One of the first questions potential new crypto investors ask me is, “So if I am interested in buying Bitcoin, what’s the process”?
My short answer for them is to create an exchange account, complete their KYC requirements, and buy Bitcoin with your bank card.
However, this oversimplified process might not benefit an absolute beginner to follow through by themselves.
That’s why I am writing this post.
To help a total beginner to buy their first Bitcoin without the help of anyone, and just by reading and following the instructions in this article.
There are dozens of ways to buy your first Bitcoin with cash, but I will share the most straightforward ways.
So, without much ado, let’s get started.
Three simple ways to buy your first Bitcoin with your local currency
There are three simple ways to buy your first Bitcoin with fiat:
- Buy bitcoin from an individual in a face-to-face transaction and pay them with cash or bank transfer.
- Buy Bitcoin on a cryptocurrency exchange using your bank card.
- Buy Bitcoin with Fiat on a peer-to-peer Bitcoin marketplace.
There are other ways, but these are the top 3 most popular and simplest ways to buy your first Bitcoin as a beginner or even an experienced crypto investor.
In detail, let’s discuss how to buy your first Bitcoin using the above methods.
1. Buy Bitcoin from an individual
This is self-explanatory. Locate a close friend or family member into Bitcoin and ask if you can buy some from them.
If they have it for sale, you can give them cash, and they send the Bitcoin into your wallet on the spot in a face-to-face transaction.
I bought my first Bitcoin in 2017 in a face-to-face transaction. I gave my friend the cash, and he immediately sent the Bitcoin equivalent to my wallet.
This transaction could also happen over a long distance if you trust the person enough, but I wouldn’t suggest that, as you can be easily scammed or cheated.
2. Buy Bitcoin from an exchange with your bank card
The second and arguably most popular and convenient way to buy Bitcoin is through a centralized exchange, using your bank card.
This is because these exchanges are highly regulated and compliant with applicable laws.
Furthermore, they offer many different features and cryptocurrencies you can buy, not just Bitcoin.
They could also serve as your crypto wallet or “crypto bank,” where you can buy, trade, store, and even invest your crypto to earn interest.
However, I wouldn’t suggest leaving your crypto on an exchange due to safety and privacy reasons. You sold to keep your coins in your wallet, which only you can access and control.
Let’s look at some of the best crypto exchanges where you can buy Bitcoin and how to buy your first Bitcoin on an exchange.
List of some popular cryptocurrency exchanges where you can buy Bitcoin
Some popular centralized exchanges you can consider buying your Bitcoin from include:
- Binance. The largest cryptocurrency exchange in the world by trading volume, liquidity, traffic (userbase), and other metrics. Binance offers spot, margin, derivatives, peer-to-peer trading, investment, lending, mining services, an NFT marketplace, an intelligent chain, and other services and features.
- OKX. Leading and innovative cryptocurrency exchange with advanced financial services. OKX offers spot, margin, futures, options, perpetual swaps trading, investment, lending, and mining services.
- Coinbase. Coinbase is the largest and most popular cryptocurrency exchange in the US, but it is available in over 100 countries. It’s probably the only exchange that offers FDIC insurance on all USD cash balances on its platform up to a maximum of $250,000.
- KuCoin. Popularly known as the people’s exchange, KuCOin offers spot, margin, contract (futures) trading, investment, lending, trading bot services, and an intelligent chain network.
- FTX. FTX is a cryptocurrency exchange built by traders for traders, offering innovative products, including industry-first derivatives, options, volatility products, and leveraged tokens. The exchange aims to develop a robust platform for professional trading firms that is intuitive enough for first-time users.
- Huobi Global. Huobi is one of the oldest and leading cryptocurrency exchanges, established in 2013. The exchange supports over 469 crypto assets and offers two primary ways to buy crypto with fiat (with a bank card or local currency on its P2P marketplace).
- Kraken. Kraken is arguably the oldest cryptocurrency exchange still in existence. It was established in 2011 and built for newcomers and experts alike.
- Binance US. This is Binance but for the US only. It supports a much-limited number of coins and features than Binancemu ch-limited global.
- Gemini. Gemini is another US-based crypto exchange with a carefully selected list of coins to list.
- FTX.US. This is FTX but for the US only.
For this article, we will use Binance to buy our first crypto with a bank card.
If you don’t have a Binance exchange account, you must quickly create one by following the simple steps below.
How to create a Binance account
- Step one:
Click here to begin the signup process (affiliate link).
- Step two
On the next page, select your country of residence and click Confirm.
Fill out the simple form that pops up with your email address and a suitable password you will be using to access your Binance account.
Then, agree to the terms and conditions and click Create Account to proceed.
On the next screen (shown above), you’ll be required to prove you’re not a bot by solving a simple puzzle. Drag the slide accordingly until you fit the cut-out shape in the frame.
Once you successfully solve that puzzle, you will be taken to the email verification screen below.
Click Get Code, and a verification code will be sent to your email.
Now login to your email, copy the six-digit verification code sent to you, enter it on the next screen as shown above, and then click Submit.
The next step is to click Verify at the top right-hand side of the screen and complete their KYC requirements to verify your identity.
Select your country from the top right-hand side and click Start Now to begin the identity verification process. Then, follow the onscreen instructions and provide the required information accordingly.
The KYC requirements and review time could differ slightly depending on your country.
KYC is compulsory on all exchanges if you want to buy crypto with your bank card or fiat.
How to buy Bitcoin with your bank card on Binance
Binance is the largest cryptocurrency exchange by trading volume and website traffic, as per data from CoinGecko.
It’s also the most trusted and reliable cryptocurrency exchange, judging by the number of people using it and the amount of money that flows through its accounts.
Furthermore, Binance supports the most significant coins and innovative chains so you can withdraw your crypto assets. That’s why it’s my most preferred crypto exchange for this guide.
Enough of the Binance hype, though; let’s buy your Bitcoin already.
Buy Bitcoin on Binance using your bank card.
Click Buy Crypto from your Binance account home screen and select Credit/Debi Card from the Pay With a drop-down menu, as shown above.
From the next screen, enter the USD (or your local currency) amount you want to spend, and the system will automatically calculate the amount of BTC you will get.
Then click Continue to proceed.
Agree to the fiat service agreement and click Start to proceed.
Click Continue to proceed.
All done!
Now click OK to continue buying your first Bitcoin on Binance using your credit or debit card.
Enter your credit or debit card details and click Next to proceed.
Enter your street address and city name, and then click Confirm to proceed.
Then click Continue.
You can see that the transaction fee for this purchase is $100, which is 2% of the total amount you’re using to buy Bitcoin.
This reasonably high fee is why I prefer to use the B-to-peer (P2P) marketplace for my purchases with zero transactions; the risk of buying crypto on the marketplace is higher than buying directly from Binance.
If you’re okay with the fee, click Confirm within 10 seconds; otherwise, the rate will refresh.
Once the payment is successful, the money will be deducted from your bank account, and your Binance account will be credited with the amount of Bitcoin shown earlier.
Congratulations, you have successfully purchased your first Bitcoin on Binance.
3. Buy Bitcoin with fiat on the Binance P2P crypto marketplace
Before you can buy crypto on the Binance peer-to-peer marketplace, you must complete SMS authentication and Identity verification.
To begin, click on Buy Crypto and select P2P Trading from the drop-down menu.
This will take you to the Binance p2p crypto marketplace, where you can select the coin you want to buy, the amount you want to spend, your local currency, and the payment method you wish to use.
Once done, click SEARCH to filter the order list to your preference as shown below.
The system will return all BTC sell orders that match your selected criteria. Just click the green Buy BTC button before any of the sellers’ names to initiate a transaction with them.
On the following screen, enter the amount of BTC you want to buy from this seller and click Buy BTC, as shown above.
You will be directed to the payment page, where you have to transfer money directly to the seller’s account.
Once you have paid the seller, click “Transferred, notify the seller.”
The BTC will be credited to your Binance wallet when the seller confirms your payment.
There are other peer-to-peer crypto marketplaces where you can buy your first Bfrom, but Binance P2P is the best.
You will notice a zero transaction fee when buying crypto on Binance P2P. I prefer using it when buying crypto with fiat; it feels more secure than other p2p crypto marketplaces.
If you prefer a visual guide, below are two video tutorials on how to buy crypto on Binance P2P on your PC and mobile app.
How to Buy Crypto on Binance P2P on your PC via a web browser
How to Buy Crypto on Binance P2P on the Binance mobile app
Other popular p2p crypto marketplaces include Paxful, Remitano, LocalBitcoins, LocalCryptos, etc., but I rarely use these.
But they work fine, too, and you can try them out if you want to explore other alternatives to Binance p2p.
How much Bitcoin should I buy for the first time?
You can buy any amount of Bitcoin you can afford, whether $1 or $1 billion. You can buy one or several whole Bitcoins, and you can also buy a fraction of 1 BTC (e.g., 0.0001 0r 0.1) depending on how much cash you have to spend.
No amount is too small or too big. It’s all about your budget and risk appetite.
If you need more explanation on how much you need to start your Bitcoin investment, check out my previous article: How much do I need to start investing in crypto?
There, I discussed in detail all the factors you should consider in deciding how much you need to start investing in crypto.
Conclusion
There you have it. The top 3 ways to buy your first Bitcoin, or any cryptocurrency, are using your bank card.
Buying crypto on the Binance p2p marketplace is my favorite because of the zero fees and no limits or restrictions, and the platform is more secure and reliable than other p2p crypto marketplaces.
What’s your favorite method of buying crypto with your bank card? Share with us in the comments section below.
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