LocalBitcoins.com – buy, sell or trade bitcoin

LocalBitcoins P2P Exchange

• Instant, secure and private.
• 10-60 minutes per transaction
• Available in 200+ countries
• No minimums or maximums

Buy or sell bitcoin from a local seller in-person or online on LocalBitcoins.

Bitcoin isn’t usually the best medium to make an international money transfer. In fact, most of the time it’s actually slower and more expensive than other methods like forex services and even bank transfers.

A different story emerges with LocalBitcoins.com, a peer-to-peer exchange. Because you trade bitcoins with other people, you can find attractive exchange rates as long as other traders are willing to offer them. And LocalBitcoins charges very few fees, if any.

LocalBitcoins is an effective option and you could theoretically complete an entire money transfer at no cost. Even if you don’t get a deal that good, you might walk away with a low-cost money transfer that’s completed in as little as an hour.

LocalBitcoins exchange rates

Bitcoin exchange rates aren’t set by LocalBitcoins — instead, they’re set by individual buyers and sellers on the platform. Because of this, exchange rates can vary.

Buying bitcoin

When you buy bitcoin, you could theoretically get an exchange rate that matches the mid-market rate. However, this is unlikely because many users want to make at least a little profit from selling bitcoin.

More often, you’ll get an exchange rate that’s worse than the mid-market rate. The best online offers often hover around 1% above the mid-market rate. As an example, let’s say one bitcoin is worth $1,000. In that case, someone may sell a bitcoin to you for $1,010 instead.

If you’re willing to make bitcoin trades in person, you’ll often find even better exchange rates.

Selling bitcoin

Just as people will post ads selling bitcoin, they’ll also post ads seeking bitcoin. If you have bitcoin, you may be able to sell them for better than the mid-market rate. Exchanging your bitcoin for 2% above the mid-market rate would be quite a good deal.

How much will it cost me to send money with LocalBitcoins?

Fees can be overbearing on other bitcoin platforms, but they’re relatively light on LocalBitcoins.

If you’re responding to an ad, you won’t pay a fee to buy or sell bitcoin. If you’re the one posting an ad, you’ll be charged 1% of the bitcoin traded.

When you transfer bitcoin to your recipient, there’s no fee if you transfer to their LocalBitcoins wallet. If you transfer to a third-party wallet, you will pay a fee of between 0.0001 and 0.0010 BTC.

How long will it take to send money with LocalBitcoins?

When you buy and sell bitcoin, it may take time to line up the right trade partners. Further, the time it takes to complete a purchase or sale depends on how quickly you and your trade partner can send funds to LocalBitcoins (see “How do I send or receive money through LocalBitcoins?” below).

Bitcoin transactions are usually completed within 10 to 60 minutes. That means if the money transfer process goes smoothly, you could complete an entire transfer within a few hours — maybe even within one hour.

Minimum transfer fees and available countries

There’s no minimum or maximum on how much you can transfer. Limits are set by individual buyers and sellers.

LocalBitcoins has exchangers in more than 200 countries and 14,000 cities around the world. (The LocalBitcoins head office is actually located in Helsinki, Finland.) You can trade bitcoin in over 100 currencies.

What types of transfers does LocalBitcoins support?

You can buy and sell bitcoin using dozens of payment methods, including:

There’s no set method you have to use — you can decide on which one you’ll use with your buyer or seller.

How do I send or receive money through LocalBitcoins?

To complete a money transfer through bitcoin, you’ll need to take these basic steps:

• You use fiat currency — government-issued money like Australian dollars, euro and yen — to buy bitcoin.
• You transfer the bitcoin to your recipient.
• Your recipient sells the bitcoin for the fiat currency of their choice.

Here’s how to do that in four steps.

1. Find a listing that sells bitcoin.
On LocalBitcoins, you can buy bitcoin online or in person. You’ll see listings on the website’s homepage with ads — click one to see how much a trader is selling bitcoin for. You can also post your own ad.

2. Transfer the funds.
When you initiate a trade, you’ll go through the LocalBitcoins escrow process. This means that you send money to LocalBitcoins — not the seller. At the same time, your trade partner will send bitcoin to the platform.

When both you and the seller have sent the funds, LocalBitcoins will release the bitcoin to you and the money to your trade partner.

3. Send bitcoin to your recipient.
After you’ve purchased bitcoin, send them from your LocalBitcoins wallet to your recipient’s wallet.

4. Your recipient sells the bitcoin.
Finally, your recipient can sell the bitcoin on LocalBitcoins for the fiat currency of their choice.

What to look out for

• Fraud. Because LocalBitcoins is a peer-to-peer service, you’ll be exchanging money and bitcoin with other people. Be wary of deals that seem too good to be true — your instincts are probably right.
• Safety when exchanging bitcoin in person. When making in-person trades, exchange only in well-populated areas. Don’t be afraid to call off a deal if you sense that something’s wrong.
• Unusual payment methods. Avoid exchanging money with payment methods you haven’t used before. Also be careful about selling bitcoin for gift card codes, which LocalBitcoins considers a high-risk payment option.

Benefits and drawbacks

Next steps

To get started with LocalBitcoins, sign up for a free account online. Just enter a username, an email address and a password. Once approved, you can begin trading bitcoin with users in your area and around the world.

Frequently asked questions

• What is bitcoin?

  Bitcoin is a digital currency that people can invest in and use as payment for goods. It’s a decentralised currency, meaning it’s not issued by any government.

• Is it safe to use LocalBitcoins?

  When discussing the safety of the peer-to-peer service LocalBitcoins, because you’re trading with other people, there are many variables. However, sending money over the platform is safe as long as you use the escrow service — LocalBitcoins will hold currency from both the buyer and seller before the funds are released.

  Keep in mind that local trades don’t have escrow by default, and you should only complete in-person trades in well-populated areas. Finally, check the feedback for a buyer or seller before initiating any transaction.

• Does it cost anything to sign up for LocalBitcoins?

  No, you can register a new account online for free.

• How does LocalBitcoins make money?

  LocalBitcoins charges a fee to advertisers on its platform. When the bitcoin purchase is released from escrow, LocalBitcoins charges the advertiser 1% of the transaction.

Image source: LocalBitcoins