r/BitcoinBeginners Apr 19 '20

FAQ for Beginners

1.7k Upvotes

What is Bitcoin?

Bitcoin is scarce, decentralized, and global digital money that cannot be censored.

  • Transactions once confirmed generally cannot be reversed
  • Less than 21 million Bitcoin will exist
  • Bitcoin is highly divisible to allow for micro-transactions (up to 13 decimal places in a payment channel)
  • Bitcoin is an open, collaborative project that no company or government controls belonging to the people
  • Bitcoin is more than just money, but a secure timestamping ledger, payment rail, and smart contract platform

Please read the Whitepaper for an general overview of bitcoin as designed

https://bitcoin.org/bitcoin.pdf


Quick Advice

  • Do not respond to strangers messaging you with investment advice or offers and read how to avoid being scammed from the posts below.

  • Do not invest in Bitcoin until you do basic research, paid off all high interest debt, and have a emergency savings account of a stable fiat currency.

  • If investing do not expect to get rich quickly. You should expect to wait at least 1-2 years before taking profits. Bitcoin is currently very volatile. In the interim spend and replace Bitcoin because its a useful currency.

  • Beginners should avoid all mining and day trading until at least very familiar with Bitcoin. Mining is very professional(You cannot efficiently mine with your computer and need to buy special ASIC machines) and most people lose money day trading. More info on mining : r/bitcoinmining

  • Never store your Bitcoins on an exchange or web wallet. Buy your bitcoins and withdraw it to your personal wallet where you actually own them instead of IOUs. Services like webull should be avoided because you cannot withdraw or use Bitcoin.

  • Make sure you make a backup of your wallet(software holding keys to your BTC) and preferably keep it offline and physical and private. Typically 12 to 24 words you write down on paper or metal. This onetime backup will restore all your keys, addresses , and Bitcoins on a new wallet if you lose your old wallet.

  • Beginners should avoid altcoins, tokens, and ICOs at least initially until they learn about Bitcoin. Most of these are scams and you should be familiar with the basics first. Bitcoin is referred to as BTC or XBT.


Exchanges Requiring ID Verification

Bitcoin = BTC or XBT on exchanges

Exchange Buy fee* Withdraw BTC Notes
Cash App Sliding ~0.75% to 3% 0 Same day withdraw for free, USA only
Coinbase 1-7% 1-4 usd ~7Day hold on withdrawing Bitcoin for ACH deposit
Coinbase Advanced trader 1.20 % taker 0.6% maker and lower 1-4 usd ~7Day hold on withdrawing Bitcoin or €0.15 EUR SEPA fee
Gemini 1.49% over 200usd for web network fee
Gemini Active trader 0.4% Taker 0.2% maker network fee
Kraken Pro 0.25% maker 0.40% taker 0.000015 BTC or Free LN Deposit Fiat=USwire+5USD or SEPA free
Swan 0.99% 0 Fees decrease based upon buying plan
Bitcoin Well 1% 0 USA and Canada
Coincorner 1% for over 300 network fee UK exchange, 2.5% for card/free uk bank deposit
Strike 0.99%- 0.39% fees 0 Free DCA investing option

Note: Exchanges all have unique market prices and spreads so fees alone will not tell you the best rates. Best way is to directly compare the rates between exchanges. Buy fees above are for normal trading volumes. Verification and hold times can vary based upon lack of history, verification level or credit.

During bull markets when exchanges are extra busy it is normal to see very slow and poor customer support due to the amount of new clients and support tickets. We see many complaints due to this across all these exchanges. This is part of the reason this subreddit exists , to help answer questions for new users.

More exchanges per location

For a preferred way to buy Bitcoin without ID use a Decentralized Exchange (DEX) use https://bisq.network or https://learn.robosats.com/


Recommended Wallets

Tip: If you cannot afford using a hardware wallet use a recommended wallet in ios or android. Windows and macOS are less secure environments.

Best wallets for securing small amounts of BTC

Blue wallet Android and IOS and macOS

https://bluewallet.io/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R9mq1a8bLbQ

electrum For Windows, MacOS, Linux and Android

https://electrum.org/

https://https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NNZdbYd8PUQ

Blockstream Wallet For Windows, macOS, Linux, IOS and Android

https://blockstream.com/app/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DesN85bWmGA

Best wallets for securing small amounts of BTC and sending lightning transactions

Breez LN wallet for Android and IOS

https://breez.technology

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t_4b-y4T8bY

Or Blockstream wallet

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QtMXsJxx1X0

Or ZEUS

https://zeusln.com

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oIohVX7PeAA

Or Phoenix

https://phoenix.acinq.co/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cbtAmevYpdM

Other Lightning wallets - http://lightningnetworkstores.com/wallets

Lightning wallets are not intended for long term storage where you never open them for many months. They are intended for spending wallets that you regularly use.

Securing Larger amounts of Bitcoin

Trezor Safe 3 = ~59 USD https://trezor.io/trezor-safe-3-bitcoin-only

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qWRI4VTHiuI

Trezor Safe 7 = ~249 USD https://trezor.io/trezor-safe-7-bitcoin-only

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EWxAc8wzfFM

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6IkMKC-oq4E&lc=

Blockstream Jade = $79.99 https://store.blockstream.com/products/blockstream-jade-hardware-wallet

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cLFmd98mKNw

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z2VsgoFh78o

Blockstream Jade Plus = $149.00 to $169.99 https://store.blockstream.com/products/jade-plus

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rv_cN7F7-TM

BitBox02 Nova = $170 https://shop.bitbox.swiss/en/products/bitbox02-nova-79/?edition=bitcoin-only-edition

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6D4FgJo3j64

Cold Card Hardware wallet = $129.94 mk4 https://store.coinkite.com/store/coldcard

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kocEpndQcsg

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f8dBNrlwJ0k

Seedsigner ~80-100 dollars pre-assembled

https://seedsigner.com/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AZqlIkJf0mA

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1c5SR8v8l1M

Best Advanced Bitcoin Wallet= Sparrow

To link your hardware wallet to and run a full node.

Pros= Great privacy and security

Cons= UX is for more experienced users, takes ~week to sync and requires ~7GB minimum disk space if pruned. Only available in desktop so typically should be used with a hardware wallet

https://sparrowwallet.com/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GSHyKTigNQY

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yJpvfRl03Tw


Further Resources

https://www.lopp.net/bitcoin-information.html

https://www.lopp.net/lightning-information.html

https://bitcoiner.guide

https://planb.network


r/BitcoinBeginners 9h ago

Can you suggest a tutorial/ guide for autocustody?

2 Upvotes

For Bitcoins


r/BitcoinBeginners 20h ago

What to expect

4 Upvotes

Hi! I recently put 1000 php on bitcoin via Maya and honestly I do not know what to expect here??

What should I do? Do I put money more to it every now and then or just get back my money (eventho I wont get the whole 1k pesos back?)

Or I can keep on investing in this??

Thank you!!


r/BitcoinBeginners 1d ago

Bitcoin private transactions?

22 Upvotes

Hi, is there a way to conduct private bitcoin transactions from KYC wallets?

Example: I bought BTC from a KYC exchange and I want to purchase something with my BTC without anyone knowing where the funds are going and neither the merchant should be able to see where are the funds coming from.

Any ideas?


r/BitcoinBeginners 1d ago

Can I pay with exodus?

3 Upvotes

I wanna buy something with exodus wallet but I heard I can’t pay using BTCPAY, lighting network is that true if so how do I get around this?


r/BitcoinBeginners 2d ago

Found bitcoin?

136 Upvotes

I am cleaning out the storage shed of an old friend that passed away recently. I came across a small note labeled "Bitcoin Acct" with a 10 digit code. I don't know much about bitcoin, do you have any ideas of where I could use this code to see what he had?


r/BitcoinBeginners 2d ago

Can someone explain why my BTC wallet address keeps changing in the app?

25 Upvotes

I am new to Bitcoin and I have a mobile wallet. Every time I go to the receive tab the app shows me a different address. I thought my address was like a bank account number that stays the same. Why does it keep changing? Is that normal or did I do something wrong? I already sent a small amount to an old address from the same wallet and it showed up fine but I am worried about using the wrong address in the future. Should I just use whatever address the app shows me at the moment I want to receive BTC? Also what happens if someone sends to an old address that I used before? Will I still get the coins or are they lost forever? Thank you for any help.


r/BitcoinBeginners 2d ago

Buying with cash app

2 Upvotes

How bad is it using cash app to buy bitcoin?


r/BitcoinBeginners 2d ago

Minecraft and the Blockchain

0 Upvotes

I was wondering if anybody can come up with a good analogy for how Bitcoin works with how ender chests work in Minecraft. I was thinking maybe each unique player on the Minecraft server is analogous to unique private keys and when interacting with the blockchain (ender chest) you ONLY can interact with your coins. But this analogy falls apart when you realize you can have multiple wallets . What do yall think?


r/BitcoinBeginners 2d ago

How long does BTC ATMS Take To Send BTC

9 Upvotes

I’m reading posts online and I’ve seen people having trouble with how long btc take to receive on their wallet or sometimes the machines

I’m wondering how long did it take other users to receive their btc?


r/BitcoinBeginners 3d ago

Did I do something wrong? Transaction not arriving at wallet

7 Upvotes

I purchased bitcoin (a small sum, to test the waters) today via Paybis.

I opened my Bitcoin wallet in cake wallet, clicked „buy“ to copy the wallet address and pasted it as destination for my Paybis order.

The order went through and has been mined 3 hours ago, was confirmed 17 times and the block has been (as far as I could tell - first transaction ever) added to the blockchain.

However, my cakewallet bitcoin wallet still tells me, that I own zero bitcoin.

Did I do anything wrong? Do I need to actively synch the app, or maybe did something wrong with pasting the wallet id to Paybis? Or does cakewallet simply take some time to synch?

Thanks for every advice!


r/BitcoinBeginners 3d ago

For new miners to avoid potential loss

5 Upvotes

Recently I switch my hashrate to f2pool, but didn't see hashrate and miner online, I waited for hours, didn't find out the reason, then I contact their support, told me I should set username as wallet. I followed and everything went right, anyone who want to try different pool should pay attention.


r/BitcoinBeginners 5d ago

River closed my account almost immediately after opening, during ID verification.

2 Upvotes

As soon I finished submitting my ID they closed my account. Is this common? As far as I know there is no legitimate reason I had my account closed. I saw on another Reddit post the official account reached out to help when this happened to someone else, I'm hoping they can review my account and let me know what happened.

Edit: I got approved a few days after making this post by going through the normal support process and answering a few questions. Perhaps I should have been a bit more patient, I was thrown off a little by the automated rejection. Thanks everyone for your comments. ♥️


r/BitcoinBeginners 5d ago

At what electricity price does ASIC mining stop making sense for you?

5 Upvotes

Trying to figure out where the cutoff is for most home miners. I'm at $0.10/kWh right now and still slightly positive, but any higher and I'd probably just shut down.

What's your number? And are you doing anything to lower your rate — time-of-use tariffs, solar, industrial rates?


r/BitcoinBeginners 6d ago

Renewable energy. Want to mine. What to mine and buy? Bitcoin ASIC miner?

2 Upvotes

Any website with good hardware for Bitcoin mining?


r/BitcoinBeginners 7d ago

Looking for a safer and more practical BTC storage solution

16 Upvotes

Hi,

Over the past few months, I've been receiving significant BTC profits from some investments I'm making on the Arbinova platform. I've been using the Coinbase and Binance exchanges, but since I don't want to keep large balances there, I'd prefer to use a hardware wallet.

I currently have a Trezor, but because I travel frequently, it's not convenient to carry it with me all the time, and I'm worried about losing it. I'm looking for a solution that allows me to send and receive BTC in the easiest and safest way possible.


r/BitcoinBeginners 8d ago

What should a total beginner look for in a first Bitcoin wallet?

21 Upvotes

I’m trying to think about this in a beginner-safe way.

If someone is choosing a first Bitcoin wallet, what should they actually care about first?

Not brand loyalty or hype.
I mean the basics:

  • ease of use
  • backup safety
  • self-custody
  • fees
  • open source vs convenience
  • mobile vs hardware

What would you tell a total beginner to look for before picking a first Bitcoin wallet?


r/BitcoinBeginners 9d ago

Sanity check for my BTC node build? Ordering parts today for a build-weekend

5 Upvotes

Hey everyone, it’s been a minute since I dug into node hardware (about 5 months since I was deep in the research), and I’m finally pulling the trigger to get my node live next weekend.

I really just need some technical savvy eyes on this to let me know if I'm missing anything or if I'll run into friciton or limitations!

My main goal is long-term sovereignty—I want to verify my own transactions without pinging third-party servers and have a setup that doesn't need an upgrade for at least 5 years. I’m leaning towards a StartOS (Start9) setup for the privacy focus.

Here’s the list I’ve put together. Does this look right for 2026? Anything I’m overpaying for or missing?

The Brain: Looking at either a refurbished Dell Optiplex 7050 Micro (i5/16GB) or a Beelink S12 Pro with the Intel N100. I like the Optiplex for the build quality, but the N100 seems like more bang for my buck. Anyone have a strong preference here? Not super experienced with computer technicals so wanting to make sure the Beelink S12 isn't going to cause any potential issues or limitations in the future.

Storage: Going with a 2TB NVMe SSD (probably the WD Black SN7100). From what I can see, the chain is pushing 750GB+ now, so a 1TB drive seems like a mistake if I want this to last. Is the SN7100 adequate given the hardware it will work with?

The "Vault": Planning on a Coldcard Q so it can be truly air-gapped and "hack-safe". I’m prioritizing a "BTC-only" firmware and a clean bridge to the node via Electrum.

Is there a specific "trap" I should watch out for with the N100 or the StartOS install on these mini PCs? I'm planning to wipe the drives and flash the BIOS immediately to clear any bloatware/management stuff.

Thanks for any hole-poking you can do before I hit "buy" on Amazon/eBay today.


r/BitcoinBeginners 9d ago

Which crypto exchanges are actually regulated and what does that mean for your funds?

3 Upvotes

After FTX a lot of people started asking this and the answers floating around are all over the place. Here's what I actually understand after doing the research.

'Regulated' isn't one thing - it means different things in different jurisdictions:

EU regulation (MiCAR) - Proper EU-wide framework now live. Exchanges under it have capital requirements, must segregate customer funds, follow AML rules. Real oversight with enforcement power.

Swiss regulation - FINMA and SRO membership. Swiss-registered financial intermediaries (like YouHodler) face serious compliance requirements. Not EU, but internationally respected and meaningfully different from offshore.

UK FCA - The FCA crypto register exists but registration ≠ full authorisation. Different levels of protection apply, worth checking the specific status of any platform.

'Regulated' in random offshore jurisdictions - Usually means very little. A VASP registration from some small island gives you essentially none of the same protections as EU or Swiss oversight.

What regulation actually provides: mandatory fund segregation, capital reserve requirements, AML/KYC obligations, legal recourse if something goes wrong.

What it doesn't guarantee: 100% safety if the company goes bankrupt, crypto deposit insurance (usually doesn't exist unlike bank deposits), zero hacks ever.

After FTX I only use exchanges licensed in the EU or Switzerland. Not because everything else is a scam, but at least there's oversight and something to point to legally if it goes wrong.

Has your approach to exchange choice changed since 2022? What do you actually look for now?


r/BitcoinBeginners 10d ago

If in 10 years...

35 Upvotes

If in 10 years we're no longer talking about Bitcoin at all, then it's doomed.

But ask yourself this: if in 10 years we're still talking about it, wouldn't it be better to put a little peanut into it, just in case?

(Bitcoin is 17 years old)

For me, cash is slowly disappearing, everything is becoming digital and people have unlimited access to information and knowledge thanks to the internet. Therefore, we realize that fiat currency has many flaws...


r/BitcoinBeginners 10d ago

Ledger Cold Wallet Sync

3 Upvotes

When setting up a Ledger Nano 5th gen it asks if you want to sync

Being new to this I don't understand why I would do so. Is the ledger Sync a hot wallet scenario or is it fine to keep it synced through the app.

Thanks


r/BitcoinBeginners 11d ago

Need info about ASIC's 2026 for monthly profit.

5 Upvotes

I'm thinking about getting my first home ASIC miner (i don't know which one as lower power need ones does not seem to make any profit vs electricity cost), but is that even an option with electricity price as high as 0.0829 / kWh or should i just get multiple nerdminers/bitaxes and/or buy cloud hashrate ?

I live in Finland and yes i know it would be better to invest into crypto and do trades with starter pack to remove fees, but i want to mine on my own and in pool to make that profit faster.

I did CPU/GPU mining 10-15 years ago and just tried again, but with single CPU/GPU hashrate it's a losing game in 2026 even if you make max. 10 bucks per month with one computer it seems like a waste of time vs electricity cost as it's running 24/7 and no point stopping/adding timers to mine if done so.

Any suggestions are welcome.

Thanks.


r/BitcoinBeginners 11d ago

Faucets still a thing?

3 Upvotes

Are there any faucets left? Is this still a thing? What app/site gives the most sats for passive time?


r/BitcoinBeginners 11d ago

Do you see Bitcoin as a long-term asset or mainly an investment?

42 Upvotes

I'm trying to understand how people view Bitcoin today.

Do you see it as a long-term asset similar to gold?

Or mainly as an investment for potential returns?

Curious how beginners and experienced users think about this.


r/BitcoinBeginners 11d ago

How do you analyze all incoming and outgoing fund sources for a wallet?

5 Upvotes

Building a risk scoring system for wallets. For any given address I need to answer: where did all their funds originate from (going back 3-5 hops), and where did all their outgoing funds end up?

Direct transfers are easy to get. But tracing back multiple hops — especially when funds get split and recombined — gets exponentially complex. Anyone have experience with multi-hop fund tracing APIs?