Guides · Buying

Where to buy bitcoin

Places to buy bitcoin, sorted by where you live. Each is described on the same facts: what it sells, whether it asks for ID and whether you can withdraw to your own wallet.

The short version

Bitcoin-only apps sell only bitcoin, so they don't push you toward other coins.
Most regulated services check your ID. Person-to-person markets often don't, but take more care.
Whatever you use, move savings to a wallet you control. Compare hardware wallets.

Where do you live?

Bitcoin-only apps

They sell only bitcoin. Most let you buy on a schedule and send to your own wallet.

Amber

App

Bitcoin-onlyRecurring buysLightning

An Australian Bitcoin-only app for automatic stacking, with tools to move coins to your own wallet.

Available in: Australia
ID check: Yes
Holds your coins: Until you withdraw (withdrawals go out once a day)

Visit Amber →

Bitcoin Well

App and website

Bitcoin-onlySends straight to your wallet

A Bitcoin-only service in Canada and the US that sends what you buy to your own wallet.

Available in: Canada and United States
ID check: Yes
Holds your coins: No: sends to your wallet

Visit Bitcoin Well →

Bull Bitcoin

App and website

Bitcoin-onlySends straight to your walletLightning

A Bitcoin-only exchange that never holds your coins: every purchase goes straight to a wallet you control.

Available in: Canada, EU, Mexico, Costa Rica
ID check: Yes
Holds your coins: No: sends to your wallet

Visit Bull Bitcoin →

Cash App

App

Bitcoin-onlyRecurring buysLightning

The payments app many Americans already have. Easy for a first small buy, with withdrawals to your own wallet.

Available in: United States
ID check: Yes
Holds your coins: Until you withdraw
Good to know: Bitcoin is the only coin it sells; it is also a payments and stock app.

Visit Cash App →

Fold

App and card

Bitcoin-onlyBitcoin rewards

Buy bitcoin and earn it back as rewards on everyday card spending.

Available in: United States
ID check: Yes
Holds your coins: Until you withdraw

Visit Fold →

Relai

App

Bitcoin-onlyRecurring buys

A Swiss Bitcoin-only app for saving plans, licensed to serve customers across the EU.

Available in: EU and Switzerland
ID check: Yes
Holds your coins: No: the app is a wallet you control

Visit Relai →

River

App and website

Bitcoin-onlyRecurring buysAuto-withdrawLightning

A US Bitcoin-only brokerage with recurring buys and automatic withdrawals to your own wallet.

Available in: United States
ID check: Yes
Holds your coins: Until you withdraw (automatic withdrawal available)

Visit River →

Strike

App

Bitcoin-onlyRecurring buysLightning

A Bitcoin-only app with Lightning payments, available in about 100 countries and territories.

Available in: US, UK, EU and many other countries
ID check: Yes
Holds your coins: Until you withdraw
Good to know: Not every US state is covered.

Visit Strike →

Swan

App and website

Bitcoin-onlyRecurring buysAuto-withdrawBitcoin IRA

A US Bitcoin-only service built around automatic saving, with retirement accounts and help for larger holders.

Available in: United States
ID check: Yes
Holds your coins: Until you withdraw (automatic withdrawal available)

Visit Swan →

Larger exchanges

Big, regulated exchanges that also sell many other coins. Useful where no Bitcoin-only service works for you.

Coinbase

App and website

Also sells other coinsRecurring buys

The largest US exchange, listed on the stock market. Very easy to start.

Available in: Most countries; check your state or country
ID check: Yes
Holds your coins: Until you withdraw
Good to know: The simple buy screen charges more than its Advanced screen.

Visit Coinbase →

Kraken

App and website

Also sells other coinsLow fees on its Pro screenLightning

A large, long-running exchange. Its Kraken Pro screen charges lower fees than its simple buy screen.

Available in: Most countries; check your state or country
ID check: Yes
Holds your coins: Until you withdraw

Visit Kraken →

Person to person

Buy straight from another person. There is usually no ID check and more privacy, but it takes more steps and more care. Best once you have made a few ordinary buys.

Bisq

Desktop app

Also trades other coinsOpen sourceNo central company

A desktop app that matches buyers and sellers directly, with deposits held in escrow on the Bitcoin network.

Available in: Worldwide
ID check: No account or ID
Holds your coins: No: escrow only during a trade

Visit Bisq →

Hodl Hodl

Website

Bitcoin-onlyEscrow on the Bitcoin network

A long-running person-to-person market where the platform never holds your coins.

Available in: Worldwide
ID check: No ID
Holds your coins: No: escrow only during a trade

Visit Hodl Hodl →

Peach

App

Bitcoin-onlyMany payment methods

A phone app for buying from other people, with bitcoin held in escrow until both sides confirm.

Available in: Worldwide
ID check: No ID
Holds your coins: No: escrow only during a trade

Visit Peach →

RoboSats

Website over Tor, app

Bitcoin-onlyLightningOpen source

A private person-to-person market that uses Lightning for small and medium amounts.

Available in: Worldwide
ID check: No account or ID
Holds your coins: No: a small bond only during a trade

Visit RoboSats →

Vexl

App

Bitcoin-onlyTrade with friends of friends

Finds people to trade with among your phone contacts and their contacts, so you deal with someone a friend knows.

Available in: Worldwide
ID check: No ID
Holds your coins: No: you pay each other directly

Visit Vexl →

Before you buy

Start small. Send a little to your own wallet first to make sure you have the steps right.
Turn on two-factor login with an app, not text messages.
Nobody legitimate will ask for your recovery words, and no one can promise returns. Common scams.
Buying and holding are usually not taxed in the US; selling or spending can be. Elsewhere, check your local rules. Keep a record of each purchase.

How we list services

We include services that are widely used, have operated for years and let you withdraw bitcoin to your own wallet. Being listed is not an endorsement.
The order is the same for everyone: Bitcoin-only services first, then larger exchanges, then person-to-person options, alphabetical within each.
Every card says whether the service holds your coins, taken from the service's own site.
Availability changes with local rules; check the service's own site for your state or country.
No company paid to be listed. Orange Wire earns nothing from this page today. If we add affiliate links, each one will be marked “Affiliate link”, and the facts and order stay the same. Our disclosures.

Reviewed November 2026. Facts come from each service's own site. Buying your first bitcoin, step by step. Not financial advice.

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