How To Buy Bitcoin & Where to buy bitcoin?
How to buy bitcoin? There are a few different ways to buy bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies, including exchanges and traditional brokers.
How to buy bitcoin Cryptocurrency exchanges
How to buy bitcoin? You can purchase bitcoin from several cryptocurrency exchanges. Many charge a percentage of the purchase price. Do your due diligence to find the right one for you. Some of the more popular exchanges include:
- Coinbase: This is a popular choice for U.S. bitcoin buyers, in part because you can easily link your bank account. Coinbase also offers access to etherium, litecoin and other cryptocurrencies. On each transaction, Coinbase charges a spread (an adjustment in the purchase or sale price of an investment) of about 0.5%, plus a fee. The fee is the greater of a variable percentage based on region and payment type - for example, 1.49% for a purchase funded by a U.S. bank account - or a flat fee that ranges from $0.99 to $2.99, depending on the amount transferred. (Want to know more? Read our Coinbase review.)
- Binance.US: The U.S. arm of the world\'s largest exchange by volume for all cryptocurrencies, Binance.US charges a 0.1% fee for all crypto trades (some discounts are available), plus a withdrawal fee. The exchange\'s 50-plus selection of cryptocurrencies, plus a range of crypto-to-crypto trading pairs, is larger than many other U.S. cryptocurrency exchanges. (Read our Binance.US review.)
How to buy bitcoin with Traditional stockbrokers
How to buy bitcoin, the choices among traditional brokers that give customers a way to buy and sell bitcoin are few right now - Robinhood was the first mainstream investment broker to offer bitcoin (Robinhood Crypto is available in most, but not all, U.S. states). Like its stock-trading platform, Robinhood charges no fees for bitcoin trades. TradeStation also offers crypto trading, including bitcoin, as does eToro - which also features a unique social trading platform, allowing users to match the moves of popular traders.
Other brokers have announced plans to offer cryptocurrency trading in the near future.
Other ways to buy bitcoin
How to buy bitcoin
- Bitcoin ATMs. These work like normal ATMs, only you can use them to buy and sell bitcoin. Coin ATM Radar shows more than 7,000 bitcoin ATMs around the U.S.
- Peer-to-peer bitcoin owners. You can buy bitcoins directly from other bitcoin owners, much like you would buy items on Craigslist, through peer-to-peer tools like Bisq, Bitquick and LocalBitcoins.com. Use extreme caution if buying bitcoin directly from individuals.
- Bitcoin futures. TradeStation offers a way for investors to trade on bitcoin futures, but this is pro-level stuff, not for amateurs. Here\'s how to get started trading futures.
It is easier than ever to buy cryptocurrency - all you have to do is pull out your phone and open an app.
PayPal is one of a few popular mobile and online payments platforms now allowing users in the U.S. to buy, sell, and hold cryptocurrencies with as little as $1 invested. But if you\'re looking to add cryptocurrency to your portfolio, you should think carefully about which platform you use - and whether you should be investing in crypto at all.
Even the most common and time-tested coins - Bitcoin and Ethereum - are still highly volatile. That\'s why experts recommend investing no more than 5% of your portfolio in crypto at all, and never letting it get in the way of things like saving for emergencies or paying down high-interest debt.
If you do decide to invest, where you buy your crypto can have important implications worth thinking about ahead of time. It may be easy to buy crypto with an app you already use - and trust the security measures of - like Paypal, but there on how to buy bitcoin limitations compared to traditional cryptocurrency trading platforms.