Buying bitcoins
One issue currently facing a newcomer to bitcoin is, how do I get some? While there is the bitcoin faucet that can get you started with a small fraction of a coin, when getting larger amounts the user faces an abundance of choice. This page will cut through the clutter, and help direct you to the right exchanger for your needs.
Major Exchanges
The least expensive methods for buying bitcoins involve transferring funds using a bank wire, ACH, bank transfer (ACH, EUR / SEPA).
| Exchange | Type | Adding Funds | Withdrawing Funds | eWallet | Notes |
| MtGox | Market | BTC USD (Dwolla) USD (International bank wire) USD (Wire to AurumXChange) EUR (SEPA bank transfer) (currently disabled) AUD (Bank wire) GBP (Bank wire) Liberty Reserve USD |
BTC USD (Dwolla) USD (Wire via AurumXChange) USD (Check via Paxum) USD (ATM via Paxum) USD (wire via Paxum) EUR (SEPA bank transfer) (currently disabled) AUD (Bank wire) Liberty Reserve USD Liberty Reserve USD (via AurumXChange) |
Yes | Restrictions and limits on withdrawals. Will block account after funds are deposited. |
| TradeHill | Market | BTC USD (Domestic bank wire) USD (International bank wire) USD (Check via Paxum) USD (wire via Paxum) EUR (SEPA bank transfer) EUR (via Paxum CAD (via Paxum CLP (Bank transfer) PEN (Bank transfer) INR (Bank transfer) AUD (Bank transfer) Liberty Reserve USD |
BTC USD (Domestic bank wire) USD (International bank wire) USD (Direct deposit / ACH) USD (Check via Paxum) USD (ATM via Paxum) USD (Prepaid card via Paxum) EUR (SEPA bank transfer) EUR (via Paxum CAD (via Paxum) CLP (Bank transfer) INR (Bank transfer) AUD (Bank transfer) Liberty Reserve USD |
Yes | |
| Britcoin & Intersango |
Market | BTC GBP (bank deposit) USD (Dwolla) USD (Domestic bank wire) USD (ACH) EUR (SEPA bank deposit) PLN (Bank Wire) |
BTC GBP (bank transfer) USD (Dwolla) EUR (SEPA bank transfer) PLN (Bank Wire) |
Yes | Operated by the BitcoinConsultancy Intersango is a completely custom trading platform built from the ground up with security, scalability and extensibility in mind. More Information Boasts an ever expanding API |
| VirWoX | Market | BTC SLL (Second Life) ACD (Avination) OMC (OpenSim) USD,EUR,GBP,CHF (PayPal) USD,EUR,GBP (Credit & Debit cards via Moneybookers) USD,EUR,GBP (NETELLER) EUR (DIRECTebanking / Sofortüberweisung) USD,EUR,GBP,CHF (paysafecard) EUR (SEPA bank transfer) |
BTC SLL (Second Life) ACD (Avination) OMC (OpenSim) USD,EUR,GBP,CHF (PayPal) USD,EUR,GBP (Moneybookers) USD,EUR,GBP (NETELLER) EUR (SEPA bank transfer) |
Yes | Trading through Second Life Linden Dollars (highly liquid). Variable limits on PayPal and Credit Card deposits. |
| VirtEx | Market | BTC CAD (online bill pay) CAD (cash at TDBank) |
BTC CAD (direct deposit) |
Yes | |
| ExchB | Market | BTC USD (Cash or check) USD (ING Person2Person) USD (Bank wire) USD (USPS Money Order by mail) USD (Paxum) |
BTC USD (Check) USD (Bank wire) USD (ACH) USD (Paxum) |
Yes | Cash or check deposits: Accepted at any Wells Fargo or Chase branch, or by mail. |
| Bitcoin-Central | Market | BTC CAD (Interac) CAD (Bank wire) CAD (Cash deposit) EUR (SEPA) INR (Bank wire) Liberty Reserve USD Liberty Reserve EUR PGAU Pecunix Gold |
BTC CAD (Interac) CAD (Bank wire) EUR (SEPA) INR (Bank wire) Liberty Reserve USD Liberty Reserve EUR Pecunix Gold |
Yes | Open-source, community reviewed platform Available in French and English languages |
| HelloBitcoin | Market | BTC USD (Cwolla) USD (Bank wire) USD (Check) |
BTC USD (Check) USD (Bank wire) USD (ACH) |
Yes | Offers margin trading and shorting. |
| Bitcoin7 | Market | BTC EUR (SEPA Bank transfer) USD (Domestic wire) USD (International wire) Liberty Reserve USD Liberty Reserve EUR |
BTC EUR (SEPA Bank transfer) USD (Dwolla) USD (Bank transfer) Liberty Reserve USD PLN (Bank transfer) SAR (Bank transfer) BGN (ePay) BGN (Bank transfer) |
Yes | USD wire to Citibank. EUR transfers to/from FiBank. |
| Mercado Bitcoin | Market | BTC BRL (Bank transfer) BRL (Bank transfer - MoIP) Liberty Reserve USD |
BTC BRL (Bank transfer - MoIP) |
Yes | Language: Portugese |
| BTC-E | Market | BTC USD (Liberty Reserve) USD (Interkassa) |
BTC USD (Webmoney) |
Yes | Language: Russian. Interkassa can be funded from Webmoney and many other methods. |
| Australian Bitcoin Exchange | Market | BTC AUD (Electronic funds deposit) AUD (Mtgox Redeemable Voucher) |
BTC AUD (Electronic funds transfer) |
Yes | Restrictions and limits on withdrawals. Two-Factor Authentication Based in Queensland, Australia. Intersango Software. |
| BitChange.pl | Market | BTC PLN (Bank wire) |
BTC PLN (Bank wire) |
Yes | |
| FreshBTC | Market | BTC PLN (Bank wire) |
BTC PLN (Bank wire) |
Yes | |
| BitStamp | Market | BTC EUR (SEPA transfer) |
BTC EUR (SEPA transfer) |
Yes | EUR deposits converted to/from USD for trading |
| Camp BX (CBX) | Market | BTC USD (Check / ACH) USPS Postal Money Order USD (Dwolla) USD (Domestic bank wire) USD (International bank wire) |
BTC USD (Check / ACH) USPS Postal Money Order USD (Dwolla) USD (Domestic bank wire) USD (International bank wire) |
Yes |
|
| WM-Center | Exchanger | BTC USD (International bank wire, Western Unon, Moneygram, Xoom etc, cash) EUR (IBAN bank wire) RUB (bank wire, WU, Anelik and etc, cash) AUD (Bank wire) Liberty Reserve USD/EUR, Perfect Money USD/EUR, Pecunix, Paxum, c-gold, Hoopay, GDP |
BTC USD (International bank wire, Western Unon, Moneygram, Xoom etc, cash) EUR (IBAN bank wire) RUB (bank wire, WU, Anelik and etc, cash) AUD (Bank wire) Liberty Reserve USD/EUR, Perfect Money USD/EUR, Pecunix, Paxum, c-gold, Hoopay, GDP PayPal USD/EUR, Moneybookers, Neteller |
No | 24/7/365 support in english, spanish and russian! |
Fixed Rate Exchanges & Others
For smaller amounts, the options are limited due to bank transfer fees, conversion fees and transaction size restrictions. Options include:
| Service | Type | Payment Method | Notes | |
| Bitcoin Market | Market | USD (Liberty Reserve) USD (MoneyBookers) GAU (Pecunix) |
Varies (person to person) | |
| BitMarket.eu | Market | EUR (Euro) GBP (British Sterling Pound) USD (U.S. Dollar) PLN (Polish złoty) AUD (Australian Dollar) CAD (Canadian Dollar) ZAR (South African Rand) ILS (Israeli Shekel) CHF (Swiss Franc) RUB (Russian Ruble) |
Varies (person to person) | |
| Bitcoiny.cz | Market | CZK | Varies (person to person) | |
| Bit / BTC China | Market | n/a | n/a | |
| Bitfunnel | Credit Card payment exchange/brokering services | Varies (person to person) | ||
| #bitcoin-otc | Order Book | Varies (person to person) | IRC trading marketplace will usually have people willing to deal for small and larger amounts using various payment methods, including PayPal, Dwolla, Linden Dollars, etc. | |
| Lilion Transfer | Fixed Rate | USD (Liberty Reserve) Pecunix |
||
| Nanaimo Gold | Fixed Rate | USD (Liberty Reserve) Western Union money transfer Moneygram money transfer Cash in the mail |
LR <--> Bitcoin exchange is automated For cash in the mail send USD, EUR, CAD, or GBP. Canada mailing address. | |
| Bitcoin Morpheus | Fixed Rate | Cash, check or money order through the mail | U.S. mailing address for cash transactions. | |
| Bitcoin Argentina | Fixed Rate | Cash: ARS, BRL, USD Bank transfer: ARS |
No exchange fees! | |
| Bitcoin.com.es | Fixed Rate | EUR (bank deposit) | Bank transfer or cash deposits at OpenBank in Spain. | |
| Bahtcoin | Fixed Rate | Cash, Webmoney Liberty Reserve USD |
Will cash out to Thai mobile and gaming prepaid cards as well. | |
| Bitcoin Brasil | Fixed Rate | BRL (Brazilian Real) USD |
Cash exchange | |
| BitPiggy | Fixed Rate | AUD (Australian Dollar) | Payment via bank transfer. | |
| GetBitcoin | Fixed Rate | USD (Dwolla) USD (Bank wire) USD (Cash in the mail) USD (Money Order) USD (Cashier's Check/Certified Check) USD (Western Union) USD (Traveler's Check) USD (Prepaid Debit Card) |
For cash in mail, send USD. U.S. mailing address. | |
| Bitcoin 4 Cash | Fixed Rate | Cash in the mail | Send USD or CAD. Canada mailing address. | |
| Bitcoin2Cash | Fixed Rate | Cash in the mail | Send USD. U.S. mailing address. | |
| bitcoin.local | Directory | Varies (person to person) | ||
| YouTipIt | Fixed Rate | USD EUR GBP |
Purchase bitcoins to add to your balance with YouTipIt using credit card through ClickAndBuy. | |
| Ubitex | In person exchange | Varies (person to person) | ||
| Bitcoil | Fixed Rate | ILS (bank transfer) | ||
| Accesscoin | Fixed Rate | USD (Google Checkout) | Requires Facebook account for second factor authentication | |
| btcnow | Fixed Rate | USD (Google Checkout) |
Other Financial Services
| Service | Type | Payment | Settled | Notes |
| Derivatives | Buy / Sell / Exercise CALLs / PUTs, American style. 52 strikes offered (by .5), current month + 2. No shorting available yet. |
BTC | BTC | Transactions encoded via amt. Must use non-rounding client (0.3.24 or later) |