The easiest way for investors to hold their crypto is to keep it on the exchange where they bought it. However, a cryptocurrency wallet can provide greater security if you are looking for a more advanced solution. For some investors, utilizing a wallet is much easier, but it is more challenging. 

Many choices of wallet software exist and there are also plenty of hardware devices, but they generally can be grouped into two main types: hot wallets and cold wallets. Hot wallets have the advantage of being more accessible, while cold wallets have more security. If you're considering whether or not you need a cold or hot crypto wallet, here are the things you should know.

How Do Crypto Wallets work?

A cryptocurrency wallet stores the user's public and private keys. In order to do transactions, those keys would be needed.

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  Public Key: The purpose of a cryptographic key is to make it possible to send digital coins without having to identify the user. In a sense, it is like an account name.

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  Private Key: The information is used by you to prove that you are the owner of the wallet. Sort of like a password or PIN. To see what's happening in your hot wallet, you can use your private key.

Keep these keys in a safe place despite the fact that you can write them down on a piece of paper. Your account, along with all of its funds, may be lost if you lose your key. This is why investors use hot wallets and cold wallets to keep their numbers safe.

Hot Wallet vs. Cold Wallet

Most wallets keep track of digital assets, and many of them are digital (although some are not entirely digital). The user can keep, send, and receive tokens with both hot and cold wallets.

An important feature of a hot wallet compared to a cold wallet is that a hot wallet is connected to the internet whereas a cold wallet is not. It's often more convenient to have a hot wallet, such as a Coinbase wallet, which can be connected to the platform where you trade. Online transactions will be easier with a hot wallet like this. There are countless free hot wallets available. These wallets, however, can be more vulnerable to hacking.

By contrast, a cold wallet keeps its storage offline. Traders today generally opt for hardware wallets such as a Trezor or USB, as well as paper wallets and offline computers. Due to their ability to only be accessed in certain ways, they are considered to be more secure. It is very difficult to steal from a hardware wallet. As the transaction must be authorized or signed by the device itself, funds cannot be stolen when connected to a computer or the internet. As you have to get the key for each transaction, they are a little less accessible than hot wallets. The cost of a hardware wallet is much more expensive when compared to a cold wallet.

How a Hot Wallet Works?

You can access and store your crypto assets easily with hot wallets. Buying or mining digital currencies can be easily done online, enabling coins to be delivered directly to your storage account. Also, using your hot wallet is straightforward if you are buying something using cryptocurrency.

The private and public keys for a hot wallet are both stored online (on your computer or on your smartphone, for example). In this way, hackers can access the keys. Data can be stolen from you if you're not careful.

Who Hot Wallets May Be Suitable For?

Many people who carry out cryptocurrency transactions online find hot wallets attractive. With a hot wallet, you can easily process cryptocurrency transactions if you're an investor. The majority of cryptocurrency exchanges let you store your coins in an account. It is basically a hot wallet. Furthermore, you are provided with a cryptocurrency address as well as the ability to buy and sell cryptocurrencies on the exchange. Your cryptocurrency address can be used to receive payments.

When you know that you will conduct a number of transactions with individuals or exchanges, it makes sense to have a hot wallet. It is important to be aware, however, that keeping large amounts of assets in your hot wallet makes it an attractive target for thieves. In order to protect your assets, it is advisable to keep only a portion of them in a hot wallet and to keep the rest in a cold wallet.

How to Keep Your Hot Wallet Secured

Cyberattacks and other security concerns can make hot wallets more vulnerable because they are online. To prevent this, you should limit how much is in your hot wallet. It may be worthwhile to have both a hot and a cold wallet if you invest a lot in crypto - one for easy access to funds and another to store the majority of your crypto.

By backing up and encrypting your hot wallet, you can also keep it safe. Remember good passwords and change them regularly.

Types of Hot Wallets

There are specific hot wallets for certain cryptocurrencies and applications in addition to those on exchanges like Coinbase and Binance. Additionally, you can download software hot wallets that allow you to have greater control over your keys.

You might be interested in these two hot wallets to make online payments as easy as possible:

Exodus: Over 130 cryptocurrencies are supported by this wallet. This is useful if you own a variety of cryptocurrencies. In addition, it makes exchanging coins more convenient. This wallet can be used on both a desktop and mobile device. This wallet also works with Trezor, allowing coins to be moved into cold storage. There are concerns, however, about the wallet not being open-source and its very dependence on the development team's efforts to ensure security.

Mycelium: Multi-cold storage options are supported by this hot wallet, such as Trezor, Ledger, and KeepKey. However, you can only store limited types of cryptocurrencies with it. The wallet can only be used to invest in Bitcoin, Ethereum, or ERC-20 tokens. Novice cryptocurrency users will also encounter some learning curves.

How a Cold Wallet Works?

Cold wallets are offline, as opposed to hot wallets that are connected to the internet and may even be online. An offline wallet is a hardware wallet like a USB that stores cryptocurrencies.

As with a hot wallet, cold wallets use public keys - such as crypto addresses - and private keys to enter into them. Unlike a hot wallet, however, cold wallets don't store private keys on the internet. In the process of exchanging crypto assets, a signing process is taken place using keys. This process can be done entirely online using a hot wallet.

However, cold wallets allow you to conduct these transactions offline. Initially, the transaction is conducted online, but it is then transferred to the cold storage to be digitally signed. The signed information can be sent back online once it has been signed in an offline environment. Private keys are not kept online as long as they are used to sign transactions.

Who Cold Wallets May Be Suitable For?

A cold wallet is the best choice for those who wish to store an array of crypto assets in a safe, secure environment. 

For an increased level of security, some exchanges offer hot wallets with limited capacity to encourage users to encrypt some of their assets offline. Examples include Binance and Bittrex. If you want to store cryptocurrencies securely, a cold wallet may be the right choice. It's important to keep in mind that losing your cold storage or forgetting your private keys may result in the loss of your coins.

Types of Cold Wallets

It is possible to use the paper used for cold storage as a wallet. For example, you could write down your keys on a piece of paper. A QR code is available for you to print out and use to sign transactions with your cold wallet.

Nonetheless, there are hardware wallets available that operate similarly to smart cards or USB drives. The following are a few cold wallets that are increasing in popularity:

Trezor: There is no limit to the storage space of this cold wallet, which supports numerous cryptocurrencies. Additionally, it can be integrated with exchanges and offer compatibility with some of the hottest wallets. You can find a $60 model or a $180 model.

Ledger: Trezor offers unlimited storage, but Ledger does not. Despite this, Ledger has the ability to connect to smartphones or computers via both Bluetooth and wired connections. Wallets in the Ledger wallet line cost less than Trezor wallets at their most expensive. The Ledger wallet line starts at just $60.

Summary

When investing in cryptocurrencies, there is a lot to consider. You need to first decide what type of wallet will best suit your investment needs before you make a final choice on the type of wallet.

You can examine the hot wallet versus the cold wallet from there. For convenience, it makes sense to keep a limited number of coins inside a hot wallet that is connected to the internet. As a security measure, save the majority of your assets in a cold wallet so hackers won't have access to them.