There are a lot of good storage options if you’re thinking of buying and holding ETC. In today’s article, we will be featuring some of the best Ethereum Classic wallets for 2019.
About Ethereum Classic
Without a doubt, Ethereum Classic has one of the most interesting stories in the whole cryptosphere. The project is basically the continuation of the original Ethereum. In fact, Ethereum Classic is a hard fork of Ethereum resulted after the DAO hack.
When the hack happened, the development team behind Ethereum had two choices: hard fork the Ethereum chain and return the funds to their holders, or continue with the same platform. A minority of users were heavily against the hard fork for various philosophical, etic, and practical reasons, and continued to use the old blockchain, which is nowadays the “Ethereum Classic” project.
Many doubted the future success of Ethereum Classic, but to the surprise of most, the project survived the test of time and has been constantly included in the top 20 cryptocurrencies by market cap. Not only that, but ETC is one of the fastest growing cryptocurrencies out there.
Since it’s a lot less popular than its counterpart, the Ethereum project, finding the perfect wallet can pose a bit of a challenge.
Things to consider before choosing an ETC Wallet
The most important aspect of any crypto wallet is security, and that should be your primary focus as well. Make sure that you find a wallet that has top-notch security features, the more, the better. A secure wallet allows you to always be in control of your private keys. Look for wallets that have lock-in security features such as support for secure PINs, multi-sig functionality, and even two-factor authentication.
The option to back up your wallet is also very important. A wallet that offers backup options allows you to restore the wallet and access your funds in a worst-case scenario. User accessibility is also a very important aspect. A good, modern wallet should be user-friendly to the extent that even the most novice of users can manage their coins and tokens without having to look up for online tutorials. Last but not least, you will have to make sure that the wallet is actually ETC-compliant. Most wallets nowadays offer support for Ethereum, but not Ethereum Classic.
Nevertheless, there are a lot of good options out there. Hence, if you’re thinking of buying and holding ETC, here is our list of the best Ethereum Classic wallets for 2019.
Atomic Wallet
If the good look and high-tier user experience are what you’re after when looking for the perfect wallet, then Atomic wallet is definitely for you. In fact, Atomic Wallet is much more than just a wallet as it allows you to be in control of your private keys, as well as store, manage, exchange, and buy cryptocurrencies (more than 300), Ethereum Classic included. The wallet is available for Windows, macOS, Ubuntu, Debian, as well as Android.
Ledger Nano S Wallet
It’s an agreed-upon fact that hardware wallets offer the best possible security for your private keys. The Ledger Nano S has been for such a long time in the market that it hardly needs an introduction. It’s one of the most secure, reliable, durable, and successful hardware wallets currently on the market.
It comes with support for Ethereum Classic, and for over 800 other, which is nothing short of impressive, by all accounts. It includes all the security features mentioned above like two-factor authentication, a secure PIN code, and various recovery options. Last but not least, the device has a very sleek design similar to a portable USB flash drive, but with a small OLED screen that allows you to check and confirm transactions quickly.
Guarda Wallet
Guarda is a multi-currency, non-custodial wallet which was created by Guardian OÜ, an Estonian company in 2017.
The wallet has implemented compatibility for over 40 blockchains and ERC20 tokens, including Ethereum Classic.
The private keys of wallets are only managed by the users themselves, with the company not having any access to user funds or data.
The wallet’s interface runs smoothly and users can execute basic functions such as sending, receiving, and storing with ease. The wallet can be downloaded and installed on Android, iOS, Window, Google Chrome, Mac and Linux.
Through its partnership with ChangeNow and CoinSwitch, Guarda enables users to trade their assets right from within the wallet.
ClassicEtherWallet
ClassicEtherWallet is the equivalent of MyEtherWallet, a popular web wallet for storing ETH, as the first is actually a fork of the later. Even though it’s a web wallet, ClassicEtherWallet allows you to store your private keys directly on your computer. The main advantage of this app is its convenience, as it can be accessed by anyone, from any device, with an Internet connection. As far as drawbacks are concerned, this particular wallet is not exactly very user-friendly.
Trezor Wallet
Trezor is Ledger Nano S’ main competitor, and for good reason. It boasts the same amazing security features, the same impressive support for over 800 tokens, and basically, all the functionality one can expect from a hardware wallet.
It’s a small USB device that has a slightly bulkier design, but that means that it has a bigger OLED screen and bigger buttons when compared to the Ledger. The only drawback is the fact that it costs a bit more than the Ledger Nano S, retailing for around $100.
MyEtherWallet
Interestingly enough, another popular choice for Ethereum Classic holders is the original MyEtherWallet. Just like the ClassicEtherWallet, it allows you to store your private keys on your device and not on third-party servers. It also provides you with various options of managing and accessing Ethereum’s smart contracts and it boasts integration with the two hardware wallets mentioned above, the Ledger Nano S and Trezor. It supports ETC and all other ERC-20 tokens.
Please note that MyEtherWallet connects to Ethereum’s blockchain by default. Hence, you will have to manually change the blockchain node to Network ETC (epoo.io).
Emerald Wallet
The Emerald wallet is part of the Emerald platform, which provides a system for running decentralized apps on the Ethereum Classic blockchain. It offers a decent set of features which make it a very good pick if you are looking for an Ethereum Classic wallet. It’s not recommended to beginners, even though it comes with support for all major OSes such as Windows, macOS, and Linux.
Jaxx Wallet
Whatever the popular cryptocurrency you’re planning on holding, you can’t really go wrong with Jaxx. It’s one of the most popular multi-currency, and multi-platform wallet currently on the market. It has one of the best interface out of all the modern wallets, and it’s available for all the mainstream platforms, both desktop and mobile. One of the main selling points of this product is related to the fact that it’s a HD wallet which means that it provides you with total control over your private keys.
Final Words
As you can see, there are plenty of good options from which to choose from. Of course, there is not a perfect wallet, even though some here might seem to perfectly fit your needs as a crypto holder. If you don’t want to fully sacrifice accessibility or security, the best option might be to choose a hardware wallet from our list (for long-term HODL) and any other wallet (for its versatility).
