A Web3 wallet is the application you use to control your Ethereum account. According to ethereum.org, it lets you sign in to applications, check your balance, send transactions and prove your identity. The wallet provider does not hold your funds. It only gives you a window to see your assets and tools to manage them, so you can switch wallet providers at any time.
Accounts, keys and addresses
- An account is a pair of keys.
- The public key is used to create your address, which you can share freely. Ethereum addresses always start with “0x”.
- The private key must stay secret, because it is used to sign transactions.
- A wallet is the tool that uses those keys to interact with your account. Most wallets can generate a new account for you.
Types of wallets
- Hardware wallets keep your crypto offline.
- Mobile wallet apps
- Browser wallets and browser extension wallets
- Desktop applications for macOS, Windows or Linux
Seed phrases and safety
Many wallets give you a seed phrase, a list of words that ethereum.org describes as often the only way to recover your wallet. Write it down and keep it somewhere safe, not on a computer. As ethereum.org puts it, “there’s no customer support in crypto”. Anyone who learns your seed phrase or private key can take your assets, and a lost private key means the funds are gone for good. Legitimate companies never ask for your passwords or security codes by email, text or phone.
- Bookmark your web wallet to avoid phishing sites.
- Never type an address by hand. Copy it or scan a QR code instead.
- Make sure the recipient is on the same network as you, because the same token can exist on several networks.
- Keep enough ETH in the wallet to pay transaction fees.
- Triple-check everything, because transactions cannot be reversed.
Exchange or self-custody?
A centralized exchange links your account to a username and password that you can recover the usual way. But you are then trusting the exchange to hold your funds, and if it runs into financial trouble, your funds are at risk. Once you have a wallet, you can also hold ERC-20 tokens, use Ethereum layer 2 networks or read our overview of Ethereum.
Risk notice: crypto-assets are highly volatile and you can lose all the money you put in. This article is general information, not financial or investment advice. Always verify smart contracts, wallets and service providers yourself before using them.