ledger hardware wallet to use
- Confirming transactions can be confusing for new users
is another old and tested Bitcoin wallet for all desktop platforms. It is definitely more for an advanced users, so beginners might find using the wallet a little confusing. However, the advanced features and security options make it a great choice for the more experienced Bitcoiner.
Supported Platforms: MacOS, Ubuntu, Windows, Rasberry Pie
- Old and trusted
- Advanced fee settings
- No signup required
- Works with Ledger and Trezor
- Ugly user interface
- Advanced features can be difficult for beginners.
Electrum is one of the oldest and most trusted Bitcoin wallets on the market. It also sports advanced features for privacy and fee settings.
Supported Platforms: MacOS, Linux, Windows, Android, Python
WARNING
There are a lot of fake versions of Electrum out there. Make sure you verify you are installing the real Electrum by verifying electrums GPG signatures. See guides for how to do that on Windows and MacOS.
- Connect to full node
- Compatible with most hardware wallets
- One of the oldest Bitcoin wallets
- Works with Ledger, Trezor, Keepkey, Bitbox, Coldcard
- More advanced wallet not ideal for beginners
- iOS version widely considered inferior to Android version
- Traditional stock dashboard may distract from crypto-only holders
Bitcoin Core is a Bitcoin full node wallet, meaning it downloads the entire Bitcoin blockchain. It is the most private Bitcoin wallet although it takes patience and quite some time to setup. You also need a reliable internet connection, as well plenty of badwidth and hard drive space.
Supported Platforms: MacOS, Linux, Windows
- Full node required
- Great for Bitcoiners with no other coins
- Compatible with most hardware wallets
- Developed by some of the best devs in the crypto
- Works with Ledger, Trezor, Keepkey, Bitbox, Coldcard
- Bitcoin Only - no altocins supported
- Basic wallet with limited features
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Chapter 1
How to Add Funds to Your Desktop Wallet
Now that you have chosen a wallet, let's transfer some funds into it.
In this brief walkthrough, we will show you how to add funds to your desktop wallet
For you to add funds to your desktop wallet, you will need to buy some cryptocurrency from an exchange and transfer it to your desktop wallet. Most Desktop wallets do not have exchanges native to it.
You’ll need to choose an exchange that services your country and/or state. The best place to do that is to go to our exchange finder or you can see the most popular exchanges below:
- eToro
- Start trading fast; high limits
- Easy way for newcomers to get bitcoins
- Your capital is at risk.
- Coinbase
- High liquidity and buying limits
- Easy way for newcomers to get bitcoins
- 'Instant Buy' option available with debit card
After you have bought your crypto, you’ll need to send it to your wallet. To do that, do the following:
1. Open your wallet and find an option to “receive”
2. Copy the address given
3. On your exchange where you bought your coins, select the “send” option.
4. There should be a field to input your wallet address copied in step 2. Paste it there.
5. Confirm you want to send your coins.
After that, you should receive a confirmation with a transaction ID of some kind. Here is what that might look like.
Chapter 2
Hardware Wallets: A Great Addition to Desktop Wallets
With funds in your desktop wallet, its time to take your security to the next level.
The best way to do that is with a hardware wallet like a ledger or trezor
Desktop wallets have the advantage of being free and easy to use. However, using a desktop wallet also poses many dangers to your coins.
Making sure your coins are not stolen through malware or ransomware is difficult to avoid on a desktop wallet.
This is where hardware wallets come in. Hardware wallets are never connected to the internet. They store the private keys and sign transactions you send to them. You verify the transaction on the screen of the hardware wallet, and hand off the signed transaction back to interface on your desktop or mobile phone.
Hardware wallets are a great way, then, to keep your coins safe if you want to use a desktop wallet. Instead of housing the coins on the desktop computer, you store them on the hardware wallet and the desktop just acts as your UI to control the hardware wallet.
You can learn more about each of the hardware wallets we recommend below:
COMPARISON
Ledger Nano X
- SCREEN:
- RELEASED: 2019
- PRICE: $119
Ledger Nano S
- SCREEN:
- RELEASED: 2016
- PRICE: $59
TREZOR T
- SCREEN:
- RELEASED: 2018
- PRICE: $159
TREZOR One
- SCREEN:
- RELEASED: 2013
- PRICE: $59
Chapter 3
Security Tips for Desktop Wallets
Now that we've got our desktop wallet set up with a hardware wallet, let's explore a few additional points on security.
PINs, VPNs, and Steel wallets are great additions to our security stack.
Always set up a PIN to protect your funds
Make sure your desktop wallet is protected by a 4 to 6 digit PIN number. Much your like bank account, most wallets have a PIN password that is the absolutel minimum when it comes to protecting funds you keep on your wallet. This prevents someone who has your phone from accessing the coins and sending them to another wallet that they own.
A PIN is not very strong security, but its good enough to prevent most people who have temporary access to your unlocked phone from taking your money.
Store your recovery phrase on something that is water and fire proof
All the desktop wallets on this list support BIP39 seed words, otherwise known as ‘recovery phrases’. If your phone is lost, destroyed, or stolen, you can use this phrase to recover your funds to a new device.
However, most people write down these words on a piece of paper. When their home catches fire or is flooded, they lose the device and the backup to the elements. You should therefore consider a steel backup device like the PrivacyPros Billfodl or Cryptosteel.
DO NOT store a lot of coins on your desktop wallet
We’ve mentioned this before, but its worth repeating: you should treat your desktop wallet the same way you treat your real world wallet or billfold. You wouldnt carry every dollar you own in your pocket. You should also not hold all your coins on your desktop wallet. You need to store them on a hardware wallet.
Use a VPN when transacting on an desktop wallet
When making Bitcoin transactions on your desktop wallet, it is a good practice to use a VPN. This prevents your ISP or hackers listening in on your connection from tying your IP address (and therefore your personal identity) to your Bitcoin transactions. It’s a good privacy practice that is cheap and easy to implement.
- VPN
- NordVPN
- Special support for Malaysia, Nigeria, Singapore, South Africa
- SEPA & credit card supported
- Trusted exchange
- Surfshark
- Users claim fast speed from wide range of servers all around the world
- Compatible with nearly any OS
- ExpressVPN
- Allows for Netflix
- Users claim fast speed
- Has apps for nearly any platform
Chapter 4
Frequently Asked Questions
Below are some of our most asked questions by readers.
If you're wondering about a topic on this page, odds are we have the answer here.
When should I use a desktop Bitcoin wallet?
If you’re on your computer a lot and don’t need super secure storage, a desktop wallet is a good choice.
Do desktop wallets work with hardware wallets?
Yes, many desktop wallets allow the user to utilize a hardware wallet as the signer of transactions. This means that the private key is not help on the computer the desktop wallet is isntalled on.
Instead, the private key is held on a hardware wallet, and the ddesktop wallet is used as an interface for the hardware wallet. The desktop wallets sends transaction data to the hardware wallet to sign off on. If you’ve ever used Ledger Live, this is essentially how it works as well.
Can I store large amounts of bitcoins in a desktop wallet?
You can, but this isn’t recommended.
If you want to use a desktop wallet but need to store large amounts of Bitcoin, its best to utilize a hardware wallet to sign transactions for the desktop wallet (as mentioned above).
KeepKey, TREZOR, and Ledger Nano X all work with Electrum. TREZOR One and Model T and the Ledger Nano S and X all work with Copay.
Setup is very easy and you can have your hardware wallet securely signing transactions via your desktop wallet in just a few minutes.
What’s the difference between a desktop wallet and a web wallet?
Web wallets are more like accounts. A web wallet makes you set a passwords which it uses to encrypt your wallet on the web wallet server.
Desktop wallets are actual apps that are installed on your computer.
Are desktop wallets free?
Yes, all desktop wallets are free. Hardware wallets are the only type of wallet that costs money.
If someone has access to my computer can they access my bitcoins?
It depends. Many desktop wallets encrypt your private keys and request a password to decrypt it every time you open the wallet. This means that you need to enter a password in order to send bitcoins from most desktop wallets.
How do I backup my desktop wallet?
Most wallets generate a seed on setup. You write this seed down on a piece of paper and it can be used to restore your wallet if you lose your computer of have it stolen.
Bitcoin Cash Wallet Address
Can I use more than one desktop wallet at a time?
Yes, of course. We suggest trying many different desktop wallets and then deciding which one has the features you need.
What is the difference between Blockstream Green and Aqua?
While both of these Bitcoin and Liquid wallets are made by Blockstream, only Blockstream Green is available for desktop. Aqua is only available as a mobile wallet. The other difference is that Blockstream green uses a 2-of-2 multisig to protect your coins from hackers. Aqua is a single signature wallet, meaning anyone with access to your phone (either physcially or remotely) could steal your coins. In exchange for the increased risk, the wallet is easier to use.
Aqua is new, and if you have an iOS device, it can be a great addition to Blockstream Green Desktop. Take a closer look at it its features and look in the video below:
Does Blockstream Jade work with Blockstream Green Desktop?
Best Bitcoin Cash Wallet
Yes, you can now use the Blockstream Green app on your desktop to set up your wallet on your Blockstream Jade hardware wallet!
What is SPV?
Good Bitcoin Cash Wallet Balance
SPV stands for Simplified Payment Verification. It was first described by Satoshi Nakamoto in the original Bitcoin whitepaper. This method allows a wallet to provide strong security without the need for downloading the blockchain or running a full node. SPV lets you validate your own transactions by ensuring they are confirmed in the blockchain. It uses the best header chain with the most cumulative proof of work and the correct hashing difficulty level. Electron Cash relies on a distributed network of servers which handle the heaviest part of blockchain operations. Your private keys sign transactions locally. They are never sent to the servers.