In the early days of Bitcoin, many who believed in the cryptocurrency’s potential power believed that it would soon be the biggest alternative to traditional currency in the market. While that has happened to some degree, these days, Bitcoin is primarily used as a long-term investment or traded like any other asset. One of the biggest problems holding it back from complete adoption is the fact that the blockchain technology used to support Bitcoin just can’t scale up the way bigger payment technologies like Visa have. That’s at least partly because the network can process just seven seconds a transaction. Visa currently handles 150 million transactions every single day, an average of 24,000 transactions per second. As more people began to use Bitcoin and send transactions through the network, the process began to experience some slow downs, and the wait time today is incredible, as are the transaction fees involved. Average user wait times range from hours to days. The smaller the transaction, the longer the wait because miners avoid confirming the tiny transactions since it’s such a waste of time and resources. No one wants to use Bitcoin to pay for a pizza if they’re going to end up paying twice the cost of the pizza in transaction fees. While the wait times and transaction fees continue to fluctuate, merchants that had jumped on the idea of accepting Bitcoin have now dropped the idea due to low interest from customers. Fortunately, though, if you’re asking “What can you buy with Bitcoin,” there are some things that you can spend Bitcoin on if you don’t want to hang onto your money. This guide can help you find them.
A Note About Moving Bitcoin To Cash
If you’re having trouble spending your Bitcoin despite the advice that is offered in this guide, understand that Bitcoin is an investment just like any other. It doesn’t have to be in the form of cryptocurrency. There are thousands of exchanges out there that will allow you to sell your Bitcoin for cash, and given that so many people want to become part of the Bitcoin market today, there are always plenty of willing buyers. If you’d rather not hang onto the Bitcoin in your wallet, feel free to sell it off instead of searching for ways to spend it on and offline. If, instead, though, you’re dedicated to finding a way to make cryptocurrency work in the real world, there ideas can help make that more than possible.
If You’re Shopping Online
If you’re planning to make an online purchase, there are several places that accept Bitcoin and answer the “what can you buy with Bitcoin” question once and for all. Etsy, the most creative space online, has 100 vendors that accept Bitcoin as a form of payment. Shopify, a collection of user created stores, also accepts Bitcoin. The electronics store Newegg accepts Bitcoin, as does Microsoft. If you’re looking for something different, Overstock is there to meet your needs by accepting Bitcoin as well.
If You’re Shopping Offline
Offline, there are a few food places that allow you to pay for your purchases with Bitcoin. The sandwich giant Subway allows you to pay for your food with Bitcoin. PizzaforCoins will help you find a local pizza place that lets you pay with Bitcoins. If you’ll be in London in the near future, stop in Pembury Tavern and pay with Bitcoin. Burger Bear, a food stall, will also let you pay with Bitcoin. If you’re planning a trip to Tokyo, the Pink Cow diner accepts Bitcoin. Go a bit further south and stop in the Old Fitzroy, a pub in Sydney, and you can pay with Bitcoin there, too.
Paying for Services with Bitcoin
There are also some services you can pay for online with your Bitcoin. An American satellite television service provider called Dish Network accepts Bitcoin, as do a few VPN networks including ExpressVPN and PureVPN. The online dating website OKCupid will accept Bitcoin as a payment method. If you’re looking to build a website, you can reserve a domain name through Namecheap and pay with
Bitcoin, then build your site in WordPress and pay with Bitcoin. Premium Reddit subscriptions are also available with the ability to pay in Bitcoin. There are also a number of journalism sites that accept Bitcoin for subscriptions including Bloomberg, the Chicago Sun-Times, and many others. A few other sites that accept Bitcoin as a payment method include SuicideGirls and Treehouse.
If you require other services, like web design, writing work, or B2B help, you may want to consider a marketplace that offers freelance help that you can pay for in Bitcoin. There are many of these available today including Bitgigs, HireBid, and CanWork. All of these sites allow you to list the job and your budget, then have freelancers who bid on the job and accept Bitcoin as payment.
Buy a House with Bitcoin?
So, what can you buy with Bitcoin? What if you could buy a house? It really is possible to purchase property in some places with Bitcoin. A company called Bitcoin Real Estate allows people to buy, sell, and rent property using Bitcoin as a payment method. While this isn’t a worldwide phenomenon yet, it may soon be, so if you don’t see a listing in your area, keep watching for additional options to come up in the near future.
Gaming and Bitcoin Go Hand in Hand
If you’re a gamer, you’ll find lots of platforms accept Bitcoin as a method of payment. You can pay for games and add-ons for your X-box. You can do the same through the PlayStation Network. Big Fish Games accepts Bitcoin, as does Green Man Gaming. Humble Bumble does too. If you’re into mobile games, you can pay with Bitcoin at Zynga.
Consider Travel on your Bitcoin Fortune
Bitcoin isn’t just available for every day stuff, though. If you’re going on holiday soon, you may want to pay with Bitcoin. Expedia accepts Bitcoin payments for hotel bookings, as does AirBaltic and Webjet. CheapAir will let you book a number of options and pay with Bitcoin, and so will Bitcoin Travel. Travel for Coins will let you make all of your travel arrangements and pay for them with Bitcoin. Some taxi and ride share services will accept Bitcoin in parts of the world, so do your research to see if you can find one before you head out. If you’re thinking a bit bigger for your next holiday, you may want to book on Virgin Galactic, Richard Branson’s company and pay with Bitcoin.
If your holiday will take you to Japan, you may be in luck when it comes to paying by Bitcoin. In 2017, Recruit Lifestyle partnered with Coincheck to create an app that enabled businesses in Japan to easily accept this cryptocurrency. More than 260,000 places all over the country now accept Bitcoin. Some fairly famous names are among those. Comicap hotel and Bic Camera will take your Bitcoin while you’re in Japan, as will the Kai Corporation at all of their restaurants. In fact, all you have to do in Japan is just as if they’ll accept Bitcoin, and it’s fairly likely they will.
Bitcoin +Philanthropy = A Big Win
You can donate money with Bitcoin. In fact, you can donate anonymously with your Bitcoin if you use the Wikimedia Foundation, Wikileaks, or search the Bitcoin for Charity List for your favorite charity outlet.
Maybe Gift Cards Are The Right Size?
Buying gift cards with your Bitcoin is almost always an option, and there are a number of sites dedicated to making that happen. Egifter, Gyft, and Yes to Bitcoins! are all services designed to help you buy gift cards of almost any value. Other services that allow you to buy gift cards with Bitcoin including purse.io, Cyfter, and Instagift. If you want to do it from your phone, you may want to consider the Fold app.
Consider a Different Investment
Thinking of simply trading your Bitcoin in for something a little more physical? That’s possible too. Amagi Metals will trade you precious metals for your Bitcoin, as will a company called BitGold. It’s a good way to trade one investment for another if you’re tired of the Bitcoin market.
Lists, Lists, and More Lists
Is there really any answer that will satisfy the “what can you buy with Bitcoin” question for everyone? Probably not, and if you’re still not sure where to spend your Bitcoin, there are many sites that are dedicated to nothing else besides listing where to spend your cryptocurrency. Where To Spend Bitcoins UK is a list of all of the shops, pubs, and sites in the UK that accept Bitcoin. UseBitcoins offers a list of thousands of businesses that accept the currency, and Coinmap even offers a worldwide map of those companies. Spendabit is a search engine that is dedicated to helping you find what you want with the option to buy in Bitcoin.
No matter what you hope to spend your Bitcoin on, there’s likely a spot to spend it, and the adoption rate is only increasing. After all, it’s good PR for companies to offer yet another way to pay, particularly a popular one like Bitcoin. Keep an eye out, as there will likely be lots of other places accepting this cryptocurrency in the near future.