Compare ways to sell Bitcoin
There are several ways to turn Bitcoin into money, and they trade off against each other on speed, cost, identity requirements and how long you keep control of your coins.
| Method | Speed to cash |
|---|
The speeds above are indicative rather than fixed, and costs are not shown here because they vary by provider, region and amount. Compare the final payout figure for your own order instead.
How to sell Bitcoin
Selling Bitcoin means exchanging BTC for a government-issued currency such as USD, EUR or GBP, or handing it to a buyer directly in return for cash. Whichever route you take, the mechanics are the same underneath: your Bitcoin moves to a service or a buyer, and money moves back to you. If you want to go the other way, you can also buy Bitcoin (BTC) on this site.
The route you choose comes down to four things: how quickly you need the money, what you are willing to pay in fees, how much identity information you are prepared to provide, and whether you want to keep control of your coins until the sale completes. The comparison table above sets those trade-offs side by side, and this section walks through each method in turn.
Selling in a wallet app
A wallet app lets you sell Bitcoin for local currency without moving it to a separate platform first. With the Bitcoin.com Wallet app you hold your own keys, which means you keep control of your Bitcoin right up until the point of sale.
Selling to cash in the app is available in supported regions. Open the app and tap Sell, follow the prompts to connect your payout details the first time, enter the amount you want to sell, then review and confirm. The proceeds are sent through the payout method available for your order.
The distinction that matters here is custody. Your BTC remains in your own wallet until you initiate the sale rather than being deposited into a trading account beforehand.
Selling on this page
The sell widget at the top of this page is a direct conversion. You do not first deposit BTC into a trading account, use an order book or make a separate fiat withdrawal afterwards: you send your Bitcoin against a quote, and the payout goes to the method you selected. The three steps above cover the flow.
That makes it a different tool from an exchange rather than a better one. An exchange gives you order types, price control and market depth, which matter for larger or more active trading. The widget gives you a single quoted rate and a shorter path from Bitcoin to money.
Selling on a centralized exchange
A centralized exchange matches buyers and sellers on an order book. Exchanges offer deep liquidity and advanced trading tools, which suits larger orders and anyone who trades actively rather than cashing out occasionally.
The process runs in four stages. Register and complete identity verification, deposit the Bitcoin you want to sell, sell it for your chosen currency, then withdraw the proceeds to your bank account. Note that this is two separate movements of money, and the fiat withdrawal can add additional processing time.
The trade-off is custody. From the moment you deposit until the moment you withdraw, the exchange holds your Bitcoin, and you are relying on that company to stay solvent and secure. If you go this route, use a well-established exchange and avoid leaving a balance sitting there after the sale settles.
Selling at a Bitcoin ATM
A Bitcoin ATM lets you sell for physical cash on the spot. Find a machine that supports selling, because many only handle purchases. Complete identity verification if the amount requires it, send Bitcoin to the address the machine displays, and collect your cash once the transaction confirms.
Bitcoin ATMs can be one of the quickest ways to convert BTC into physical cash, but their fees and exchange-rate margins can be considerably higher than online selling methods. Rates vary between operators, so it is worth checking the quoted rate before you send anything.
Selling peer-to-peer
Peer-to-peer marketplaces connect you directly with buyers and support a wide range of payment methods. You list your Bitcoin or browse existing buyer offers, agree a price and payment method, and complete the trade through the platform. Verification requirements vary by platform and by transaction.
Counterparty risk is the trade-off. Where the platform offers escrow, keep your Bitcoin in escrow until the payment has actually cleared into your account. Do not treat a screenshot or a payment notification as confirmation that funds have arrived, and bear in mind that reversible payment methods carry more risk than irreversible ones.
Using a brokerage
A brokerage lets you sell Bitcoin alongside traditional assets such as stocks and commodities, acting as an intermediary between buyers and sellers. It suits people who already manage their investments in one place and want crypto proceeds to land in the same account as everything else. Pricing and payout options vary widely between brokerages, and the platform holds the asset on your behalf.
Selling Bitcoin without an exchange
You do not need an account with a trading exchange to convert Bitcoin into money. A self-custodial wallet app, the sell widget on this page, a Bitcoin ATM and a peer-to-peer trade all avoid depositing your coins with an exchange first.
What these routes have in common is that you keep control of your Bitcoin for longer. Using a non-exchange method does not necessarily remove identity checks. Fiat payout providers may still require verification depending on your location, transaction and the rules that apply to the service.
What it costs to sell Bitcoin
Most services show the amount you will receive before you confirm, so you rarely need to calculate anything yourself. It still helps to know what shapes that number. Several costs can affect the final amount, including the service fee, exchange-rate spread and Bitcoin network fee.
- Service fee: What the service charges to process the sale. This is normally the visible one, shown as a percentage or a flat amount at the point of confirmation.
- Spread: The gap between the price you are quoted and the current market price. A spread may be incorporated into the quoted exchange rate rather than shown as a separate fee, which makes it easy to overlook. Two services can advertise identical fees and still pay out different amounts.
- Network fee: Paid to the Bitcoin network when your BTC moves from your wallet to the service or buyer. It scales with network congestion and transaction size rather than with the value you are selling, which means it generally represents a larger percentage of a small sale than of a large one.
Because a spread may not be itemised, comparing services on headline fees alone can be misleading. For that reason, the final payout is usually a more useful comparison than the advertised fee alone.
How to compare Bitcoin selling costs
When you are weighing one route against another, put four things side by side:
- The quoted BTC sell rate
- Any explicit service fees
- The Bitcoin network fee to move your coins
- The final amount you will receive
The final payout is the most useful single comparison because it shows what you are actually due to receive after the quoted rate and any costs included in the order. Rates and fees differ between services and change over time, so check them at the point of sale rather than relying on a general rule about which method is cheapest.
How to sell Bitcoin safely
Bitcoin transactions cannot be reversed once they confirm. There is no chargeback and no support line that can claw a payment back, so a few checks before you send are worth the time.
- Check the Bitcoin address: Confirm you are sending to the address supplied for your specific order, and scan a QR code rather than typing an address by hand where possible. Address-swapping malware and copy-paste errors can result in BTC being sent to the wrong address.
- Check the amount and the currency: Confirm you are selling the amount you intend, in the currency you intend, before you approve the transaction.
- Confirm your payout details: A wrong account number can delay or misdirect your payout even when the Bitcoin side of the sale went perfectly.
- Never share your recovery phrase or private keys: No legitimate service, buyer or support agent needs them. Anyone who asks is trying to take everything in your wallet, not just the amount you agreed to sell. Knowing how to back up and restore your wallet protects the coins you keep.
- Confirm peer-to-peer payments independently: Check your own bank or payment account for cleared funds. A screenshot, a pending notification or a message from the buyer is not confirmation that money has arrived.
- Use escrow properly where it is offered: When a platform provides escrow, leave your Bitcoin in it until payment has cleared, and keep both the conversation and the payment on the platform.
- Check the quote before sending to an ATM: Bitcoin ATM rates and fees vary between operators. Read the quoted rate on the machine and confirm it is acceptable before you send anything, because the transaction cannot be undone.
Do you pay tax when you sell Bitcoin?
In many countries, selling Bitcoin or converting it to cash is a taxable event, while simply holding it is not. Where that is the case, the amount owed usually depends on the difference between what you paid for the Bitcoin and what you received for it, and sometimes on how long you held it.
Because of this, it helps to keep a record of each sale: the date, the amount of BTC, the price you sold at, the fees you paid, and what you originally paid for the coins. Reconstructing that information later is considerably harder than recording it at the time.
Rules differ substantially between countries, and between individual circumstances within the same country. Check the regulations where you live, or speak to a qualified tax professional. This page provides general information and is not tax advice.