Even if you only buy or sell cryptocurrency, they are not the only options investors can use crypto for. Every beholder of bitcoin or other cryptocurrencies can use it to purchase goods, pay for services, donate to charity, or even tip.
So, if you think about where to spend your crypto, this article will tell you about apps, companies, and services that accept crypto as payment.
Ways To Spend Crypto
There are several ways how people can use crypto, such as:
- Buying something online (e.g., on marketplaces)
- Give tips
- Donate to charity supporting funds
- Buy something using card gifts, for example, Amazon Cards
- Paying for hotels and accommodation while traveling
- Spending crypto on video games and many others
Tips
To thank someone with bitcoin is easy. For example, Tippin. me is now one of the simplest ways to send and receive bitcoin tips on Twitter. CoinTip is another alternative for tipping on Twitter, as it operates via a dashboard that is accessible after setting up a CoinTip account and depositing Bitcoin into it.
Gift Cards
Gift cards can be an excellent present for friends and family. Big giants, such as Amazon, BestBuy, and dozens of smaller companies, offer gift cards to be purchased in crypto. Several services can help you:
Video Games
Source: Pexels.com
Companies like Microsoft have recently started offering games or pre-order video games and other apps for bitcoin. Others like this Minecraft Server are even using the bitcoin network to power their in-game currency.
BitPay is also one of the most well-known platforms that accept crypto payments. Users can buy games with bitcoin via the BitPay app by topping their cards up with funds and then buying games or gaming gift cards via any vendor that accepts BitPay at checkout.
Another company that allows buying gaming gift cards with cryptocurrency is Keys4Coins. The platform accepts a range of different cryptos, including bitcoin.
Food
Whole Foods, Starbucks, and Home Depot, the largest hardware store chain in the United States, are food and restaurant companies daring enough to accept crypto payments.
Travel
Love traveling? The great news is that you can pay for hotels and accommodation with Expedia or book a flight with CheapAir or BalticAir. Car dealerships are also trying to keep up, and while paying for fuel directly with bitcoin has yet to happen, Tesla accepted bitcoin as a payment starting in early 2021.
Donate on charity
Apart from buying stuff, you can help others by choosing the fund you want to support.
Hundreds of charity funds accept cryptocurrency nowadays, for example, UNICEF CryptoFund, Against Malaria Foundation, or Syria and Turkey Earthquake Emergency Response Fund.
What Are Crypto Debit Cards?
To spend your crypto conveniently, you may need a crypto debit card, which is a type of card from Visa and Mastercard used to convert your crypto balance into fiat (such as USD) to make purchases.
This card lets you spend your crypto balance at any shop or an app that accepts Visa and Mastercard. Crypto companies such as Coinbase, Crypto.com, BitPay, and others provide crypto debit cards.
Another advantage of a crypto debit card is that it often has a cashback program - the provider can return between 1-8% of the billed amount in crypto. Some also have reward programs for streaming services or other offers, while others waive card ATM fees.
As for the cons of such cards, they still need to be globally accepted, and you also should be very careful with taxes in your country.
Places That Accept Crypto As Payment
Now, let’s look a bit closer at the companies, apps, and merchants that accept cryptocurrency as payment. The table below illustrates only the tip of the iceberg, where is, in realia, there are way many companies that can accept crypto:
1. Twitch
The online streaming service, Twitch, was one of the first companies that started accepting crypto in 2014. They had only one short break in 2019 but currently support over a dozen cryptocurrencies, including Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Dogecoin. You must sign up for a BitPay account to pay for Twitch services using crypto.
2. Microsoft
The world-known giant has been accepting bitcoin for quite a while already. Since 2014 Bill Gate's company has accepted crypto on products purchased through its Microsoft Store. Again, you can use a BitPay account to do so.
3. Badoo
This famous dating site now allows more than 200 million users to pay for premium features using bitcoin in many countries. Crypto's advantages over other payment methods, including its low processing fees and ability to limit chargebacks, contributed to accepting Bitcoin payments.
4. KFC
Fried chicken lovers can exchange their bitcoins for the "Bitcoin Bucket." KFC processes its payment through a third-party vendor BitPay allowing customers to pay for their chicken with bitcoin.
5. Ledger
One of the biggest providers of cold wallets also allows its customers to purchase their products with bitcoin. Plus, they have an affiliate program that also pays out commissions in Bitcoin.
6. PayPal
Another online giant has been wading into crypto for the last few years. PayPal facilitates the buying and selling of crypto directly. The app also allows customers to pay with crypto at checkout on merchant websites that accept PayPal. The cryptocurrencies supported on the platform are Bitcoin, Litecoin, Bitcoin Cash, and Ethereum.
7. Time Magazine
This old and famous media has the option to pay the magazine subscription using bitcoin and other cryptos. To facilitate payments, Time has partnered with the Crypto.com exchange. Users of the Crypto.com Pay service can use their crypto to make payments on Time Magazine's website.
8. Shopify
A huge e-commerce platform accepts Bitcoin via BitPay. In 2020, Shopify partnered up with CoinPayments, BitPay, and Coinbase Commerce and, since then, received more than 1,800 different cryptocurrencies as online payments for their products.
9. CheapAir
Another budget travel agency, CheapAir, has been an early adopter of cryptocurrencies, accepting digital currencies for payment since 2013.
10. Gucci
And finally, high-class fashion houses have started accepting crypto payments in some U.S. Stores. Thus, Gucci, a luxury brand, takes the first steps to make crypto payments real in its shops across the U.S.
This list represents only a few companies, apps, and platforms that accept cryptocurrency for payment. And even if a company whose service you would like to use doesn't accept crypto directly, check if you can use a crypto debit card to get its services.
