Trust Wallet Review – Pros, Cons, Safety Revealed

Recent crypto exchange breaches make crypto self-custody and secure storage more important than ever. Wallet apps like Trust Wallet make self-custody easy with newbie-friendly features. In this Trust Wallet review, we’ll explore the app’s pros and cons, features, and use cases.

Since its launch in 2017, Trust Wallet has garnered more than 140 million users worldwide, proving its staying power. But are there alternatives that are a better fit for many users? Let’s find out.

Our Verdict on Trust Wallet

In our Trust Wallet review, we found that the wallet has both strengths and weaknesses. On the one hand, Trust Wallet is a non-custodial wallet that gives users control over their private keys, supports a wide range of other digital assets, and offers various built-in security features such as passcodes and biometric authentication. Additionally, the wallet allows users to swap or buy crypto directly within the app, supports in-wallet staking, and has a built-in Web3 browser for easy access to decentralized applications.

However, the app isn’t a perfect fit for everyone. Limited customer support, no two-factor authentication, limited scam token detection, and high fees for third-party crypto providers are all downsides to consider. These limitations may make Trust Wallet less appealing to some users, particularly those who prioritize ease of use, security, and cost-effectiveness. Later in the review, we’ll compare Trust Wallet against alternatives.

What is Trust Wallet?

Trust Wallet is a self-custody, multi-chain wallet that enables users to securely store, send, and receive digital assets across 100+ blockchains, meaning, for example, it can function as both a Bitcoin wallet and an Ethereum wallet. Given its long history in the space, Trust Wallet has become a well-established player in the cryptocurrency wallet market.

This popular mobile wallet was founded in 2017 and acquired by Binance in 2018. As a result of this acquisition, Trust Wallet has maintained a strong connection with the Binance ecosystem, allowing for tight integration with Binance services. However, users in areas not supported by Binance, such as the US, won’t benefit from Binance integration.

Although Trust Wallet is not entirely open-source, certain parts of its software operate under a GPL open-source license. The mobile app supports Android and iOS, and a web extension provides desktop support.

What Type of Wallet is Trust Wallet?

Trust Wallet is a non-custodial wallet, meaning the user controls the wallet’s private keys. Let’s examine this further.

• A custodial wallet is a type of wallet where a third party holds the keys.
• A non-custodial wallet gives the user full control over the keys.

A crypto wallet’s private keys control its assets on the blockchain. Think of a safe key: Anyone with access to the key can open the safe. Similarly, anyone with access to a wallet’s keys can access the wallet’s crypto assets.

A custodial wallet means someone else holds the keys. Crypto exchanges, for example, use custodial wallets, and the exchange controls the keys.

By contrast, Trust Wallet is a non-custodial wallet. This means that users have complete control and ownership of their digital assets, and their keys are stored locally on their devices rather than managed by a third party.

Supported Chains & Cryptocurrencies

Trust Wallet supports an impressive range of digital assets spanning over 100 blockchains. This broad support allows users to manage multiple wallets and crypto assets with a single wallet application.

Notably, Trust Wallet offers Wallet Connect support, enabling users to easily connect to decentralized applications (dApps) on multiple chains.

The app supports today’s top cryptocurrencies, with support for new chains added regularly.

Trust Wallet also supports tokens on many of these chains, expanding the list of supported cryptos into the tens of thousands, including most of today’s leading tokens.

It’s also worth noting that the range of supported chains is consistent across the Trust Wallet mobile app and browser extension, ensuring a straightforward experience for users regardless of their platform.

Additionally, Trust Wallet supports cross-chain swaps, such as BTC to ETH, allowing users to rebalance their holdings of supported assets.

Trust Wallet Features & Tools

Trust Wallet offers a wide range of features and tools to help users manage their digital assets effectively. Features such as the Token Launchpad make it easier for users to discover new tokens, while other tools help users earn yields, manage their crypto portfolio, or connect to dApps.

Binance Launchpool

Trust Wallet’s Launchpool feature integrates with Binance Launchpool and lets users stake BNB or other supported assets to earn tokens from new and emerging projects. However, the token selection on Launchpool is limited, and new listings are relatively infrequent.

At press time, the most recent listing expired 39 days ago, and the second most recent listing expired 96 days ago, indicating that new opportunities may not arise frequently.

Staking and Earning Rewards

Trust Wallet offers native staking for several Proof-of-Stake (PoS) chains, allowing users to earn staking rewards on their holdings. The supported chains for native staking include Ethereum (ETH), Binance Smart Chain (BNB), Polygon (MATIC), Solana (SOL), and others.

By staking their assets on supported chains, users help secure these chains and earn a portion of the block rewards. Binance provides this low-risk way to generate passive income, handling all the behind-the-scenes setup work, including running validators or sourcing trusted validators.

In addition to native staking, Trust Wallet also offers a feature called “Quests” that allows users to earn points by completing specific tasks or achieving certain milestones. Although the rewards for completing Quests have not been announced yet, users can still participate and earn points, which will presumably be redeemable for rewards once they are announced.

iGaming and Decentralized Applications (dApps)

Trust Wallet’s Discover tab provides users with access to a wide range of iGaming and decentralized applications (dApps). The in-app browser allows users to seamlessly explore and interact with these dApps, providing a user-friendly experience at your fingertips. Individual gaming platforms like JetTon offer a variety of games with prizes. Other apps include an AI-powered crypto-expert chatbot, staking platforms, NFT marketplaces, and much more.

Basic Portfolio Management

The Trust Wallet home screen displays a list of tokens held in the wallet, providing a straightforward overview of the user’s assets. Users can easily manage their tokens from this screen by buying, selling, sending, receiving, or swapping them for other assets. Additionally, users can access simple charts for supported cryptocurrencies, providing a basic visual representation of price trends and market data.

Trust Wallet Token

The Trust Wallet Token (TWT) serves as both a utility token and a governance token, offering users a range of benefits and perks. However, its utility is limited to its role within the Trust Wallet ecosystem.

Governance and Perks

One key advantage of TWT centers on its role in governance. By holding TWT, users can vote on proposals that shape the Trust Wallet project’s development and features.

Additionally, TWT can be used to receive discounts on various services within the app, including cryptocurrency purchases and decentralized exchange (DEX) transactions. In some cases, TWT may also grant access to exclusive features and functionalities within the Trust Wallet ecosystem. These perks vary, so watch the dashboard for offers.

TWT Staking

The TWT token can’t be used in traditional staking to validate transactions. Instead, the utility centers on governance and granting access to additional features or discounts. However, the token can be used to earn Launchpool rewards in some cases. When supported for a given launch, users can stake TWT (lock their tokens) to earn Launchpool tokens.

Presale and Tokenomics

TWT is available as a BEP-2 token on the BNB Beacon Chain, a BEP-20 asset on the BNB Smart Chain, and an SPL token on the Solana network. Its total supply is 1 billion, and approximately 416 million tokens are circulating.

The Trust Wallet Token (TWT) launched on August 9, 2019, with a presale price of $0.01. It also had multiple airdrop events. Half of the total token supply was dedicated to the presale, which exposed the tokens to a broader pool of early investors.

TWT’s current market capitalization exceeds $350 million. However, the token’s market cap topped $1 billion in December 2022.

The token’s primary utility is within the Trust Wallet ecosystem, providing a gateway to additional discounts or unlocking additional features. TWT also functions as a governance token and may, in some cases, qualify as a staking asset for Launchpool listings.

Security – Is Trust Wallet Safe & Legit?

Trust Wallet is a non-custodial ‘hot’ wallet, meaning that users have full control over their private keys and crypto assets. This approach provides an additional layer of security by removing risks associated with third-party key custodians.

While some parts of the Trust Wallet codebase are open-source, allowing for transparency and community scrutiny, other parts of the mobile app are closed-source. This mixed approach may raise concerns about the wallet’s security and transparency.

Trust Wallet’s open-source components are licensed under permissive licenses, including the GNU General Public License (GPL) and the MIT License. These licenses allow for the free use, modification, and distribution of the software, promoting transparency and community involvement. Just as importantly, they allow anyone to analyze the open-source code independently.

However, Trust Wallet has undergone security audits conducted by Certik, a reputable security auditing firm. These audits span the browser extension’s codebase to the TWT token code itself, as shown below.

The wallet also protects user funds and data with security measures including encryption and secure password storage.

Additionally, Trust Wallet is backed by Binance, one of the largest and most reputable cryptocurrency exchanges in the world. Binance has a strong track record of prioritizing user security and safety.

Trust Wallet Fees

Trust Wallet is a self custody wallet, so there are no fees for storing or managing cryptocurrencies. However, some fees are associated with using the wallet, particularly when buying and selling cryptocurrencies. Additionally, you’ll pay network fees to send crypto assets or interact with smart contracts. Trust Wallet does not set network fees, which vary based on network traffic and demand.

The primary fees involved in using Trust Wallet relate to buying and selling cryptocurrencies through third-party providers. Some of the providers that integrate with Trust Wallet include:

• Moonpay
• Mercuryo
• Banxa
• Transak
• Ramp
• Alchemy Pay
• Simplex

These providers charge fees for their services, which can vary depending on the provider, the cryptocurrency being bought or sold, and the payment method used. On average, expect to pay 2.5% to 6% or more when using a third-party provider like those listed above.

Please note that these fees are subject to change and may vary depending on the specific cryptocurrency, payment method, and other factors. It’s always a good idea to check the current fees and rates before making a transaction.

Under the hood, these providers use a spread to provide a fixed price. A spread is a price that uses a buffer to lock in a quote, essentially adding a margin to the current market price to account for various factors such as market volatility, liquidity, and risk. When buying cryptocurrencies, a spread can result in a higher or lower price than the current spot price, depending on the provider and the market conditions.

Purchase Price vs Spot Price

Let’s consider an example to illustrate the impact of these fees. Suppose we want to buy Ethereum (ETH) using $150 USD through different Trust Wallet providers.

The current spot price of ETH is 0.079657 ETH per $150 USD. We’ll use this as a basis of comparison.

Here’s the amount of ETH we can buy using each provider:

The price difference to buy ETH or other cryptocurrencies varies widely and can change throughout the day, depending on market volatility and other factors. However, once you have funded your wallet, most of your fees will be network fees or swap costs, which are generally much lower as a percentage. Simple storage costs nothing.

Often, the cheapest way to fund your Trust Wallet is to buy cryptocurrencies through a trusted centralized exchange and then withdraw them to your wallet. This method can help avoid the higher fees associated with third-party on-ramp providers.

Crypto-to-Crypto Swap Costs

In addition to the fees associated with buying and selling cryptocurrencies, Trust Wallet also facilitates crypto-to-crypto swaps through various liquidity providers, including Binance and the Kyber Network. The costs of these swaps are typically determined by the liquidity provider and can vary depending on the specific assets being swapped, market conditions, and other factors.

Here are some examples of crypto-to-crypto swap costs on Trust Wallet:

• BTC-ETH: 0.5%-1.5% spread
• ETH-DAI: 0.1%-0.5% spread
• BTC-LTC: 1%-3% spread

In many cases, Trust Wallet routes these through liquidity pools, which pay liquidity providers a fee. The user pays this fee. However, cross-chain swaps can use several mechanisms, ranging from bridges to smart contracts.

Actual costs and spreads may vary depending on market conditions and liquidity providers for specific assets. Before making a cross-chain swap, it’s always a good idea to check the current exchange rate.

Trust Wallet App User Experience

Although often referred to as a user-friendly option, we found Trust Wallet better suited to experienced users who understand what the wallet displays. For example, when importing an ETH wallet, the assets on other Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM) networks did not show. We had to manually add the wallet again for Base and Arbitrum, which a newer user may not know how to do or why their balances aren’t showing.

Viewing all your crypto wallets did not show the funds committed to smart contracts, such as staking. Some other wallets do a better job in this regard. To a new user, it may appear that funds committed to staking or used to purchase newer tokens that don’t show in the wallet just disappeared. Trust wallet allows adding custom tokens, but support for protocols appears weak in comparison to other choices.

Less-than-perfect situations like those just described likely contribute to the lower ratings on Trustpilot for “Trust Wallet Support,” where the listing page shows 1.2 out of 5 stars for Trust Wallet reviews submitted by users. While this is an unclaimed listing on the well-known review site, hundreds of users have posted Trust Wallet reviews that spotlight difficulties they encountered with the app.

Some common user complaints about the Trust app include:

• Poor customer support, with long response times and unhelpful support
• Issues with syncing and connectivity, including delays and errors
• Limited functionality and features compared to other cryptocurrency wallets
• Problems with transactions, such as delayed or lost funds

In fairness, we only experienced limited functionality from this list of user complaints. For questions that can’t be resolved via chat, support is available through AI-powered chat or a ticket system.

We didn’t experience sync issues or delays, nor did we lose any funds — although it’s easy to see how some users may think they’ve lost funds. Limited token support and the need to add a wallet for each chain can make it appear as though funds have disappeared.

Some aspects of the wallet remain straightforward, including sending crypto to another wallet address. Users can choose an address from an address book. Alternatively, you can paste an address or scan a QR code to populate the address field accurately.

After you complete a transaction, you can view the transaction history for all transactions. Trust Wallet also provides a link to the appropriate blockchain explorer to view the on-chain transactions.

Trust Wallet also supports Wallet Connect, which makes it easy to connect to dApps outside of the wallet. You can also find many popular decentralized apps inside the app using the in-app browser.

How to Setup a Trust Wallet Account

Next, in our Trust Wallet review, we’ll learn how to set up the wallet app with just a few clicks. To get started with Trust Wallet, you’ll need to follow a series of simple steps to download, install, and set up your account. We’ll focus on the mobile app, although the steps to install the browser extension are similar.

1. Download the Trust Wallet App

The first step is to download the Trust Wallet app to your mobile device from the App Store (iOS) or Play Store (Android). The official link is on the App’s download page.

2. Choose ‘New Wallet’ & Agree to the Terms

Once you download the Trust Wallet crypto wallet app, choose whether you want a new wallet or want to import an existing wallet. We’ll start a new wallet for this example. Making a selection here also means you agree to the terms of service and privacy policy. Trust Wallet provides a link to view the terms of service beforehand.

3. Set Up a PIN Code

Next, you’ll need to set up a 6-digit PIN code to add an extra layer of security to your wallet. If your device supports fingerprint authentication, you can also enable that access method at this step.

4. Create Your New Wallet and Back it Up

After setting up your PIN code, you can create a new wallet. Trust Wallet recommends using a seed phrase, a 12-word phrase you can use to back up your wallet and restore it if needed.

Look for the setting icon and select your new wallet. Click on the three dots next to the wallet name to choose a backup option. Trust Wallet allows you to store your backup in your Google account. In this example, we’ll manually write down the seed phrase and store it safely offline.

5. Fund Your Wallet

Now, it’s time to fund your wallet. You can buy crypto directly within the app, as we discussed earlier in this Trust Wallet review. You can also send crypto from another wallet, such as an exchange wallet or another crypto wallet.

Trust Wallet Customer Support

Trust Wallet provides multiple customer support options to help users resolve any issues they may encounter. The wallet has an extensive search-enabled support page that allows you to find answers to common questions and problems. Additionally, you can access an AI-powered chatbot on the help page, which can provide automated support and guidance. We tested it with some new-user questions and it performed well.

If the chatbot cannot resolve an issue, you can open a ticket to request further assistance. This allows you to contact the Trust Wallet support team and receive more personalized help. The ticket system uses your email address.

It’s worth noting that while Trust Wallet’s customer support options are available, some Trust Wallet users have reported mixed experiences with the support team. However, the availability of a search-enabled help section and an AI-powered chatbot can still be helpful in resolving common issues and answering questions.

Is Trust the Best Crypto Wallet?

Trust Wallet is a well-established crypto wallet with a strong reputation for security and reliability. However, it has some limitations, such as limited customer support and no two-factor authentication. Additionally, the wallet is better suited for experienced users, as some features can be complex and require technical knowledge.

For example, adding Ethereum accounts can be a multi-step process, especially if you need to access Layer-2 networks. This can make it difficult for new users to use the wallet or even lead to expensive mistakes.

If you’re looking for a more streamlined and user-friendly experience, you can also consider Best Wallet. This mobile app makes it easy to manage your digital assets and includes an integrated DEX aggregator that allows you to trade cryptocurrencies at the best prices available. The wallet also supports over 60 blockchains, giving you access to the most popular coins and tokens.

Some of the key features of Best Wallet include:

• Two-factor authentication (2FA) for added security
• Biometric (fingerprint) logins
• Buy and sell crypto directly within the app
• Token launchpad for early access to emerging projects
• iGaming hub
• In-app cross-chain swaps
• Scam token detection

Best Wallet’s upcoming staking aggregator will allow you to earn rewards on your digital assets and easily compare yields, and there is in-app chat support.

A full-featured wallet app doesn’t have to be complicated to use, and Best Wallet delivers the features experienced users expect while also providing a welcoming experience for new users.

The Verdict

Trust Wallet is a well-established crypto wallet with a strong reputation for security and reliability, which is useful for anyone not using hardware wallets, or “cold wallets”. However, it has some limitations, such as limited customer support and no two-factor authentication. The wallet is also better suited to experienced users because adding tokens and additional chains for the same wallet address can be daunting.

Best Wallet is a viable alternative for users looking for a more streamlined and user-friendly experience. This mobile app offers many features, including two-factor authentication, biometric logins, and an integrated DEX aggregator. It also supports over 60 blockchains, making it a solid choice for investors who hold a range of crypto assets.

While Trust Wallet is a solid option, Best Wallet may be a better fit for users who prioritize ease of use and advanced features.

Get Best Wallet

Trust Wallet

6.7

Fees

7.0/10

Ease of use

6.5/10

Support

6.0/10

Reputation

6.0/10

Supported chains

8.0/10

Pros

• Compatible with many chains
• Private keys
• Great security

Cons

• No 2FA
• Limited support desk
• Over-complex for new users
• Launchpool seems inactive

FAQs

References:

• Trust Wallet Certik (certik.com)
• User Trust Wallet Support Reviews (trustpilot.com)
• Trust Wallet Download (trustwallet.com)
• Trust Wallet Support (trustwallet.com)
• Open-Source Trust Wallet Core (github.com)