The 5 Best Hardware Wallets For Bitcoin In 2021 ( + Altcoins Supported)

More and more people are joining the realm of Bitcoin each day.

While some are happy storing their Bitcoin in software or desktop wallets, some want to use more secure wallets. And if you are a long-term investor, this is not a bad idea.

However for long-term ‘HODL‘ you should use a paper wallet or a Hardware wallet.

I personally endorse using Hardware wallet as it offers great security as well as you can even use it for your day to day transactions.

Hardware wallets promise enhanced security against software wallets in the case of theft or scams. Moreover, your coins are safe even if your computer is hacked or someone stole your Hardware wallet. If you lose your hardware wallet, you can always restore all your coins on a new wallet.

Important point: Without knowing your secret pin code, no one can transfer Bitcoins or other coins from your hardware wallet. More than that, no spy screen recorder or Trojan can record what’a happening on your Hardware wallet, as it’s a not using your laptop or system resources and have a dedicated LCD screen. More on this in the below section:

What is a Bitcoin Hardware Wallet?

Bitcoin hardware wallets are a tamper-proof electronic device designed to store private keys of your coins in an offline setting. The private keys and digital signatures needed to spend bitcoins are generated via these wallets.

Like the way you set up any wallet, you need to write down the seed word (recovery phrase) on a piece of paper and store it in a safe place. Prefer making 2-3 copies & distribute it.  And as your keys are offline, there is no possibility of getting hacked.

At the time of this writing, there has been no reported theft or loss of bitcoins from a hardware wallet. Some hardware wallets have security grid cards, and some have a little digital screen with a user interface to verify transactions.

Even in the case of damage to your hardware wallet, you can restore your bitcoins easily with the recovery phrase.

Note: Bitcoin hardware wallets were invented after Bitcoin was born. At present, you can store other cryptocurrencies in these wallets as well (ETH, BNB, DOT ,etc.).

If you want to store Bitcoin & other Cryptocurrency secure for the long-term, then you should definitely order a hardware wallet. Since most of these hardware wallets have a waiting period of a month or two due to huge demand, you should order one as soon as possible.

If you are looking for a single recommendation as the best Bitcoin hardware wallet, then you should look no further than Ledger Nano X. If money is not an issue, I would suggest ordering 2 of them at the same time. I have explained the reasons here.

Best Hardware Wallet for Bitcoin & Cryptocurrencies

Even though I have initially curated this list for Bitcoin, over the time the list has evolved into accommodating more blockchain. For example, Binance smart chain, Polkadot and more new blockchains are being supported by many of these hardware wallets. Supporting multiple blockchain is one important feature that a hardware wallet should have in 2021. Ledger Nano X is the best wallet to use in 2021, however, if you are looking for Bitcoin only wallet, then you can use something like Coldcard hardware wallet.

1. Ledger Nano X (Order here)

Ledger Nano X is the latest hardware wallet by Unicorn of hardware wallet Ledger.  The beauty of Ledger wallet lies in its State-of-the-art Security which is possible with the help of 2 chips. Ledger Nano X is the perfect union of hardware security and mobility. The Bluetooth feature will let you use this hardware device on the move with your phone or laptop, without using a wire.

The reason why the world is going crazy about this hardware wallet is because of its ability to hold multi-crypto currency at one time. In the earlier version of Ledger (Nano S, which is mentioned below), we had to manually install/remove the apps to use a specific wallet, in Ledger Nano X, you can install multiple crypto wallets at the same time.

Features of Ledger Nano X:

• Size: 72mm x 18.6mm x 11.75mm Weight: 34g
• Stainless steel and plastic
• 100mAh battery
• Store multiple cryptocurrencies at the same time
• Easy to use
• Free shipping
• Login to DEX like Binance

Some of the popular crypto wallet available in Ledger Nano X are:

• Bitcoin
• Bitcoin Cash
• Ethereum
• Litecoin
• Monero
• Ripple
• Neo
• Binance Coin
• ERC20 Tokens
• 100+ Cryptocurrencies

If you are looking for a single recommendation for buying the best hardware wallet, Ledger Nano X is the best choice this year.

2. Ledger Nano S

Another popular hardware wallet by Ledger team. The Ledger Nano S is a product of a France-based startup. It has a sleek and attractive European touch to its design.

Some of its core features are the backup seed key for recovery of your bitcoins, the easy to use OLED interface, and a flash drive like feel with two buttons on the side for navigating the interface.

It is a battery-less device which you can connect to a PC or mobile device via USB. Here is a video guide by Harsh Agrawal on how to start using Ledger Nano S.

The Ledger Nano S now supports nine cryptocurrencies (including Bitcoin) and is also the cheapest multi-currency hardware wallet available ($65). However, my suggestion is to purchase the Ledger Nano X which is the modern version of Ledger Nano S.

3. Cobo Vault

Cobo Vault is a military grade hardware wallet, which is liked by many technophiles. This is a complete air gapped hardware wallet, to stay your coins safe from hackers. WiFi/Bluetooth/NFC/Bandwidth capabilities are eliminated to ensure it can’t be ever hacked over the network.

Along with this, there are no USB ports, and the QR code is the only way to make a transaction with Cobo vault. The beauty of this hardware wallet is the actual vault that meets US military standard MIL-STD-810G with IP68 waterproof rating & IK9 certification. In simple words, your wallet will be safe in the case of flood.

Watch these videos to see the unboxing of Cobo Vault, and how to setup for the first time:

As a cryptocurrency cold storage wallet, Cobo vault is recommended for those who don’t mind extra inconvenience at the cost of more security. The Cobo Vault hardware wallet can be ordered for a price tag of $479, and supported payment mode is Paypal only.

4. Trezor

The Trezor Bitcoin hardware wallet pioneered the era of hardware wallets. Created by SatoshiLabs, it is the world’s first secure Bitcoin hardware wallet.

It looks like a small calculator with an OLED screen. Randomly generated nine digit pins and a 24-word recovery seed key ensures security in case the device is lost or damaged. Its purpose is to store private keys and sign transactions offline.

You can use the Trezor wallet with Android devices and with apps such as TREZOR Wallet, Mycelium, and Multibit HD. Here is a video tutorial series by our CEO Harsh Agrawal on how to start using Trezor.

Trezor now supports eight cryptocurrencies (including Bitcoin) and costs $99.

5. KeepKey

KeepKey is another hardware device available in the market for storing bitcoins.

It doesn’t offer much in comparison to the Ledger Nano S or Trezor. Moreover, it is more than two times in size than its peers, and not so convenient to carry in your pocket.

It has the same backup seed key feature with pin code enabled, and it works like the other wallets. At present, it supports six cryptocurrencies (including Bitcoins).

It also comes with a $99 price tag.

Consider reading these comments and reviews about KeepKey on Reddit and Amazon.

Ledger Nano S vs. Trezor vs. KeepKey (Comparison)

Cons of Bitcoin Hardware Wallets

While the brighter side of hardware wallets is that they keep your keys safe offline, they also come with some drawbacks. For instance, if you forget or misplace your recovery seed key and/or PIN code, then you can’t access your coins.

So you need to always remember your PIN code.

You should also write your backup seed key on a piece of paper and keep it safe. I recommend you to make 2-3 copies of this key and keep all of them in different places.

Here are a few FAQ”s related to Hardware wallet for Bitcoin:

The Best Bitcoin Hardware Wallets

Overall, having an offline storage space for your cryptocurrencies is a really smart thing to do.

So let us know: Which Bitcoin hardware wallet are you using?

Let us know in the comments below!! Have a question about Bitcoin hardware wallets? Ask us in the comments!

Happy reading, learning, and sharing with the CoinSutra community!

Here are a few hand-picked guides for you to read next:

• Bitcoin Wallets That Support Custom Transaction Fees
• Ledger Nano S Review: Things To Know Before Ordering The Ledger Wallet
• What are HD Wallets? (Deterministic Wallet)