Bitcoin (BTC) is a digital currency created by an ‘anonymous’ Satoshi Nakamoto in January 2009. Since then, Bitcoin has grown in value from basically nothing to thousands of dollars today.
This consistent growth in Bitcoin’s value has been one of the major attractions for anyone who wants to maximize their return on investment.
Buying, selling, and trading BTC has now become easier than ever. But you need a safe place to store your Bitcoin.
Being a digital asset, Bitcoin needs to be stored in a ‘safe’ electronic wallet, which operates just like a physical wallet. A Bitcoin wallet app is a digital wallet app that allows you to send and receive your BTC.
These Bitcoin wallet apps store the ‘cryptographic information’ you need to access your BTC address and confirm transactions.
That is, Bitcoin wallets generate a wallet address for you to receive your BTC as well as use a private key to authorize (sign) outgoing transactions.
Considering the importance of a Bitcoin wallet, it is very important for you to choose the right digital wallet as a beginner to ensure that your acquired Bitcoin is stored in a safe place.
In this article, We will break down really simply what makes the best digital wallet for beginners, the top 5 best Bitcoin wallets for beginners, and how to set up your new wallet.
Even if you have zero experience with Bitcoin wallets, you should be able to get started with using Bitcoin wallet apps like a pro by the end of this article.
What Makes a Bitcoin Wallet Ideal for Beginners?
For beginners in Bitcoin trading, it may be quite difficult to choose the ideal Bitcoin wallets considering the many different wallets on the market.
Several different types of Bitcoin wallets vary in terms of accessibility, user-friendliness, convenience, security, and more, and cater to different needs.
You need to know the specific requirements that are important to you. This will make a certain Bitcoin wallet ideal for you than the other.
So, what makes the best Bitcoin wallets for beginners?
The best Bitcoin wallets are those with a user-friendly interface, strong security, active customer support, and that provide easy access to your funds.
As a beginner, choosing a user-friendly, easy-to-use, and secure wallet is essential. These features will provide peace of mind for new users in the crypto space.
For instance, Coinbase wallet is a well-known user-friendly crypto wallet that is a perfect choice for beginners, Exodus wallet comes with an intuitive and simple interface, while Mycelium Wallet is easy to use and offers strong security features.
Here is a list of the best Bitcoin wallets for you with all the features they have.
- Coinbase: a user-friendly and great wallet for beginners
- Luno wallet: very intuitive and easy to use
- Armory wallet: a wallet with maximum security
- BlueWallet: awesome Bitcoin lightning wallet
Top 5 Best Bitcoin Wallets for Beginners
Coinbase Wallet
Coinbase is well-known and one of the most trusted crypto exchanges out there, and their wallet is user-friendly and perfect for beginners, especially those in the US.
Aside from storing your Bitcoin securely, Coinbase wallet also allows you to trade Bitcoin using the following fiat currencies: AUD, USD, EUR, GBP, CAD, CNY & 50+ more.
Coinbase wallet offers a sort of safety that is ideal for Bitcoin beginners. The wallet has 2FA authentication for additional security. For added safety, the wallet limits users in their weekly transactions until they verify their account by completing several of the following steps:
- Verifying your phone number
- Providing your personal details
- Providing photo ID
- Establish a purchase history by buying and selling through the exchange
Pros
- Coinbase wallet is easy to use for most beginners
- It offers an instant buy feature
- It offers insured bitcoin deposits
- It offers the opportunity to trade your Bitcoin.
Cons
- Users’ accounts are monitored
- Customer service has received mixed reviews
- More ideal for US citizens
- Only provides access to a limited selection of cryptocurrencies
LUNO Wallet for Beginners
Luno is another ideal wallet for beginners, thanks to its simple and easy-to-use interface. Luno is really very simple to use. You can create a profile within minutes either on your mobile device or laptop.
What makes Luno more attractive to newbies? It offers great features such as low fees, secure storage, and interest on Bitcoin savings. That way, you can make some passive income by just keeping the Bitcoin in your wallet. What a cool feature.
If you want to try Bitcoin trading, Luno is also a nice place to buy and sell your BTC tokens due to its simple and easy-to-monitor trading screen.
Pro
- Luno has a simple and easy-to-use interface
- It offers interest on Bitcoin savings
- It has an easy-to-monitor trading screen
- It supports credit cards and fiat currencies
Cons
- While withdrawal is free, a 2% trading fee may be an issue for some beginners.
- It has no live chat or telephone support.
- It supports only a few countries
Coinomi Wallet for Beginners
Coinomi wallet is one of the best HD mobile wallets to store your Bitcoin tokens. It is easy to use, very fast and supports several other cryptocurrencies. With Coinomi wallet, users can easily store cryptocurrencies on their mobile phones with just a few clicks.
Coinomi wallet offers some interesting features, which include multi-coin support, simple setup, easy asset trading, language translation, and privacy. More so, Coinomi wallet is compatible with Android and iOS devices.
Being an HD wallet, Coinomi offers these security features:
- Seed phrases
- New wallet address for a new transaction.
- IP anonymization, and more.
Pros
- It offers a high level of privacy and security
- Processes trade faster and easier.
- Coinomi is a non-custodial wallet. The private keys associated with your Coinomi wallets are stored on your personal device only.
- It offers users full control of their cryptocurrency
- Coinomi wallet can be easily and fully restored or migrated to a new device using your seed phrase.
Cons
- Being a non-custodial wallet, you are responsible for the physical security of your Bitcoin, such as keeping backups and preventing malware.
- Coinomi wallet doesn’t offer a cold storage option
- It lacks transparency being a closed-source app
BlueWallet for Beginners
If you’re a newbie, BlueWallet is one Bitcoin wallet option you may want to consider. It is a Bitcoin lightning wallet and offers an appealing and straightforward user interface, which makes navigating and conducting Bitcoin transactions very easy and fast.
Another interesting feature of BlueWallet is multi-wallet management. This feature allows you to import other compatible Bitcoin wallets such as Bread and Electrum onto the BlueWallet wallet app.
More so, BlueWallet supports only Bitcoin and has strong security features such as MultiSig and watch-only mode.
Pros
- BlueWalle has a multi-wallet management feature
- It comes with a simple user interface
- It supports lightning network
Cons
- It lacks a two-factor authentication feature
- It doesn’t offer guidance and education resources
Armory Wallet for Beginners
The last Bitcoin wallet on our list is the Armory cold wallet. It is an open source wallet and just like the BlueWallet above, it supports only BTC.
Although Armory Wallet is suitable for Bitcoin Pro, it is also ideal for beginners who are fans of strong security.
In terms of security, only a few crypto wallets can compete with Armory. For instance, Armory Wallet offers MultiSig support and decentralized lockboxes, which gives users full control over the creation and storage of cryptographic keys.
Being a cold wallet, the Armory Wallet is only available as a desktop client and is compatible with Microsoft Windows, Apple Mac OSX, Linux Ubuntu, and Raspberry Pi.
Pros
- Armory wallet offers cold storage support, which allows you to manage bitcoin without the Internet
- It is an open-source wallet
- It offers top-end security features.
Cons
- Some beginners may find the depth of its security features too difficult for them to handle
- Lack of two-factor authentication
- No mobile support is offered.
How to Set Up and Use Your Chosen Bitcoin Wallet
This section covers the necessary steps for setting up a Bitcoin wallet for beginners.
Except for the difference in navigations and arrangements, setting up and using any of these Bitcoin wallets follows a straightforward process that can be completed within a few minutes. However, cold wallets and hot wallets are set up differently.
After you have chosen your desired Bitcoin wallet, you’ll need to do the following:
For Hot Bitcoin Wallets (any of the first four wallets above)
Download and install the wallet: Download your desired hot wallet from a legitimate source to avoid downloading the fake version. You can get any of these hot wallets from their official websites, Google Play Store, or Apple AppStore. Try as much as possible to avoid third-party sites.
Carefully verify that you are on the right website and/or about to download the original version of the wallet to avoid losing your Bitcoin.
Create an account: Create an account on the app and carefully fill in your details and complete the Know-Your-Customer (KYC) requirements to authenticate your identity.
Don’t forget to add all the security features, such as Biometric, 2FA, and more. For a non-custodial Bitcoin wallet like Coinomi Wallet, you will be provided with your private key, which you must keep safe. If you forget or lose your private key (seed phrase), you will likely lose your Bitcoin.
The process for custodial wallets is a bit more involved, and you’ll have to undergo a verification process called Know-Your-Customer (KYC) to validate your identity.
Get Bitcoin into your wallet: Not all the hot wallets listed above offer you an avenue to purchase Bitcoin. For instance, you can purchase Bitcoin with fiat directly on custodial wallets using your credit/debit card while you will need to transfer Bitcoin from elsewhere to your non-custodial wallet.
For Cold Bitcoin Wallets (Armory Wallet)
Setting up an Armory wallet basically follows similar processes above except that it is installed on your desktop.
Most times, you will need to deposit your Bitcoin from another platform, such as a cryptocurrency exchange. Some other cold Bitcoin wallets are incorporated with crypto exchanges where you can easily purchase Bitcoin into your wallet.
If you are purchasing Bitcoin from elsewhere in your wallet, you will need to look out for your Bitcoin wallet address, which is a long alphanumeric string of 26 to 62 characters. You can only receive BTC using this string alone.
Security Tips for New Bitcoin Users
While the Bitcoin wallets listed above are safe, their level of safety highly depends on the kind of security approach you choose.
Bitcoin is a high-value target for scammers and cyberhackers, therefore, you must consider the security of your wallet paramount and be aware of the following Bitcoin wallet security practices for beginners:
- If possible, use cold wallet options as this will enable you to be the custodian of your Bitcoin. If you use a non-custodial wallet, enable 2FA.
- Always be cautious, double-check everything, and don’t click on any link without properly checking if it’s legitimate. This will save you from a phishing scam.
- Avoid visiting unknown links or sites, they may contain malware.
- Beware of scams. If anybody or an advert instructs you to send Bitcoin to a particular address with a promise to send back more to you, simply ignore it.
- Keep your private key safe always and never give it to anybody. Anybody with your private key automatically has access to your Bitcoin.
Conclusion: Starting Your Bitcoin Journey Safely
This article has presented you with the best Bitcoin wallets for beginners that you can easily use. While each of the wallets has its unique features, functionality, and design, the best wallet for you depends solely on your personal requirements and preferences.
Whether you choose usability and simplicity, design and features, or safety and security of your Bitcoin, make sure that you research thoroughly before settling down with a Bitcoin wallet.
If you are getting into Bitcoin trading and need a wallet that offers faster transactions, you may consider reading our article on the best Bitcoin lightning wallet for beginners in 2024.
FAQs About Best Bitcoin Wallets for Beginners
What happens if I lose my wallet?
You ‘may’ be able to recover your wallet and funds if you lose your Bitcoin wallet for any reason. If you were using a custodial wallet, you simply need to download your wallet onto a new device and log in with your details to access your fund. If you were using a non-custodial wallet, you can recover your funds through your private key or seed phrase. However, without your private key, you can’t recover your Bitcoin if you lose your wallet.
How do I recover lost Bitcoin?
You can only recover your lost Bitcoin if you remember your private key and have kept it safe.
How do I send and receive BTC using my wallet?
To receive BTC into your wallet, you need your BTC wallet address and to send BTC from your wallet, you need your private key.
