Best Bitcoin Wallets

The Best Bitcoin Wallets of 2022

• Best for Beginners: Exodus
• Best for Advanced Bitcoin Users: Electrum
• Best for Mobile Users: Mycelium
• Best Hardware Wallet: Ledger Nano X
• Best for Security: Trezor Model T
• Best Bang For Your Buck: Ledger Nano S

What Is a Bitcoin Wallet?

A Bitcoin wallet is a place that stores your digital Bitcoin and validates your transactions when you’re using your Bitcoin. A wallet keeps secret information, called a private key or a seed, used to validate transactions and “sign” them so that your Bitcoin can be used to make purchases or exchange for another asset. This prevents someone else from using your Bitcoin or the transaction being altered by a third party.

Often, when people refer to a Bitcoin wallet, they refer to a crypto exchange that offers a wallet as part of their account features. In this sense, the wallet is just where all of your cryptocurrencies are kept or where you can keep fiat money for future use.

How Does a Bitcoin Wallet Work?

A blockchain is a shared public ledger where all Bitcoin transactions are conducted from Bitcoin wallets. When a transaction occurs, there is a transfer of value between more than one Bitcoin wallet. Typically, a single party is exchanging some value of Bitcoin for another asset or service with another Bitcoin wallet.

When this occurs, every individual Bitcoin wallet will use its secret data to sign and validate transactions, providing mathematical proof that the buyer or seller is the owner of their Bitcoin wallet. Your wallet can safely keep as much Bitcoin as you’d like without any limit. 

How Much Does a Bitcoin Wallet Cost?

Using a Bitcoin wallet doesn’t cost you anything if you’re just storing Bitcoin in the wallet. However, if you’re completing a transaction, then the owner of the exchange or device that is housing your wallet will charge you various fees depending on what you’re trying to do. Purchasing a wallet could cost you anywhere from $0 to $200 or more. If you’re using a wallet as part of an exchange, you’ll likely pay either a flat fee of a few dollars or a percentage of the total transaction value.