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Compare ways to sell Ethereum
Where to sell Ethereum depends on how you want to be paid and where you live. The widget at the top of this page sells ETH through a payment provider and pays out to a bank account or card, and in some countries to a local payment method instead.
The main alternatives:
- A centralised exchange: you deposit ETH, sell it into your local currency, then withdraw. More steps, and your coins sit with the exchange until you move them.
- A peer-to-peer trade: you deal directly with a buyer, usually with the ETH held in escrow until payment clears. Flexible on payment method, and the counterparty is your risk.
- A swap: you trade ETH for another cryptocurrency rather than cashing out. No payout method and no bank involved.
Compare the amount that actually reaches your account rather than the headline fee. The rate you are quoted, anything built into that rate, and the payout fee together decide what you end up with.
How to sell Ethereum
Selling through this page runs in three stages.
- Complete a one-time identity check. A cash-out to a bank or card requires it before the payment provider can process the sale.
- Send your ETH to the address you are given. You see the quote and the fee that applies before you confirm.
- Choose how you are paid. The proceeds are sent to the bank account or card you selected.
You are shown what you will receive before you confirm, so you rarely need to work the result out yourself. One thing to check first: if your ETH is staked or locked in a contract, you need to withdraw it back to a wallet you control before any of this applies.
How to cash out Ethereum to a bank account
Cashing out has two halves, and they are worth separating because only one of them happens on the blockchain.
The first half is the sale. Your ETH moves on the Ethereum network, which produces a new block roughly every twelve seconds, so confirmation is rarely what holds a cash-out up.
The second half is the payout. To withdraw Ethereum to a bank account, the money leaves the provider and travels through the ordinary banking system, and that is where most of the elapsed time goes. How long depends on your country, your bank and the method you chose. A card payout and a bank transfer do not clear on the same schedule.
What it costs to sell Ethereum
Three things sit between the market price of ETH and the money that lands in your account.
- The rate you are quoted: a spread may be built into it rather than itemised separately, which is why comparing headline fees alone can mislead.
- A payout fee: this depends on the method you choose. A bank transfer and a card payout are not priced the same.
- Gas: the Ethereum network fee to move your ETH to the address given for your order. It rises and falls with demand for block space rather than with the size of your sale.
The first two are shown in the quote before you confirm. Gas sits outside that quote, because it belongs to the transaction rather than to the sale.
Selling Ethereum for Bitcoin instead of cash
Not everyone selling ETH wants dollars. A common reason to move out of Ethereum is to move into Bitcoin, and that is a swap rather than a sale: you exchange one cryptocurrency for another, and no payout method or bank transfer is involved.
Because there is no fiat payout, a swap is different from selling for cash and does not require a card or bank payment. What you pay is the exchange rate and the gas to move the coins. You can hold and swap ETH in the Bitcoin.com Wallet, and the Ethereum to USD converter shows what your ETH is worth first.
Do you need ID to sell Ethereum?
For a cash-out, yes. Selling Ethereum for local currency through this page means a regulated payment provider is handling the money, and it must verify your identity before it can process the sale. That applies whichever payout method you pick.
The route that avoids it is a crypto-to-crypto swap, because no fiat payout is involved, but a swap is not a cash-out. If what you want is money in a bank account, expect a verification step.
Do you pay tax when you sell Ethereum?
In many countries, yes. Selling ETH for local currency is usually a taxable event, and in some places swapping it for another cryptocurrency is too, even though no cash changes hands. Staking rewards are often treated differently again. Simply holding generally is not taxed.
What you owe usually turns on the difference between what you paid and what you sold for, and sometimes on how long you held. Rules differ by jurisdiction and this is not tax advice. Check your local regulations or speak to a qualified tax professional.
Buying Ethereum instead
If you landed here looking to go the other way, buying Ethereum covers the payment methods available and what to expect. You can also check the current Ethereum price before you decide.
