5 Easy Steps To Get Bitcoins and Learning How To Use Them

Many people ask, 'How do I get bitcoins?' The quick and dirty is covered in our comprehensive guide: 40+ Best Ways To Buy Bitcoins

The easiest and fastest way to buy bitcoins instantly with a credit card or debit card is via Indacoin where you can acquire $50 or less of bitcoin fast and usually within 10 minutes.

However, you may be new to the entire cryptocurrency concept and for that we recommend you learn a few things.

Bitcoin is extremely empowering but also different than the currency you know and use every day.

Step 1 ---> Get Started With Bitcoin

Before you start using Bitcoin, which is still experimental but has been operational without any interruptions for over eight years, there are a few things that you need to know in order to use it securely and avoid common pitfalls.

First, Bitcoins are impossible to counterfeit or inflate.

Second, you can use them to send or receive any amount of money, with anyone, anywhere in the world, at very low cost. Bitcoin payments are impossible to block, and bitcoin wallets can’t be frozen.

Third, with Bitcoin you can directly control the money yourself without going through a third party like a bank or Paypal.

Fourth, Bitcoin transactions cannot be reversed or refunded. You should only deal with businesses or people you trust.

FifthTo be valid, a Bitcoin transactions must be confirmed at least once but preferrably 6+ times before it has happened and becomes irreversible.

Sixth, Bitcoin is not anonymous but there is tumbling. All Bitcoin transactions are stored publicly and permanently on the network, which means anyone can see the balance and transactions of any Bitcoin address.

Seventh, you can get bitcoins by accepting them as a payment for goods and services or by buying them from a friend or someone near you. You can also buy them directly from an exchange with your bank account.

Eighth, there is a growing number of services and merchants accepting Bitcoin all over the world. You can use Bitcoin to pay them and rate your experience to help honest businesses to gain more visibility.

Ninth, the Bitcoin industry is always changing and there are many Bitcoin news services to stay up to date.

Step 2 ---> How To Get A Bitcoin Wallet

Setting up your first Bitcoin wallet is simple. There are several quality mobile, desktop, and hybrid wallets available. If you want to do thorough research then you can read our comprehensive guide on how to find the best Bitcoin wallet.

A great path would be:

(1) a mobile wallet like Airbitz (iPhone, Android), CoPay (iPhone, Android) or Mycelium (Android).

(2) acquire bitcoins from a friend, as payment for a good or service or buy bitcoins from one of the many exchanges.

(3) if you decide to store large amounts of bitcoins and want to know they are absolutely safe then use Armory.

wallet
Best Mobile Bitcoin Wallets

iPhone and Android apps are available with popular choices including:

wallet Copay DOWNLOAD

Copay is a Bitcoin wallet by Bitpay and available on iOS, Android, Windows Phone, Linux, Max OS X, and Windows. Because Copay is available on multiple platforms, it’s easy to use the same wallet or accounts across multiple devices.

Copay’s simple, clean user interface makes it a good choice for new Bitcoin users. Copay is also a good option for businesses due to a shared account feature, which requires a certain number of users to sign each transaction. Two co-founders, for example, could create a 2 of 2 wallet where both will be required to sign each transaction.

wallet breadwallet (Android) LEARN MORE DOWNLOAD

Breadwallet started out as the most popular wallet for iPhone, and now it is also available for Adroid devices running Android 6.0 or higher. The simplicity and easy-to-use security makes it a great place to start for users who are new to bitcoin.

wallet Airbitz LEARN MORE DOWNLOAD

AirBitz is another Bitcoin wallet that’s great for everyday use. It’s integrated with Fold, meaning you can get 20% discounts at Starbucks from within the wallet.

Airbitz manages accounts with usernames and passwords, but doesn’t have access to your funds. This type of account creation is easier for less technical users who may have trouble backing up or understanding HD seeds.

wallet breadwallet (iOS) LEARN MORE DOWNLOAD

Breadwallet’s combination of simplicity and security has made it the most popular iOS wallet. iPhone users in search of their first Bitcoin wallet should find Breadwallet easy to understand.

Best Bitcoin Software Wallets

Bitcoin software wallets are downloaded to your computer, give you more control and do not depend on third-party services. Most software bitcoin wallets require a day or so to download the blockchain before they are ready for use.

wallet Armory LEARN MORE DOWNLOAD

Armory is the most mature, secure and full featured Bitcoin wallet but it can be technologically intimidating for users. Whether you are an individual storing $1,000 or institution storing $1,000,000,000 this is the most secure option available. Users are in complete control all Bitcoin private keys and can setup a secure offline-signing process in Armory.

wallet Bitcoin Core DOWNLOAD

Bitcoin Core is the “official” Bitcoin client and wallet, though isn’t used by many due to slow speeds and a lack of features. Bitcoin Core, however, is a full node, meaning it helps verify and transmit other Bitcoin transactions across the network and stores a copy of the entire blockchain. This offers better privacy since Core doesn’t have to rely on data from external servers or other peers on the network. Bitcoin Core routed through Tor is considered one of the best ways to use Bitcoin privately.

Best Hybrid Bitcoin Wallets

Hybrid Bitcoin allow you to both control the private keys and have the easy of use of a web wallet.

wallet Copay DOWNLOAD

Copay is a Bitcoin wallet by Bitpay and available on iOS, Android, Windows Phone, Linux, Max OS X, and Windows. Because Copay is available on multiple platforms, it’s easy to use the same wallet or accounts across multiple devices.

Copay’s simple, clean user interface makes it a good choice for new Bitcoin users. Copay is also a good option for businesses due to a shared account feature, which requires a certain number of users to sign each transaction. Two co-founders, for example, could create a 2 of 2 wallet where both will be required to sign each transaction.

Best Bitcoin Web Wallets

Bitcoin web wallets are the easiest and most convenient to use but are potentially less secure than the above options because the private keys to your bitcoins are usually held by a third-party.

Due to the large number of security breaches where people have lost bitcoins, we do not recommend any of the current Bitcoin web wallets. A wallet like Copay can be used on mobile & desktop. It provides the benefits of a software wallet and is easy to use across many devices. Copay also helps you securely share wallets with other people.

Best Bitcoin Hardware Wallets

Bitcoin hardware wallets are the most secure because they do not expose your private keys to the network.

Ledger Wallet - Smartcard based and malware proof
Ledger Wallet Review
OPENDIME - The Bitcoin Credit Stick
OPENDIME Review
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Step 3 ---> How To Get Bitcoins

How to buy Bitcoins

With the Bitcoin price so volatile many people seem curious about getting some. Below we have listed some of the best exchanges.

If you want to do your own research then check our guide on how to buy bitcoins in any country. Here are our recommendations:

logo Coinbase BUY
Coinbase is one of the world's largest Bitcoin exchanges. Users in the United States, Canada, most of Europe, and Singapore can buy bitcoins with a connected bank account or SEPA transfer.

European users can purchase bitcoins with 3D secure credit or debit cards.

logo Indacoin BUY
Indacoin is a global platform enabling the quickest bitcoin purchases in more than 200 countires with a credit or debit card and no registration.
If it's the first time you use the card, you will receive a call from Indacoin with a 4-digit code, which should be entered on your order page. After that, you will have to enter a 3-digit code, which can be found on your online card statement next to the charge amount.

You will have the limit of $50 for the first transaction, $100 for the second transaction available after four days of the initial purchase and $500 after eight days of the first buy. The total limit for the first month will be $5,000 and then no limits at all.

Since your card is verified, cryptocurrency is sent automatically within ten minutes after the payment.

logo Kraken BUY
Kraken is one of the world's largest Bitcoin exchanges. Residents of Europe and the UK can deposit and purchase bitcoins with same day SEPA transfer.
logo LocalBitcoins BUY
LocalBitcoins is an escrow service that helps match Bitcoin buyers and sellers.
logo SpectroCoin BUY
SpectroCoin is an all-in-one solution for Bitcoin offering an exchange, debit card and ability to buy bitcoins with credit cards.

How To Earn Bitcoins

Many people find that the best way to get bitcoins is to accept them as payment for the products or services they already sell. Just give your customers the option to pay in bitcoin.

To make it easy, you may want to sign up for a bitcoin merchant account which allows you to send invoices and integrate bitcoin payments into your order pages for the most popular online shopping cart systems.

WeUseCoins Bitcoin Faucet - Get free bitcoins that are provided by sponsors
BitPay - (Highly Recommended) - Merchant tools and account services
Jobs 4 Bitcoin - Subreddit where you can find jobs
wallet
What Is Bitcoin Mining?

Mining bitcoins requires an investment in specialized bitcoin mining hardware designed to process double round sha256 hash verifications at high speed.

Getting started with Bitcoin mining can be a daunting endeavor and it has become highly specialized so you may want to leave it to professionals with Bitcoin cloud mining services.

Nevertheless, there are many excellent bitcoin mining systems available.

It is important to point out that bitcoin mining is highly competitive and risky for would-be participants. Please see our bitcoin mining guide for more detail.

If you want to try your luck at bitcoin mining then this Bitcoin miner is probably the best deal.

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Step 4 ---> How To Use Bitcoins?

Starting to use bitcoins can be exciting because it is a new technology. Bitcoins can be used to purchase just about anything you want. Dental services, a brand new car, travel and even luxury real estate.

We recommend searching the Bitcoin merchant directories below to locate the merchants you are interested in. You can buy gift cards with bitcoin and shop easily at most of the stores you already use.

Bitcoin Merchant Directories

Airbitz - Find bitcoin friendly merchants near you and online
Open Bazaar - A decentralized marketplace
Coinmap - Find bitcoin friendly merchants near you
Purse.io - Get discounts greater than 20% on Amazon.com
One of the best things to buy with Bitcoin is virtual private network (VPN) services to keep your Internet traffic safe, secure and private. We put together a comprehensive list of VPNs you can buy with Bitcoin.

Another tool many people like to buy is a Bitcoin debit card which enables people to load a debit card with funds via bitcoins.

Promotional Images

Are you a merchant or freelancer that would want to start accepting bitcoins for goods or services? We have a few high resolution graphics that can help you.

So this is exactly the typical sign as you can also find on the Bitcoin Wiki.

Just that it is in fully scalable PSD form so even blowing it up to huge printable resolutions will do no harm to them. And you can edit them easily.

All images have transparent corners.

Bitcoin Accepted here
Full PSD
1,680 pixels - High resolution
168 pixels - Small for website buttons
Gold Version

A bit more exciting. Same deal: PSD and resolutions available with no copyrights to worry about by using and modifying an existing coin design. Scaling the PSD up more than 500% is fine but after that it may get blurry.

Bitcoin Accepted here - Gold
Full PSD
1,680 pixels - High resolution
168 pixels - Small for website buttons
Buy Gift Cards With Bitcoins

Available from Gyft and spendable at:

Amazon
Charity

BitGive - a non-profit foundation that is accepting donations from the Bitcoin community and providing charitable gifts to environmental and public health causes worldwide.
Step 5 ---> Staying Informed With Bitcoin News

Michael Casey and Paul Vigna of the Wall Street Journal authored The Age of Cryptocurrency which has become a best seller on the topic of Bitcoin.

This may be a great book for you to start with when forming an intellectual foundation on this new technology.

There is the WeUseCoins News Section and these are the 5 most recent articles:

How Can You Fit In the Cryptocurrency World?
Bitcoin - Whats Good With It?
Three Easy Steps To Buy Your First Bitcoin
Video - IPFS - Juan Benets New Internet
Video - Critical Analysis Swarm City
Video - Decentralizing the Internet Maidsafe
Video - Understanding the Hype Bitcoin Bubble
Cryptocurrencies With Ferriss, Szabo and Ravikant
How to Buy Bitcoin with PayPal?
What Is An Application Coin?
Here are some good places to keep up with bitcoin news and discussion:

Opinions of the Rich and Famous on Bitcoin
Research Library - papers from companies and academics
r/bitcoin - Bitcoin links and discussion by the Reddit community
Bitcoin Charts - price charts
Bitcoin Knowledge Podcast - Interviews with top people in the Bitcoin world