As soon as the holiday season comes around, we all feel the pressure of buying gifts. This can be stressful, especially if you head out to stores to brave the crowds. But if you have your own crypto, can that be used for gift buying? Can you buy your loved ones the things they love using crypto?

Where Can You Spend Your Crypto?

woman holding shopping bags over shoulder

Ten years ago, the idea of paying for products in crypto was essentially unheard of. But as the cryptocurrency industry has developed, so has the worldwide adoption of crypto-based payments.

Cryptocurrency is far from being as widely accepted as fiat money. Most retailers worldwide still require payment using traditional tender, be it USD, EUR, GBP, INR, or any other national currency.

Most companies that accept cryptocurrency payments do so in the form of Bitcoin, the world's most popular cryptocurrency. There are currently over 15,000 global retailers that allow BTC payments. Within the US, these vendors include:

  • Overstock
  • Twitch
  • Gyft
  • Newegg
  • ExpressVPN
  • AMC
  • Home Depot
  • Various Etsy sellers
  • Whole Foods

Some vendors also accept payments in other cryptocurrencies, such as Bitcoin Cash and Ethereum. Certain businesses, such as Newegg, GameStop, Lowe's, and Nordstrom, allow payments in Shiba Inu. You'll often need to use a payment processing app like Flexa to pay using cryptocurrency.

How to Buy Gifts with Crypto

ripple coin on top of wrapped gift
Image Credit: CryptoWallet.com Images/Flickr

If you're looking to buy gifts with your crypto, you first need to make sure that the site you're using is legitimate. The crypto industry is no stranger to scams, and there are various phony websites out there designed to con you out of your assets. The vendors listed above are all legitimate, so you don't need to worry about them. But if you're planning on trying a smaller platform, be sure to look out for red flags.

This includes spelling errors, suspiciously cheap products, and unusual URLs. You should also note that just because you're paying in crypto does not mean that the vendor should request your private key under any circumstances. This should always be kept private. If a crypto site asks for your private key, it's likely a scam. Your seed phrase should also never be requested nor provided.

As previously mentioned, crypto payments are still fairly limited, which may restrict what gifts you can buy. However, if you want to extend your reach, you may want to check out gift card sites.

If it's games you're looking for, various sites allow you to buy game keys using cryptocurrency. These services will email you your game key after purchase, which you can use immediately. Take Joltfun, for example. This site offers game keys for various platforms, including Steam, Origin, Playstation, Xbox, and Nintendo Switch. So, if any of your friends or family are into gaming, buying them game keys with crypto might make for a worthwhile gift.

Crypto Gift Cards

If you're looking for an easy way to buy gifts using your crypto, gift card websites are a solid option. Various gift card sites accept crypto payments in exchange for gift cards.

A particularly popular crypto gift card site is Bitrefill. Bitrefill allows you to buy hundreds of different gift cards from a range of industries. Some of the top gift cards you can grab are listed below:

  • Netflix
  • Macy's
  • Steam
  • eBay
  • Amazon
  • Airbnb
  • Starbucks
  • Nike
  • Hulu
  • Spotify
  • Walmart

On top of these popular names, you can grab gift cards for food delivery services such as DoorDash, home improvement retailers like Home Depot, and airlines like Delta. In short, there's no limit to the kinds of gift cards you can buy for your loved ones on Bitrefill.

So, which cryptos can be used on Bitrefill?

At the moment, Bitrefill accepts payments in Bitcoin, Ethereum, Tether, USD Coin, Lightning, Litecoin, Dogecoin, and Dash.

You can also connect various crypto wallets and exchanges to purchase gift cards on Bitrefill, including Coinbase, Kraken, Strike, Binance Pay, Ledger, Bitfinex, Trezor, Bitstamp, and Trust Wallet. So, Bitrefill gives you a lot of choices when it comes to how you pay.

Note that you can return gift cards on Bitrefill if there is a technical error or the gift card code doesn't arrive, but you'll need to do so within 30 days of your purchase.

There are various other platforms that you can check out to buy gift cards with crypto, such as CoinGate and Cryptorefills. These sites work similarly to Bitrefill, sending you virtual gift cards in exchange for crypto.

Gifting Crypto Directly

If you want to give someone crypto instead of buying them a gift with it, this is also an option. Of course, you can simply send crypto to the recipient's wallet address. But if you'd like to make things a little more special, some platforms allow you to send a virtual crypto gift card.

Take Coinbase, for example. On this exchange, you can send a crypto gift card in the form of various assets, including Bitcoin, Cardano, Dai, Ethereum, and Tether. Many of the assets that Coinbase lists for trading can be sent as a gift cards.

Coinbase also allows you to add a note to the gift card and personalize it using art inspired by NFTs. It's certainly a quick and easy way to gift your friends and family without heading out to the store.

Binance also offers a similar service, wherein you can send someone a personalized digital gift card loaded with crypto. There are hundreds of different assets that you can send as a gift using Binance, and you'll also have a range of designs to choose from.

Both Coinbase and Binance are trusted, reputable platforms, so you don't need to worry about the legitimacy of these gift cards.

If you want to gift some crypto to an extra special person, you could also consider buying them a hardware wallet with a little crypto stored on it.

Your Crypto Funds Can Go Towards Your Gift Giving

While cryptocurrency is far from being accepted by vendors on a wide scale, you can still use it to buy gifts for your loved ones this holiday season. So, if this interests you, check out some of the retailers discussed above. Happy shopping!