Below we will compare and contrast several cryptocurrency exchanges that allow Bitcoin’s to be purchased via debit and credit card.

After reading about each exchange and deciding which one will be the best for you, look towards the bottom of this page for step by step guides on using each exchange.

Coinbase

Coinbase (review) is one of the most reputable Bitcoin exchanges in the world. They’ve been pushing to bring cryptocurrencies to the general public since 2012. Coinbase makes it easy for anyone to get into cryptocurrency. Just make an account, link your preferred payment method, and start purchasing.

Coinbase was recently valued at $8 billion for good reason, its amazingly simple user interface allows anyone from any background easily purchase cryptocurrency like Bitcoin.

Coinbase’s works with the financial authorities in the U.S., so you can be sure that any profits made from the appreciation of Bitcoin or purchases of over $20,000 will be reported as tax needed to be paid. Coinbase requires users to submit a picture of their ID to confirm the identity of the account.

Please note that if you are based in the United States, credit card purchases are disabled. You can still purchase with a debit card from Coinbase in the US.

Fees and Limits

Coinbase’s credit and debit card purchasing fees are remarkably low compared to the competition at 3.99%.

Coinbase’s buying limits are relatively low when using a card to pay compared to its competition. Depending on your accounts verification level, you will be able to purchase different amounts of cryptocurrency daily. The highest tier of verification allows $50,000 to be purchased daily on Coinbase.

Coinbase has no deposit fees for moving currency onto the exchange, the transaction fee occurs upon purchase.

All in all, Coinbase provides a fantastic starting point for beginners by having an easy to navigate interface, and quick sign up process.

Coinmama

Coinmama is also a great option. The first thing you might notice upon logging in to Coinmama is the user interface of its website. Coinmama offers different packages which give a certain amount of cryptocurrency. If you plan to get a different amount than their packages, you can specify how much Bitcoin you want to buy.

Another small difference about Coinmama is that they do not provide you with a wallet for storing your purchased cryptocurrency. Instead, they ask you for a wallet to send the purchased currency too. This shouldn’t be an issue at all, as long as you have your own wallet. To learn more about Bitcoin wallets, check our guide,

Coinmama has a great reputation in the crypto community as they have reliable customer support and have been around for a while. They are based in Israel and support several countries and almost all US States.

Fees and Limits

Coinmama charges a fee of around 5% for credit and debit purchases. Although its fees are higher than Coinbase, they have instant delivery and higher purchasing limits.

Coinmama has high purchasing limits at a max of $5,000 daily, and $20,000 monthly. As far as minimum purchases go, Coinmama has a minimum of $60 USD.

CEX.io

CEX.io is another great option to buy bitcoin with credit card or debit card. They have been in business since 2013 and are based in London, UK. The exchange brings strong security, great liquidity, and cross-platform trading via their website, mobile app, and API solutions. According to the website, they have over 2 million active traders. CEX.io also allows margin trading for those that want to, and near 100% uptime.

Their service coverage is decent, allowing 24 US states, and 99% of countries around the world. Here are the states CEX.io does NOT support.

Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Guam, Idaho, Iowa, Kansas, Louisiana, Maryland, Michigan, Mississippi, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Jersey, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oregon, Tennessee, Texas, U.S. Virgin Islands, Vermont, Virginia, Washington.

They are working on increasing the supported US states by obtaining additional Money Transferring Licenses.

Fees and Limits

As far as fees and limits go, CEX.io is competitive with a 3.9% on credit and debit card deposit fee. When selling Bitcoin back to your credit or debit card, there will be a 2.9% fee. This is a special feature to CEX.io as many exchanges do not allow you to sell back onto your credit card.

CEX.io appears to offer feeless purchasing, but this is not the case. They charge a premium upon purchasing. This basically means that the price of Bitcoin or other cryptocurrencies are sold above the going rate.

Bitstamp

Bitstamp’s claim to fame is that it’s the ‘first fully licensed bitcoin exchange’ in the world. As the statement suggests, Bitstamp provides more than just debit and credit card purchases. It also allows you to buy with a bank transfer, SEPA transfer, and more. You can even cash out your balance in gold.

That, however, does not deter from the ability to make credit and debit purchases. The page has a simple interface that lends itself to navigation and oversight. Debit card purchases, like with most services, require identity verification. Once the account has been verified, just link your debit card and make purchases as desired.

Fees and Limits

Credit card purchases using Bitstamp also follow a staggered fee system.

• For up to 500$/500 Euro purchases the fee is 8%.
• For up to 1000$/1000 Euro purchases the fee is 7%.
• For up to 2500$/2500 Euro purchases the fee is 6%.
• For up to 5000$/5000 Euro purchases the fee is 5%.

All in all, Bitstamp offers very low prices compared to most other services, considering other services can charge 5%+ for credit card processing alone.

LocalBitcoins

LocalBitcoins (review) operates a bit differently than other exchanges. The prices vary as anyone posts what they are willing to sell their Bitcoins for. Each vendor on the page has a review history which gives you a good idea of how trustworthy the transaction will be.

Also, the page marks the average response time taken for a vendor to respond to your order. All in all, it’s a great peer-to-peer alternative to Bitcoin purchases than the other services listed above.

Fees and Limits

Localbitcoins charges a 1% fee for using their service and depending on the price a seller is offering you could technically be paying a higher one. Localbitcoins is a more private way of purchasing Bitcoin, so some users don’t mind paying a few % in fees in exchange.

How to Buy Bitcoin on Coinbase

In order to buy Bitcoin on Coinbase, you will need to first create an account. Click “Create Account” and then confirm your email.

Next, you will be asked to confirm your phone number. Enter your number, and Coinbase will text you a code. Type in the sent code to go the next step.

From here,  you will need to verify your identity by filling in several fields.

After this step, you are almost ready to buy Bitcoin!

Click the settings tab on the nav bar and click “Link a new account”. From here, you choose the payment method you want to link.

As stated above, Coinbase does not allow US customers to use credit cards to purchase Bitcoin anymore. Debit cards still work.

After linking the payment method you are ready to buy Bitcoin!

Click the buy/sell tab on the navigation bar to continue. Enter a $ amount or a BTC amount and click Buy!

Congrats, you now own Bitcoin! Since we used a debit card, we will receive our Bitcoin instantly! Learn how to store your Bitcoin’s on a hardware wallet in one of our other guides.

How to Buy Bitcoin on Coinmama

Before we can purchase cryptocurrency on Coinmama, we must first create an account! To start, you will be prompted for some simple information.

After making your account, you will be prompted to enter some more information in order to verify your identity. This can be annoying but is mandatory for Coinmama to serve its customers. You only have to do this part once.

Click next when you are finished! There may be a verification process where you have to send in some photo to prove your identity. If not, you are ready to purchase Bitcoin on Coinmama using your credit or debit card!

Click Bitcoin on the navigation bar to start purchasing.

You’ll be taken to Coinmama’s packages screen, where you can choose a preselected amount or your own price.

Choose an option, and click Buy Now! You’ll be taken to the next screen. Enter the wallet address you want to send your Bitcoin to. As you can see the order expires to ensure accurate pricing.

Next, enter your card information. Click Pay Now when you are finished and your Bitcoin will be delivered shortly!

Congrats, you have successfully purchased Bitcoin on Coinmama!

How to Buy Bitcoin on CEX.io

Before you can purchase Bitcoin on CEX.io, you will need to create an account. After an account is made, click the green deposit button under the navigation bar.

From here, you will be asked to deposit funds. CEX.io accepts Visa and Mastercard. CEX.io will take a 3.5% deposit fee, which is somewhat high compared to the rest of the exchanges.

Next, go to the Buy/Sell tab on to enter an order.

This will take you to a screen similar to this. Upon scrolling down, you will