The Investopedia research and editorial teams developed a proprietary scoring methodology to evaluate 13 of the leading crypto software wallets. Our evaluation of the best crypto software w𒈔allets was based on five main categories crucial to customers who are looking to safeguard, trade, and transact in crypto assets using a software wallet. This guide explains the categories and criteria we used to evaluate each company’s offerings and our scoring process for determining the best crypto software wallets.

Our editors and researchers independently evaluate all recommended products and services to help a wide range of crypto enthusiasts understand which wallets are best suited for their style and level of experience. If you click on the links we provide, we may receive compensation. Our advertising partnerships are not a factor in how we evaluate products, though they may affect the order of products you see listed in our articles.

Hoꦏw We Researched the Best ꦺCrypto Software Wallets

To find the information needed to conduct its analysis, Investopedia's team of in-house researchers and editors conducted in-depth industry research, which included collecting hundreds of data points. We recorded this information in a comprehensive scoring rubric and, to ensure the accuracy of all information that was entered, we linked each input to the corresponding company page to verify its accuracy.  

We then compared each company’s data to find which wallet is best for security, beginners, low costs, mobile trading, Bitcoin, and Ethereum. You can trust Investopedia’s list of the best crypto software wallets because of this proprietary methodology. Our research p꧃rocess took place from March 10, 2025, through March 12, 2025.

Data Collection and Scoring

To populate our proprietary scoring model, Investopedia's in-house staff collected data from company websites. Although the vast majority of the data collected was scored, some data points were left unweighted. We considered some criteria not used for scoring purposes to help inform our reviews and recommendations.

The scoring scales that were used are as follows:

• Binary criteria were scored on a scale of 0 or 1.
• Continuous criteria were scored so that the minimum data value was re-scaled to 0.00 and the maximum value was re-scaled to 1.00.
• Scaled criteria were scored using values that correspond to the scale, but remain within a 0.00 to 1.00 range. For example, a 5-point scale could be re-scaled to 0.00, 0.25, 0.50, 0.75, 1.00. 
• Aggregated criteria scores were calculated based on scores of individual criteria, and the results were re-scored on a continuous scale.
• Any data point that was not disclosed by a company was given a score of 0.

Evaluation Categories & Weights

Security

Software wallets are designed to offer users a safe, secure, and reliable storage solution for the private keys that access their cryptocurrency. Due to how vulnerable cryptocurrencies are to hacks, scams, and fraud, we emphasized security as an essential category t🎃o include in our search for the best crypto software wallets. The best wallets offer strong security features such as sophisticate🧜d transaction authorization methods, hierarchical deterministic capabilities, recovery methods, frequent software updates, and more.      

Address Generated for Every Transaction

Generating a new address for every transaction helps ensure your privacy, since reusing addresses can make it easier for others to track your cryptocurrency transactions and potentially link them to you. It also helps ensure that you are less lik🅘ely to accidentally send funds to the wrong recipient, as crypto transactions are most often irreversible. We scored this category on a binary scale, giving a 1 to wallets that offered it and a 0 to those that did not. This criterion was weighted at 5% of the overall score.

Transaction Authorization Method

Wallets that offer sophisticated transaction authenticati﷽on methods are inherently safer, as they provide greater oversight and control over how and when your wallet is accessed. We scored this category on a continuous scale, awarding a 1 to wallets tha💫t offered the more complex methods and a 0 to wallets that offered limited methods. This criterion was weighted at 5% of the overall score.

Recovery Method

Crypto wallets can be lost through various means, and a recovery phrase is important for protecting your assets. A recovery phrase is a sequence of word🔴s that serves as a master key, allowing you to recover access to your funds and private keys ifꦑ your device is ever lost, stolen, or damaged. We scored this category on a continuous scale, awarding a 1 to wallets that offered the most methods for recovery and a 0 to wallets that offered limited methods. This criterion was weighted at 5% of the overall score.

Hierarchical Deterministic Capability

Similar to generating a new address for each transaction, the 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:hierarchical deterministic capability provides added security and privacy by providing a new key pair from a master key for each t🐽ransaction. We scored this category on a binary scale, giving a 1 to wallets that offered it and a 0 to those tha🍸t did not. This criterion was weighted at 5% of the overall score.

Frequency of Software Updates

The more often a software wallet receives updates, the more likely it is to remain protected against the latest security threats and bugs. We scored this category on a sliding scale, giving a 1 to wallets that updated its softwar🎀e weekly, a 0.75 to wallets that updated its software on a bi-monthly, a 0.50 to wallets that updated its software monthly, a 0.25 to wallets that updated its software quarterly, and a 0 to those that did not disclose their software updates or updated its software infreque♏ntly past the quarterly mark. It was weighted at 5% of the overall score.

Know Your Customer (KYC)

澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:Know your customer (KYC) is a security measure 😼whereby the customer's personal information is known to the service provider, with the stated intention of enhancing security and deterring bad actors. A KYC feature is important in many ways for crypto assets because once keys are stolen or lost, they are most likely gone for good. Self-custodial wallets leave security entirely up to the end user and so cannot offer this process. We scored this category on a binary scale, giving a 1 to wallets that offered it and a 0 to those that did not. This criterion was weighted at 5% of the o🐠verall score.

Restrictions in Creating Account

Many wallets require users to create an account, and in order to do so, users will ไbe required to provide verifiable details such as an email address, personal phone number, etc. In addition, some providers will set specific limits, such as age and region. Most self-custodial wallets have no such restrictions, being left entirely in the hands of the end user to manage. We scored this category on a continuous scale, awarding a 1 to wallets that offered the fewest restrictions and a 0 to wallets that had many limitations. This criterion was weighted at 2.5% o♉f the overall score.

Open Source Code Audit

Being open source means that the code base for a piece of software is publicly visible. While this may ope𒐪n potential vulnerabilities, it allows tech-savvy users to audit the code that the software is run on to ensure that the software is safe and free of malicious code and that it contains no backdoors, among other things. In general, an open-source codebase is an overall security advantage. We scored this category on a binary scale, giving a 1 to wallets that offered it and a 0 to those that did not. This criterion was weighted at 1% of the overall score.

Does the Wallet URL Have HTTPS?

HTTPS is the more secure form of HTTP used mostly by banks and e-commerce sites for transaction pages. However, its usage is a staple in 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:cybersecurity and is becoming more common across the internet. Wallets that use HTT🐟PS have less chance of suffering from threatsღ such as man-in-the-middle attacks. We scored this category on a binary scale, giving a 1 to wallets that offered it and a 0 to those that did not. This criterion was weighted at 1% of the overall score.

Wallet Features

Users naturally benefit from a greater variety of capabilities🅘 from their wallets. Wallets that offer hardware compatibility, for example, give users the option to utilize an outside device for added security and utility. 

Hardware Device Compatibility

Some crypto software wallets are directly compatible with hardware wallets, allowing for seamless integration, and can serve as a good way to capture the benefi🧔ts of multiple systems. We scored this category on a binary scale, giving a 1 to wallets that offered it and a 0 to tho📖se that did not. This criterion was weighted at 5% of the overall score.

Number of Currencies Supported

Many users like to hold a variety of assets, and having a wallet that can support multiple kinds of crypto gives enhanced flexibility and utility. If a wallet does not support your preferred digital assets, you will need to find a wallet that does. We evaluated this criterion on a continuous scale. The wallets with the most supported currencies earned a 🌜score of 1, while the currencies with the least received a score of 0. This criterio꧑n was weighted at 5% of the overall score.

Fiat Funding Available

The ability to deposit fiat currency into a crypto wallet can enhance the overall utility of your crypto wallet, allowing you to make transactions that don't accept crypto and sometimes making it easier to buy crypto from a crypto exchange. We scored this category on a binary scale, giving a 1 to wallets that offered it and a 0 to those that did not. This criterion was weighted at 4% of the overall score.

Hot or Cold Storage

Hot wallets require an internet connection to function properly. While they often have enhanced functionality as a result of their connectivity, hot wallets are more vulnerable to cyberattacks. Cold wallets are essentially self-contained and are considered much safer in comparison because your assets cannot be stolen if no phyꦓsical means exist for an attacker to reach them. Both offer advantages, and many crypto users maintain both types of wallets to benefit from their advantages. For this reason, we scored this category using a scaled criteria, giving 1 to wallets that offered or could be configured as both and 0 to those that could only function as one. T🌜his criterion was weighted at 2.5% of the overall score.

Cross-Platform

Some walle🏅ts are only compatible with mobile devices, others have desktop or even Linux versions. The more platforms a wallet works with, the more accessibility it offers its users in choosing a solution that works for them. We scored this category on a continuous scale, awarding a 1 to wallets that offered the most options and a 0 to wallets that offered the most limited platform options. This criterion was weighted at 2.5% of the overall score.

Fiat Funding Methods

Wallets with more options, such as bank transfers, credit cards, and access to payment services like PayPal for fiat funding, offer greater functionality to their users. We scored this category on a continuous scale, awarding 𒁏a 1 to wallets that offered the most options and a 0 to wallets that offered the most limited options. This criterion was weighted at 2.5% of the overall score.

Connectivity/Wallet Integrations

Many third-party utilities and programs exist for crypto, and the more integrations a wallet offers, the better it is for its users in terms of setting up their crypto wallet in a way that serves them. In general, a well-implemented API is often the most flexible, as it allows users to create their own utilities and makes it ea🌳sier for other apps to integrate with the wallet. We scored this category on a continuous scale, awarding a 1 to wallets that offered the most options, with special attention given to those that had a well🌺-defined API, and a 0 to wallets that offered the most limited options. This criterion was weighted at 2.5% of the overall score.

Cloud Storage Capabilities

Cloud storage can make a wallet more vulnerable, but it also offers greater flexibility, utility, and convenience to the end user. For this reason, while the feature is useful to some crypto investors, it's also not as important to others, and we reflected that in our weighting. We scored this category on a binary scale, giving a 1 to wallets that offered it and a 0 to those that did not. This criterion was weighted at 1% of the overall score.

CoinJoin-Enabled

CoinJoin is an anonymization strategy that obscures transaction addresse🐟s and amounts. CoinJoin uses smart contracts between multiple parties to mix their coins into several different transactions. This can make it a useful feature for advanced𝄹 users. We scored this category on a binary scale, giving a 1 to wallets that offered it and a 0 to those that did not. This criterion was weighted at 1% of the overall score.

Trading Features

While some crypto investors only want a wallet to hold their crypto keys, wallets can also be used as a mo▨re secure alternative to buying, selling, and trading crypto directly from an exchange. These transaction features, which can often be performed from your wallet, reduce the overhead and hassle of using your assets. Some fea♔tures, such as staking, can help users maximize investment returns.

Can Buy Crypto

Buying crypto directly from your wallet can simplify your investment management and allow you to control your exposure better. However, not all crypto software wallets have this feature. We scored this category on a binary scale, giving a 1 to 𓂃wallets that offered it and a 0 to those that did not. This criterion was weighted at 5% of the overall score.

Can Sell Crypto

Selling crypto from your wallet can simplify your investment management and allow you to better control yoᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚ⁤⁤⁤⁤ᩚ⁤⁤⁤⁤ᩚ⁤⁤⁤⁤ᩚ𒀱ᩚᩚᩚur direct exposure. We scored this category on a binary scale, giving a 1 to wallets that offered it and a 0 to those that did not. This criterion was weighted♈ at 5% of the overall score.

Supports Staking

While many users will have little need for staking services, the option to do so from your crypto software wallet can allow users to earn 𝓰passive income. We scored this category on a binary scale, giving a 1 to wallets that offered it and a 0 to those 🌼that did not. This criterion was weighted at 2.5% of the overall score.

Supports Decentralized Finance (DeFi)

Some users prefer to buy, sell, or trade cryptocurrency utilizing a decentralized exchange for enhanced anonymity and lower fees. 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:Decentralized finance (DeFi) means that there is no direct custodian or overseer acting as a middleman in crypto transactions. All transactions on a decentralized exchange are peer-to-peer. We scored this category on a binary scale, giving a 1 to wallets 💮that offered it and a 0 to those⭕ that did not. This criterion was weighted at 2.5% of the overall score.

Additional Features or Rewards

Not every feature should be categorized separately. The ability to handle NFTs, for instance, benefits a small n♐umber of users but does not benefit those who are simply looking for a crypto software wallet. We scored this category on a continuous scale, awarding a 1 to wallets that offered the most options and a 0 to wallets that had the fewest. ♉This criterion was weighted at 2.5% of the overall score.

Built-In Exchange

Some wallets are offered directly by crypto exchanges or partner very closely with one. This offer expands the functionality to users, particularly those who want to invest more actively in crypto as a whole. Exchanges also typically offer greater support in addition to a more streamlined process for purchasing crypto. We scored this category on a binary scale, giving a 1 to wallets 💎that offered it and a 0 to those that did not. This criterion was weighted at 2.5% of the overall score.

Access to Third-Party Exchanges

A crypto software wallet that features a built-in exchange may offer a streamlined approach to the user’s ability to buy, sell, and trade crypto. However, the ability for users to pick and choose a particular cr🌼ypto exchange offers great flexibilit🅠y and convenience to its users, which aligns better with certain crypto exchanges. We scored this category on a binary scale, giving a 1 to wallets that offered it and a 0 to those that did not. This criterion was weighted at 2.5% of the overall score.

Can Swap/Exchange/Convert Crypto-to-Crypto

Swapping one coin for another is much more efficient and cheaper than selling an asset and buying the desired one on an exchange. Wallets that offer this feature provide their users with better flexibility in holding the balance of coins that work for them. We 💖scored this category on a binary scale, giving a 1 to wallets that offered it and a 0 to those that did not. This criterion was weighted at 2% of the overall score.

Earn Interest on Crypto Holdings

Staking is a critical feature for many crypto investors in order to maximize returns on investment. In addition, staking gives you a means to replace the interest th✤at you might otherwise earn with a traditional savings account. However, the returns are usually small. We scored thi♔s category on a binary scale, giving a 1 to wallets that offered it and a 0 to those that did not. This criterion was weighted at 1% of the overall score.

Fees

Fees are a cost of doing business to keep your crypto secure. However, they can nonetheless quickly add up, and while most fees associated with crypto wallets are m✃inimal, they remain important to take into account. This is particularly true for those who seek to use crypto as an investment. For this reason, we considered fees for buying, selling, and sending crypto, as well as any other fees that come with using the wallet.

Send Fee

We considered how much someone might pay to send crypto. In most cases, this involves a market fee that does not go to t♏he wallet or to the exchange itself. However, some wallets may charge you a service fee for some types of transactions. We evaluated taker fees on a continuous scale. The crypto wallet with the lowest fees earned a score of 1, and the wallet with the highest fees received a score of 0. This criterion was weighted at 2.50% of the overall score.

Receive Fee

We considered how much someone might pay to receive crypto. In most cases, this involves a market fee that does not go to the wallet or to the exchange itself. However, some wallets may charge you a service fee for some types of transactions. We evaluated taker fees on a continuous scale. The crypto wallet with the lowest fees ea🔯rned a score of 1, and the wallet with the highest fees received a sc🅘ore of 0. This criterion was weighted at 2.50% of the overall score.

Customizable Fees

When it comes to crypto, you often have a choice regarding how much you pay in fees to process your transactions. The ability to customize this fee is a feature offered by many wallets and exchanges. This feature gives you the abili🥃ty to save some money at the cost of time. 🤪We scored this category on a binary scale, giving a 1 to wallets that offered it and a 0 to those that did not. This criterion was weighted at 2% of the overall score.

Miscellaneous Fees

While not every service charges the same fees for the same services, it is important to cons🥃ider them. For example, items like custodial fees and wallet creation fees were considered here. We evaluated miscellaneous fees on a continuous scale. The crypto wallet with the lowest fees earned a score of 1, and the wallet with the highest fees received a score of 0. This criterion was weighted at 2% of th☂e overall score.

Customer Service

While many wallets are self-custodial, the communities and developers who maintain the codebase are crucial to maintaining a secure and functional wallet. When bugs are encountered or documentation is scarce, a well-developed customer service offering provides users with peace of mind that when something goes wrong, they can get effectiℱve and efficient he𒉰lp.

24/7 Customer Support

Customer support availability gives users more flexibility to seek help when convenient or whenever a problem is encountered. It offers customers peace of mind when they need to resolve a problem; in some cases, these problems can be urgent and need immediate attentiཧon. We scored wallet providers on a continuous scale, awarding more points to wallets that offered more varied customer service options. This criterion was weighted at 2.5% of the overall score.

Customer Support Channels

Customer support options give users more accessibility when issues or questions arise and allow them peace of mind when they want to resolve a problem through the communication method that a customer feels most empowered. We scored wallet providers on a continuous scale, awarding more points to wallets that offered more varied custo🌳mer service options. This criterion was weighted at 2.5% of the overall score.

Criteria Collected but Not Weighted

We collected user reviews from external review sites, as well as anecdotal reports on wallet usability and overall satisfaction from users. While we did not weigh these in the final score, they were used to guide research and recommendations made in the final product.

• Trustpilot reviews
• 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:Better Business Bureau (BBB) reviews
  

Articles That Use Our Methodology

• 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:Best Crypto Software Wallets

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Senior Editor, Investing and Trading Product Reviews

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