The estimated number of crypto users worldwide is nearing half a billion. With geopolitical turmoils affecting the economy, more and more people are turning to decentralized assets to secure and increase their wealth.
In recent years, venturing into the crypto space has become much easier thanks to numerous online and offline solutions supporting investments, trading strategies, asset management, analysis, transactions, and HODL-ing.
Let's look at some of the best available crypto tools in several key categories.
Crypto hot wallets – best crypto tools for online asset management
Cryptocurrencies, like Bitcoin and Ethereum, are digital assets existing on decentralized blockchains. Transactions are securely recorded in blocks, and ownership is maintained through cryptographic private and public keys, ensuring decentralization and security.
Crypto keys are the linchpin of crypto wallets of any kind. Private keys are used to sign transactions and prove ownership of cryptocurrency assets. On the other hand, public keys are shared for transactions and receiving funds.
Overall, crypto wallets are a form of interface for managing cryptocurrencies, allowing users to access, store, and manage digital assets on a blockchain, including receiving and sending crypto, checking balance and transaction history, interacting with decentralized applications (dapps), and more.
Essentially, crypto wallets can be classified into two groups: hardware-based cold wallets and software-based hot wallets.
The latter are connected to the internet, while cold wallets are not. Hence, hot wallets are more vulnerable to hacking, while their hardware counterparts are more secure, at least from online threats. The reason is simple: as physical gadgets, they are designed to store crypto offline, keeping them fully immune to hacking attempts.
Still, most users go for hot wallets since they're more convenient for executing transactions, trading, and interacting with web3 services.
Hot wallets are frequently a feature offered by crypto exchanges, but they're also available as a standalone product, including desktop wallets, mobile wallets, and online (web-based) wallets. Here, we focus on the latter option.
Coinbase Wallet
Coinbase Wallet is a self-custody cryptocurrency wallet provided by Coinbase, one of the biggest cryptocurrency exchanges worldwide.
Coinbase Wallet is a standalone service independent of the platform. The wallet allows you to store and manage all your cryptocurrencies and NFTs in one place, providing support for hundreds of thousands of tokens and dapps in a highly secure environment.
Coinbase Wallet comes with a straightforward and user-friendly interface, making it accessible for both beginners. The wallet is available as a mobile app for both iOS and Android devices, allowing users to manage their cryptocurrencies on the go.
Users with accounts on Coinbase exchange can easily link their wallets to the platform, allowing for seamless transfer of funds between the exchange and the wallet and facilitating crypto trading.
MetaMask
MetaMask is a popular self-custodial crypto wallet and browser extension that allows users to interact with decentralized applications (DApps). It serves as a bridge between your web browser and the Ethereum blockchain, enabling you to manage your Ethereum-based assets, execute transactions, and access various decentralized applications directly from your browser. The app includes:
- MetaMask Portfolio, a one-stop shop for managing digital assets across accounts and monitoring multi-chain token balances.
- Swaps, a functionality allowing crypto traders to buy and sell Ethereum tokens from inside the MetaMask wallet,
- Buy Crypto, a "Buy"-button feature making it as easy as possible to purchase crypto assets,
- MetaMask Snaps, a beta-stage feature allowing users to connect to non-Ethereum blockchains to better explore crypto markets.
Key MetaMask's advantages include a user-friendly interface, high security, integration with web3 and support for a variety of dapps extending to non-Ethereum crypto projects, and multiplatform access (the wallet is also available as a mobile app).
Guarda
Guarda is a multiplatform crypto wallet available as a desktop, mobile, and web app supporting over 300 hundred crypto coins. In 2022, the company also released a prepaid Visa card that can be topped up with crypto.
Guarda is a lightweight, user-friendly crypo tool that allows users to easily send and receive coins. It also provides a fast crypto exchange platform enabling crypto traders to trade coins and tokens like Bitcoin, Ethereum, Bitcoin Cash, Ethereum Classic, Litecoin, Monero, Ripple, TRON, BEP2, TRC10, TRC20, ERC20 tokens, and many more.
Guarda also provides crypto-backed loans for users who need to get fiat money without exchanging cryptocurrencies and missing out on their appreciation. Users can simply borrow USDT or other stablecoins on the platform, leaving their digital assets as collateral. Then, they can spend USDT wherever they like.
Similarly to Coinbase Wallet and MetaMask, Guarda is also a convenient, user-friendly, and secure app for managing crypto.
Crypto cold wallets – best crypto tools for offline asset protection
If you prioritize security, a cold wallet may be a better option than a hot one. Even though software wallets typically offer top-tier security, the crypto space abounds with threats, and crypto criminals are getting increasingly clever in targeting their victims.
Crypto cold wallets allow you to keep private keys offline, providing immunity from online threats – save for social engineering attacks that trick you into revealing your private key or recovery seed phrase. Cold wallets work best as a long-term storage tool, minimizing the exposure to online risks, so they're a perfect choice for HODL-ers.
For crypto traders, cold storage simply won't work. To process transactions, hardware wallets need to be plugged into a device with an internet connection, making them vulnerable to attacks. As a result, they lose an advantage over hot wallets while inherently lacking advanced features. Overall, they don't support fast trading decisions and are best as a reliable tool for securing crypto investments.
Here's a brief overview of top cold wallets for enhancing the security of your digital assets.
Ledger Nano X
Ledger is a pocket-size cold storage wallet that stores keys to your crypto in an offline mode. The device can be connected to your phone or notebook for transactions, enabling transferring coins for crypto trading or other purposes.
Currently, Ledger offers three hardware wallets: Ledger Nano S Plus for entry-level users, Ledger Nano X for convenient daily use, and Ledger Stax, the most advanced of the pack, offering additional features at a considerably greater price.
All three models provide top-notch security, support NFTs and over 1000 coins, and are compatible with Ledger Live – an all-in-one app for crypto trading and management.
Additionally, Nano X enables Bluetooth connection. It may lack some of Stax's features, but it's more compact, cheaper, and good enough for securing your assets.
Trezor Safe 3
Trezor is another hardware wallet for conscious crypto investors who want to keep their assets safe. Developed by SatoshiLabs, a Czech-based company, the device offers high-level security and easy coin management through the Trezor Suite application, enabling coin management, crypto investing, and monitoring your crypto portfolio. Similarly to Ledger, Trezor offers three devices of varying functionality.
Trezor Model One is the original wallet. Trezor Safe 3 is similar in shape and size but comes with security tweaks, including the integration of the Secure Element protected Certified Chip EAL6+ and support for Shamir backup, a method for splitting seed phrases for extra security.
Trezor Model Tree comes with a usability improvement, offering a touchscreen. But if you're okay with the classic two-button pad, Trezor Safe 3 is just as good and much kinder on your pocket.
KeepKey
KeepKey is another popular hardware wallet for secure crypto management. Unlike its above-described competition, the company offers only one device, but it's got what it takes and comes at a competitive price. The product is larger than a memory stick and resembles a compact power bank.
KeepKey features a large and easy-to-read display, making it convenient for users to verify transaction details directly on the device. Additionally, KeepKey uses a sizeable physical button for approving transactions, increasing usability.
The wallet supports a variety of cryptocurrencies, including Bitcoin, Ethereum, Litecoin, Dash, and more, so users can manage multiple assets on one device. KeepKey provides native integration with Thorchain, a network facilitating native asset settlement between Bitcoin, Ethereum, BNB Chain, Dogecoin, Bitcoin Cash, and more.
Last but not least, KeepKey offers a standalone application with a native RESTful API that simplifies the dapp development process.
Centralized crypto exchanges – best crypto trading tools
Crypto exchanges are online platforms where you can buy, sell, and trade various cryptocurrencies. Essentially, they are crypto trading tools that allow knowledgeable investors to make a profit by swapping their digital assets.
Crypto exchanges are also go-to spots for newbies looking to dive into the crypto world. The crypto market offers a large selection of these platforms. For example, CoinRanking website lists over 120 of them ranked by trading volume, while CoinGecko tracks as many as 850 such platforms ranked by the trust score.
Crypto exchanges differ in many ways and offer different features. Basically, though, they can be divided into two distinct categories: centralized and decentralized. Centralized crypto exchanges (CEX) act as intermediaries connecting users and facilitating crypto trading.
They are a central authority that manages order books, executes trade matches, and holds user funds in custody. Overall, they provide a structured platform for buyers and sellers. Decentralized exchanges work differently, but we'll get to that soon.
Now, let's have a brief overview of top custodial cryptocurrency trading tools and some of the most reliable exchanges.
Binance
Binance is by far the largest exchange by 24-hour crypto trading volume and registered users (around 30 million). It boasts a 9/10 Trust Score on CoinGecko, which uses a range of metrics such as liquidity, the scale of operations, cybersecurity, and more for evaluating the credibility of crypto platforms (you can check the full methodology here).
Binance is probably the best-known brand in the crypto exchange industry, not least due to the celebrity status of its former CEO, Changpeng "CZ" Zhao, who had to give up his post after having a head-on collision with the American administration.
Overall, Binance ranks among the best crypto trading tools with a low-entry threshold for beginners, a user-friendly interface, a strong focus on security, and over 1,100 markets. Binance also provides data about reserves.
Gate.io
Gate.io is another top brand in the crypto exchange space. With over 1,700 listed cryptocurrencies and a record support for over 2,700 trading pairs, it can easily be considered one of the best crypto trading tools. Gate.io also boasts an outstanding Trust Score of 10/10, shared with only three other cryptocurrency exchanges.
Like Binance, the platform shares data about its reserves, but in this case, they have been vetted. In 2020, Gate.io became the first mainstream cryptocurrency exchange to successfully perform a proof-of-reserves audit, adding credibility and transparency to its operations. The second audit was completed two years later by an independent third-party firm.
Currently, Gate.io boasts over 14 million users, being one of the most popular crypto trading tools.
Bybit
Bybit is one of the leading trading platforms which has recently experienced explosive growth. The platform's user base has increased by 50% in 2023, exceeding 15 million. The company boasts being the world's third most visited cryptocurrency exchange and the second-largest one in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region (it's headquartered in Dubai).
Like Gate.io, Bytbit scores 10 out of 10 in Coingecko's trust rating and provides data about its reserves confirmed by an independent audit. The platform ranks third in terms of 24-hour volume and fourth by monthly visits.
Overall, Bybit is an intuitive, newbie-friendly platform with a low entry threshold and lots of crypto trading tools, including copy trading, crypto trading bots, and TradeGPT – an AI-powered trading tool.
Decentralized exchanges – best non-custodial crypto tools for traders
Unlike CEX, decentralized exchanges (DEX) are crypto trading platforms that operate without a central authority or intermediary. They facilitate peer-to-peer trading directly on the blockchain, allowing users to retain control over their private keys and funds. Transactions are executed by smart contracts, ensuring transparency and reducing the risk of hacking or fraud associated with centralized exchanges.
Overall, DEX are more secure crypto trading tools than CEX, which are targeted by hackers. On decentralized platforms, users can trade a variety of cryptocurrencies directly from their wallets without the need to deposit funds on an exchange. Such an approach aligns with the principles of decentralization, empowering users with greater control over their assets.
Not being supervised by a central authority, DEX offer more privacy. They're also less susceptible to censorship since they operate on decentralized networks, making it harder for authorities to take control of the platform. The cons include limited liquidity, below-par user experience, and a limited selection of trading pairs that may impact your trading strategy.
Now, here's a glimpse of the most popular DEX platforms and some of the best crypto trading tools.
Uniswap
Uniswap is by far the most popular DEX platform and easily ranks among the best crypto tools for seasoned traders. It's important to understand that Uniswap works differently than e.g. Binance. In fact, Uniswap is an automated liquidity protocol and a peer-to-peer system designed for exchanging crypto assets on the Ethereum blockchain (ERC-20 Tokens).
Launched in 2018, Uniswap has quickly grown to become the number 1 DEX globally, with over $1.5 trillion in trading volume and 250 million swaps. Currently, Uniswap is the fifth largest application on Ethereum with a total value locked (TVL) exceeding $4 billion.
Due to high gas fees and network congestion on the Ethereum mainnet, the protocol has also been deployed on other blockchains and layer-2 solutions to solve scalability issues and provide users with alternatives.
That's why Coingecko lists multiple exchanges named Uniswap, which are, in fact, multiple instances of Uniswap operating as different blockchain networks or layers, including Uniswap V3 (Polygon), Uniswap V3 (Arbitrum One) and others.
Curve
Curve is another Ethereum-based decentralized exchange. It is optimized for trading stablecoins – cryptocurrencies pegged to the value of fiat currencies, such as the dollar or euro. Rolled out in December 2019, Curve has become one of the go-to DEX platforms for traders with a strong focus on stablecoins.
Like Uniswap, the protocol is based on liquidity pools – collections of tokens or cryptocurrencies locked in smart contracts on a decentralized finance (DeFi) network and used to facilitate trading. In such a model, users trade against smart contracts rather than with each other. For example, a trader who wants to swap Dai for USDC sends their crypto to the Dai-USDC pool and receives a corresponding amount of USDC from that pool.
Users who deposit their assets into pools are compensated with fees. Curve stands out for providing low slippage and low fees for users exchanging stablecoins. It also features its own governance token, CRV, which grants voting rights to its holders. The DEX is ranked fifth on Coingecko by daily volume and market share.
Orca
Orca is a decentralized cryptocurrency exchange built on Solana – a high-performance blockchain platform designed for decentralized applications and cryptocurrencies, known for its high throughput and low transaction fees.
Solana uses a unique mechanism called Proof of History (PoH) as a timekeeping protocol, helping order transactions before they are processed, which improves efficiency and scalability. Since Orca was launched in February 2021, over 1.7 million unique wallets have bought or sold crypto using the protocol. Currently, Coingecko lists Orca as the second DEX by 24-hour volume.
The platform offers a more than decent number of pairs and boasts over 10% of the market share by volume. It's also one of the most user-friendly crypto tools for traders in the DEX segment.
Best crypto analysis tools for exploring crypto data and technical indicators
Investing in the cryptocurrency space puts a lot of burden on crypto enthusiasts in terms of staying up to date with market data as well as the developments in the crypto industry. Making the right market moves requires a lot of effort, including:
- following real-time data and crypto signals,
- interpreting technical analysis indicators,
- analyzing historical data and on-chain data,
- doing your own research and crypto analysis that may include verifying a specific crypto project or reading a white paper, etc.
Crypto analytics can be made easier by a variety of crypto research tools and technical analysis tools providing crypto reports with comprehensive data. There is a great number of crypto analytics tools. Many of them offer extensive features, although some are focused on or primarily known for specific applications.
Examples include technical analysis and charting tools (e.g., TradingView), on-chain data exploration tools (e.g., CoinMetrics), market cap trackers (CoinMarketCap), or blockchain insights tools (Chainalysis).
In this comprehensive overview, we cannot cover them all, so we focus on the few selected to give you a taste of what you can expect from crypto research sites.
Below, you can find some of the best crypto analysis tools for performing advanced analytics and producing detailed crypto reports.
CoinGecko
CoinGecko is a crypto data aggregator platform that provides a comprehensive set of information about various cryptocurrencies and may be the single best crypto research site for both newcomers and advanced users. This crypto tool aims to deliver a holistic view of the market by combining data from multiple sources.
CoinGecko provides detailed crypto market data and statistics for cryptocurrencies, exchanges (CEX and DEX), and NFTs, including the current price, 24h volume, market capitalization, liquidity, floor price, owners number (for NFTs), market share (for DEX), and more.
The platform also tracks community growth and ranks cryptocurrencies (assigns a TrustScore) based on their overall community score, taking into account factors such as liquidity, developer activity, and community engagement.
However, CoinGecko hasn't been designed as a technical analysis tool since it displays rather basic technical indicators in its charts and doesn't provide advanced charting tool features.
Chainalysis
Chainalysis is a crypto analysis tool providing solutions for monitoring and analyzing transactions on blockchain networks. The company's technology is often used by law enforcement, financial institutions, and businesses to enhance their understanding of blockchain transactions and to address issues such as fraud, money laundering, and compliance.
Crypto analytics tools developed by Chainanalysis allow users to monitor and analyze transactions on various blockchain networks, including Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies.
The company has also created the industry's first risk benchmarking tool, enabling financial institutions to identify crypto companies that suit their risk expectations based on how they compare to their industry peers.
The platform also offers visualization tools that present transaction data in a user-friendly and understandable format and real-time monitoring with immediate alerts to suspicious transactions.
Glassnode
Glassnode is one of the top research tools focused on blockchain analytics. The platform can also be considered a crypto research site as it provides on-chain data and insights for cryptocurrencies.
Glassnode's analysis tools and metrics can drive better results in a number of fields, including quantitative trading, exchange risk management, discretionary trading, research, and content creation, enhancing clarity and credibility.
The platform facilitates deriving actionable insights with a suite of charting tools and personal dashboards for uncovering trading signals. With Glassnode's capabilities, you can easily follow technical indicators and perform in-depth crypto analysis to stay on top of market trends.
It's also worth noting that the company publishes regular market intelligence reports containing an in-depth examination of on-chain trends and market dynamics.
Crypto tax tools – top crypto tools for handling your tax obligations
With an increasing number of longevity startups and options for immortality taking shape, taxes remain the only certain thing in the known universe. Staying truly anonymous in the cryptocurrency world is a growing challenge, especially if you use popular crypto trading tools. In other words, there's no hiding from tax authorities, so be sure you pay your dues to the state treasury.
Easier said than done when the system is laden with bureaucracy. Fortunately, you're not alone in this mess. Crypto tax tools have emerged as an invaluable aid, providing users with a convenient way to manage their tax obligations across different countries with varying crypto regulations.
They are software applications designed to help individuals and businesses manage and calculate their tax obligations related to cryptocurrency transactions, streamlining the process of tracking, reporting, and calculating taxes on cryptocurrency gains and losses.
Here's an overview of the top three crypto tax tools that will help you get square with the revenue service.
Coinpanda
Coinpanda is a cryptocurrency tax platform designed to simplify the process of calculating and reporting taxes on cryptocurrency transactions.
The app aims to help users minimize their taxes and maximize profits, saving time and money. Coinpanda leads you by the hand in a three-stage process that involves importing transactions, previewing capital gains, and generating the report.
The whole effort lasts about 20 minutes. The platform supports over 800 exchanges and wallets, over 65 countries, over 50,000 cryptocurrencies, and over 240 blockchains. Coinpanda gives you full insight into your portfolio's value and performance through a personal dashboard, enabling you to track gains and losses over time.
Overall, it's a user-friendly and reliable crypto tax tool.
Koinly
Koinly is another popular solution for dealing with crypto-related taxation. The platform is a handy tool for both investors and accountants who want to streamline tracking, calculating, and reporting crypto transactions for tax purposes.
Koinly smoothly integrates with over 750 crypto platforms, including over 350 exchanges, 90+ wallets, and 150+ blockchains, and offers support for thousands of cryptocurrencies and tokens. Key features include easy crypto and tax tracking, convenient transaction data synchronization, finding and fixing tax issues, and seamless tax reporting.
Similarly to Coinpanda, the application claims to enable tax report completion in under 20 minutes.
Blockpit
Blockpit is also a popular crypto tool for portfolio tracking and calculating taxes. Headquartered in Austria, the platform offers extensive tax guides for the US, the UK, and several EU countries, including Austria and Germany.
It also names "best crypto tax software," nodding to the above-mentioned competition, and – obviously – including itself. Similarly to Coinpanda and Koinly, Blockpit provides support ("full support") for NFTs and DeFi, as well as free portfolio tracking. On its website, the app lists all available integrations with exchanges, blockchains, and wallets, enabling convenient browsing.
Like other crypto tax tools, Blockpit offers an all-in-one dashboard for monitoring a user's crypto portfolio.
What other crypto tools are available?
The crypto industry offers countless tools for various cryptocurrency-related activities and dealing with all sorts of issues. It's hard to cover them all in one article. One other category worth mentioning is crypto mining tools, which we have extensively described elsewhere ("How to Make Money on Bitcoin Cloud Mining Platforms? A Beginner's Guide to Cryptocurrency Mining"), providing examples of mining software.
There are also trading tools such as eToro or Revolut (a functionality within a popular banking app). They enable a rookie crypto investor to place a "bet" on a crypto asset of their choice without actually buying it and test their trading decisions before delving deeper into the crypto space.
Also, crypto analysis tools and technical analysis tools vary in terms of features and how they approach market data, which puts some of them in distinctly different categories.
Another type of a neat crypto tool worth mentioning is a cryptosteel, a metal capsule for the safe storing of seed phrases.
With the development of the cryptocurrency and web3 industry, new crypto tools will be popping up like mushrooms. We'll monitor and examine them to help you navigate the decentralized space.
