An exchange account is fine for buying, but a wallet is where you hold crypto under your own control. Think of it this way: the exchange is like a bank branch; a wallet is like the safe at home that only you have the combination to. This guide sets one up the safe way.

The two kinds of wallet

• App wallet (hot wallet): an app on your phone or computer. Free, quick to set up, good for everyday amounts.
• Hardware wallet (cold wallet): a small physical device that keeps your keys offline. Costs money, and is the better choice for larger amounts you plan to hold for a long time.

Many people start with an app wallet, then move to a hardware wallet as their balance grows.

Step by step

1. Get the wallet from the official source only. Download the app from the official app store listing, or order a hardware device from the manufacturer's own website — never a marketplace reseller, never a link from a message. Fake wallet apps are a common scam.
2. Create a new wallet. Follow the app or device setup. It will show you a seed phrase (also called a recovery phrase): usually 12 or 24 words, in order.
3. Write the seed phrase on paper. Pen and paper, in the exact order shown. Then store the paper somewhere private and safe. This phrase is the master key to the wallet: anyone who has it can take everything in it, and if you lose it, nobody — not us, not the wallet company — can recover your funds.
4. Never digitise the phrase. Do not photograph it, screenshot it, type it into a website, save it in email or cloud notes, or read it aloud on a call. Legitimate companies never ask for it. We will never ask for it.
5. Set a strong PIN or password on the app or device itself, and turn on your phone's lock screen and biometric unlock if it offers them.
6. Test with a tiny amount. Send a very small amount of crypto to your new wallet address. Confirm it arrives. Then practice sending a small amount back out. Only move larger amounts once the test works both ways.
7. Double-check addresses character by character (at least the first 6 and last 6) every time you send. Crypto payments cannot be reversed.

Hardware wallets

If the business has an official link for a hardware wallet maker, it appears below. Buy from the manufacturer, check the packaging seals when it arrives, and generate your seed phrase on the device itself — a genuine new device never comes with a pre-written seed phrase card. If it does, do not use it.

Next: read the 7 safety rules, and keep them near your seed phrase.