The toolkit, curated.
A short, opinionated list of what every bitcoiner should know how to use. These are mere suggestions, not official endorsements. Everything on this page is bitcoin-only.
Showing all 43 resources.
── Learn ──
If you're starting, start here. If you think you already know, read the newsletter anyway.
- 01 → Learn Me a Bitcoin learn
Plain-English guides to keys, addresses, and transactions.
- 02 → Bitcoin Optech Newsletter learn
Weekly brief on Core, Lightning, and protocol changes.
- 03 → Saylor Academy: Bitcoin for Everybody learn
Free intro course on Bitcoin history, economics, and basics.
- 04 → Bitcoin Design learn
Open-source wallet UX patterns, research, and design guidance.
── Buy without drama ──
Bitcoin-only on-ramps. Boring on purpose. No tokens, no launches, no staking.
- 01 → River exchange
US bitcoin-only brokerage with recurring buys and Lightning withdrawals.
- 02 → Swan Bitcoin exchange
Bitcoin-only brokerage built around DCA and larger buys.
- 03 → Strike exchangemobilelightning
Fast Bitcoin on-ramp with Lightning payments and remittance.
- 04 → RoboSats exchangeno KYClightning
Peer-to-peer exchange over Tor and Lightning with escrow.
- 05 → Peach Bitcoin exchangeno KYCmobilemulti-sig
Mobile-first peer-to-peer marketplace with multi-sig escrow.
── Keep your keys · software ──
Where you actually look at your coins. All non-custodial. All audit-friendly.
- 01 → Sparrow Wallet walletdesktop
Desktop wallet with coin control, PSBT support, and custom servers.
- 02 → Nunchuk walletdesktopmobilemulti-sig
Single-sig and multi-sig wallet with collaborative custody tools.
- 03 → Zeus walletmobilelightning
Mobile Lightning wallet that embeds LND or connects to your node.
- 04 → Phoenix walletmobilelightning
Self-custodial mobile Lightning wallet with simple channel management.
- 05 → Breez walletmobilelightning
Self-custodial Lightning wallet with point-of-sale and SDK options.
── Keep your keys · hardware ──
Devices that sign transactions without ever putting your seed on an internet-connected computer.
- 01 → Coldcard hardwareair-gapped
Bitcoin-only hardware wallet built for offline signing.
- 02 → Foundation Passport hardwareair-gapped
Open-source hardware wallet with a camera-based QR workflow.
- 03 → BitBox02 (Bitcoin-only edition) hardware
Dedicated Bitcoin-only firmware in a compact hardware wallet.
- 04 → SeedSigner hardwareDIYair-gapped
Stateless DIY signer built from a Pi Zero and camera.
── Multi-sig and inheritance ──
When a single key is no longer the right security model. For larger balances, shared treasuries, and handing coins to the next generation.
── Run a node ──
Validating the chain yourself is the entire point. None of these ask permission to run.
── Lightning and merchants ──
The rails for accepting sats without a processor in the middle.
- 01 → BTCPay Server merchantlightning
Self-hosted payment processor with invoicing, POS, and store plugins.
- 02 → LNbits merchantlightning
Accounts layer that splits one Lightning node into many wallets.
- 03 → Alby merchantlightningnostr
Lightning Address, NWC, browser tools, and Nostr zaps.
- 04 → Lightning Address merchantlightning
Email-style format for receiving Lightning payments.
── Nostr ──
The publishing side of sovereignty. An identity you own, posts that survive the platform.
── Mining worth pointing at ──
Where the hashrate goes next matters as much as the hashrate itself.
── Read and listen ──
Signal sources, roughly in order from technical to philosophical.
- 01 → TFTC media
Marty Bent’s daily notes and Bitcoin-only interviews.
- 02 → Citadel Dispatch media
Matt Odell’s live roundtable with devs and privacy researchers.
- 03 → Stephan Livera Podcast media
Long-running podcast on Bitcoin, economics, and policy.
- 04 → Stacker News media
Bitcoin forum where posts and votes are priced in sats.
── Find places that take it ──
Bitcoin is a currency when people treat it like one. These help.
── Funders of the code ──
Non-profits and investors paying the people who write Bitcoin. Worth knowing about, worth donating to, worth applying to if you're the one writing the code.
- 01 → OpenSats funding
Grant program for open-source Bitcoin and Nostr work.
- 02 → Brink funding
Major funder of Bitcoin Core contributors and training.
- 03 → Spiral funding
Block’s Bitcoin-only open-source team for LDK, Core, and privacy work.
- 04 → HRF Bitcoin Development Fund funding
Grants for privacy, censorship resistance, and dissident tools.
- 05 → Ten31 funding
Bitcoin-only investment platform backing infrastructure and freedom tech.