Coinbase Wallet Review – Pros, Cons, Safety Revealed

Coinbase Wallet is a popular crypto wallet from leading US crypto exchange, Coinbase. It offers a wide range of features for buying, trading, and storing cryptos, and the wallet’s self-custody approach puts you in control of your crypto.

So, is Coinbase Wallet the best crypto wallet to store your tokens? We’ll dive into everything you need to know in our Coinbase Wallet review.

What Is Coinbase Wallet?

Coinbase Wallet is a self-custody crypto wallet from Coinbase, the largest US crypto exchange. It’s distinct from Coinbase’s custodial wallets, which are included with every Coinbase account. If you buy crypto through Coinbase, you have to transfer it to Coinbase Wallet in order to take full self-custody over it.

That said, you don’t have to buy or trade crypto with Coinbase in order to use Coinbase Wallet. You don’t even need a Coinbase.com account. The wallet does have some integrations with Coinbase’s exchange to make swapping tokens easier.

Coinbase Wallet supports thousands of tokens across dozens of networks, including Bitcoin, Ethereum, Dogecoin, and all Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM)-compatible blockchains. It also supports non-fungible tokens (NFTs) and dApps to help you dive fully into Web3.

What Type of Wallet Is Coinbase Wallet?

Coinbase Wallet is a self-custody crypto wallet, meaning only you have access to your wallet’s private keys. Coinbase does not have a copy of your wallet’s keys or any access to the tokens stored in your wallet.

This is different from storing tokens in a Coinbase.com exchange account. Exchange accounts with Coinbase.com are custodial, meaning Coinbase does have access to your private keys.

Supported Chains & Cryptocurrencies

Coinbase Wallet supports thousands of tokens across most major blockchains. Some of the top blockchains supported include:

• Bitcoin
• Ethereum
• Dogecoin
• Solana
• BNB Smart Chain
• Litecoin
• Avalanche
• Tron

In addition, all Ethereum Layer-2 networks—like Base, Arbitrum, and Optimism—are supported. All other EVM-compatible blockchains and tokens built on them are also supported by Coinbase Wallet. You can import existing crypto wallets into Coinbase Wallet or connect a Coinbase.com account for seamless trading.

Notably, Coinbase Wallet does not support Bitcoin Cash (BCH), Ethereum Classic (ETC), Stellar (XLM), or Ripple (XRP).

In addition to crypto tokens, Coinbase Wallet also supports NFTs hosted on the Ethereum or Polygon blockchains. The wallet doesn’t support NFTs created through lazy minting on OpenSea or NFTs in the ERC-1155 standard.

Coinbase Wallet Features & Tools

Let’s take a look at some of the features and tools that help Coinbase Wallet stand out.

Multiple Wallets

Coinbase Wallet supports up to 15 wallet addresses per account for both Ethereum and Solana. This enables you to create multiple wallets for different purposes, as well as “burner” wallets for interacting with potentially dangerous dApps or websites. You can also import any number of existing Ethereum or Solana wallets to Coinbase Wallet, making it easier to manage all of your tokens from one place.

Buying, Selling, and Swapping Crypto

Coinbase Wallet integrates with Coinbase.com as well as several major DEXs, which are available though the dApp library. Connecting a Coinbase.com account only takes seconds, although it’s important to note that you will need to go through a full Know Your Customer (KYC) process in order to sign up for Coinbase.com.

With a connected account, you can easily move assets between the exchange and Coinbase Wallet. You can also buy and sell tokens directly through Coinbase Wallet using any of the payment methods supported by Coinbase.com, such as credit and debit cards and bank transfers.

Without a Coinbase.com account, you’re limited to buying up to $500 worth of crypto per week using only a debit card.

dApp Library and Web3 Browser

Coinbase Wallet’s dApp library is one of the most extensive we’ve seen, with nearly 100 dApps for decentralized finance (DeFi), DEXs, bridging between blockchains, and NFT trading. You can quickly connect to any of the listed dApps with a tap.

Coinbase Wallet also has an integrated Web3 browser, which you can use to connect to dApps and websites that aren’t listed in the dApp library. The browser offers tabs so you can have multiple connections open at once, and Coinbase Wallet offers alerts to help prevent you from connecting to potentially malicious sites.

Staking

Coinbase Wallet offers in-app staking on select tokens, including ETH, MATIC, and the USDC stablecoin. In addition to staking these tokens, you can use the wallet’s listed DeFi apps to find staking and earning opportunities for a much wider range of coins.

Coinbase Wallet Token

Neither Coinbase.com nor Coinbase Wallet have a native token. Coinbase’s Layer-2 network for Ethereum, Base, also doesn’t have its own token and instead uses ETH as its gas token. Coinbase has indicated that it does not plan to launch its own crypto token in the future.

Security – Is Coinbase Wallet Safe & Legit?

Coinbase Wallet was developed by Coinbase, the second-largest crypto exchange in the US and a publicly traded company on the NASDAQ stock exchange. So, users have reason to believe that the development behind this wallet is secure. Coinbase also has a lot of incentive to make sure the company’s wallet is safe, since any hack would likely send users running from the exchange even though Coinbase Wallet is a separate product.

Coinbase Wallet’s full self-custody design adds security since only users have access to their private keys. There’s no chance that Coinbase could ever take users’ crypto if, for example, the exchange ran into financial trouble.

On top of that, the wallet offers a number of advanced security features. It uses biometrics, passwords, and PIN locks to ensure only you have access to your wallet. It also slows down the transaction process with alerts and reviews, which gives you a chance to spot scammy dApps and smart contracts before you lose any crypto to them.

One especially nice feature is Coinbase Wallet’s dApp blacklist. If you try to connect to a dApp that Coinbase knows to be dangerous, you’ll get a warning before you continue. Similarly, Coinbase Wallet automatically hides assets that are known to be malicious from your home screen, potentially saving you from navigating to a compromised website.

If you use a hardware wallet like Ledger, you can also connect it to Coinbase Wallet. This is a nice way to keep your assets offline, beyond the reach of attackers, while still benefiting from Coinbase Wallet’s token management features.

The only major security feature that Coinbase Wallet is missing is crypto insurance. In the event your tokens are stolen, you won’t have any recourse with Coinbase.

Coinbase Wallet Fees

Coinbase Wallet is completely free to use and doesn’t charge any fees that go to Coinbase. However, if you use DEXs like Uniswap or 1inch to swap tokens within Coinbase Wallet, you’ll have to pay transaction fees for the swap. These fees are not controlled by Coinbase and you’d pay the same fees for making a swap with the DEX using any other decentralized crypto wallet.

The only way you could potentially pay fees to Coinbase when using Coinbase Wallet is if you connect to a Coinbase.com account. This allows you to trade cryptocurrencies in your Coinbase Wallet on Coinbase’s exchange. In this case, you’ll pay standard Coinbase trading fees, which start at 0.60% for liquidity takers and 0.40% for liquidity makers.

Coinbase Wallet App User Experience

Coinbase Wallet is a mobile crypto wallet available on both iOS and Android devices. You can also download Coinbase Wallet as a browser extension for Chrome or use the wallet in your web browser without a download.

We appreciated the setup process, which only takes a few seconds and doesn’t require any personal information—not even an email address. However, note that if you want to connect a Coinbase.com account to buy and sell cryptocurrencies, you’ll need to go through a full KYC process.

The wallet portion of Coinbase Wallet is actually just one tab out of five in the app’s menu. Here, you’ll see a list of your current crypto and NFT holdings, plus any assets you have connected to DeFi apps.

One thing we especially like is that Coinbase makes it easy to receive assets. You can claim a free username for your wallet, which is essentially an alias for your wallet address that’s short and memorable. Alternatively, you can copy or share your wallet address with a tap.

Another tab in the app displays your full transaction history. While it’s nice to be able to access this, we’d rather see this tab used to incorporate portfolio management tools. At present, it feels like a list of transactions and doesn’t add much value to Coinbase Wallet.

The swap tab is also overly simple. You don’t have much flexibility to choose which DEX you want to use, and Coinbase Wallet doesn’t search multiple DEXs to help you get the best price or the most liquidity. It almost feels like crypto trading is an afterthought for Coinbase Wallet—which makes sense since Coinbase would rather have you trade through a Coinbase.com account.

There are two Web3-focused tabs in the Coinbase Wallet app. One is a dashboard that you can use to create watchlists, monitor trending tokens on Base, and check out new NFTs. The dashboard feels a bit disorganized in the sense that the features it focuses on aren’t interconnected—or that relevant for most traders. However, we did appreciate the token watchlists and thought the dashboard was easy to use.

The other Web3 tab is the dApp explorer and browser. While Coinbase Wallet stands out for its selection of dApps, the app doesn’t do a very good job of organizing them. There are a few categories, but featured dApps aren’t highlighted in a noticeable way. Coinbase Wallet automatically tracks your browsing history, but you can’t save favorite dApps to a list to make them easier to access in the future. It feels like there’s a lot more that could be done to improve the Web3 experience in Coinbase Wallet.

Overall, we had mixed feelings about the app’s user experience, and Coinbase Wallet reviews indicate that users feel similarly. The wallet’s numerous features beyond simply storing and swapping cryptocurrencies can make it feel slightly overwhelming for first-time crypto users. At the same time, advanced features like the Web3 dashboard and dApp explorer could be vastly improved with a better layout. There’s potential for the Coinbase Wallet experience to be really great, but it’s not quite there yet.

How to Set Up a Coinbase Wallet Account

Getting started with Coinbase Wallet is fairly easy. Here’s how to set up a Coinbase Wallet account.

Step 1: Download Coinbase Wallet

Download the Coinbase Wallet app for iOS or Android. You can also download Coinbase Wallet for Chrome or create a new wallet directly on the web.

Step 2: Create New Wallet

Tap Create new wallet and scan your fingerprint or enter your device’s passcode to secure it.

Step 3: Choose a Username

Tap Claim my username to create a free username for your wallet. This makes it easier to remember your wallet address. You can also skip this step by tapping Maybe later.

That’s it. Now you can buy crypto or import tokens from an existing wallet to fund your Coinbase Wallet.

Is Coinbase Wallet the Best Crypto Wallet?

While Coinbase Wallet does a lot well, it’s not perfect. The wallet doesn’t support some key cryptocurrencies like XRP, and the DEXs it integrates with are relatively expensive. Coinbase Wallet also lacks tools to help you find new tokens, which is important for crypto traders and investors.

A worthy alternative to consider is Best Wallet, a fast-growing Web3 wallet that supports thousands of tokens across more than 60 blockchains, including Ripple. Best Wallet also has its own built-in DEX, Best DEX, that offers much lower fees for swapping tokens.

Another key benefit to Best Wallet is that it lets you buy and sell cryptocurrencies right from the app with no KYC checks or ID verification. That means you can stay fully anonymous and keep your activity on Web3 private—something that isn’t possible when using Coinbase Wallet with a Coinbase.com account.

Like Coinbase Wallet, Best Wallet offers a full self-custody design that puts you in full control of your digital assets. It incorporates many of the same advanced security features and even offers crypto insurance from Fireblocks, so you’re protected in case of a worst-case scenario.

Best Wallet is available to download for free today for iOS and Android. The wallet offers a seamless user experience and has a growing suite of Web3 features, including integrated staking and a built-in iGaming hub that makes it one of the best crypto wallets for gambling. Crucially, Best Wallet also has an Upcoming Tokens launchpad where you can join the hottest crypto presales right from the app.

Overall, we think Best Wallet is a better choice for most crypto traders and investors than Coinbase Wallet. Download it today to try it out for yourself.

Customer Support

Unfortunately, Coinbase’s customer support team doesn’t offer help with Coinbase Wallet. So, while you can get in touch with Coinbase by email, live chat, or phone to ask about a Coinbase.com account, there’s no one to contact with questions about Coinbase Wallet.

However, Coinbase’s online knowledge base does cover Coinbase Wallet. There are dozens of support articles explaining how to use Coinbase Wallet, what assets it supports, and what the limitations of its features are. This documentation is nice, but it’s not a full replacement for being able to speak to a person when you run into issues.

Final Words

Coinbase Wallet can be a good option for experienced crypto users who want access to one of the largest dApp libraries we’ve seen. It’s also suitable for existing Coinbase.com users who want to move their crypto tokens into a self-custody wallet.

However, Coinbase Wallet may be less desirable for new crypto users because of the complexity of its user interface. The lack of support for major cryptocurrencies like XRP and the fact that Coinbase doesn’t have an integrated token launchpad can also be major sticking points.

Because of this, we recommend Best Wallet as the top crypto wallet to use today. Best Wallet is available for iOS and Android—download it today to start buying, selling, swapping, and storing tokens.

Coinbase Wallet

7.2

Fees

7.0/10

Ease of use

7.0/10

Support

6.0/10

Reputation

9.0/10

Supported Chains

7.0/10

Pros

• Thousands of tokens & NFTs supported
• Large dApp library and built-in Web3 browser
• Convenient username feature
• 2FA and biometric authentication for security

Cons

• Doesn’t support Ripple (XRP)
• User experience could be improved
• No integrated token launchpad
• No customer support beyond an online knowledge base

FAQs

References

1. What is Self-custody in Crypto? (Ledger)
2. Connecting to Web3: What’s a Web3 Browser? (Brave)
3. Coinbase Has No Plans to Launch Base Token: CEO Brian Armstrong (Decrypt)

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Jose Aquino

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Jose Rafael Aquino is a Filipino writer and entrepreneur that specializes in finance, technology, cryptocurrency, and sports. Versed in the startup tech space, he has written for websites such as The GUIDON, TradingPlatforms, StockApps, and BuyShares. Read More

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