How to buy bitcoins

 

Bitcoin is extremely useful for online purchases, particularly for items you may not wish to appear on your credit card statement. Certain smart drugs, for example, may cause problems for you if bought without prescription via bank wire, credit card or payment service. Using bitcoins for such purchases can save the expense of a doctor’s visit, to say nothing of the hassle of finding a doctor willing to prescribe pharmaceuticals for off-label, nootropics purposes.

 

Bitcoin Basics

 

Before buying bitcoins (ticker symbol: BTC), there are a number of things you should know:

  • Bitcoin works very differently to existing currencies and payment methods. Take some time to learn about Bitcoin before using it.

  • Bitcoin transactions are a one-way street; there’s no bank or company to reverse or refund a payment. Before paying, ensure that the company you’re doing business with is reliable and reputable.

  • Bitcoin’s price is still quite volatile. It can easily change by 10% in a week or even a day. This means that any BTC you purchase and don't immediately spend may be worth a lot more or less in the future. 

  • Certain Bitcoin exchanges, most notably Coinbase, will close your account if they notice bitcoins purchased through them going directly to certain sites. Darknet marketplaces and gambling sites have been known to trigger account lockdowns; it’s possible that online pharmacies may be similarly proscribed. While Coinbase is an easy way to get bitcoins, always transfer the bitcoins into your personal wallet before spending them.

 

Buying Bitcoin around the World

 

An excellent resource for searching for ways to buy bitcoin in your location is the website, Buy Bitcoin Worldwide. This site allows you to search by country and payment method. It also gives a brief review of each valid option, making is very user friendly.

 

If you’d like to buy BTC in person for cash or without undergoing tedious identity verification, LocalBitcoins will put you in contact with sellers from all over the world (except Germany and a few other countries) who accept a variety of payment methods. LocalBitcoins also provides a reputation system and escrow service to secure your private deals.

 

Note that bitcoin price varies between countries and exchanges, due to supply and demand factors. To get the best deal, it’s recommended that you shop around first. The Preev service should give you a reasonable baseline price for your country, based on the BTCUSD rate against your currency.

 

Here are some specific regional recommendations:

 

USA

Bitstamp, CEX.io and Coinbase are all well-financed, long-running and reputable exchanges which accept a variety of payment methods, including credit cards.

Kraken and Gemini are equally worthy options, although they don’t accept credit cards. BitQuick is also a good method to purchase bitcoins if you’re willing to make a cash deposit at one of their participating banks. Coingate is another great alternative accepting both Visa and Mastercard.

 

UK

CEX.io, Coinbase, Bittylicious, Localbitcoins, Bitstamp and Paymium are all solid exchanges which accept credit cards.

Coinfloor and QuickBitcoin also work well via bank transfer.

 

EU

Kraken, CEX.io, Bitstamp, Coinbase, Paymium and many more exchanges cater to European buyers. Check BuyBitcoinWorldWide for your specific country within Europe, as there are much smaller, regional exchanges which offer great service and accept numerous payment methods.

 

Australia & New Zealand

Coinbase, Independent Reserve, Coinjar, CoinCorner and Xapo all service Australian clients.

New Zealanders should check out Kiwi Coin and CoinCorne